Looking To Windward: Pre-Class Reaction

Reading this book was different from others the world was so different from our reality: all the various alien cultures, the complex technologies and social practices, soul storing, etc. all these things combined created a very alien world. And I must admit in the begging it was hard to keep track of it all, because the usual presence of things we are used to was a lot less than in other works of fiction we have read. For example the names, titles and terms were hard to keep track of and conceptualize, but eventually I was able to sort things out and get used to Bank’s created world. Despite the initial confusion, I enjoyed what came out of Bank’s imagination, the different species and the interactions between their cultures were a curious read.

The idea that really stuck in my mind and I want to discuss in my post is the idea of 2 minds sharing one body. Huyler and Quil were able to hold conversations and influence each other’ decisions and were both contributors to the acts of one “physical’ being. They are obviously different personalities in the same body, so the idea that struck me the most is the pros and cons of having two personalities affecting the same act. The two act sometimes like a system of checks and balances. For example Quil often kept in check Huyler’s tendency to say heated things, but he also didn’t completely disregard Huyler and used some of his ideas. So the question that struck me is what would be more effective/efficient: just one person acting on their own, or in some cases is it better to have two (or more) personalities in one body so they can have instant interaction and use each other as recourses? And further, would two people working together, each in their own body be just as effective?

And to finish this post like others, I would like to thank all of you for the fun conversations and sharing your ideas. It’s been fun, and I do agree with Jen, we should keep in touch via this and the facebook group. Good luck and hope you all have a fun summer.