This literary science fiction utopia advocates the disappearance of millionaires. And Musk, Bezos and Zuckerberg love

The saga of ‘the culture’ of Iain M. Banks is one of the series of Science fiction books most important and influential of the history of gender. And among his fans are names as notorious of the Tech sector as Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg either Jeff Bezos. What is still curious: the message and background of the saga are in one direction, it could be said, diametrically opposite to the businesses led by these billionaires. So … why do you like so much?

The culture of ‘culture’. The saga consists of no less than ten books, the first of them written in 1987 and the last in 2012. In them there is a society in which the pan-human (similar to us in appearance, but without being completely clear what relationship they keep with humanity) coexist with artificial intelligences, having overcome any problem of scarcity of the past. All citizens can careless work: technology takes care of everything. Until death is a problem of the past: diseases have been left behind, and minds can move from one body to another when bodies do not give more.

Below the work. ‘Culture ‘is one of the most clearly positioned science fiction works in political terms, already a difference from conservative thought classics such as’ the rebel rebellion’ of Ayn Rand Or allegations of white supremacism not very camouflaged such as ‘The landing’ or ‘Turner’s newspapers’, leans towards the socialist utopia, more in the line of other classications such as ‘Iron heel’ by Jack London. In the Society of ‘Culture’ goals are reached Socialist theory: Post-scarce society, abolition of money and private property, radical equality, voluntary work, collective management, absence of coercive laws, personal freedom … an authentic utopia.

Stones to the roof itself. And since there are no inequalities for economic reasons, the same concept of oligarchs is aberrant. Banks hated the idea that a lot of money will concentrate on a few hands. As he exposed This article in Voxthe solution to antisocial behavior in ‘culture’ is not the legal punishment, but to make the offender a social out of theory, cancellation. Something against what they have manifested openly These billionaires. And well, then there is the subject of the genre completely fluid in this utopian society: the rigid genres are completely overcome. And we already know how little they like Musk, Bezos either Zuckerberg LGTBI ideas.

What do you see? It is clear What do they like about ‘the culture’ then: The fascinating vision of technology as a solution to all problems. From facilitating the most daily tasks to overcome in space battles, everything is mediated by artificial technology and intelligences. Of course, for Banks technology is not an end in itself, but a tool in search of a more just and equitable society. And without millionaires. But it is easy for these oligarchs of technology to skip that part, because the comfortable is to get carried away by the sissured show that also proposes ‘culture’ (which are adventure novels, not thesis).

Of course, it should be noted that there are voices, such as The journalist Max Readwho affirm that perhaps Musk, Bezos or Zuckerberg have not completely misunderstood ‘culture’. Especially if we compare it with the findings of the other utopia par excellence of science fiction, ‘the dispossessed’ of Ursula K. Leguinis of dyes closest to anarchism.

Possessing utopias. As technology is more complex, the bridges of understanding between science fiction and innovation are more constant. Science fiction has helped us to imagine the future and carry it out, and therefore the technological elites of Silicon Valley have reinterpreted utopias as inspiration, and even sometimes as Brandingas Musk did Putting Space X ship namesinspiring Neuralink’s own concept and defining itself as an “utopian anarchist of those described by Iain M. Banks.” He is not the only one who appropriates the saga: Bezos will adapt the first book of ‘La Cultura’ In Prime Video. And Zuckerberg promoted the saga in your reading club In 2015.

However, this possession of the ideas of Banks or other utopias as a generator of imaginary and technological concepts has very obvious inconveniences when it goes from socialist utopia to business narrative. The critical sense of literary works is diluted and enters a paradox: that of the technocratic utopia. Banks is not here to meet her, but something tells us that he would have produced chills.

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