XPost: rec.arts.books.tolkien, alt.books.cs-lewis, rec.arts.books.childrens   
   XPost: rec.arts.sf.written, alt.books.isaac-asimov   
   From: tsbrueni@pop.dcn.davis.ca.us   
      
   westprog wrote:   
      
   > "Ray Cunningham"  wrote in message   
   > news:1138117105.058114.79190@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...   
   > ...   
   > > > > >To call it an allegory means missing the point totally. Animal Farm   
   > is an   
   > > > > >allegory. The animals represent people and groups from the Russian   
   > > > > >Revolution. Indeed, 1984 can be read as an allegory. TLTWATW is not   
   > an   
   > > > > >allegory because Aslan is clearly stated to _be_ Christ in a   
   > different   
   > > > > >world. Lewis considers the possibility that Christ might become   
   > incarnate   
   > > > > >somewhere else. That's why Aslan behaves differently to Jesus, and   
   > > > > > different things happen.   
   >   
   > > > > "Animal farm" is indeed an allegory, but "1984"? I don't think so.   
   > It's a   
   > > > > novel set in the future (from the time when it was written), and the   
   > > > setting   
   > > > > is what the author thought the world could be like if certain trends   
   > in   
   > > > his   
   > > > > own time continued. In that respect Aldous Huxley's "Brave new world"   
   > was   
   > > > > similar, except he chose a different set of trends. Neither is an   
   > > > allegory.   
   > > > > They are just novels set in an imaginary future.   
   >   
   > > > I suggest a rereading of 1984. It contains clear portrayals of Stalin   
   > and   
   > > > Trotsky, and references the turnaround in Communist loyalties following   
   > the   
   > > > Nazi invasion of the USSR. It is as much an allegory of the 1940's as it   
   > is   
   > > > a speculation about a possible communist Britain.   
   >   
   > > It don't think the similarities are strong enough to make it an   
   > > allegory. Big Brother is a dictator, but what are the other   
   > > similarities to Stalin? Emmanuel Goldstein is a former supporter turned   
   > > official enemy, but is there anything else to tie him to Trotsky? And   
   > > yes,  the on-again off-again Germany/Russia enmity is reflected in the   
   > > wars with Eastasia and Eurasia, but (you fill in the rest)   
   >   
   > I carefully said "can be read as an allegory".   
   >   
   > > 1984 is in the tradition of "what if these current events continue into   
   > > the future?" not "see how these representations of existing figures   
   > > cast new light on their relationships".   
   >   
   > Asimov in his debunking of 1984 complained that it wasn't really SF at all,   
   > just an attack on the USSR, and hence a Bad Thing.   
      
   Asimov also wrote storys about Multivac, a very big computer that had   
   information on everyone and everything, and could thus regulate the economy and   
   predict crime.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)