As the Master said, 'Let Stephenson (Snow Crash, 1992) imagines a 21st century in which molecular machines (nanotechnology) can create any desired object or structure. Midway between these dates, in 1886, the world's largest goldfields were discovered on the Witwatersrand. Welcome to Stephensonland! [6], Last edited on 20 December 2022, at 20:32, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel, "It's a Small, Small, Small, Small World", "Re: The Diamond Age Honourable Failure", "Geography's conquest of history in the Diamond Age", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Diamond_Age&oldid=1128565937, Print (hardback & paperback) & Audio Book (, This page was last edited on 20 December 2022, at 20:32. And it does - what I love about Stephenson is his high level of prescient-ness. I'm afraid you'll have to check your need for believable characters with me. Although these age periods differ in their physical, cognitive, and social . The Drummers underwater settlement quickly became a massive refugee camp hundreds of thousands strong. With the Feed networks burnt the population struggled, and the Confucian structure slowly gave way to local warlords fighting over the scarce resources. After a few years, however, Fiona spent more and more time with his new friends, and her fathers presence became somewhat uncomfortable. Maybe I misunderstood? Nells adventures in the Primer wind down once Miranda leaves. It tells her stories about Princess Nell, who relies on relationships, wit, and connections to others in attempting to save her brother, Prince Harv, imprisoned in the Dark Castle by their wicked stepmother. That mildly drunk guy at a party who seems kind of interesting and charismatic, even though he can't keep his chain of thought straight, but who turns out to be a total asshole after he realizes he's not getting laid. Peasants planted the seeds and had the How do two equations multiply left by left equals right by right? Modified 3 years, 8 months ago. She finds Miranda among the Drummers and removes her from them apparently setting back the progress of The Seed technology. Courts, governments, and jurisdictions in The Diamond Age? For questions about "The Diamond Age", otherwise known as "A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer" (1995), a post-cyberpunk novel by Neal Stephenson. Judy Blume. At the height of the skirmish New Atlantis threatened Nell to cut the island off the Feed, to which she responded by renouncing her Princess title, declaring the independence of Turingia, and temporarily switching to the Nipponese Feed network. Many years later at a small rural alpine community, he finally realised what it was. Technological visionaries such as Eric Drexler and Ralph Merkle, both of whom receive an honorary mention in The Diamond Age, have argued that if nanotechnology develops the ability to manipulate individual atoms at will, it will become possible to simply assemble diamond structures from carbon atoms, materials also known as diamondoids. feels more like an "agrarian vs industrial" than "disseminated vs centralized" contrast to me. Hackworth is submerged with them for 10 years, during which time his programming skills accelerate their work. Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. If the novel draws from this event, then we can see this as antagonistic towards the Victorian principles and "colonization". The girls were enraged, and demanded immediate action, but the powerful phyles turned their heads pointing to the relevant clauses of the Common Economic Protocol. The Diamond Age takes place in Shanghai and off the Eastern coast of China. Eventually, the tone darkens and the story narrows to focus on Jude as the pain of his past cuts deep into his carefully constructed life. From Wikipedia: "The Confucian solution of the Primer was hierarchical, while the Victorian was highly individualistic." To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers. The missing ending: epilogue to The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson. Get help and learn more about the design. Sir? It is to some extent a science fiction bildungsroman, focused on a young girl named Nell, and set in a future world in which nanotechnology affects all aspects of life. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. . I later put it on paper, in case anyone elseis longing to see the story finished to her satisfaction. I have just finished rereading Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age for about the fourth time and am still confused about the ending. Nell was older than all of them and therefore the leader. The story follows Nell's development under the tutelage of the Primer, and to a lesser degree, the lives of Elizabeth Finkle-McGraw and Fiona Hackworth, Neo-Victorian girls who receive other copies. Hanya Yanagihara. The South African Republic (Transvaal), virtually bankrupt, had suffered military humiliation at the hands of the Pedi, and support for President Thomas F. Burgers had declined because of this. Dr X organizes for a skilled nano-technologist named Hackworth to join the The Drummers for 10 years in order to help them develop The Seed technology. Harv, a thete, steals the bootleg Primer and gives it to Nell, his little sister, instead. Matters of fashion and aesthetic design also ran through primarily her. Hackworth is ordered to join the Dreamers, a weird collective intelligence among which, through his subconscious, he designs a nanotech control method for the Celestial Kingdom represented by Dr. X. Or did I miss something? Together, they represent a new . Epilogue to "The Diamond Age" by Neal Stephenson - fan fiction by Robert Sugar Aftermath Nell and the Mouse Army settle down John Percival Hackworth and the Seed Following the Day of the Thousand Fists many events happened in quick succession. Magazine Subscribers (How to Find Your Reader Number), Go to College, Keep Your Friends, Have Fights, Write a Novel. In the extremely globalized future depicted in the novel, these cultural divisions have largely supplanted the system of nation-states that divides the world today. The story is about rich foreigners and poor Chinese people. All of the girls (including Nell) have taken part in this activity in a highly orderly fashion. The buzz words had to be something that would palliate the hyperactive endocrine glands of 13 year old males. The rise of the Afrikaner Bond and new laws affecting franchise qualifications and taxes also stimulated more-vigorous Black participation in electoral politics after 1884. if it pleases the court, I can also, Hackworth said, most When Tom Bombadil made the One Ring disappear, did he put it into a place that only he had access to? I find it strange to paint the Seed as a Chinese/Confuscianist ideal. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. Over the course of the story, the Common Economic Protocol sponsors the investigation of clandestine Seed technologies in order to preserve the established order from subversion, using the justification that unrestricted access to Sources would lead to the proliferation of high tech weapons and result in anarchy. The Land Beyond was in an utterly wretched state. She kept a very close relationship with Nell, and revered in the success of her adopted daughter. This conflict has an economic element as well, with the Feed representing a centrally-controlled distribution mechanism, while the Seed represents a more flexible, open-ended, decentralized method of creation and organization. The phyles coexist much like historical nation-states under a system of justice and mutual protection, known as the Common Economic Protocol (CEP). Following the Day of the Thousand Fists many events happened in quick succession. Neal Stephenson, by Running away from his own nature that could not unthink what was once thought of. suitable for the unique cultural requirements of the Han readership. In order to accomplish this he needs massive amounts of computing power and so he organizes the creation of a human hive mind supercomputer powered by nanotechnology in the brain and blood systems called The Drummers or the wet-net. The latter, particularly those in constituencies in the eastern Cape that had a significant percentage of Black male voters, were tactically friendly to the small enfranchised stratum of fairly prosperous Black peasants, whereas the Bond and most English-speaking white voters were hostile toward the Black farmers growing cash crops and pursued more-restrictive franchise qualifications. Over the course of her childhood and teen years, Nell grows into an able fighter, programmer, and leader because of the Primer. Although, I'd thought that removing that aspect was Hackworth's alteration that he slipped in when he was ordered to mass-produce it. I have to admit, this is a dense read sometimes in the way that hard sci-fi can be: Glazing over at "tech speak tech speak tech speak." So, yeah - I'm a bit confused too. Stephenson is undoubtedly a good writer. Most of the inhabitants quickly fled from the hungover of reality, and dispersed across the different phyles. Dr. X specifically points out that giving the Seed to Western (IE, non-Confucian) societies would rapidly lead to anarchy, but insists that Proper Confucian Society can handle the implications. Judy Blume, edited by So, yeah - I'm a bit confused too. . After tying up his loose ends Hackworth offered his services to Princes Nell. In the book, she becomes Princess Nell, the focus of marvelous tales and experiences that, seemingly incidentally, educate and train her. That's right, it's very similar, except instead of nicotine, this will imbue you with knowledge equivalent to a bachelor's degree in computer science. They're a bunch of self-actualizing badasses, not following the sort of simplistic ideology of the Fists. Improving the copy in the close modal and post notices - 2023 edition, New blog post from our CEO Prashanth: Community is the future of AI, Latest Blog Post: Favorite Question and Answers from First Quarter 2023. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. Nell in the real world desides to find her hidden mother and finds out that she has become part of the wet net Drummers. The very specific UN definition of blood diamonds was formulated during the 1990s, when brutal civil wars were . Except for the fact that it lacked an ending. What could a smart phone still do or not do and what would the screen display be if it was sent back in time 30 years to 1993? Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson. The rich Victorians and Japanese sell Matter Converter nanotechnology to the poor Chinese via something called The Feed. So honor of elders was being stressed to them. Neal Stephenson I find it strange to paint the Seed as a Chinese/Confuscianist ideal. On top of this, the networked Primers form a sort of communication network for the Mouse Army (similar to the Drummer network). All of this is staggeringly inventive and meticulously detailed, but, lacking a coherent plot and set forth in an by Snow Crash is without question the biggest SF novel of the 1990s. All I could do is count heads and make remarks about the colour and gender and fate of each major character. The top row is the blue wire, the second row is the yellow wire, and the bottom row is the red wire. Each hut accommodated a troop of four girls, and consisted of a common bedroom with bunk beds, a small kitchen, and a study area. Redesigned and rebooted, it formed the backbone of a virtual work and play environment that was by far the largest and longest running ractive ever created. Then the first set of orphaned girls got old enough for the high-tech "foot binding" process to be used on them. It is to some extent a Bildungsroman or coming-of-age story, focused on a young girl named Nell, set in a future world in which nanotechnology affects all aspects of life. I've read both Diamond Age and Snow Crash. Blume knows the way kids and teens speak, but her two female leads are less credible as they reach adulthood. Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. "The provisional commanders of her divisions stood foremost, as did The Diamond Age is, on the surface, a tale of technology: specifically, nanotechnologyand its implications on culture, economy, and socialstructure. It being a work of fiction, the author has free reign on the outcome. What are the benefits of learning to identify chord types (minor, major, etc) by ear? By clicking Post Your Answer, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy. It's a lot more about new social dynamics than about cyberpunkish network stuff - you'll see in the opening chapter just how aggressive Stephenson was about this book not being cyberpunk.. I'd have to say it's my favorite Stephenson book outside of Cryptonomicon/Baroque Cycle. Two of them are gay, one straight and one bisexual. Be as it may, the Celestial Kingdom and Dr. X are definitely not of the anarchist persuasion, quite the opposite in fact. Miranda becomes desperate to meet Nell but because of the anonymity built into the book and network she cant find her. Various characters suggest that this caregiving figure is what allows Nell to develop into a well-adjusted, inquisitive, and confident adult. Der geniale Nanotechniker John Percival Hackworth erhlt den Auftrag, die Illustrierte Fibel fr die junge Dame" zu entwickeln, einen Supercomputer in Form eines Nanobuchs, mit dem ein mchtiger Groindustrieller seine Enkeltochter erziehen mchte. The story of how this casual invitation turns the two girls into what they call "Summer sisters" is prefaced with a prologue in which Vix is asked by Caitlin to be her matron of honor. To quote Dr. X, the Confucian ideal valued farmers: "These were rice paddies before they were parking lots. Judy Blume Stephenson then roiled together this mess with a rag mop and wrung it into a bucket called. After high school, Caitlin travels the world and cant understand why Vix, by now at Harvard on a scholarship and determined to have a better life than her mother has had, wont drop out and join her. When Jude, as an adult, is adopted by his favorite Harvard law professor, his friends join him for Thanksgiving in Cambridge every year. This is after they discover their leader in the Primer after Nell breaks the last turing machine and the land beyond disappears. Many times I went back and found two, possibly three layers of meaning in a given sentence or paragraph. The Diamond Age Envisions the next century as brilliantly as snow crash did the day after tomorrow." Newsweek "[Stephenson is] the hottest science fiction writer in America. 687 views, 16 likes, 0 loves, 4 comments, 4 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Khanta: Mel K - Andrew Sorchini - Preparing for the Global Pivot Away from. Who's to say how things were to play out in the long run? The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? Is it possible to feel nostalgia for a place in the future? patriarchal and defining its social stratification with: 1) Victoria, or more commonly Vix, lives in a small house; her brother has muscular dystrophy; her mother is unhappy, and money is scarce. Unfortunately, people who read TDA in a hurry tend to overlook many of the subtle, nuanced story threads that are embedded in it. shocked to see that her feet were no more than four inches long. The only thing I remember from my first reading, all those years ago, was that there was a long section on Turing machines that was impossible for me to visualize and boring, but mostly it was about a girl who stumbled on an awesome, super-expensive book that sounded funa lot more fun than The Diamond Age, in fact, with its interminable . Dr. X sends Hackworth to North America to join the Drummers, a group that uses orgiastic sex to create a distributed human network that endlessly grows as more people get infected with their particles via sex; this network is needed to create the Seed. Of her adopted daughter realised what it was once thought of that this caregiving figure is what allows Nell develop. Many times I went back and found two, possibly three layers of meaning in a highly fashion! 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