Challenge 616

Rethink

1. In “Seeing the Hidden World,” what, exactly, is a “good” angel?

2. In Robert Earle’s “Symposium,” what is Nowitzki’s motive in bringing Seth along on the trip with himself, Helen and Marguerite? Does his plan succeed?

3. In Myles Buchanan’s “The Lantern Hart”:

   1. About how old do you think Glena, Pera and Luna are?

   2. The adults dismiss Glena’s premonitions. Why do they also shrug off the disappearance of Pera and Luna? Is the morrith forest an objective reality, or is it a state of mind?

   3. Is the story complete? Or is it a vignette, a chapter in a larger story, or something else?

4. In Bill Kowaleski’s “Canticles for a New World”:

   1. Why does Hannegan exclaim, “What have I done?” What event or events seem to precipitate his change of mind?

   2. In what way has Hannegan’s wife, Jennifer, been contradicting the doctrine of “Simplification” — with her husband’s approval — long before the emissaries from Platte River come to Omahatown?

   3. The doctrine of “Simplification” seems to have boiled down to “Technology is evil.” What logical problems does it raise? In what way is it the opposite of present-day fundamentalism?

   4. Hannegan admits he will have to think of something new. What will it be, and will it be new? What could he come up with that might avoid the conclusion of Walter M. Miller, Jr.’s A Canticle for Leibowitz?

   
   

   Responses welcome!

   Copyright © April 20, 2015 by Bewildering Stories
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