Ideas to store for later

[kiya]

In a discussion over in james_nicoll someone made a comment about not seeing monarchist science fiction.

I now want to build a transhumanist Egyptian-style monarchy virtual world and write stories in it. Possibly with stealth theology, because what doesn't these days? At least that I do.

(I do wish I had an easier time coming up with plots. Settings are easy.)

Comments

[metahacker.livejournal.com]

It's a time-honored tradition to steal plots from older literature. (It being hard to steal them from literature yet to be written.)

[duane-kc.livejournal.com]

Just out of curiosity, what was your opinion of the pseudo-Egyptian stuff in the Stargate series?

[kiya]

It was very pseudo.

[kiya]

Trying to be more specific, it bore sufficient lack of any resemblence to actual Egyptiana as to be completely dismissible as anything other than a bunch of folks saying, "Hey, that's shiny, I'll steal that decorative motif", which is, y'know, that's normal as a human thing.

Consider the treatment of Anubis in SG-1: a malevolent, half-noncorporeal figure whose overt evil had him banished by the goa'uld, a species not precisely known for their cherishing of social virtues. Planet-destroying doom for the win! Or something.

In the actual mythology and theology, Anpu is perhaps the kindest and gentlest god in any pantheon with which I am familiar, whose patronage of enbalming is a service to assist the deceased in re-establishing a connected existence after the dissociation of death, who helps the lost to find themselves, and who looks after orphans. I mean. Orphans. The "boogety-boo" factor, while common in dealing with him, is kind of, well, lacking.

And that's not getting into an entire society of, well, cannibalistic backstabbing megalomaniacs riffing on the aesthetic tropes of a society in which ambition for ambition's sake is considered fundamentally immoral, in which getting along with one's neighbor was an essential principle, and in which legitimate power was expected to be demonstrated via social works.

[duane-kc.livejournal.com]

So, it boils down to,"you thought it was crap, same's I did." :)

[kiya]

It wasn't a fantasy Egypt or anything, it just used some shiny bits. ;)

I quite liked Stargate for as long as I watched it, but the idea that it had any meaningful reflection on my religion makes me giggle.

[fairoriana.livejournal.com]

Vorkosigan! Highly monarchial! Highly Sci-fi!

[whispercricket]

Slightly tangential, but two other monarchist SF options (not that I'm sure I'm getting monarchist right):

_The Keltiad_ by Patricia Kennealy (at least _The Tales of Aeron_)
_The Jaran_ by Kate Elliott (well, sort of - Empire, and not specifically pro-Empire, but that's complicated)

Someone in the other thread already mentioned Honor Harrington.