I am really enjoying The
Simulacra so far. I’m not sure what it is, but there are so many components
that I find interesting. For example, I love the relationships among the
characters. There are so many moments in conversation that make me curious about the inner workings of the human mind.
The need for relationships reminded me of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep because it is vital for these characters to have at least one other person to relate to. The relationships in both of these stories allow for the characters to continue living. There is a sense of following a leader as well - The Simulacra focuses on der Alte while Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep focuses on Mercer. Being a part of a party or group seems to be incredibly important.
The only thing that I am having a little bit of trouble with
is the plethora of characters. Just when I thought I was beginning to
understand the underlying relationships of some of the characters, several more
were thrown into the mix. I will say however, that the amount of characters
keeps me on my toes. I really have to concentrate on the relationships that are
being formed and how they relate to one another on a deeper level.
The short story that I read last week was We Can Remember it for You Wholesale. I thought that the story was very interesting and clearly had PKD elements. In the story, Douglas Quail wants to visit Mars. He is unable to afford that trip and visits a company that is called REKAL Incorporated. Basically, the company implants memories into the minds of their clients. Through the process, Quail finds out that he actually has been to Mars as a secret government agent - though these memories were erased from his mind. The PKD elements that I felt were very relevant to this story were (1) the idea of identity and (2) not everything is as it seems. I really liked this story because it made me think and it was one I had never read before.
I was struggling with keeping all of the characters straight also. Looking forward to reading the rest of it, so that I can't see how he pulls it all together. I find the relationships bizarre in the book. Almost like in Electric Sheep, these people seem to lack empathy. The group going to record the musician ran into those that were "neanderthals" and it seemed to me that those people were more real than anyone else.
ReplyDeleteI was also having a hard time with the characters. I appreciate your positive tone. Your thoughts brought forward some points for me to ponder, instead of my focus purely on the confusing aspects of the character development. I was so distracted by this, that I completely missed the interaction between the characters as poignant. I think the relationship of the brothers, Chic and Vince, is interesting how it seems so unemotional. I am looking forward to seeing this play out.
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