A Million Open Doors
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A Million Open Doors (1993) is a science fiction novel, the first book of the Thousand Cultures series, by John Barnes whose story is told from the perspective of a maturing adult from a parochial culture who encounters many obstacles in a different even more parochial culture which causes him to become a fully engaged citizen in the Interstellar culture. A Million Open Doors is a study of the effects of globalization.
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[edit] Plot
Unfolding on the planet of Wilson in the city of Nou Occitan, the story begins with a man named Giraut and his romantic, swashbuckling friends, who are all residents in the Quartier de Jovents, a sort of playground for teens and twenty-somethings who have not yet moved on to the more "grown-up" lifestyle of their parents. Technologically safeguarded, these young adults have swordfights in the streets with "neuroducer" epees and frequent the taverns of the Quartier. However, Giraut is forced to grow up much more quickly than most of his friends, because one day his friend Aimeric is called upon by the government to travel to the distant planet, Nansen, as an aid to the coming of the springer: a method of instantaneous transportation, which will have adverse affects on Caledonian economy. Giraut decides to leave when he catches his girlfriend getting into the Interstellar "arts scene," which is a euphemism for pornography. Thus, Aimeric and Giraut advise the rational council of the Caledonians to adjust their economy to adjust to that of the rest of the universe so that the springer will have as few adverse effects as possible. When the Caledonians decide that Aimeric and Giraut, as well as the Interstellar government, are trying to usurp their power, they begin to try to seize back control of everything, and an urban conflict ensues. Giraut discovers among the strife who he really is and begins to see how fake his life back home was.
[edit] Characters
- Giraut - a talented swordsman forced to grow up suddenly as he encounters complicated political struggles between opposing ideological groups as a Caledonian ambassador.
- Garsenda - Giraut's ex-girlfriend back in Nou Occitan.
- Aimeric - fellow troubadour and friend to Giraut, trained in economic principles and business and ambassador to Caledony.
- Bieris - Aimeric's girlfriend, who accompanies him to Nansen.
- Bruce - Aimeric's childhood friend from Nansen, who greets them upon their arrival on the harsh planet.
- Margaret - a woman Giraut falls in love with at the end of the novel.
[edit] Planets referenced
- Earth
- Nansen
- Wilson
[edit] Significance
This novel can be most clearly understood as a commentary on globalization via a fictional account of the effects of the Earth's expanding political, economic and social influence over human inhabited planets. Barnes appears to suggest that those most harmed by globalization are the ones least willing to change in response.
[edit] See also
- Other books in this series
- Earth Made of Glass (1999)
- The Merchants of Souls (2002)
- The Armies of Memory (2006)
