| Plot Summary of Xen: Ancient English Edition |
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"Pawkey Seneschal is a misanthropic life scientist who struggles with his own xenophobia, his fear of others unlike his family and close associates, as well as his miserable marriage. Being an avid people watcher, while attending a conference in the city, he observes others on the subway, women at the conference and hotel. Pawkey does not having a scintilla of prejudice in his heart, but he can't suppress his first thoughts that are racist and sexist. He also mentally debates, in one of many streams of consciousness in the book, how people are manipulated by the propagandists and government that actually rule his world.
In this allegory, which is framed as a Bet between Wind & Water, Water causes neurotransmitters to be released in Pawkey's brain while he is sleeping one night after the conference. Because of this change in brain chemistry, Pawkey awakens with an idea for a eugenics program that will resolve this xenophobia.
After ending his marriage, he implements this idea. Pawkey designs and executes experiments over many decades, solving the questions of cellular aging and death, the nature of thought and sentience, as well as the genetic origins of hate, love, greed, jealousy, rage, charity, and all the other aspects that distinguish mankind from other species, both good and bad. With this knowledge now at hand, he has the power to save or destroy mankind completely. "
Janet Dawson, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Xen: Ancient English Edition |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 30%
Tone of book
- sensitive (sigh....)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?
- science fiction story
Inner Struggle
Yes
Plotlet:
- change of heart
Lifeform altered?
Yes
Kind of alteration:
- personality change
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- scientist
Age:
- 40's-50's
Eccentric:
Yes
- eccentric
- obsessed
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Genius
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- society
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a lot
Setting
Earth setting:
- near future (later in 21st century)
Takes place on Earth?
Yes
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- very explicit references to deaths and torture
scientific jargon? (SF only)
- some scientific explanation
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- descript of kissing
- licking
How much dialogue?
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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