Anxiety is the Dizziness of Freedom, by Ted Chiang

[sophia_sol]

This novella, which is about people being able to be in contact with versions of themselves from alternate universes where they make different choices or have different things happen to them, reads to me more like a thought experiment and an excuse for examining ethical questions than like a narrative. It has all these extensive sections just explaining the premise and the ramifications it would have on the world, and follows the stories of a bunch of different people to further explore what it would mean. The author has clearly thought through everything very carefully and presented his thoughts clearly, which I appreciate, but that's the majority of what the story has going for it, to me. So although it was certainly interesting, and I did get somewhat invested in a couple of the characters, overall I just didn't find it as engaging as I would like.

Comments

[cahn]

Fair! I really like that kind of thing (and I am super here for thought experiments) so I liked it :) Did you read the Pinsker "And then there were N-1" story that was on the ballot a year or two ago? It's been interesting to compare the two, which start from a very similar idea -- I am super here for careful worldbuilding and understated character growth arc, so I of course adored the Chiang, and hamsterwoman preferred the Pinsker, which has much more of a narrative and plot and central cool concept.

[sophia_sol]

Yeah, I have read that story too, and was comparing them a bit! I would say that each of the two stories has its strengths and weaknesses and I don't think I actually prefer one over the other. Neither quite manages to meet what I like most in a story.

The Pinsker is too plot focused for me, I think I would have preferred to read about a version of SarahCon that didn't have a murder occur! But I really found the premise a lot of fun, and was fascinated by how the author is basically writing au fanfiction of her own life. That kind of overthinking the effects of your past decisions and experiences is very relatable.

EDIT: I would say that my biggest problem with the Chiang is that althougg I really like good worldbuilding, I like it best when it's embedded in a narrative for me to piece together, rather than having so much of it directly spelled out in explanatory passages. Imo it interferes with the flow and pacing and immersiveness.