Resumo de Foundation's Triumph

Introduction

Foundation?s Triumph is the last offering in the Second Foundation Trilogy authorized by the Estate of Isaac Asimov. The series tries to answer some of the unanswered queries of the Foundation Trilogy and also tries to trace the decline of the empire and setting up of the Foundation by Hari Seldon and R. Daneel Olivaw.

The other books in the series are Foundation?s Fear by Gregory Benford and Foundation and Chaos by Greg Bear. Foundation?s Triumph is authored by David Brin.

The Plot

The story starts from where Foundation and Chaos has left off. Now that Hari?s vision for the setting up of the two foundations is going on smoothly, he has now gone into retirement. Wanda Seldon and Gaal Dornick are now the people in charge of the Psychohistorical research and the setting up of the foundations.

But, Hari can never rest in peace as long as R. Daneel Olivaw envisages any use of him. So Hari goes globe trotting in search of missing pieces in his invention, Psychohistory. Suddenly, all hell seems to break loose and his vessel is hijacked by Renaissance leaders lead by Mors Planch and Sybyl. Confusion reigns as a robot R. Gornon takes over the vessel from these outlaws.

R. Gornon is hell-bent on taking Hari to the cradle of civilization, Earth and keeps repeating that there is some secret there that would require Hari to take some tough decisions. In the meanwhile, Dors comes to know that Hari has been kidnapped and alongwith Lodovic Trema heads for Earth. If all these people are headed for Earth will R.Daneel Olivaw be left behind, so he also sets out for Earth.

It is here that climax plays out and Hari finds solutions to his missing pieces in the science of Psychohistory. Want to know what it is, then check out this offering from David Brin.

Critical Review

Foundation series is one of the best series in the history of science fiction. To try and add to that series as well as to try to answer the mysteries left unsolved is an enormous task. And to do without the guidance of Isaac Asimov, the sole brain behind the series, makes the task that much more harder.

Having said this, David Brin has done a decent job of this difficult job. He tries to answer what I felt was the biggest loophole in the Foundation series i.e. Aliens. In the whole foundation series, all through the millions of planets, there is never a mention of Aliens, the answer why
is given by Brin in quite a convincing manner.

Another thing that David Brin has brought out very well is the concept of Gaia and its development into a single conscious. Also the role of R. Daneel Olivaw in the whole episode has been highlighted.

On the flip side, the whole Foundation and its development and the development of Hari Seldon itself has all been attributed to R. Daneel Olivaw. So Isaac Asimov?s God has been made to look like a mere mortal manipulated and controlled by R. Daneel Olivaw. The control is shown to the extent that R. Daneel Olivaw even controls what Hari remembers and what he does not. I felt showing this was unnecessary and Hari should have been allowed to retain his Godly status given by Asimov.

The book takes ever to really start moving. In fact, the initial few chapters would make heavy reading and there are lots of chances that you can fall asleep, but once the action begins and Hari sets out on the voyage, the story catches speed. Each aspect is presented from different points of views i.e. humans, robots and outlaws.

The book also presents a timeline as appendix and dates the novels of Asimov and Second Foundation Trilogy in the timeline to give a nice picture of what came when and how it setup the next novel.

Comparison within the Second Foundation Trilogy

Second Foundation Trilogy began with Gregory Benford?s Foundation?s Fear. I felt the book to be a total sleeping pill. The impression was that Benford was trying to deal with too many topics and was sstrugglingg to make it interesting.

The second book Foundation and Chaos by Greg Bear took on some of the ideas from Foundation?s Fear and zoomed into issue of the mentalics. The story was crisply told and Bear seemed to have Asimov?s charm at fast paced story telling without having any real action.

The third book Foundation?s Triumph by David Brin takes on from there and takes a more broader look at the options in front of Hari and Olivaw for the survival of the empire. David Brin shows Asimov?s charm for innovative thinking, though his story telling can improve.

Looking at the three Killer B?s as they are called my rating is Greg Bear comes out as the best of the lot with David Brin a close second. As far as Gregory Benford is concerned he still has a long way to go.

Summary

Foundation?s Triumph wraps up the Second Foundation Trilogy by setting up the Foundation series and tries to answer the pending queries from the series.

David Brin has succeeded to an extent, but there could have been much more. I would give this novel a three star rating.

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