An exercise for the reader

[aamcnamara]

From a post about high fantasy on Tor.com, referencing a Le Guin short story:

"This story taps into primal powers back when the world itself was still a primal thing."

Is the world still a "primal thing"? Discuss.

Comments

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Saw that, have to confess it left me scratching my head.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

Good, then I wasn't the only one.

I suppose it isn't necessarily a false statement, but it is interesting to look at the implied assumptions.

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Yes...and how often it's said about Le Guin, and everyone nods and says, "Ooooh, Le Guin, oh yes!" and moves on.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

I should think statements like that would give anyone pause, no matter whose name they were attached to.

But then I suppose if one were to create a work tapping into the primal forces of our modern world, it would be classified as horror and thus Not Our Business.

The subdivisions of genre fiction never cease to fascinate me.

[aliseadae]

I suppose it depends on what the article is indicating by primal and how similar or different it is to natural.

[aamcnamara.livejournal.com]

Well, context is in the article.

"This story taps into natural powers back when the world itself was still a natural thing" would probably merit a double-take as well, though.

[aliseadae]

Mm.

I wonder what the primal force today is, then. I suppose what you think it is depends on how you see the world.