Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site topaz.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxj!mhuxn!ihnp4!cbosgd!cbdkc1!desoto!packard!topaz!EVAN From: EVAN@SU-CSLI.ARPA Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers Subject: Re: Jack Chalker (**Little-bit-of-a-Spoiler Warning**) Message-ID: <2634@topaz.ARPA> Date: Tue, 9-Jul-85 17:29:20 EDT Article-I.D.: topaz.2634 Posted: Tue Jul 9 17:29:20 1985 Date-Received: Thu, 11-Jul-85 08:11:39 EDT Sender: daemon@topaz.ARPA Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Lines: 38 From: Evan Kirshenbaum>> In many of his stories [...] a previously strong, likable female >>character is transformed into some weird sort of mutant >>sex-creature for no adequately explored reason. > >As far as I can tell, Chalker uses the *same* two ideas in every >book he writes: shape change and mind control/tyranny. He is >reasonably inventive in coming up with variations on these, but as >far as I am concerned, enough is enough. I think that you're both missing the essential device (and repetition) of Chalker's stories. Yes, he always has shape changing (and more to the point, *sex* changing); yes, a strong female character is generally transformed into a sexual slave (in Web_of_the_Chozen ?...I can't remember). The main device which links nearly all of his novels, though, is that every book has what could be called "magic", and each one has it "explainable" by some device or other (and in no case does he resort to a "sufficiently advanced technology"). These ways include: The warden organisms in the "Four Lords of the Diamond"; the Well World in the "Well of Souls" series; Flux in the "Soul Rider" books; the probablity engineering in And_the_Devil_Will_Drag_ You_Under; the Computer in Web_of_the_Chozen; and, of course (my favorite) the Rule Books in the "Dancing Gods" series. The only book of his that I've read that doesn't really use this as a central theme is Downtiming_ the_Nightside, which still had a computer controling the effects of time travel. This bothered me at first, but lately I've begun to enjoy seeing the new ways that he can rationalize magic. And even though he does use so many recurrent themes, he manages to work them in differently enough in each new book/series that he is consistantly fun to read. Evan Kirshenbaum ARPA: evan@CSLI.ARPA UUCP: ...ucbvax!shasta!amadeus!evan -------