‘Could a rule be given from without, poetry would cease to be poetry, and sink into a mechanical art. It would be μóρφωσις, not ποίησις. The rules of the IMAGINATION are themselves the very powers of growth and production. The words to which they are reducible, present only the outlines and external appearance of the fruit. A deceptive counterfeit of the superficial form and colours may be elaborated; but the marble peach feels cold and heavy, and children only put it to their mouths.’ [Coleridge, Biographia ch. 18]

‘ποίησις’ (poiēsis) means ‘a making, a creation, a production’ and is used of poetry in Aristotle and Plato. ‘μóρφωσις’ (morphōsis) in essence means the same thing: ‘a shaping, a bringing into shape.’ But Coleridge has in mind the New Testament use of the word as ‘semblance’ or ‘outward appearance’, which the KJV translates as ‘form’: ‘An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form [μóρφωσις] of knowledge and of the truth in the law’ [Romans 2:20]; ‘Having a form [μóρφωσις] of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away’ [2 Timothy 3:5]. I trust that's clear.

There is much more on Coleridge at my other, Coleridgean blog.

Saturday 3 August 2024

"Lake of Darkness" Out Now



Available now from all good bookshops (including Waterstones) and Amazon UK. There is some issue with Amazon US, it seems: you can buy the audiobook for dollars [update: as per the comment below, it seems you can't, actually] but not the actual book. I'm not sure why, and will look into it. 

Is it any good? I'm hardly the person to say yes, or no, and you doubtless have better things on which to spend your money. Brian Clegg describes it as ‘wow’ and says: ‘the mix of a snowflake utopian future, employing the weirdest bits of speculative black hole physics and religion left my mind buzzing. Some will hate it, but the best new SF this year’. The opening two sentences of Clegg's review are, I think, the highest praise I've ever had as a writer:
Two of the best ever fantasy writers - Alan Garner and Gene Wolfe - both wrote books that over the years got more sophisticated and harder to take in, yet these books really rewarded the reader who put in the effort to a great degree. Adam Roberts has become their equivalent in the science fiction world. Although much of Lake of Darkness is an easy enough read, the concepts it is built on are mind-boggling and the last part left my mind buzzing, if not entirely sure what I had just experienced.
Amazon ratings are not necessarily the most reliable guides to quality, but I note that Lake of Darkness has 57 ratings already, from 3 stars to 5 stars, weighted towards the latter. Here's the judgment of one of the 3-star reviewers: ‘an almost impenetrable novel that mixes hard SF with philosophy and religion.’ Fair enough.
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3 comments:

  1. Visqu3 August 2024 at 16:13

    The audiobook isn't available for purchase in the US either. When you click on the link above (if you're in the states) you see the message in the area where you would press the button to purchase "This title is not available for you. Sorry, this title is no longer available. Please try using the search feature as another version of this work may be available. If you think we've made a mistake, please contact Audible Customer Care at 1-888-283-5051."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Adam Roberts3 August 2024 at 23:50

      Oh! I didn't know that -- I'll look into what's happened.

      Delete
  2. Ron5 August 2024 at 04:07

    Looking forward to reading it when the Amazon US hiccups are cured. Congratulations on the new book!

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