Week Four, Weird

Week Four, Three Moments of Weird

This week I read Three Moments of an Explosion and I came to the conclusion China Mieville is brilliantly weird, period. His work assaults you with its oddity in a way that makes you question what writing really is. It is not often that I read something and feel so entertained with the newness of that something’s content. Not only through his use of subject but in the way he presents it to us is something to be admired. For example, in “The Crawl,” he uses a screenplay to communicate with us, which fits the theme for this week because it immediately confuses us. This confusion is a big part of what defines the weird genre. The reader is meant to feel uncomfortable and surprised. The genre is not unwilling to take risks and sing out on things that other genres wouldn’t. 

I was reading a critical review on Mieville’s work and the reviewer was saying of Mieville’s work that there is a mystery and anonymity to the stories that make them so intriguing. I’ve talked about this before in one of my blog posts and we’ve talked about it in class but, this subtlety to storytelling can be so much more impactful than being obvious about the content. Allowing the reader to fill in the blanks means that the reader becomes an active participant in the work. 

Another thing to note about Three Moments of an Explosion is that it is written in short story format. The brevity of the narratives leaves you feeling astounded that such a fast read could possibly make you feel so moved in such a period of time. 

I think what is so compelling about this week’s topic is that unlike the other genres of horror and science fiction, these stories are just… weird. They tap into a part of you that the other genres can’t, simply by nature. With Mieville, I think the weird is immediately perceived by us as viewers. The fantasy of his stories takes place in worlds not unlike our own. This juxtaposition of reality and bizarre create a discomfort that some of us enjoy partaking in, if only for a few pages.