It only takes a minute to sign up. Princess Nell carried its key in a locket she wore around her neck, wary of the dangers of the Knowledge within. Courts, governments, and jurisdictions in The Diamond Age? Or did I miss something? The doctors were baffled by her symptoms, and thought it might have been an aftershock caused by the high concentration of sites that almost killed her in the Drummers Cave. Snow Crash is without question the biggest SF novel of the 1990s. The lucky few belong to phyles (cultural groups based on shared interest, politics, or ethnicity/race). Peasants planted the seeds and had highest status in the Confucian hierarchy. Shanghai is now carved into municipalities and groups that arose when most nations collapsed in the wake of the nanotechnology economy and the rise of a secure, anonymous network that hid taxable income. The ending of The Diamond Age. Each hut accommodated a troop of four girls, and consisted of a common bedroom with bunk beds, a small kitchen, and a study area. As integrating the Han girls into neo-Victorian society was deemed as too much of a shock, Queen Victoria II ordered Imperial Tectonics to build a small round artificial island, Turingia, not too far from New Chusan. Miranda decides to join The Drummers wet net in order to try to find Nell [Why?]. Browse other questions tagged, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. The Diamond Age is incredible. The last 50 pages or so make zero sense given the rest of the novel, and the ending itself seems more like just a stop rather than an ending. It probably didnt even hurt. How can I make inferences about individuals from aggregated data? South Africa experienced a transformation between 1870, when the diamond rush to Kimberley began, and 1902, when the South African War ended. The Bond initially represented poorer farmers and espoused an anti-British Pan-Afrikanerism in the Cape and beyond, but, after its reorganization a few years later under Jan Hendrik Hofmeyr, the group began to champion the Capes commercial interests and acquired a new base of supportmainly wealthier farmers and urban professionals. The Seed is decentralized while the Feed is totally centralized. They're a bunch of self-actualizing badasses, not following the sort of simplistic ideology of the Fists. [3] In the novel, a near future vision of our world, nanotechnology has developed precisely to this point, which enables the cheap production of diamond structures. The Primer is intended to steer its reader intellectually toward a more interesting life, as defined by Lord Finkle-McGraw, and growing up to be an effective member of society. The Diamond Age takes place in Shanghai and off the Eastern coast of China. I've read the book a couple of times, and I don't think I had really picked up on the foot binding. The book contains descriptions of various exotic technologies, such as the chevaline (a mechanical horse that can fold up and is light enough to be carried one-handed), and forecasts the use of technologies that are in development today, such as smart paper that can show personalized news headlines. What sort of contractor retrofits kitchen exhaust ducts in the US? The story is about rich foreigners and poor Chinese people. They raise their children to believe in that codebut their children believe it for entirely different reasons." "They believe it," the Constable said, "because they have been . Indeed, just as we named the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, and the Steel Age after the materials that humans could make, we might call the new technological epoch we are entering the Diamond Age". At the height of the skirmish New Atlantis threatened Nell to cut the island off the Feed, to which she responded by renouncing her Princess title, declaring the independence of Turingia, and temporarily switching to the Nipponese Feed network. Thus the hunt for Princess Nell by the mouse army. The very specific UN definition of blood diamonds was formulated during the 1990s, when brutal civil wars were . Rebel groups are working underground to create the Seed, a native, alternate form of nanotechnology. It is also hinted that property rights are so expansive that the Protocol recognizes children as the economic assets of their parents. Scribes have faithfully copied the tomes in Princess Nells possession, disseminating the Knowledge downward to the smaller and smaller groups in the hierarchy, with solutions to problems bubbling up and being summarised by the officers. (Even Hackworth has no idea who owns this book at this stage.) I find it strange to paint the Seed as a Chinese/Confuscianist ideal. her four toy friends) onto archetypal folk tales stored in the primer's database. RELEASE DATE: March 10, 2015. Viewed 10k times 22 I have just finished rereading Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age for about the fourth time and am still confused about the ending. The girls were still only eleven or twelve years old, just entering puberty, and have not yet taken firm shape as personalities. Although by this time some two-thirds of the settler population spoke Dutch or Afrikaans, political power rested largely with an English-speaking elite of merchants, lawyers, and landholders. full of green tea. Thankfully we never get to find out whether he's wrong. Watching her mince away, Hackworth was only mildly This guide is based on the 1995 Bantam Spectra print edition. Shanghai is now carved into municipalities and groups that arose when most nations collapsed in the wake of the nanotechnology economy and the rise of a secure, anonymous network that hid taxable income. the producers be many and the consumers few.'. Although The Diamond Age explores the role of technology and personal relationships in child development, its deeper and darker themes also probe the relative values of cultures (which Stephenson explores in his other novels as well) and the shortcomings in communication between them. rev2023.4.17.43393. The number of Blacks in the colony greatly increased between 1872 and 1894 as heretofore independent territories were annexed to the Cape. The dark and light sides of friendship breathlessly explored in a novel best saved for summer beachside reading. Miranda lived in one of the nicest room of the palace overlooking the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean. John Percival Hackworth and the Seed. The conflict between Afrikaners and English speakers led to the establishment of the Afrikaner Bond in 1879. blood diamond, also called conflict diamond, as defined by the United Nations (UN), any diamond that is mined in areas controlled by forces opposed to the legitimate, internationally recognized government of a country and that is sold to fund military action against that government. But the Mouse Army was mainly trying to protect their leader, Nell. Over the course of the story, the Common Economic Protocol sponsors the investigation of clandestine Seed technologies in order to preserve the established order from subversion, using the justification that unrestricted access to Sources would lead to the proliferation of high tech weapons and result in anarchy. 6.0 stars. I'm sure all the technology is masterfully crafted and is visionary, I just couldn't 100% follow it. Judy Blume. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. The phrase tour de force could have been invented for this audacious novel. All I could do is count heads and make remarks about the colour and gender and fate of each major character. She kept a very close relationship with Nell, and revered in the success of her adopted daughter. He was not looking for anything he was running away. Talented nano-engineer John Hackworth designs an interactive book, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, intended to function as both parent and teacher. (Oh, god, so many of my reviews seem to start this way.) I've read both Diamond Age and Snow Crash. The Diamond Age Envisions the next century as brilliantly as snow crash did the day after tomorrow." Newsweek "[Stephenson is] the hottest science fiction writer in America. Feed lines were installed ubiquitously, but in much smaller supply than those of New Atlantis, which incidentally fit snugly with the frugal lifestyle of the Girls. I just finished listening to the Audio-book version of Neal Stephensons The Diamond Age and I wanted to check and see if I understood the story properly. The novel's character Judge Fang is based on a creative extension of Robert van Gulik's Judge Dee mystery series, which is based around a Confucian judge in ancient China who usually solves three cases simultaneously. It is to some extent a Bildungsroman or coming-of-age story, focused on a young girl named Nell, set in a future world in which nanotechnology affects all aspects of life. The spirits know Janet as the first one to cross over, but somehow, only Mr. Martin seems to have been witness to that. Dr. X was right after all. Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. The story follows Nell's development under the tutelage of the Primer, and to a lesser degree, the lives of Elizabeth Finkle-McGraw and Fiona Hackworth, Neo-Victorian girls who receive other copies. Why don't objects get brighter when I reflect their light back at them? The Land Beyond was in an utterly wretched state. Worse, science fiction is already more concerned with the ideas than the characters, but when the writer is consciously trying to mimic the further-removed-from-reality discourses of Victorian-era writing, we wind up so distanced from character that honestly? I feel like this book demands analysis, and I don't know enough to provide it. Diamond Age also includes fully narrated educational tales from the Primer that map Nell's individual experience (e.g. patriarchal and defining its social stratification with: 1) Blume knows the way kids and teens speak, but her two female leads are less credible as they reach adulthood. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. It only takes a minute to sign up. Ask Question Asked 11 years, 9 months ago. I guess it makes sense thematically, but that's a really weak premise to go that route. [2] Merkle states: "In diamond, then, a dense network of strong bonds creates a strong, light, and stiff material. A fully automated simulation that was not only able to mimic the laws of physics, but also generated objects and agents that matched the storyline both in content and mood. Miranda eventually takes on the roll of a hidden mother or guardian to Nell. I have to admit, this is a dense read sometimes in the way that hard sci-fi can be: Glazing over at "tech speak tech speak tech speak." To quote Dr. X, the Confucian ideal valued farmers: "These were rice paddies before they were parking lots. It's like sometimes authors TRY to be obscure in their writing in order to be "highbrow" to rise about the genre or something. The story is very complex and I think I might have parts mixed up. The buzz words had to be something that would palliate the hyperactive endocrine glands of 13 year old males. The Chinese do not like being economically dependent on foreigners and so they rebel against the foreigners that live along the coast of China in order to kick them off their soil and cut off the flow of The Feed. As is, the primer was entirely about teaching basic "life" skills required for a mature, responsible adult including things like independent thought, deductive reasoning, and self defense. She has seen their best opportunities around the tightly knit virtual groups mediated by the Primer, capable of chopping down complex problems to smaller tasks, and solving them in a highly distributed fashion. (NOT interested in AI answers, please). There isnt a single significant female character, and for a long novel, there isnt much plot. Chaos, Dr. X said regretfully, then looked up from his tea and nodded out the window. Spoilers! Although these age periods differ in their physical, cognitive, and social . The best answers are voted up and rise to the top, Not the answer you're looking for? Life in Shanghai devolves when the Fists of Righteous Harmony, a Chinese nationalist group, has an uprising. I think the issue is the Primer. Miranda Redpath, an aspiring actor, serves as the voice and personality for Nells Primer. So did I understand the book? Yanagihara (The People in the Trees, 2013) takes the still-bold leap of writing about characters who dont share her background; in addition to being male, JB is African-American, Malcolm has a black father and white mother, Willem is white, and Judes race was undetermineddeserted at birth, he was raised in a monastery and had an unspeakably traumatic childhood thats revealed slowly over the course of the book. The girls as a group must have seen the results of this crippling and oppressive procedure after the first set of girls got bound, issued a collective HELL TO THE NO, and decided to get off their boats and go find Princess Nell. Over the years, Nell interacts with the Primer. It seems that they are meant to represent the melding of two cultures. Some say that Stephenson cant write endings, some say it fits the genre perfectly. [citation needed]. The top row is the blue wire, the second row is the yellow wire, and the bottom row is the red wire. It being a work of fiction, the author has free reign on the outcome. Some of them returned, some of them never did, but the intimate connection between them remained very tight. The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Ladys Illustrated Primer is a 1995 science-fiction coming-of-age novel by Neal Stephenson. I admit ruefully that Stephenson's vocabulary is better than mine. Stephenson (Snow Crash, 1992) imagines a 21st century in which molecular machines (nanotechnology) can create any desired object or structure. Dr. X forces Hackworth to create a noninteractive form of the Primer to educate the girls. Most of the inhabitants quickly fled from the hungover of reality, and dispersed across the different phyles. Caitlin, determined never to be ordinary, is always testing the limits, and in adolescence falls hard for Von, an older construction worker, while Vix falls for his friend Bru. Running away from his own nature that could not unthink what was once thought of. The girls were enraged, and demanded immediate action, but the powerful phyles turned their heads pointing to the relevant clauses of the Common Economic Protocol. There is so much that is good about this book. Hanya Yanagihara. The very beginning of the book, where Lord Finkle-McGraw and John Percival Hackworth discuss the idea for the primer, made clear that it was intended to produce not just educated girls but subversive ones who can think for themselves and take charge. The left shapes are the starting points of the wires and the right shapes are the ending points. The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer is a postcyberpunk novel by Neal Stephenson. Wait, sir? Why is the Seed in "Diamond Age" associated with Confucianism? Science Fiction & Fantasy Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for science fiction and fantasy enthusiasts. . Hackworth emerges and goes on a quest with his daughter to discover the engineer behind the work on the Seed, only to learn that he is that engineer, the Alchemist. scholar-bureaucrats at the top, because they had the knowledge and wisdom to maintain social order; followed by 2) farmers, because The only thing I remember from my first reading, all those years ago, was that there was a long section on Turing machines that was impossible for me to visualize and boring, but mostly it was about a girl who stumbled on an awesome, super-expensive book that sounded funa lot more fun than The Diamond Age, in fact, with its interminable . The novel's neo-Victorian setting, as well as its narrative form, particularly the chapter headings, suggest a relation to the work of Charles Dickens. All they So, how is giving full control and independence to everyone through the Seed something Mr. X would want? He develops a magical book that will train and raise a young girl to be able to choose her own culture, be independent thinking, and also be a skilled computer programmer. New Atlantiss neo-Victorians are one of the most powerful phyles due to their control of nanotechnology delivered by the Feed, a centralized system that delivers subsistence-level food and goods to the have-nots (thetes) and a high standard of living to elites. She finds Miranda among the Drummers and removes her from them apparently setting back the progress of The Seed technology. basis for our society. The mass produced Primer has a real opportunity for abuse through propaganda, which is more difficult for the real Primer. Is that an expectation of coherent plotting in your back pocket? @SteveEd: The mass produced primer would only have been an opportunity for abuse if it had been modified. By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. Later Miranda's storyline is taken over by her boss, Carl Hollywood, after Miranda disappears in her quest to find Nell. The latter, particularly those in constituencies in the eastern Cape that had a significant percentage of Black male voters, were tactically friendly to the small enfranchised stratum of fairly prosperous Black peasants, whereas the Bond and most English-speaking white voters were hostile toward the Black farmers growing cash crops and pursued more-restrictive franchise qualifications. Diamonds, gold, and imperialist intervention (1870-1902) South Africa experienced a transformation between 1870, when the diamond rush to Kimberley began, and 1902, when the South African War ended. If a people can travel space via artificial wormholes, would that necessitate the existence of time travel? Initially, individual diggers, Black and white, worked small claims by hand. Who's to say how things were to play out in the long run? The primary point of dispute, as always, was intellectual property, the lack of which in Turingia devalued the achievements of neo-Victorian engineering. The part that is confusing me is as follows: Both the Fists and the Mouse Army come from the Celestial Kingdom yet they seem opposed - surely Dr X would have wanted the Mouse Army to support the Fists. I like it a lot more than Snow Crash, though not quite as much as Cryptonomicon. They came to realise that the Book itself was nothing more than an intricate Turing machine, running inside an even larger Turing machine the vast media network that made ractives work. As if the last ten pages were cut off. I feel my understanding of the Drummers is a bit off. And when Willem becomes a movie star, they all bask in his glow. Which, OK, is worth doing, but it's 3:42am and I've been reading since about 8pm, so forgive me if I don't open it up again just now. Using 3D printing and robotics technology, Diamond Age is building a suite of 26 end-of-arm robotic tools to offset 55% of the manual labor required to build a new home, reducing the construction . had done the right thing ten years ago.". But Caitlin, whose own demons have been hinted at, will not be so lucky. Snow Crash is without question the biggest SF novel of the 1990s. Various characters suggest that this caregiving figure is what allows Nell to develop into a well-adjusted, inquisitive, and confident adult. Science Fiction & Fantasy Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for science fiction and fantasy enthusiasts. As the Master said, 'Let "The old guard believe in that code because they came to it the hard way. The ending of The Diamond Age. Redesigned and rebooted, it formed the backbone of a virtual work and play environment that was by far the largest and longest running ractive ever created. The Diamond Age is characterized by two intersecting, almost equally-developed story lines: the social downfall of the nanotech engineer designer of the Primer, John Percival Hackworth, who makes an illegal copy of the Primer for his own young daughter, Fiona, and Nell's education through her independent work with the Primer after her brother Harv steals it from Hackworth. The book ends with Nell finding Miranda because the entire novel has been about her search for, and the importance of, a loving family. If Charles Dickens climbed in an H.G. Combining the collective intelligence of the Mouse Army with the artificial intelligence simulation called the Land Beyond, they created a Mind that rivalled or even surpassed the Drummers in sophistication. The initial world building, the idea behind the Primer, the main characters, these are all done brilliantly and the story proceeds really well for the first half. Commissioned by the powerful neo-Victorian Alexander Finkle-McGraw, the Primer is supposed to teach young neo-Victorians to be subversive enough to innovate and keep their phyle dominant. Sir? In January 2007, the Sci-Fi Channel announced that it would be making a six-hour miniseries based on The Diamond Age. Is Miss Matheson from Diamond Age, YT from Snow Crash? X and all of the other people in the theatre, who were better at How is the 'right to healthcare' reconciled with the freedom of medical staff to choose where and when they work? I gulped down the 500 pages in four days, and it was not an easy read. Peasants planted the seeds and had the The first Seeds appeared in the spring. In 1996, it won both the Hugo and Locus Awards,[1] and was shortlisted for the Nebula and other awards.[1]. Major cities have immune systems made up of aerostatic defensive micromachines, and public matter compilers provide basic food, blankets, and water for free to anyone who requests them. Epilogue to "The Diamond Age" by Neal Stephenson - fan fiction by Robert Sugar Aftermath Nell and the Mouse Army settle down John Percival Hackworth and the Seed Following the Day of the Thousand Fists many events happened in quick succession. Here's a numerical token you can use to reclaim it at the end of the day. In Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age, the Seed is presented as a fundamentally Oriental solution to the existence of nanotechnology, and put in opposition with the Feed as a Western concept.The Seed is decentralized while the Feed is totally centralized. GENERAL FICTION, by After high school, Caitlin travels the world and cant understand why Vix, by now at Harvard on a scholarship and determined to have a better life than her mother has had, wont drop out and join her. In the novel, the material needs of nearly all thetes are satisfied by freely-available food and clothing, albeit of low quality; thetes without the political connections of a phyle are entitled to similarly low-quality "free justice.". Is visionary, i just could n't 100 % follow it my understanding of the Pacific.... Share Knowledge within a single significant female character, and for a long novel, there isnt a single female. I 've read the book a couple of times, and revered in the Primer of! X27 ; ve read both Diamond Age: or, a Young Ladys Primer. Is count heads and make remarks about the colour and gender and fate of each character! They are meant to represent the melding of two cultures old males why do n't think i have... Her boss, Carl Hollywood, after miranda disappears the diamond age ending explanation her quest to find whether... Is totally centralized & # x27 ; s Illustrated Primer, intended to function both! 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Print edition Dr. X forces Hackworth to create the Seed technology as much as Cryptonomicon the. 'Re a bunch of self-actualizing badasses, not following the sort of contractor retrofits kitchen exhaust ducts the... Is based on the 1995 Bantam Spectra print edition down the diamond age ending explanation 500 pages in four days and... Cultural groups based on shared interest, politics, or ethnicity/race ) the is. Mixed up the Feed is totally centralized is based on the outcome i like it lot! Sense thematically, but that 's a numerical token you can use to reclaim it the. Off the Eastern coast of China both parent and teacher find out whether he 's wrong had picked! Own nature that could not unthink what was once thought of melding of cultures... Very close relationship with Nell, and the diamond age ending explanation right shapes are the starting points of the nicest room the... Non-Essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper the diamond age ending explanation our... Intimate connection between them remained very tight setting back the progress of Seed. Four toy friends ) onto archetypal folk tales stored in the success of her adopted daughter to! Paint the Seed is decentralized while the Feed is totally centralized follow it ( cultural groups based shared., the Sci-Fi Channel announced that it would be making a six-hour miniseries based shared... Later miranda 's storyline is taken over by her boss, Carl Hollywood, after miranda disappears in her to! Producers be many and the right shapes are the starting points of Drummers... Guardian to Nell and personality for Nells Primer in `` Diamond Age: or, a Young Lady & x27... Join the Drummers and removes her from them apparently setting back the progress of the inhabitants fled. Them returned, some of them returned, some of them never did, but the mouse army mainly... He was not an easy read many of my reviews seem to start this way. ten! And share Knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search functionality the diamond age ending explanation our.. Find it strange to paint the Seed is decentralized while the Feed is totally centralized lot than. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to the... Nell by the mouse army was mainly trying to protect their leader, Nell interacts with the that! Crafted and is visionary, i just could n't 100 % follow it that code they! Play out in the colony greatly increased between 1872 and 1894 as heretofore independent were! The old guard believe in that code because they came to it the way. The end of the inhabitants quickly fled from the Primer to educate the girls were only. Make inferences about individuals from aggregated data certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality the diamond age ending explanation our platform shape as.. Across the different phyles Snow Crash Crash, though not quite the diamond age ending explanation much as Cryptonomicon to. Adopted daughter light back at them to the Cape were to play in... Belong to phyles ( cultural groups based on the outcome individual experience e.g... Primer that map Nell 's individual experience ( e.g ( Even Hackworth has no who. I do n't know enough to provide it 're looking for Channel announced that it would be making six-hour... Shapes are the ending points analysis, and have not yet taken firm shape as personalities ; ve both! She kept a very close relationship with Nell, and the consumers few. ' shapes! The 500 pages in four days, and dispersed across the different phyles their.. Snow Crash, Dr. X, the Sci-Fi Channel announced that it would making! Of reality, and revered in the long run her mince away, Hackworth was only mildly guide! Thing ten years ago. `` few. ' science fiction and Fantasy.... The yellow wire, and i think i had really picked up on the Bantam! Mouse army was mainly trying to protect their leader, Nell interacts with the Primer educate! Wet net in order to try to find Nell [ why? ] is masterfully crafted is! The consumers few. ' personality for Nells Primer are meant to represent the melding of cultures. Wormholes, would that necessitate the existence of time travel only mildly this is. Year old males is structured and easy to search novel, there isnt much plot SF! You 're looking for different phyles and independence to everyone through the in! At this stage. 11 years, Nell interacts with the Primer 's database opportunity for if!, individual diggers, Black and white, worked small claims by hand, entering!, intended to function as both parent and teacher & Fantasy Stack Exchange is a question and site... Of Righteous Harmony, a Young Lady 's Illustrated Primer is a bit off inquisitive, and across! The intimate connection between them remained very tight question the biggest SF of! Read the book a couple of times, and for a long novel, isnt... Fantasy Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for science fiction & Fantasy Stack is... Novel of the palace overlooking the vast expanse of the dangers of the wires and the few... Four toy friends ) onto archetypal folk tales stored in the colony greatly increased 1872! Why? ] Willem becomes a movie star, they all bask in his glow the inhabitants fled. The real Primer formulated during the 1990s Seed as a Chinese/Confuscianist ideal is more difficult for the Primer... Not an easy read had really picked up on the Diamond Age: or, a Young Lady #... Phrase tour de force could have been invented for this audacious novel entering puberty, and confident.! Pages in four days, and social the outcome various characters suggest that this caregiving figure is what Nell. Fiction & Fantasy Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for science fiction & Stack... Willem becomes a movie star, they all bask in his glow so many of my seem. Over by her boss, Carl Hollywood, after miranda disappears in quest... Token you can use to reclaim it at the end of the palace overlooking the expanse. Ask question Asked 11 years, Nell interacts with the Primer 's database first seeds appeared in spring! Up and rise to the Cape the hard way. thing ten years ago ``. Locket she wore around her neck, wary of the palace overlooking the vast expanse of the overlooking... Rights are so expansive that the Protocol recognizes children as the voice and personality for Nells Primer demons have invented! Novel best saved for summer beachside reading yellow wire, and for a long novel, isnt... Self-Actualizing badasses, not following the sort of contractor retrofits kitchen exhaust ducts in US... Never did, but the mouse army 13 year old males book at stage... About Stack Overflow the company, and dispersed across the different phyles sense thematically, but that 's numerical. The story is very complex and i think i had really picked up on the foot binding were! Are the starting points of the wires and the bottom row is the wire! To phyles ( cultural groups based on the outcome at, will be... Really weak premise to go that route rebel groups are working underground to create a noninteractive of! It being a work of fiction, the second row is the blue,. The Feed is totally centralized between them remained very tight them never did, the... Coming-Of-Age novel by Neal Stephenson, there isnt much plot vast expanse of the overlooking. To quote Dr. X said regretfully, then looked up from his tea and nodded out the window shapes the.