Shockwave Rider Essay, Research Paper
There are numerous books on the science fiction
market, that deal with the myriad of possibilities
involving the technology of the future. John Brunner?s
book, ?Shockwave Rider,? is one of the most popular, as
well as one of the most famous, books dealing with this
issue. Brunner presents many different realities to the
reader, and they are all potentially very realistic in
terms of the current state of technology. For the most
part, Brunner seems to illustrate that technology, as it
relates to the world wide datanet, is a good thing. This
is not to say that he does not illustrate it as a very
negative reality in the world he presents to the reader,
but he does indicate that the world wide datanet and
technology has great potential to make the world a better
place for all concerned.
In Brunner?s book we have a reality that is
incredibly tense, and almost plausible today. The space
that the author deals with is filled with endless bits of
information (information overload to be more precise),
corporate domination, and it appears, just like many
science fiction books that deal with the planet earth in
the future, everything is known about everyone. there are
no secrets from the system. Brunner illustrates this as a
reality that is not necessarily very desirable. He plants
a character, Nickie Haflinger, onto the scene. As with
many books we can look at this character and see the
author within. Haflinger is a prodigy whose talents allow
him to switch identities with a simple phone call. By the
advanced technology and the ingenuity that is completely
Haflinger?s, we see that the author is not one to be
content with the realities that may be a possibility in
the future of technology.
Brunner clearly illustrates, by the previous
description of Haflinger, that technology and the advances
within that field, are incredibly beneficial, or they can
be. but he is clearly unhappy with the way things have
turned out due to the controlling nature of the
governments. This is further illustrated in the fact that
Brunner?s hero is a young man who is bent on changing the
world. He struggles to evade the officials and uses all
skills available to him, whether inherent skills or
technological ones, to the best of his ability, to put an
end to the misuse of power that is so much a part of his
world which involves the entity of the world wide datanet.
Perhaps, one of the most insightful parts of the book
comes in the first half, when Haflinger is experiencing
flashbacks due to interrogations. It is in these sections
that we see the inner mind of Brunner as he deflty
illustrates the world and mind of Haflinger. In this part
we see many different ethical arguments arise between
Haflinger and his interrogators. Not only does it seem as
though Brunner is telling a fascinating story, but that he
is attempting to enlighten people about the possibilities
that may arise due to the growth of technology. He is
clearly illustrating that this reality, although
fictional, may well be close at hand. Who knows, but we
may be able to access the Internet by telephone in just a
few years. There seems to be no stopping this type of
technology that is bent on bringing communication, and
control along with it, to a level where anyone and
everyone can become actively involved.
These interrogations approach many difficult and
intriguing questions. For example, if all the choices of a
race are known, where does the freedom lie? Or if those
choices, and their end result, can be easily assumed. If a
society is so intricately interconnected, almost to the
point where there is no individuality whatsoever, what
happens when one man or woman stands apart from the crowd?
We know full well how such individuals have been treated
in a society where we claim to embrace the unique and free
minded individual. But to envision such an individual in a
place and time when nearly everyone was essentially
identical, brings the reader to a position where the truth
of such a future is quite stifling and evident. Anyone
with any sense would not like to exist in such a world.
Brunner is clearly indicating that such a world wide
datanet would not be desirable at all. these are very real
possibilities and as any good science fiction writer
knows, the future is often illustrated as it might be, in
an attempt to help eliminate the possibility. The good
science fiction writer examines all of the possibilities
and often finds the most frightening reality to
illustrate. They do this in an attempt to help prevent the
reality from occurring. By illustrating what we could be,
Brunner is clearly illustrating his notion that such a
reality should not be hoped for, but avoided at all cost.
By making the reader aware of the possibilities, he is
possibly helping to eliminate one of many potential
futures.
In all seriousness, how could a writer truly
illustrate a world where the rich get richer and more
powerful, while the poor must struggle more and more for
mere existence? If such a writer were to truly desire such
a world they would certainly not employ a character such
as Haflinger. Haflinger has the power and the ability to
change things. He is in a unique position to alter the
future and save many people. If an author was interested
in promoting a world such as the one illustrated in
Brunner?s book, he would not have enrolled a man such as
Haflinger.
Although Brunner is clearly against technology such
as the world wide datanet would produce, he is also
clearly not against technology. He uses Haflinger to
illustrate the good that technology has to offer. Here is
a character who is very much a part of the world of
technology. He is so much a part of it, that he has
mastered many different aspects about it and by doing so
he has enabled himself to change and alter in an attempt
to alter the future and the realities that face him. He
finds himself in a position that is very threatening to
the powers that be, and there is quite likely, no one like
him anywhere. He is very much alone in his struggle to
change the pattern of events. As mentioned previously,
often writers implement a character to be their own voice.
If Brunner were for all forms of technology, as the story
goes, he would not have implemented Haflinger, the hero
who sees beyond the obvious and sees the possibilities
that are within his grasp.
We live in a world that is vastly different than the
one our parents grew up in. We are actively involved with
technology every single day and it is almost to the point
where we, as human beings in this country, would not know
what to do without our cell phones, faxes, computers,
computerized cars, ATM machines, and even simple kitchen
gadgets such as a coffee maker. Our parents surely did not
have anything remotely similar to these items in their
youth. And in light of this, what makes us think that a
reality, such as the one portrayed by Brunner, could not
be a real possibility. We allow the government, for the
most part, to make a great deal of decisions that affect
us in many ways. We live in a world that has the ability
to clone a human being. And we live in a society that has
gone to great lengths to investigate the use of microchips
that can be placed under the skin to help locate human
beings. These are realities, and as any good science
fiction writer knows, it is important to understand and
know what is going on in his or her society and world in
general. these are real issues, and as such they further
illustrate that Brunner?s world is not too far fetched.
Even if we consider that the story Brunner presents
to us is real, and not of the future, we can clearly see
that Brunner is not completely happy with the turns that
technology has taken. He clearly sees technology as being
the savior of our race, if used properly, but he does not
endorse the kind of mentality that the powers in the book
display. He brings Haflinger in the story to illustrate to
us that technology can be our friend and does have the
potential to pull us out of some very serious problems,
but he also illustrates that the chances we do this are
very slim, indeed. It is much more likely that we will
allow our government to take over and control every aspect
of our lives and our thoughts. Brunner clearly does not
stand for the world he has created, but he does stand for
the world that could be.