The new town smelled of home, or as he always imagined home should. Continue reading “Smell of Home”
Author: A.J. Reeves
What can I truly say about myself, I love to write, I love to read, it's what keeps me going, it's what feeds my soul, and inspires me. Writing is something I have always loved, and I plan on doing it till my fingers fall off.
I am a Trekkie, and a Whovian. Tolkien is my master of Fantasy, I love the Supernatural family, Asimov my lord of Sci-Fi, Wilde the commander of wit. One Punch Man sets me off into hysterical giggles and Marvel stands at the top, with all my heroes present.
"I super believe in you, Tad Cooper" -Galavant
The Crowded Sky
They say the castle is haunted.
That when the north wind dies, you could hear the moaning of some poor lost soul.
That in the dark halls and crevices, when you hold your breath, you can feel a ghostly touch creep up your arm, full of sadness and desperation. Her loneliness seeps into you.
Character Study: Friendship
Hope slammed her door with a well-placed kick, before dumping her keys on her entryway table. Unhooking the latches on her heels she flung them off her feet with little care as they sailed into some unknown part of her house. She blinked her eyes hazily, feeling exhaustion weighing down heavily on her bones. Bending backward she stretched her back out, thinking about how lovely a pair of pajamas sounded right now.
The Silence
Whenever a voice rose he could not help but flinch. Such sounds went straight to his heart, suffocated him, overwhelmed him…paralyzed him. He lay under his bed, his mother’s words a piercing blade in his ear, his father’s shout a sharp crack against his skull. When silence ultimately fell, he would hum quietly to himself, for the silence was almost more terrifying.
The Image of Elizabeth: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
The appearance of a character forms an image in the mind of the reader, and many illustrative words cause one to form certain assumptions. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the appearance of Elizabeth paints a clear and vivid picture in the reader’s mind. Shelley writes, “Her hair was the brightest living gold, and, despite the poverty of her clothing, seemed to set a crown of distinction on her head” (42). Continue reading “The Image of Elizabeth: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley”
The Fall of Math
I have recently being reading Welsh and Irish Medieval texts I am a huge fan (Táin, Mabinogion, Second Battle of Mag Turied, amongst others), so I wrote a short little scene based on some of our ideas about what Celtic culture may have been like in ancient times, this is short sweet, and by no means one hundred percent accurate, just uses some of the tropes and ideas we know in what I hope is a fun way. I was speciffically inspired by CuChulainn and laments. This was a warrior culture so Warning: there is violence!
Have a lovely day!
His blade flashed through the fading light, neatly severing Math’s head, the spray of blood warm against his face. Math’s body collapsed to the ground, twitching out its last moments of life. Diarmiad stared at the fallen warrior with a detached sense of loss. He panted heavily, blood leaking from numerous wounds as he cleaned his sword with the edge of his shirt, wiping with slow methodical movements.
The Measure of Humanity: Part 4
I have gotten a bit philosophical on the definitions of humanity and the qualities that comprise aspects of it, but now I want to turn and instead look at what the motivations and treatment of the characters on these topics reveal about why this issue is explored in these stories. As is common in many Dystopian stories there is this overriding fear of mechanization, that humans will become obsolete as machines and engineering creating superior inventions. In Blade Runner, the replicants’ are perfect physically, stronger, faster, and in ways smarter. The replicants existence is a threat to the status quo and if allowed to gain emotions and live longer they could very well surpass humans at the top of the power hierarchy. Continue reading “The Measure of Humanity: Part 4”
The Measure of Humanity: Part 3
One of the most primal reactions I can think of is the desire to live, to continue existing for as long as possible, to fight and scratch, and struggle to survive. The right to live is one we all desperately hold on to, the right to decide for ourselves to face tomorrow. In continuing to prove just how human he seems to be Roy says, “‘I want more life’” when asked what the problem is by Tyrell (Blade Runner). The desire to live, a conscious awareness of one’s continued existence and even more importantly a recognition that it will all end. Replicants are struggling to find agency in their lives, to make decisions about the way they live and what they do, and because their lives are confined to four years they are reduced to a limited number of experiences, to a limited existence. Data experiences a similar, if not slightly more logic bound, response to the possibility of his destruction. Continue reading “The Measure of Humanity: Part 3”
The Measure of Humanity: Part 2
Star Trek: Next Gen paints us a very different but just as thought-provoking picture of an other struggling to gain a place in society. In the episode “The Measure of a Man” Data an android officer of Starfleet is ruled to be the property of the federation and therefore he can be dismantled in the pursuit of science. Captain Picard and Data challenge this ruling and have a court hearing to determine if as an android he possesses rights or not. In contrast to replicants, androids are in fact completely mechanical creations, lacking all biological components. They are made in the image of man, to serve and resemble and function as a human would. Commander Maddox, the scientist working to declare Data as property, when faced with the outrage of Captain Picard who considers Data an individual and sentient being, says, “‘You are endowing Data with human characteristics because it looks human. But it is not’”. Continue reading “The Measure of Humanity: Part 2”
The Measure of Humanity: Part 1
I have always been fascinated by the idea that humanity is an intrinsic quality, one that is gained through life and experience, and that this quality is not necessarily constrained to mere humans. The question of what makes up humanity, who possesses it, and how can you measure its existence is one that has been explored in the science fiction genre for decades. I am interested in the concern specific works show over the idea as explored through whether or not mechanical engineered creations can possess humanity or even sentience. I want to explore the different ways Blade Runner and Star Trek: Next Generation delve into these questions, looking at the qualities and issues they investigate as well as the different concerns surrounding this debate as portrayed by the stances characters take. The qualities that make a human deserving of rights are often ineffable and hard to define, and yet we hold our right to certain truths and respect to be self-evident. Continue reading “The Measure of Humanity: Part 1”
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