I originally read The Golden Age by John C. Wright about two years ago and it’s since become one of my favourite SF novels. There are two sequels which I shall read soon but I wanted to reread The Golden Age first to refresh my memory.
I thought if I was doing that I’d revisit my original review as well as it was one of the first I wrote and there were several points I wanted to elaborate on. I’ll post several others soon as well, including one of The Yiddish Policemen’s Union.
* * * * * *
The Golden Age by John C. Wright was originally published in 2002 and was Wright’s first novel. Since then he’s gone on to write two sequels to The Golden Age, as well as the Orphans of Chaos series, nominated for the 2005 Nebula Award. I’m a little slow catching up with the new wave of SF authors but The Golden Age was worth the wait.
Wright’s story is set in a future Utopian society so advanced that no one can die; advanced nanotechnology and cybernetics allow people to create unlimited copies of themselves, cheating death. Humanity has reached the pinnacle of its evolution but has now begun to stagnate; if people can live forever, then why should anyone look to break the status quo? Phaethon has lived this way for all of his life… or so he thinks. But when a stranger accuses him of being an imposter Phaethon begins a journey to discover who he truly is – and risks losing his very place in modern society.
TGA echoes the work and themes of Clarke, Vance and other authors, as well as the Greek myth it is partially based on (the protagonist’s name references Phaethon, who stole Helios’s chariot and rode it too close to the earth), but at its heart it is a story of identity and exploration. Phaethon’s journey of self-discovery leads him to the heart of the Golden Ocrumene itself and to a secret he had agreed to forget in order for their society to remain at peace.
What Wright is really asking is, how much of our identity makes us human? Can Phaethon truly be whole when so much of his life has been taken away? Is it better to go on in ignorance than to risk discovering something about yourself or your society you cannot take back? Is he even the same person, without those memories, and what would he become if he got them back? Wright handles these thoughts carefully, a counterbalance to the science.
What’s really striking about TGA, however, is the kaleidoscope of Wright’s future society. It’s a vivid world he has created, beautiful and terrifying all at once; at times it echoes something William Gibson might have written (or perhaps the Matrix), with the Manorials travelling and communicating more as “projections” than something “real” in the physical world. It’s a complex and structured world, with a detailed hierarchy that makes it decidedly real.
Equally impressive is how Wright’s work sparkles with new ideas on every page – at one point we’re told Jupiter has even been converted into a second sun, something other writers would have made a whole novel out of. His prose is attractive as well, almost lyrical. He uses humour and irony to underscore his themes and nothing feels forced even in the most preposterous of situations (like a talking penguin).
I can’t recommended The Golden Age highly enough. It’s a throwback to the science fiction of Heinlein, Asimov and Clarke, filled with grand and thought-provoking ideas. I still find it hard to believe this was Wright’s first novel; it’s one of the best debuts I’ve read.
Wright asks his readers to follow him without making presumptions about their intelligence, and while it might not be for everyone, if you like science fiction that makes you think and is highly literate, I’d definitely recommend you check it out.
Final Thoughts: Ambitious science fiction with big concepts and a decidedly philosophical bent. A must read for fans of intellectual SF.
Modern Classics 