DARKO SUVIN: A LIFE IN LETTERS Cover sketch “Compagno Darko” by Clara Antonucci, 2004. Reprinted by permission. Recent & forthcoming Paradoxa titles No. 6 Censorship in Children’s Literature, edited by Alleen Pace Nilsen and Hamida Bosmajian No. 7 Where’s Love Gone? Transformations in the Romance Genre, edited by Kay Mussell No. 8 The Return of the Uncanny, edited by Michael Arnzen No. 9 Postmodern Potpourri, edited by David Willingham No. 10 Metafiction, edited by Brian Attebery No. 11 The Future of Narrative, edited by Lance Olson No. 12 The Divinely Human Comedy of James Morrow, edited by James Winchell No. 13-14 Potpourri Redux, edited by David Willingham No. 15 Native American Literature: Boundaries & Sovereignties, edited by Kathryn W. Shanley No. 16 Dark Alleys of Noir, edited by Jack O’Connell No. 17 Horror, edited by Steffen Hantke No. 18 Fifties Fictions, edited by Josh Lukin and Samuel R. Delany No. 19 The Western, edited by Homer Pettey No. 20 Terrains vagues, edited by David Willingham No. 21 Ursula K. Le Guin, edited by Sylvia Kelso No. 22 Three Asias: Japan-Korea-China, edited by Takayuki Tatsumi, Jina Kim, Zhang Zhen No. 23 Darko Suvin: A Life in Letters, edited by Phillip E. Wegner No. 24 The Pleasures of Texts (forthcoming 2012) All Paradoxa titles are available for $48, postage included to destinations within the U.S. For destinations in Canada or Mexico, add $10 per title, for all other destinations, add $20. Students with current ID, $24, plus appropriate postage. DARKO SUVIN A LIFE IN LETTERS PUBLISHED BY Paradoxa Vashon Island, Washington 98070 Copyright 2011 by Paradoxa All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher and/or author. ISBN: (978-) 1-929512-34-8 ISSN: 1079-8072 First published in 2011 Address all orders, queries and changes of address to Paradoxa, P.O. Box 2237, Vashon Island, WA 98070, USA. Fax: (206) 567-5711. Email:
[email protected] com. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use, the internal or personal use of specific clients (excluding the article author), and for educational classroom use, is granted by Paradoxa, provided that the appropriate fee is paid directly to Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers MA 01923, USA. Telephone: (508) 750-8400, Fax: (508) 750-4470. Visit our web site: www.paradoxa.com Paradoxa no. 23 Darko Suvin: A Life in Letters A. Introductory Foreword: Crossing the Border with Darko Suvin by Phillip E. Wegner ........................................................... 9 1. 2. Introduction (2010) ...........................................................21 Autobiography 2004: De Darci Natura ............................. 29 B. Meeting Other Worlds (1969-87) 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. The Moon as a Mirror to Man; Or, Lessons of Selenography (1969) ....................................... 35 Preliminary Theses on Allegory (1977) ............................ 41 At the Cusp: Seven Poems of 1984 ................................... 45 Two Uta Stories on Time (1984-85).................................. 49 How Can People Be (Re)Presented in Fiction? Towards a Theory of Narrative Agents (1980-85) ............ 53 13 Parables from the Warring States Period (1984-87).....73 In the Doldrums: Nineteen Poems 1985-95 ...................... 87 To the Japanese Reader of Metamorphoses of Science Fiction (1987) ...................................................................99 C. Around Theatre and Brecht (1988-2006) 11. 12. 13. 14. Brecht’s Life of Galileo: Scientistic Extrapolation or Analogy of the Knower? (1988-90) .......................