Classic Sci-Fi: Should You Read It? is a self-imposed project in which I read pre-1990 science fiction novels and categorize them as “classis sci-fi you should read,” “classic sci-fi you should read if you’re all hardcore about it,” or “classic sci-fi you don’t have to read.” For background on my project, please see the introduction to my review of 1984.
Foundation
Synopsis
Foundation was written by prolific sci-fi author Isaac Asimov in 1951. Like his I, Robot, the text consists of interrelated short stories set in the same universe that were originally published in sci-fi magazines and later compiled for the novels. The main fictional science at work here is “psychohistory,” which is a mixture of psychology, math, and history that experts use to precisely predict the future of their interstellar human society. Hari Seldon, the boss psychohistorian and one of the few recurring characters in the book, establishes the Foundation community to “preserve knowledge” ahead of a predicted collapse of the Galactic Empire. There’s also quite a bit of societal manipulation, such as using religion as a tool for control, restricting scientific understanding to maintain an advantage over less-advanced groups, and dishonest trade practices, all of which seem a lot like colonization to me, but YMMV.
The stories take place over decades and most of the exposition is presented in conversation between two or more guys, usually one clever guy who gets it and one or two others who don’t, allowing us to eavesdrop on the clever guy’s explanations. I’m not completely opposed to this literary device, but overuse is lazy, and it can come off as self-congratulatory, especially if the characters enjoy being the only guy in the room who knows WTF. Sometimes, the stakes are a little higher, and the clever guys have to outwit the others to remain in power. That’s a nice change of pace, but still, it’s 100% some guy being smarter than some other guys, which gets boring, Isaac.
In trying to understand the influence of Foundation on the genre I have learned that most fans are men who like it because it’s a handbook on how to manipulate society. I have also read a rumor that it’s Elon Musk’s favorite book. All this tracks.
True to Asimov’s reputation of being absolutely horrible to women, the only smart folks in the book are men. In fact, below is a comprehensive list of all the women who appear in Foundation:
- A woman who briefly answers the phone
- A (slave???) girl whom a master trader uses to demonstrate that women really love clothes and jewelry
- Some dude’s wife, who at least seems like a person, but is portrayed poorly, casually threatened with violence, and silenced with clothes and jewelry. She gets to say more than two things, but only to her husband, who hates her.
The most egregious part is when Mallow, a Master Trader (guy who gets it) is explaining why his goods are valuable, and the answer is, basically, that bitches will pay hella for beauty, cooking, and cleaning supplies. Sure, this was written in the early 50s, and I could maybe extend Asimov a doubt, but this was a year after the same guy wrote I, Robot featuring chief robopsychologist Dr. Susan Calvin, who spends the entire book explaining what the heck is going on to a bunch of men, so he can do better, and no doubt will be given.
Verdict
Foundation has some interesting ideas, but the execution is flawed. You don’t need to read it, but maybe watch the Apple TV show instead. I personally don’t have the means to watch, but it looks like they’ve gender-swapped several of the characters and are exploring the good ideas with a diverse cast and hopefully an updated message.
Sequels
Synopses
The second and third books in the series, which are confusingly called Foundation and Empire and Second Foundation, respectively, are better than the first. They introduce the concepts of 1.) an emotion-manipulating mutant who has escaped the predictions of the physcohistorians and 2.) a second Foundation community that was based on hoarding mental sciences and manipulation rather than historical and mathematical. These two read like mysteries, because any character could be the mutant, under control of the mutant, or secretly a member of one or the other of the Foundation communities. If you like the parts in Agatha Christy novels when the detective explains the crime and you don’t mind exposition that’s even more condescending, maybe look into these.
They also both feature women as main characters! Bayta, the woman in Foundation and Empire, is pretty rad, but the text makes sure to inform the reader that she is both weirdly attractive even though she’s not super hot, and that she is not like the other girls! It’s both a huge improvement on the first book and still exhausting. Arcadia, the woman in Second Foundation, is Bayta’s granddaughter and obsessed with her legacy in a way the text points out is pretty annoying, and she goes on her own adventure even though she’s portrayed as a silly teenager. She is smart and resourceful and does wtf she wants, so of course basically all the men in the book hate her and treat her poorly.
Verdicts
The second book is the best of the three, but even the improvements in the sequels aren’t redeeming because it’s still mostly guys explaining how everyone else is wrong about the universe, and the end of the third book comes up with a spoilery reason why the cool women characters were never under their own agency in the first place. The sequels are less egregious than Foundation, but I still don’t really see a reason they must be read unless you need to flex your classic sci-fi credentials. You don’t need to read them.