There’s an insightful and well-written article about Philip K. Dick in the recent New Yorker, which you can find on-line here. Dick has become quite the literary darling in recent months due to the release of an anthology of his works by a major American publisher. Suddenly his status as pulp icon has evolved into something with more solidity. The article sees him in a romantic light, and discusses the conundrum of the prophet/hack dichotomy he’s been burdened with. If he were alive today, he’d probably think it was a conspiracy. Or a hoax.
August 17, 2007 at 7:56 pm |
I think I’ve got just about every book Phil wrote. Amazing fellow, part genius, part hack. I’ve got the NEW YORKER article you allude to — it’s sad that Phil never got a chance to see the fruits of his dexedrine-fuelled labors. The movies and cultural allusions, the reprints with wonderful covers. The Library of America honor and now immortalized in the NEW YORKER. Too much of his fame was posthumous…
August 17, 2007 at 9:34 pm |
Other genre writers have suffered a similar fate. Consider H.P. Lovecraft, whose work was largely unknown in his admittedly short lifetime. Robert Howard, a correspondent of Lovecraft and the creator of Conan, lived a strangely brief and isolated life, committing suicide in his early 30s…The mad Van Gogh-esque artist archetype applies just as fully to writers — genre or otherwise.
August 18, 2007 at 2:56 pm |
It is BOTH conspiracy and hoax, but as long as enough people buy into it, it becomes real.
August 18, 2007 at 3:39 pm |
Raincoaster: A kernel of “Heraclitean” wisdom. See, now you got me coming up with fancy made-up words… :)
August 19, 2007 at 10:11 am |
Phil Dick has been a huge influence on my writing–funny you mention Lovecraft because there’s a story on my site called “Arrival” that is very (and deliberately) Lovecraftian, plus my new novel (excerpted on my site as well) deals with two detectives who work from dusk til dawn and deal with all sorts of baddies…including some very Cthulhu-like creatures. Give the pieces a peek some time when you’re trolling about in the internet with a few minutes to spare.
Meanwhile, back to work…
August 19, 2007 at 1:43 pm |
Cliff: Checked out the site. Lots of neat stuff — will have to return. For now, I’ve added a link. Dick and Lovecraft are favorites of mine as well.
Keep up the writing…
August 22, 2007 at 10:10 am |
Eh, I wasn’t really fond of the article. The author spends way too much time (imho) emphasizing the whole “HE WAS KA-RAAAAAYYYZEEEE” thing. I don’t think the answer was as cut and dry as all that– it’s a pretty banal understanding of PKD’s overal philosophy, imo.
August 22, 2007 at 10:37 am |
True, but it presented a pretty good understanding of how PKD is perceived in the literary community and in the “popular imagination”. That is, if there is such a thing…Maybe “popular delusion” is a better term…
September 6, 2007 at 1:47 pm |
My friend loves Dick, I, on the other hand, feel the same way I am not talking about the author.
Now putting aside dirty jokes, I’d like to at least read one of his books sometime in the future. Any suggestions for a first?
I’m forwarding your post to my friend. Thanks.
September 6, 2007 at 3:16 pm |
Maybe start with a few short stories. “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale”, which forms the basis of the script for the movie Total Recall, is a fun starter. You can find it in The Ultimate Cyberpunk (2002), edited by Pat Cadigan. This anthology is a great introduction to a whole bunch of good “new wave” sci-fi, BTW.
There’s also the Library of America thing we’re all talking about, of course…It has three of his best novels in one sexy package.
And as I’m sure you know…Three Dicks are better than one. ;)
September 7, 2007 at 1:29 am |
“If he were alive today, he’d probably think it was a conspiracy. Or a hoax.”
No, he would understand that it’s just good marketing!
September 7, 2007 at 9:41 am |
“Conspiracy”, “Hoax”, “Good Marketing”. All somewhat related, n’est pas? I would suggest a kind of trinity but for the lack of PR — A key tool due to its intent to shape opinion and thought rather than overtly sell anything. All makes me think of a new TV series I’m growing to like (or being effectively “sold”) — Mad Men. By the AMC channel, it’s all about Madison Ave. at the start of the 1960s. Interesting. Because of existing social mores, the “process” still wasn’t totally seamless. You know?
I sometimes think PKDs biggest targets were those types…Ad men, PR people…Folks employed in creating a safe, manageable consensual reality.
On second thought, they were more William Burroughs’ targets, weren’t they?