## [RT][HSF]Oracle by Greg Egan

* Author: u/superliminaldude *
* URL: http://www.gregegan.net/MISC/ORACLE/Oracle.html
* Score: 10

* Created: 2015-02-27T02:31:26

### Post:

[Link to content](http://www.gregegan.net/MISC/ORACLE/Oracle.html)

### Comments:

> **u/FeepingCreature** [+4]  *GCV Literally The Entire Culture* (5 hours later)
> 
> Eh. I think Egan's main problem is that he can't write a good villain because he can't make himself believe, internally, that they have a point. All his bad guys end up caricatures.
> 
> Pretty good Turing Fuck Yeah story though. (TFY)

>> **u/superliminaldude** [+2]  (6 hours later)
>> 
>> I see most of his stories as basically villainless, this one included.  I don't see Hamilton as a villain, but as an essentially noble adversary the main characters are unable to save.

>>> **u/FeepingCreature** [+4]  *GCV Literally The Entire Culture* (7 hours later)
>>> 
>>> Fair enough. All I can say is, he reads as a caricature to me.

>>>> **u/None** [+8]  (10 hours later)
>>>> 
>>>> I agree that the story doesn't do Lewis justice. I actually think that even though most of us disagree with his views on religion, a lot of his work is worth reading because, surprisingly enough, it often deals with biases, the ways we deceive ourselves and other things rationalists like to talk about. [Try 'The Screwtape Letters'!](http://www.gutenberg.ca/ebooks/lewiscs-screwtapeletters/lewiscs-screwtapeletters-00-h.html)

> **u/superliminaldude** [+1]  (2 minutes later)
> 
> The story starts a bit slowly but ends up being a fascinating historical hard science fiction story.  It's an older one, but this was the first time I'd read it and I was impressed.

>> **u/xamueljones** [+1]  *My arch-enemy is entropy* (3 hours later)
>> 
>> If it's good, do you think it should be added to RationalReads? I'd do it myself, but I rather not just add stories when there is someone who has read it and can evaluate it's worthiness instead of me just deciding from the summary.

>>> **u/superliminaldude** [+1]  (6 hours later)
>>> 
>>> I'd say probably yes?  Though some of his other work may fit better.  I posted *Bit Players* a while ago and that may seem like more representative of Egan.  Though this almost reads like a Turing alt history fan fic which may be fitting.

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