Get Free Shipping on orders over $89
Aliens, Robots & Virtual Reality Idols in the Science Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft, Isaac Asimov and William Gibson - John L. Steadman

Aliens, Robots & Virtual Reality Idols in the Science Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft, Isaac Asimov and William Gibson

By: John L. Steadman

Paperback | 30 January 2020

Sorry, we are not able to source the book you are looking for right now.

We did a search for other books with a similar title, however there were no matches. You can try selecting from a similar category, click on the author's name, or use the search box above to find your book.

H. P. Lovecraft's aliens are extra-terrestrial, terrestrial & trans-dimensional entities, totally unlike any other aliens in science fiction literature. In contrast, Isaac Asimov's and William Gibson's aliens are human created positronic robots and virtual reality constructs, or 'idols'. Lovecraft's great theme is alien indifferentism, tinged with a malevolence that escalates into an existential, apocalyptic threat against humankind, while for Asimov and Gibson, alien inclusionism is the norm. The robots and the VR idols integrate into society and their influence appears to be beneficial. But this is only on the surface. In this book, John L. Steadman demonstrates that there is ultimately little difference between alien indifferentism and alien inclusionism in the fictional works of these three great writers. For in fact, the robots and the VR idols evolve into monsters whose actions bring about outcomes which are every bit as terrifying as anything in Lovecraft's work. Humans tend to be isolates ('alien'-ated). The reader is invited to question this, and to consider the possibility that an alien perspective, or platform, might, perhaps, be crucial if we intend on seeing ourselves clearly and understanding exactly what it means to be human.

More in Literary Studies of Fiction

Othello : No Fear Shakespeare Series - William Shakespeare

RRP $14.99

$11.99

20%
OFF
Macbeth : No Fear Shakespeare - William Shakespeare

RRP $14.99

$11.99

20%
OFF
The Tempest (No Fear Shakespeare) : No Fear Shakespeare - John Crowther
Pride and Prejudice : Oxford World's Classics - Jane Austen

RRP $14.95

$11.99

20%
OFF
Romeo and Juliet : No Fear Shakespeare Series - William Shakespeare

RRP $14.99

$11.99

20%
OFF
Great Literary Sisters - Janet Phillips

RRP $34.99

$29.99

14%
OFF
Book of Lives : A Memoir of Sorts - Margaret Atwood

RRP $69.99

$52.75

25%
OFF
Hamlet : No Fear Shakespeare - William Shakespeare

RRP $14.99

$11.75

22%
OFF
Middlemarch : Collins Classics - George Eliot
The Picture of Dorian Gray : Clothbound Classics - Oscar Wilde

RRP $35.00

$28.75

18%
OFF
Wuthering Heights : Clothbound Classics - Emily Bronte

RRP $35.00

$25.75

26%
OFF
On Writing : A Memoir of the Craft - Stephen King

RRP $24.99

$21.75

13%
OFF
The Trial : Popular Penguins : Popular Penguins - Franz Kafka
Much Ado About Nothing : No Fear Shakespeare - SparkNotes

RRP $14.99

$11.99

20%
OFF
Bloomsbury Handbooks : Bloomsbury Handbooks - Chris Song
The Trial : Penguin Modern Classics - Franz Kafka

RRP $16.99

$15.99