Trouble on Triton

An Ambiguous Heterotopia

312 pages

English language

Published Dec. 13, 1996 by Wesleyan University Press, Published by University Press of New England.

ISBN:
978-0-8195-6298-2
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4 stars (3 reviews)

1 edition

Ambiguous heterotopia indeed

5 stars

In his own words, a response to LeGuin's the Dispossessed, Triton exposes the limits of politically conscious fiction. Bron is hilariously relatable asshole who we can't help loving. Even as his government participates in the deadliest war in the history of humanity, he can only think "but what about meeee?". Myself living in a city in a country with a broad safety net and high quality of life, i was made to think often about my own petty problems and even pettier forms of micro-politicing I've participated in that do nothing to mitigate the hot wars and genocides occurring simultaneously not 2,000 mi distance away. The truth is that that is the basis for the pettiness of everyday life. Bron is a black sheep because he was shaped by particular expectations of his youth, expectations that simply don't exist on Triton. It might be that the only expectation is that …

Take me to gay space, maybe

4 stars

Chip's propensity for unreliable/unlikeable narrators makes his books a bit of a slog sometimes, but he's still one of my favourites cause there's always layers of intent going on under the writing and he's so fucking smart and funny. Love imagining an occupied solar system with queer cooperative living and on-demand informed consent gender- and sexuality-affirming health tech, but! Theres a lot of dodging and ducking in and around the question of utopia here and the almost-campy idealized aspects of the society and tech play into these explorations. Loved it.