Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Drowned World by J.G. Ballard

9 reviews

thecatsmum's review

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

For those who haven't read Ballard's early novels, but who are fairly familiar with his later works, like I was until I read this, this mid-century sci-fi novel might come as a surprise. It wasn't bad, per se, but a very different experience than I expected. 

So, the Sun has gone wonky decades before, causing global warming, flooding much of the world. There's also a progressive march of extreme heat and severe storms from the equator polewards. Most of the flooded cities have been abandoned after a few decades of holding back the sea from the most populated centres. London is mostly abandoned, and the group of a few soldiers and scientists are preparing to move to settlements near the Arctic Circle. But not everyone is willing to leave.

I found some ideas about genetic memory about past threats interesting, and the setting was well set and mood altering. I still didn't find the MC's (Dr. Robert Kerans) and his love interest's (the only woman in the book, Beatrice Dahl) decision to stay not really well explained. Other than “sun madness”, the effects of the genetic memory, or some promise or another made to her grandfather by TPTB. 

There's a lot of colonial chauvinism, which is of its time, obviously. Maybe that was the point, but not in any sort of progressive, here's the end of the British Empire, good riddance sort of way. That's not why I'm not rating this higher. I just didn't enjoy it as much as other sci-fi works from the era nor as much as some of Ballard's later works.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racial slurs, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Physical abuse, Confinement, Animal death, Infertility, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Mental illness, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, Colonisation, and Violence

ampharos906's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Death, Gore, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, and Violence

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racism, Sexism, Murder, Alcohol, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Drug use, Racial slurs, Torture, Blood, Physical abuse, and Violence

joe_dmh's review

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism

espbear's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

lilyvbutcher's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism

painfullyshybookworm's review against another edition

slow-paced

1.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

ama_680's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism

Moderate: Sexism

bugnorman's review

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

The book follows a rather bland, British scientist's choice to remain behind in the sunken city of London in world ravaged by climate change. With him is a female coworker, who also plans to stay with the plan to, more or less, sink into the primordial ooze. This might be a mildly interesting mid-century character piece, if not for the introduction of a third character--a pirate in a white suit and his crew of only Black men who arrive to plunder the treasures of sunken London. The author goes to great lengths to describe this crew as animalistic, violent, and savage. The characterization of these men as servile and primitive smacks so hard of British colonial thinking that I'm sure the royals could here the echoes from thousands of miles away.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

elphaba105's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism