#673 The Long Memory- Morrigan Phillips

#673 The Long Memory- Morrigan Phillips

Imagine a society where decisions cannot be made unless the holders of history and memory do not approve. The shortsightedness and culture-deaf nature of modern politics would not exist. Now imagine exactly who would try to fight against this system, who would want to shield the masses from remembering.

“It was a part of the identity of the Archipelago that the record of the past should guide the governance of the present and the building of the future.”

The archipelago has a group of Memorials who hold onto long-memory. They are able to tap into the past and remember the stories of the people. They act as clerics, memory as a religion. “It was the exploration of the past, not merely the facts of history but the stories of the past, that made the Memorials so important.”

This system is under attack from a powerful merchant who wants to take over the oldest and most profitable land. To do this he has captured the Memorials and is trying to control history. There is one tool left for the Memorials, to unbind these memories and give them back to all the people. Those who remember the past, will protect the future.

Notable Passage: “Memories are supposed to be shared. It is what gives them power.”

Rating: 8-7-8-7 Total= 30

#381 Souvenir- Kurt Vonnegut

#381 Souvenir- Kurt Vonnegut

One of the great things about Vonnegut stories is the simplicity of his form. The first paragraph usually tells you exactly what the story is about. This story is no different:

“Joe Bane was a pawnbroker, a fat, lazy, bald man, whose features seemed pulled to the left by his lifetime of looking at the world through a jeweler’s glass. He was a lonely, untalented man and would not have wanted to go on living had he been prevented from playing every day…the one game he played brilliantly—the acquiring of objects for very little, and the selling of them for a great deal more.”

Another common theme in Vonnegut works is WW II, himself being a veteran and survivor of the Dresden bombing. One day a man walks into Joe’s pawn shop and wants to sell a very expensive watch. Of course, Joe tries to undercut the man. Then we hear an amazing tale about how the watch was acquired in the Sudetenland after the German surrender.

The man walks out after the story, unwilling to be taken advantage of, and Joe, in his greed losses out on a great and historic find. The tale itself was enough for a short story, but putting it in context of a flashback surrounding this war-prize, makes it more interesting, and vintage Vonnegut.

Rating: 8-9-8-8 Total= 33

#354 Alphinland- Margaret Atwood

#354 Alphinland- Margaret Atwood

Constance is a successful writer of a speculative fiction series called Alphinland. Despite its success, like with many works of fantasy, the literary intelligencia, including her husband and former boyfriend, look down on such writing, calling it sub-literary fiction.

“It’s astonishing how folks can get so worked up over something that doesn’t exist.”

Ewan, her husband has recently died and she, getting older and less able to live on her own, has yet to let him go. She hears his voice speak to her, guide her and comfort her as she lives her life.

“…his voice, when it turns up, is firm and cheerful. A striding voice, showing the way. An extended finger, pointing. Go here, buy this, do that! A slightly mocking voice, teasing, making light: that was often his manner towards her before he became ill.”

She has created “memory palaces” a kind of mnemonic device, keeping her memories locked up in both her house and the fictitious Alphinland. Once those two memory banks open up, and borders are crossed, Constance goes searching for her next adventure.

Rating: 8-7-7-8 Total= 30

#276 Mnemonics- Kurt Vonnegut

#276 Mnemonics- Kurt Vonnegut

This is just a small story about Alfred Moorehead, a new man. He has learned to unlock a gift for memory. His career has taken off and his life is almost perfect, but there is always one thing that stops us from being happy.

“Now since he has attended the company’s two-day Memory Clinic, names, facts, and numbers clung to his memory like burdocks to an Airdale. The clinic had, in fact, indirectly cleared up just about every major problem in his uncomplicated life, save one—his inability to break the ice with his secretary, Ellen, whom he had silently adored for two years.”

His mnemonic prowess was due to his ability to attach a fact or a figure in his head to the image of a beautiful movie star. This talent was put to the test one day by a long list of things to remember, and when he had to use the image of Ellen as well as the famous starlets, his fondness for her finally slips.

Rating: 7-7-7-7 Total= 28

#187 The Wedding Ring- Mavis Gallant

#187 The Wedding Ring- Mavis Gallant

A nice pastoral story about childhood memories. A young girl remember what is was like one summer. Her cousin visits from boston.

“He has unpacked a trumpet, a hatchet, a pistol, and a water bottle. He is ready for anything except my mother, who scares him to death.”

This is written like a diary entry. She seems to remember mostly good things. The memories all of the senses; the feel of the sun, the smell of the creek, the sound of a bottle of ginger-ale opening. These are the things we recall easiest.

Notable Passage: “I thing everything was meant to be given away.”

Rating: 7-7-8-7 Total= 29