Michael Crichton – “Prey”
You often read that Crichton has great science-based concepts but his characterization’s cardboard and the plots cheesy.
I think that misses the point: Crichton’s scientific concepts take the place characterization and plot take in other authors.
At least half the excitement in “Prey” is in reading how Crichton takes the idea of artificial intelligence to its logical extreme – that natural intelligence will develop an autonomous existence and will become a competitor to mankind.
The science-passages in “Prey” are a brilliant literal exposition of this, free of finger-wagging or lecturing.
The characters and the plot do what they have to do to bring it alive.
In this sense, and with a subtlety no-one has yet commented on – as far as I’m aware – Crichton’s characters perfectly embody the “thesis” of his novel. They are the artificial intelligence Crichton’s developed to flesh out his concept about artificial intelligence.
Aside from that, Crichton’s prose is clean and uncluttered. The conversations are sometimes heavy on silliness and an inane over-reliance on four-letter words, but are never allowed to drag on for too long.
Good analysis! There seems to be a segment of the lit world that sees no value in writing if 4 letter explitives don’t appear at least three times in a paragraph. Everything I read of Michael’s communicated to me- isn’t that what writing is supposed to do? Visit me at: http://www.SandySays1.wordpress.com