Tue 20 Apr 2021
Diary Review: ARTHUR C. CLARKE – The Deep Range.
Posted by Steve under Diary Reviews , Science Fiction & Fantasy[7] Comments
ARTHUR C. CLARKE – The Deep Range. Harcourt Brace, hardcover, 1957. Signet S1583, paperback, 1958. Expanded from a short story of the same title first published in Star Science Fiction Stories No. 3 (Ballantine, paperback, 1955). The novel first collected in From the Ocean, from the Stars (Harcourt Brace, hardcover, 1961).
Essentially the life story of Walter Franklin and his career in the Bureau of Whales early next century. There are three distinct parts, each nearly independent of the others. In the first, Franklin is placed under the guidance of [Game] Warden Don Burley to learn a new career after astrophobia has forced him from space. Then, after becoming a warden himself, Franklin joins with Don in the capture of a giant squid, but an attempt to capture an unknown sea serpent ends in Don’s death.
As Franklin rises to the directorship of the Bureau, he is forced to decide whether continued slaughter of the whales or conservation shall become policy. The philosophy of Buddhism is responsible for his choice.
Smooth, intelligent and informative writing dominates, overshadowing a lack of real depth. An important exception occurs in the final third of the story. In the words of the Maha Thoro: “When that time comes, the treatment man receives from his superiors may well depend upon the way he has behaved toward the other creatures of his own world.â€
Another important facet of Clarke’s writing is his remarkable constraint in not telling the whole story when indeed it is not necessary.
Rating: 4 stars.
April 20th, 2021 at 11:08 pm
I’m sorry I don’t remember this novel very much at all l, in spite of giving it 4 stars. Reading the review now, it hardly even sounds like a science fiction novel, other than it taking place in the future (at the time it was written).
April 20th, 2021 at 11:38 pm
I’m not at all a fan of science fiction; although I have read many classics of the genres and I’ve often been thrilled and enthralled by various examples which came my way. For instance, Jules Verne, always so astounding.
But I’ve never been an avid reader of such. However, for reasons I don’t remember –other than it may have been a title found in a cardboard box of books I delved into by happenstance –I’ve actually read this title.
I liked it; I like A.C. Clarke, and this random sampling of his prose confirmed to me that I like his style and approach. He is always calm, deliberate, controlled, and quiet in his storytelling.
This story has no fireworks and it takes place undersea, which I appreciate. The one unusual item I remember is the protagonist in the first 1/3 of the read, as he makes his transition to a “new profession”.
He gets a kind of ‘skill dump’ chip implanted in his brain, so that he can quickly adapt to his new job requirements. It “saves the time of an actual learning curve”. That stayed with me.
It’s the kind of thing that seemed cool and interesting during the reading of the book but something I would abhor in real life.
The rest of the book was decent enough, with topics like whales and ethics. I enjoyed it.
But …burr. That one little item-in-passing is the kind of thing which puts me off SF. I don’t like rogue tech ideas, too rapidly implemented, which portend unknown effects.
I suppose it’s like what John Steinbeck said in Cannery Row about catching frogs. Frogs have been around for millennia and they’re used to humans catching them fairly, with skill, giving them an even chance, one at a time. They have every right to come to expect this; it’s the way they’ve always been caught. Not cool to come along with a machine that automatically nets them all at once.
April 21st, 2021 at 9:35 am
Thanks Lazy. I didn’t expect a lot of comments on this review, but to get one like yours from someone else who’s read the book was a pleasant surprise.
I don’t read a lot of science fiction anymore myself, not even the classics I grew up devouring every chance I had as a kid. My sense of wonder has diminished considerably over the years. Or maybe the saying, “The Golden Age of Science Fiction is 13” is very very true.
On the other hand, taking Steinbeck’s statement one step farther, we are all frogs.
April 21st, 2021 at 5:55 pm
Glad to contribute!
Something else about the whales element of the story: lots of SF tends to assume ‘one world government’ of the future. That’s the only way one could have an ‘Office of Whales’ with global reach. Otherwise, a Japanese ‘Office of Whales’ would be very much at odds with an American ‘Office of Whales’.
The world of squabbling nations usually sidestepped by visionary stories can be very messy. Ex: how many people know that Spain and Canada fought a war, in modern times?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbot_War
We got a long way to go before ‘one world government’ is ready.
April 21st, 2021 at 6:03 pm
Office of Whales (after work)
https://tinyurl.com/4ksy7nzb
April 21st, 2021 at 7:10 pm
I recall this one, but had in mind it was a juvenile novel for some reason. Clarke varied between hard science and more visionary works (Childhood’s End) to some mix of the two.
His writing style was conversational and literate, which meant he could also build up suspense about ideas and not merely actions.
April 21st, 2021 at 7:43 pm
Your suggestion that this was a juvenile novel is a good one, and I think it was, at some level, even though it was published for adults. Which means that, as you say, conversational and literate, while at the same time getting some basic scientific thoughts across.