'Go read Doris Lessing,
' said my favorite Classics professor at Tufts. You see, we both love Vonnegut, Heinlein and all sorts of science fiction, so I visited his office one day asking why there weren't more women writers of the genre catching my fancy. I took his advice and wandered into the used bookstore in Harvard Square. There among the maze of shelves downstairs, I came upon an old copy of Doris Lessing's Canopus in Argos: Archives The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four, and Five. The book deals with struggles between men and women and dimensions of love and sex. Here's the synopsis straight out of wikipedia:
The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five (1981) is one of a set of unconventional science fiction novels written by Nobel Prize-winner Doris Lessing. They are linked by the name Canopus in Argos, but each is a story in its own right and separate from the others. It is very different from the standard "space opera" approach. Shikasta, the first book in the series, gives an imagined history of the Earth in which superior aliens from Canopus and Sirius play a role. This story concerns the interactions between "zones" connected to Earth but not quite part of it. The main differences between the "zones" are attitudes to sex, power and the rights of women (the advanced and enlightened zone three, the patriarchal and militaristic zone four, and the chaotic barbarian zone five). Some superior power forces the different peoples to interact and learn from each other (decreeing that a woman from zone three marry a man from zone four).
Hmmmm... sex, power, and the rights of women in a science fiction novel? You can bet I was intrigued. So I read Canopus In Argos and while I can't say I was captivated, I did find her style unique and the subject matter quite interesting. And get this... Yesterday, Doris Lessing found out she won the Nobel Prize for literature. Her reaction, 'Oh Christ! ... I couldn't care less.' Later she explained, 'I can't say I'm overwhelmed with surprise. I'm 88 years old and they can't give the Nobel to someone who's dead, so I think they were probably thinking they'd probably better give it to me now before I've popped off.' Was she excited about fame and glory? The cash prize? No. 'I'm very pleased if I get some new readers. Yes, that's very nice, I hadn't thought of that.' I interpret her unusual response to mean that Lessing finds reward in the actual process of composition and ability to share her stories and sentiments with readers. And I understand because sorting out and exchanging ideas here with all of you is by far the most satisfying aspect of blogging. So now that I've read her reaction to winning, I can honestly say... Congratulations Doris Lessing, but Nobel Prize aside, I want to be like you when I grow up!
