Let's Not Drag Star Trek Into Gibson
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by Ann Y. Mous

__Science Fiction. This genre of literature is probably the most misunderstood. Many people relegate it to pop-fiction/sensationalism. Others narrowly define as any novel that occurs in space. Still others dismiss it because they feel it is written and read by a bunch of withdrawn egghead scientists and not true writers or aesthetes. However, science fiction is much more than just science. Like Star Trek, it can be exciting and space centered but still have an important underlying theme that is creatively but coherently displayed. Science fiction is actually a wide-ranging, multidimensional genre that can be fascinating.
__The genre consists of various sub-genres, such as and cyber-punk which is characterized by youth, music, and an inclination for brains over brawn in cyber-punk heroes. Gibson's Neuromancer has been described as the cyber-punk bible but it's an incoherent bible only translatable by a cyber-punk priest. One thing that makes Gibson's novel so difficult to understand is his style. He has a choppy abrupt style that is distracting. This style is probably intended to keep the novel fast paced but only accomplishes in blurring clarity. When Corto dies for example, it is not obvious exactly how he dies until a few chapters later when it is mentioned he has become a satellite to the space island. In addition there is the " jargon" in the novel. If the jargon in the novel were explained the plot would be easier to follow. Scientific and technical jargon are not uncommon in science fiction novels but they are usually defined with some device by the writer. There are a number of devices to explain jargon without overtly stating the term's definition. For example in Stephenson's Snow Crash he explains what an avatar means to the metaverse by explaining the difference between Hiro's avatar and everyone else's avatars , and by explaining the difference between an avatar's capabilities and a real human's capabilities. Jargon has two faces; it can either include one in a elite group that fully understands it and can quickly and efficiently communicate using it , or it can exclude those who would like to communicate with the elite group. Gibson's jargon definitely excludes. It's unclear whether or not the jargon is adapted from actual cybernetic terms or pure literary inventions. In either case, a definition by the author would be very illuminating for the computer illiterate. For example the term construct is not clear at first. In order to understand the plot the reader needs to understand that a person does not have a one to one relationship with his construct; one person can have a number of different constructs. Once this concept is clear the Sense/Net operation becomes an integral part of the plot instead of pointless action.
__Finally there is no apparent meaning to the novel, no conclusion about the themes involved. There are two major themes introduced in the novel : the concept of the matrix and the concept of artificial intelligence. Gibson's novel could explore a number of questions. What effect will the matrix have on relationships ? How will the matrix effect those who regularly use it ? Is it healthy, in mind and body, to live in a virtual world the majority of the time? Will any artificial intelligence ever become autonomous ?, Should we rely on artificial intelligence ? Is there some essential factor that humans have that no matter how autonomous an artificial intelligence becomes it can never obtain ? Is the fact that an artificial intelligence might lack certain human qualities important ? However, even though Gibson's novel raises these questions very little time is spent actually discussing them. Instead the bulk of the novel is concerned with his cyber-punk inventions and action. Finally , the conclusion of the novel is ambiguous about what the artificial intelligence has become. The intelligence simply states that it has found another intelligence like its self from the nineteen seventies and now it has someone with which to converse.
__Gibson's style, perhaps which can be argued is the style of cyber-punk, limits the already limited audience of science fiction. Neuromancer perpetuates the myth that science fiction is only read by withdrawn isolated scientists or computer fanatics. This is a pity because science fiction can be so ...fascinating.

b_a_c_k