Evaporating Genres

Gary K. Wolfe
Evaporating Genres

Wesleyan University Press, 2011

"Evaporating genres", this is the title of this book, a collection of essays on fantastic literature. In there in the introduction to Part I Wolfe writes that ««genre» is used largely as a term of convenience», thus there is meant that the genre as such does not exist, these are labels that are glued, but the literature has no clear boundaries. However, the book's title has the word "genre", and therefore, as if we did not want to abandon the genre, and simply divide the literature on good and bad (for example), we can’t do that. To show and prove that the genres evaporate and diffuse, we first need to recognize that the genres exist, otherwise there would be nothing to prove. And therefore this book should not have to exist.

Speaking of genres, you'll notice another feature of the book. In his essays, Gary Wolfe often lists those authors who are now working between genres, Michael Swanwick, Kelly Link, China Mieville, Jeff Ford, etc etc. But as it is easily to see that these authors tentatively are referred to as “genre authors”, they are published by genre imprints and publishing houses, their works are criticized in the genre magazines and blogs, all of these authors are on this side, that is clear. Wolfe, would he wanted or not, pulled his favorite authors on his side - the side of science fiction (fantastic literature). But in the book there are almost no references to other authors, those who are commonly regarded as "mainstream".

To understand the book, it is necessary to understand the author. Wolf is a critic who is between a reviewer and an academic. In his essays, he often uses a historical approach, noting the evolution of the author, genre, subgenre. Wolf is the critic-cartographer and critic-historian. He is one of that breed of critics that can determine the location of the author in literary history, to find parallels between one author and others, to trace the roots of a given work. He sometimes digs in breadth, not depth, but the width of his scope is staggering. Wolfe knows how to lay out literature on the shelves, but can see the depth in novel as well.

His essays are exactly like the maps, extensive, where sometimes there are too many objects to focus on one particular.

Wolfe has his favorite writers (it's all the same Ford, Rickert, Link). Like any critic, he tends to exaggerate some of figures. Thus, in his essay «Evaporating Genres» in part «The Construction and Deconstruction of Horror», the author writes about the development of the horror genre, placing for Stephen King half-paragraph, and for Peter Straub several pages (in the book there is also a whole essay on Straub’s books), while to me Straub seems a phony figure.

Genres are evaporating, and Wolfe with this book helps to their evaporation.

The South Korean Film Renaissance

Jinhee Choi
The South Korean Film Renaissance

Wesleyan University Press, 2010

In this academic study Jinhee Choi recounts how Korean films conquered the world and why it happened. It's no secret that South Korean cinema have had success both at festivals and among ordinary viewers in movie theaters, becoming the leading box office abroad, too. “Old Boy” had been seen by even those who are watching about a movie a year, so that in very general terms, the South Korean cinema has a representation of a huge number of film enthusiasts. But what was triggered the renaissance of cinema in Korea, not everyone knows.

Choi begins her book with exactly that: what was the impetus to ensure that state and private investors interested in the film industry and began to invest in it, as a result the first blockbusters (the author notes that the term "blockbuster" highly conditional and a blockbuster in the U.S. is different from blockbuster and its understanding of it in South Korea) appeared. The author considers in detail, how have its influence on the formation of a Korean-style blockbusters improving networks of cinemas, quotas on foreign films in local theaters, the political situation in the country, the interests of viewers, filmmakers themselves.

Having dealt with the causes of the Renaissance, Choi takes for the most popular genres of Korean cinema. In the chapter on gangster movies, it compares the crime films of Hong Kong and South Korea (finding the latter more emotional), dwelling on the gangster comedies. In the chapter «I'm Not a Girl, Yet Not a Woman» the author looks for reasons of the success of contemporary romantic comedies at the audience (mostly young). The main heroes of the chapter on so-called teen pics suddenly become horror movies. In the next chapter with the subtitle «« High Quality» Films» “high-concept” Korean films are compared to so-called arthouse films of other countries. The final chapter is devoted to new wave directors.

The book is rich in a huge number of movie titles that are so desirable to be rewritten in the notepad, then to watch everything, but this does not mean that the author has only used an extensive approach: in the chapters on genres, Choi examines some mise-en-scene, accompanying the description of the scenes footage from a movie.
To get more pleasure from the book, it is recommended to look at least a couple of examples of South Korean cinema – thus many places in the book will be more understandable.

Sometimes the author does not have enough pressure so that the reader threw the book at the half and ran to watch a movie just mentioned on the pages.

Highly recommended.

Music and Cyberliberties

Patrick Burkart
Music and Cyberliberties

Wesleyan University Press, 2010

This book is a 140-page study on how liberties of U.S. citizens in the web have been changing and how music has become the flagship of the movement for information freedom.

This activist’s guide is released by the university press and written by a young professor of the University of Texas, hence the frequent references to works of philosophers. Leaving aside not the easiest for the unprepared reader language and philosophers with social scientists, the book may well be informative and sometimes even fascinating reading for anyone who loves the first half of the book's title, but doubted that he is interested in the second half.

The author in the five chapters describes who is fighting against whom the struggle for free distribution of music, unlimited access to knowledge, the right to have for you to not be watched. Burkart examines in detail what societies, associations, organizations stand for liberties in the digital space, but concludes that there is not single movement still at all, all groups are scattered and irregular. Burkart tracks changes, which are performed by the Big Four (the major record companies of America, producing about 90% of all records), to protect their music from free distribution, but almost all the methods are either limiting the freedom of man, or so absurd as to cause laughter (thus, in the late 90's students were not even allowed to sing popular songs at the campfire). Bureaucracy has become one of the main characters of this book: it is so penetrated all corners of people's lives that prevent developing society as it would become a natural way.
Burkart absolutely is a true eye for what the music was always the first of the arts which brings changes. There are not among readers and moviegoers so many fighters for freedom in the digital space, as there are among music fans and musicians as well.

In "Music and Cyberliberties" there are some flaws. The author mentions that music itself in his work was not touched, noting that it might be completely different genres. Burkart repeatedly mentions that today's movement for cyberliberties originates from DIY-movement, but at the same time, throughout the book, he writes about the struggle with the musical giants of the business. Still, the policy of indie labels is very different from the policy of the Big Four, and in the book they are almost the same. And it is worth noting, the book still managed to somewhat outdated. It is clear that the process of publishing the book is not imminent, but since 2008 the number of changes have already occurred, which, if not radically alter the look and approach, but specify many particulars. Internet is still a very dynamic space.

However, these flaws almost do not spoil the book. Still, freedom is the freedom, whenever and wherever it is. And the author managed to capture the spirit of freedom.