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Machina ex deo

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Date Issued:
2013
Summary:
Dan Simmons's far-future science fiction epic Hyperion Cantos, in which seven disparate individuals become enmeshed in a convoluted plot to enslave humanity, provides extensive support for British theologian John Hick's theory of transcendental pluralism. Using the central figures of the Shrike, a mysterious killing machine, and the Technocore, a collective of autonomous artificial intelligences, Simmons demonstrates Hick's postulation that all major Western religions actually focus on the same divine being (God) by creating a negative divine being, akin to Satan, to which characters of various religions react in similar ways. Simmons's pilgrims each represent a particular spiritual outlook, from specific organized religions to less-defined positions such as secularism and agnosticism, but each pilgrim's tale contributes to the evidence of transcendental pluralism. This thesis explores each characters' experiences as they relate to the Shrike, the Technocore, and, ultimately the theory of transcendental pluralism.
Title: Machina ex deo: embodiments of evil in Dan Simmon's Hyperion Cantos.
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Name(s): Stewart, Zachary.
Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Department of English
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Date Issued: 2013
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Physical Form: electronic
Extent: v, 85 p. : ill. (some col.)
Language(s): English
Summary: Dan Simmons's far-future science fiction epic Hyperion Cantos, in which seven disparate individuals become enmeshed in a convoluted plot to enslave humanity, provides extensive support for British theologian John Hick's theory of transcendental pluralism. Using the central figures of the Shrike, a mysterious killing machine, and the Technocore, a collective of autonomous artificial intelligences, Simmons demonstrates Hick's postulation that all major Western religions actually focus on the same divine being (God) by creating a negative divine being, akin to Satan, to which characters of various religions react in similar ways. Simmons's pilgrims each represent a particular spiritual outlook, from specific organized religions to less-defined positions such as secularism and agnosticism, but each pilgrim's tale contributes to the evidence of transcendental pluralism. This thesis explores each characters' experiences as they relate to the Shrike, the Technocore, and, ultimately the theory of transcendental pluralism.
Identifier: 852863466 (oclc), 3361261 (digitool), FADT3361261 (IID), fau:4155 (fedora)
Note(s): by Zachary Stewart.
Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013.
Includes bibliography.
Mode of access: World Wide Web.
System requirements: Adobe Reader.
Subject(s): Simmons, Dan, 1948-
Hyperion (Imaginary place)
Inquiry (Theory of knowledge)
Pluralism
Metaphysics
Philosophy of mind
Good and evil -- History of doctrines
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3361261
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU