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He relished challenging readers' thinking and preconceptions. You can make up your own mind - there's a collection of his Astounding/Analog editorials in this
by fractallyte 3y ago
He relished challenging readers' thinking and preconceptions.
You can make up your own mind - there's a collection of his Astounding/Analog editorials in this book: https://archive.org/details/collectededitori0000john https://archive.org/details/collectededitori0000john
And then there's this, Jeannette Ng's acceptance speech for the John W Campbell Best New Writer Award: https://youtu.be/sQ58zf0vzB0?feature=shared https://youtu.be/sQ58zf0vzB0?feature=shared
(She began by calling him "Joseph Campbell", with the audience cheering the rest of her increasingly incoherent speech... Derision from people who really don't understand science fiction.)
- ubermonkey 3y ago>He relished challenging readers' thinking and preconceptions. Yes, on things like (checks notes) segregation. Huh.
- fractallyte 3y agoHe wasn't afraid to dive into the details of topics that many people shun or simply dismiss. He made arguments, and encouraged counter-arguments. Without that, there would be blind consensus, and at worst, societal stagnation. It's his relentless urge to shake things up that made him one of the most prominent figures in science fiction. It's very telling that there wasn't some kind of disagreement with Jeannette Ng's shockingly ignorant outburst, or the delighted applause of her equally ignorant audience.