Clockwork Worlds

Book excerpt: Taken to extremes, social organization--however necessary in itself--leads to the creation of what editors Erlich and Dunn label Clockwork Worlds. This anthology has been organized to define and expand that concept for the reader. Arthur O. Lewis provides a comprehensive overview of clockwork worlds and sets them in their political and literary contexts. Following Lewis' introduction are two series of essays which show how the theme of mechanized environments has been developed in classic works of dystopian fiction, and how it has been treated by some of the major contemporary science fiction writers. The Special Topics section studies mechanized environments from a variety of viewpoints. The editors have included an extensive list of stories, novels, films, background readings, and other works useful for the study of mechanized environments.