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September 29, 2006
"There is such a thing as accepting a responsibility."
Seecond favorite quote: "I aint no gentleman .... But I need a lawyer."
"To Walk a Citys Street" is a story told almost completely as dialogue. Its plot is centered around a simple moment of realization that turns the entire premise upside down; its the kind of elegantly simple SF story that would usually be told by a scientist, but instead is given to the people who know least. (This is a common theme in SF - but it is difficult to pull off without confusing the reader. At moments this story reminded me of Tiptree's "Screwfly Solution" although that story (as much feminist SF does) exploits the confusion,* deliberately, i.e. the opening scene of LeGuins The Left Hand of Darkness.)
* Tiptrees story is narrated by a scientist, a technique that usually lets the author be laser-direct about the ideas in a story. In a genre thats often about ideas authors have to find ways around knowledgeable characters making a storys *entire* point in a single, neutron star-dense paragraph of exposition. :P
"Citys Street" was written by Hugo-winning author Clifford D. Simak, best remembered for his award winning "Grotto of Dancing Deer." The best thing about this story is the way it is written. His absolutely clear and lucid style no doubt came from his background as a journalist. This story is like a windowpane and I did not miss the a bit of absent stage-setting or description. (There are no clues about date or geography, but there is no sense of "white room" to this story at all.) Simaks publishing career spanned from 1931 to 1997. (Although he died in 1988.) His works.
It so happens that this short story was filmed for TV:
http://imdb.com/name/nm0089756/bio
(I am curious what they did with it since it is nearly a screenplay as written - although there are no descriptions of fashions, buildings, characters, or locations. A filmmaker would have to make all the decisions about setting and era (and decide whether to invent background and exposition to add to this lucidly minimal tale.))
An extensive appreciation of Simaks work:
http://trikacommunications.com/simak/welcometothewaystation.htm
I read Cliff's stories with particular attention, and I couldn't help but notice the simplicity and directness of the writing - the utter clarity of it. I made up my mind to imitate it, and I labored over the years to make my writing simpler, clearer, more uncluttered, to present my scenes on a bare stage. - Isaac Asimov
Next time a story by T. J. Bass. Who? Further info: http://www.strangewords.com/archive/bass.html
-LV
Posted by lisav at September 29, 2006 10:50 PM