Conference noted::sf

1171.0. "Jack Williamson" by VERGA::KLAES (Quo vadimus?) Wed Sep 22 1993 18:06

Article: 369
From: [email protected] (Dani Zweig)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews
Subject: REPOST: Belated Reviews #29: Jack Williamson
Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest)
Date: 22 Sep 93 00:59:24 GMT
 
		Belated Reviews #29: Jack Williamson
 
Jack Williamson has been writing science fiction for sixty-five years now.
The longevity is impressive, because it represents passage through several
periods in the history of sf, during which readers' expectations changed
drastically, then changed again, and then again.  Most authors were unable
to make the transitions.   
 
The changes in Williamson's writing weren't that thorough:  His writing
from the sixties bears clear traces of that from the thirties, and his
current writing is as clearly rooted in what he was doing in the sixties.
(I was bemused by the similarity of the romantic subplots of the 1990
"Mazeway" and the 1935 "Legion of Space".)  Most unfortunately, his books
have always been weak in characterization and motivation.  Their main
weakness, over the entire period of his writing, is the two-dimensionality
of the characters, most of whom are defined almost completely by their
roles or special abilities, and then given a quirk or two for variety.
 
Few authors were able to make the leap from the gimmicky sf of the
thirties to the more demanding market of the forties, but this was the
period of Williamson's greatest impact.  (His Grandmaster Nebula award
indicates that the impact was considerable.)  He never stopped writing 
adventure sf, but he also started working with more ambitious themes, such
as multispecies cooperation, and evolution for space, which he's been
developing since.  Along the way, he produced an impressive trail of books
that were well received in their day, though I wouldn't recommend most of
them to newer readers, except as historical artifacts.  
 
"Darker Than You Think" (****-) is the conspicuous exception.  Almost half
a century after it was published, this dark fantasy still has a power which
makes the run of modern novels about lycanthropes and vampires look anemic.
The story begins with word of an archeological expedition which has
returned from the Gobi desert with a remarkable discovery -- but the head
of the expedition dies, mysteriously, before he can reveal that once, long
before the dawn of history, homo sapiens was prey to...call it homo
lycanthropus.  And that though the predators were somehow overthrown, they
left mixed-breed descendents.  And that some of those descendents are making
a systematic effort to breed back to the full powers of their ancestors.
 
The story is told from the viewpoint of Will Barbee, a reporter who is on
hand when the expedition leader is killed by what a less naive observer
than himself would have called witchcraft.  As he digs deeper and deeper,
however, that identification stops seeming naive.  He learns that
humanity's darkest legends have a strong basis in reality.  This is dark
fantasy written, effectively, to appeal to readers of science fiction.
 
It's also the only Jack Williamson novel I'd recommend purely on the basis
of its merits as a good read.  Most of his adventure fiction was written
for audiences with different expectations than those of today's readers,
and his more imaginative books have generally inspired later, better-
written workings-out of their themes. 
 
Williamson's Legion series, starting in the mid-thirties with "The Legion
of Space" (**+) is one of the best examples of pre-Campbell space opera.
Which is to say that by today's standards it's awful:  Motivation and
characterization are paper-thin, the science is largely a matter of
incantation (scientific-sounding words, rather than plausible 
explanations), and the plots would change hardly at all if the spaceships
were replaced by boats or horses.  (I'm embarrassed that I didn't realize
how much the Legion owed to The Three Musketeers until Gharlane pointed it
out.)  Juvenile writing for juvenile readers -- but reading it today, you
can still see the charm it would hold for those readers.  (If memory
serves, the sequels were "The Cometeers", "One Against the Legion", and
(later) "Queen of the Legion".)  
 
Williamson never stopped writing adventure sf, which is a pity.  His
"Seetee" books (**-) ("Seetee Ship" and "Seetee Shock") are adventure
stories with an antimatter gimmick.  His "Undersea" books (**-),
("Undersea City", "Undersea Fleet" and "Undersea Quest"), written with
Frederick Pohl, are adventure stories with an underwater gimmick.  "Star
Bridge" (**+), written with James Gunn, is probably his best adventure sf,
about an immortal who tries to manipulate human history and an assassin
who is sent to bring down a space empire. 
 
"The Humanoids" (***-) is Williamson's other major book of the forties
that doesn't nicely fit the niches I've been describing.  It's an early
working through of the overbenevolent-computer theme.  The Humanoids are
androids which were programmed to prevent war and protect humans from harm
-- whether or not they want to be protected.  In fact, unhappiness is a
form of harm, and if their protection makes people unhappy, well, that's
treatable.  A sequel, "The Humanoid Touch" (**), written over thirty years
later, doesn't add much to the earlier work.
 
I've always liked "The Trial of Terra" (***-), an unusual ninteen-fifties
look at semi-first contact.  The trial in question is a hearing to determine
whether -- now that humanity is sending up space ships -- it should be
contacted or left in quarantine.  Only, as the evidence (previously written
stories worked into the body of the novel) is reviewed, it becomes apparent
that the beings arguing the case are more interested in their own economic
or scientific interests than in the good of humanity.  The judge, at least,
is impartial, and willing to rule in favor of whichever side can muster
the better bribe.
 
Honorable mention goes to "Rogue Star" (**+) -- third book of Williamson's
and Pohl's Starchild trilogy -- for its sentient stars, and to "The Legion
of Time" (**) -- written at about the same time as the Legion of Space
novels -- for its idea of alternative futures competing for existence.  
 
%A  Williamson, Jack
%T  Darker Than You Think
%T  The Legion of Space
%T  The Humanoids
%T  The Trial of Terra
 
Standard introduction and disclaimer for Belated Reviews follows.

Belated Reviews cover science fiction and fantasy of earlier decades.
They're for newer readers who have wondered about the older titles on the
shelves, or who are interested in what sf/f was like in its younger days.
The emphasis is on helping interested readers identify books to try first, 
not on discussing the books in depth.
 
A general caveat is in order:  Most of the classics of yesteryear have not
aged well.  If you didn't encounter them back when, or in your early teens,
they will probably not give you the unforced pleasure they gave their
original audiences.  You may find yourself having to make allowances for
writing you consider shallow or politics you consider regressive.  When I
name specific titles, I'll often rate them using the following scale:
 
**** Recommended.
***  An old favorite that hasn't aged well, and wouldn't get a good
	reception if it were written today.  Enjoyable on its own terms.
**   A solid book, worth reading if you like the author's works.
*    Nothing special.
 
Additional disclaimers:  Authors are not chosen for review in any particular
order.  The reviews don't attempt to be comprehensive.  No distinction is 
made between books which are still in print and books which are not.
 
Dani Zweig
[email protected]
 
   The inability of snakes to count is actually a refusal, on their part,
    to appreciate the Cardinal Number system. -- "Actual Facts"
 

I'd give "Star Bridge" more than two-and-a-half stars based on my recollection
of it.  It was comparable to Van Vogt's "Null-A" books and Asimov's "Foundation"
trilogy in terms of action and plot twists (on the plus side) and somewhat
shallow character development (on the minus side)--in short, typical of a good
rousing SF adventure for its day.
								- paul