Book Review: The Body of This Death by Ross McCullough

The Body of This Death: Letters from the Last Archbishop of Lancaster by Ross McCullough

This epistolary novel set in a not-too-distant future presents letters from an unnamed archbishop dealing with a lot of modern problems. Artificial intelligence and virtual reality dominate pop culture and a lot of life, so much so that people ike the archbishop, who participate only minimally, are seen as pariahs. He cautions his correspondents about the dehumanizing effects. He also deals with the rise of Islam, writing to a woman who is concerned about her daughter interacting with a young ward of the archbishop's who might be converting the daughter by her example and conversation. The government has become more totalitarian and thus much less tolerant of the teachings of the Catholic faith. Things come to a head as he is accused of a crime by the state.

The book provides a lot of interesting reflections on contemporary issues. The imagined future of virtual reality and associated technology is plausible if pessimistic. The decoupling of our human bodies from our "spiritual" or "real" selves has been an ongoing problem exacerbated by medical and technological experimentation that does not respect the human person. Trying to sort out a genuine ecumenism with Islam has been a problem for centuries with fundamental divisions keeping progress from being made. Overbearing states have been a problem for a long time too, from the Pharaohs to the English Henrys (I'm thinking of II and VIII) to Communist and Fascist governments of the twentieth century. The theology in the book is solid and well thought out.

My problem with the book is that it tries to be too clever. The back has a quote comparing this to The Screwtape Letters, something that immediately caught my interest. My expectation was set far too high because C. S. Lewis is a very high bar to get over, something McCullough does not manage. A lot of the phrasing apes the nifty paradoxical style of G. K. Chesterton, though again it just did not work for me. The book ends with a bunch of posthumous letters that were either never sent or found later. The earlier, presumably chronological letters, have notes guiding the reader to specific posthumous letters which have more or less related discussions. Again, I found this more artificially clever than genuinely interesting. Reading this book was very unsatisfying to me, even though I agree with the a lot of the ideas.

Not recommended--the structuring and style obscures the content too much.

Book Review: Anthem by Ayn Rand

Anthem by Ayn Rand

In a far distant future human civilization has partially collapsed. Centralized government is going strong but technology has regressed so far that they use candles and lots of manual labor because electricity and engines are unheard of. All work is done for the good of everyone, so extra work is not a problem. Everyone lives for the good of the "We," even referring to themselves only as "We." Sure, they have designations like the main character who is Equality 7-2521, but any individuality is crushed out of people by education and social manipulation. Equality 7-2521 says he was born with a curse, that he was different from others. He would get in fights with the other boys at the Home of Infants. Growing up, he spent a lot of time being punished, which was often being left alone. But the educational system was tight and sure of itself, declaring careers for everyone at age fifteen. Careers that were meant for lifetime work until those who couldn't work anymore would move to the House of the Useless. Equality 7-2521 had lots of curiosity and hoped to be in the House of Scholars but was put into the House of Street Sweepers. Of course, hoping for any position other than what you are given is a crime, so he kept it to himself. 

His life takes a big twist when, while cleaning a street on the outskirts of town, he discovers a grating that has ladder going down. Even though it is a crime, he climbs underground and discovers a smooth-walled cave with two parallel iron bars running down the middle. He sets up a learning center for himself there. Every night he sneaks out from the three-hour theater entertainment to experiment and learn, using materials he has stolen from various places. 

The next big twist is when he sees a woman working on a farm field by the road. He spots a spark of difference in her eyes and demeanor; she recognizes the same in him. They break another iron-clad rule of their society by communicating with each other. Things come to a head when he re-discovers electricity and can't help sneaking in to the Council of Scholars to demonstrate it. He assumes that the public good his discovery provides will make up for his guilt (which he does not feel) of working alone. His assumption is wrong.

The story is a classic dystopia like 1984. The past is called "the Unmentionable Times," from which more than technology has been lost, freedom and individuality have been stamped out. The socialist totalitarian state is so engrained than almost no one even thinks to fight against it, a clear worry for Rand. The world is well-imagined and the main character is extremely sympathetic. He turns into a mouthpiece for Rand's Objectivism with a big speech (the titular Anthem) at the end about how he will fix society, starting with rewarding individual, personal achievement for its own sake. I enjoy this style of dystopian literature, which is often paired with a political message against tyranny. I don't go so far as to adopt Rand's philosophy even though she puts it into such a sympathetic light.

Recommended.