Never had a chance to read any of Philip K Dick's books so this was a great chance to step into his world. It's drawn comparisons with Black Mirror, and no doubt the similarities are there, but Electric Dreams very much has its own style. Electric Dreams is harder to directly link to the present but still leaves lots of issues to ponder about after the credits roll.
The Hood Maker is an excellent start. Like Black Mirror, it's a realistic and not-too-distant future. There's a lot going on, tensions between normals and "teeps", humans that can read minds. They are used by the state to control the masses and prevent an uprising, a true progression of 1984's Thought Police. In the fantastic opening scene, telepathic Honor is seen reading protesters' minds to let the authorities know which ones are the biggest threats. She can work out people's reasons for protesting by looking inside their minds, enabling the authorities to crack down on them with ease. It's not so simple though, as people are getting hold of hoods to block the brain signals from reaching Teeps. What's so great about this setup is that none of the characters are evil; they all have their motivations for doing what they do. The teeps are shunned by society yet are used for their abilities and the hood maker sees himself as doing the right thing in helping people resist the state's encroaching on people's thoughts.
Parallels can be drawn between this story and current events, such as how governments are more and more interested in reading what you say privately online, especially in the UK where the Snooper's Charter allows the state to read your most private messages. Will it one day be possible to read your thoughts? "The Hood Maker" is a success because it explores these concepts that we've all thought about at some point and it does so in a way that lets us come to our own conclusions. The open-ended ending may annoy some, but it does manage to wrap the story up nicely.
The Hood Maker is an excellent start. Like Black Mirror, it's a realistic and not-too-distant future. There's a lot going on, tensions between normals and "teeps", humans that can read minds. They are used by the state to control the masses and prevent an uprising, a true progression of 1984's Thought Police. In the fantastic opening scene, telepathic Honor is seen reading protesters' minds to let the authorities know which ones are the biggest threats. She can work out people's reasons for protesting by looking inside their minds, enabling the authorities to crack down on them with ease. It's not so simple though, as people are getting hold of hoods to block the brain signals from reaching Teeps. What's so great about this setup is that none of the characters are evil; they all have their motivations for doing what they do. The teeps are shunned by society yet are used for their abilities and the hood maker sees himself as doing the right thing in helping people resist the state's encroaching on people's thoughts.
Parallels can be drawn between this story and current events, such as how governments are more and more interested in reading what you say privately online, especially in the UK where the Snooper's Charter allows the state to read your most private messages. Will it one day be possible to read your thoughts? "The Hood Maker" is a success because it explores these concepts that we've all thought about at some point and it does so in a way that lets us come to our own conclusions. The open-ended ending may annoy some, but it does manage to wrap the story up nicely.