... The ultimate accolade a citizen can achieve is permission to return to, and settle on Earth.
The stability of the social order is kept in check by the Orwellian, Block Councils where, those who infringe, are expected to confess their misdemeanors to their fellow residents with whom they ... Read review
Advantages: Fast paced. Clearly written. Fairly short novel. Disadvantages: None other than Dick is dead.
...I am currently taking the reigns from Lori for a day or so. She wanted me to write an opinion on Philip K. Dick, and so here I am.
Master of the Dystopian future landscape, (ala the movies, "BLADERUNNER" and "TOTAL RECALL" which were both based on Philip K. Dick stories) THE MAN WHO JAPED sees Philip K. Dick at his dark humoured best. Amongst the crowded urbanized landscape of a distant planet, in a now ... ...the main protagonist cast as an almost Quizotic character tilting at the "windmills" of a sterile society that has taken politics of contemporary "gated communities" and set their petty restrictions in legislation.
In a universe where, literally, personal space is a luxury that few can afford, apartments are now computer controlled to remodel a single living area as kitchen/bedroom/living space. The ultimate accolade ... more
Hi. This is Steve. I am currently taking the reigns from Lori for a day or so. She wanted me to write an opinion on Philip K. Dick, and so here I am.
Master of the Dystopian future landscape, (ala the movies, "BLADERUNNER" and "TOTAL RECALL" which were both based on Philip K. Dick stories) THE MAN WHO JAPED sees Philip K. Dick at his dark humoured best. Amongst the crowded urbanized landscape of a distant planet, in a now stellar wide commercial earth empire, THE MAN WHO JAPED sees the main protagonist cast as an almost Quizotic character tilting at the "windmills" of a sterile society that has taken politics of contemporary "gated communities" and set their petty restrictions in legislation.
In a universe where, literally, personal space is a luxury that few can afford, apartments are now computer controlled to remodel a single living area as kitchen/bedroom/living space. The ultimate accolade a citizen can achieve is permission to return to, and settle on Earth.
The stability of the social order is kept in check by the Orwellian, Block Councils where, those who infringe, are expected to confess their misdemeanors to their fellow residents with whom they share the cramped living space with.
Punishments are agreed upon, and meeted out, by a vote amongst the residents so as to afford the ruling politique an all inclusive guilt in perpetuation of society by its own members.
The main protagonist of the novel is one Allen Purcell. An almost every man figure, Purcell reaches the point in his life where the dream of returning to Earth is suddenly tantalizingly close at hand.
Purcell works for an advertising agency and is offered the promotion, that due to the mental breakdown of his predecessor, could finally be his ticket home. The only dark cloud on the horizon is, Purcell, is a man haunted by dreams that tell him, as he wakes in a cold sweat, that he has infringed against the very core ideals of the society that he lives in. In his nightmares, Purcell, defaces the statue of the founding Father and idealogical hero of the vast corporate empire. This is further complicated when Purcell watches the local news broadcasts, only to find that the very damage he had dreamt of, has actually been perpetrated on the Founder's monument.
Concisely written, with descriptive and narrative nods, to one Raymond Chandler that can be found in other of Dick's works, his prose perfectly straddles the almost kitch street terms and idioms of the dime novel, and that what is termed as "high literature".
Purcell is one of those literary characters who is easy to relate to, his fears are the fears that many of us share in today's society of increasing urban isolationism and bland media conformity.
THE MAN WHO JAPED is a fine way to ease oneself into Dicks' personal world, a world that is both frighteningly familiar, and yet at times, convincingly futuristic. Some of the technology described will bring a wry smile to the face of the early 21st century audience, as, mention of tapes in a distant future are already a quaint anachronism. Be that as it may, Dick paints a convincing canvas of a future society not that far from our own. A slim tone, pithilly written, it is as fresh and scarily yet vitally funny as it was when it was first published.Here are a few websites that offer Philip K. Dick's novel THE MAN WHO JAPED:
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There is over 40 different websites prices for this book. Enjoy.
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