Highly critical of empire. It's basically what Star Wars is based on, but a bit more heady. Asimov was some form of socialist and the central plot of the book is basically about how Space Marx taught some scientists dialectics and helped them carry out a successful revolution against a collapsing galactic empire. The Foundation (the revolutionary group) is shown progressing through all the stages of development most modern nations have gone through (feudalism, mercantilism, capitalism, and eventually ending in some form of socialism).
It's a really interesting presentation too, with the trilogy taking place over 1000 years and the focus being not on individuals so much as the masses of people driving historical inevitability. There's a lot of "great man" stuff, but I think he meant that to be more of a mirror of how we tell our history. In the end, the individual people in power at specific times don't matter and their presence in those seats of power during the crises was merely coincidental.
Asmimov describes an Earth in I, Robot where AI basically centrally plan the global economy and achieve socialism without anybody realizing it has happened (it was that gradual).
not even close to being a "new" concept. literally 50 years old. these people are fucking clowns. and not the cool joker-fied kind.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World-systems_theory
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World-systems_theory#Core_states
Force these nerds to read Foundation and Empire if they like sci-fi so much. Maybe that'll get it through their thick skulls.
Is the Foundation trilogy worth reading? I’m guessing it’s critical of empire?
Highly critical of empire. It's basically what Star Wars is based on, but a bit more heady. Asimov was some form of socialist and the central plot of the book is basically about how Space Marx taught some scientists dialectics and helped them carry out a successful revolution against a collapsing galactic empire. The Foundation (the revolutionary group) is shown progressing through all the stages of development most modern nations have gone through (feudalism, mercantilism, capitalism, and eventually ending in some form of socialism).
It's a really interesting presentation too, with the trilogy taking place over 1000 years and the focus being not on individuals so much as the masses of people driving historical inevitability. There's a lot of "great man" stuff, but I think he meant that to be more of a mirror of how we tell our history. In the end, the individual people in power at specific times don't matter and their presence in those seats of power during the crises was merely coincidental.
Asmimov describes an Earth in I, Robot where AI basically centrally plan the global economy and achieve socialism without anybody realizing it has happened (it was that gradual).
Who, it becomes clear, actually helped develop psychohistory in the first place (after disengaging from the majority of humanity.)
Asimov and his extended universe lol