What do you think?
Rate this book
Popular Culture and Philosophy #111
The Man in the High Castle and Philosophy: Subversive Reports from Another Reality
The Man in the High Castle is an Amazon TV show, based on the Philip K. Dick novel, about an "alternate present" (beginning in the 1960s) in which Germany and Japan won World War II, with the former Western US occupied by Japan, the former Eastern U.S. occupied by Nazi Germany, and a small "neutral zone" between them. A theme of the story is that in this alternative world there is eager speculation, fueled by the illicit newsreel, The Grasshopper Lies Heavy , about how the world would have been different if America had won the war.
In The Man in the High Castle and Philosophy , twenty-two professional thinkers look at philosophical issues raised by this ongoing enterprise in "alternative history." One question is whether it really made a profound difference that the Allies won the war, and exactly what differences in everyday life we may expect to arise from an apparent historical turning point. Could it be that some dramatic historical events have only superficial consequences, while some unnoticed occurrences lead to catastrophic results?
Another topic is the quest for truth in a world of government misinformation, and how dissenting organizations can make headway.
In The Man in the High Castle and Philosophy , twenty-two professional thinkers look at philosophical issues raised by this ongoing enterprise in "alternative history." One question is whether it really made a profound difference that the Allies won the war, and exactly what differences in everyday life we may expect to arise from an apparent historical turning point. Could it be that some dramatic historical events have only superficial consequences, while some unnoticed occurrences lead to catastrophic results?
Another topic is the quest for truth in a world of government misinformation, and how dissenting organizations can make headway.
256 pages, Paperback
Published July 10, 2017
71 people are currently reading
380 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
February 19, 2025
if you like this review, i now have website: www.michaelkamakana.com
240917: but then I really like source material (the book), the author (Philip K. Dick), philosophy in general (more continental than analytic). pop culture, pop philosophy, just new ways to look at series. variable quality essays as in any collection. fun. if you really like what I mention above...
240917: but then I really like source material (the book), the author (Philip K. Dick), philosophy in general (more continental than analytic). pop culture, pop philosophy, just new ways to look at series. variable quality essays as in any collection. fun. if you really like what I mention above...
February 10, 2019
This book was published in a series of books that explore the ideas of popular movies and TV shows. In my role as Co-host of the Dickheads podcast, I interviewed the co-editor of this book and he was kind enough to send us copies. The essays range in quality but the overall package is pretty insightful. They range from good to terrible just like short story collections. This book is mostly focused on the TV show and that is perhaps the least interesting aspect of Man in the High Castle. Looking at the philosophy of PKD and the book are far more interesting. Certainly, this book does touch on comparisons with the book and more than a few of the writers take on our boy Phil.
The book is divided into six major sections each of which has a title that plays on PKD titles. the two best and most rich sections to me were "The World Dick Made" and "Flow my Tears the Ethicist Said. Each of these sections had the most interesting essays that explored the concepts in the most fascinating ways. The least interesting section has several essays devoted to the I Ching called "Captives of Unchance." I mean that was kinda my least favorite aspect of the novel.
I did find my self noticing moments here and there in various essays when the author didn't even get the events or timeline of the TV show correct. One could argue that maybe they viewed the show from another reality but I doubt that. The best most informed essays made the best experiences. My three favorite essays were "Cruel Optimism and the Good Nazi Life" by Lukasz Muniowski, "What If your Hero Is a Fascist" by Bruce Krajewski, and "In the Neutral Zone, a Libertarian's Home is Their High Castle" by M. Blake Wilson.
Cruel Optimism and the Good Nazi Life deals with John Smith the American turned Nazi and Frank Fink the Jewish man on the west coast. There is room for more discussion here but introduces the ideas. Something we dealt with on the podcast at length was the idea that PKD was rightfully hard on the Nazis but gave the Japanese a pass in the narrative.
"What If your Hero Is a Fascist" is one we talk about in length during the interview with co-editor and author of this piece Bruce Krajewski. (Link below) Bruce uses quotes from PKD late in his life to point to statements he made that on the surface appear to support fascist leaders. Many of his quotes are disturbing but anyone who followed the man's life knows he contradicts himself. Either way those of us who are Dickheads need to contend with this.
Most interesting is one with a mile long title "In the Neutral Zone, a Libertarian's Home is Their High Castle." This author really thinks PKD is a libertarian. At least the author of this piece understands that PKD is all over the map with his views. This was one of the better researched and thought-out essays.
This is a cool read for anyone really wanting to dive into ideas behind the show and the novel. I think this is one that should be in libraries, I ask for it at your library, see if they can order it.
Check out the interview we did on Dickheads with the Co-editor of this book... It is also on Youtube...
https://soundcloud.com/dickheadspodca...
The book is divided into six major sections each of which has a title that plays on PKD titles. the two best and most rich sections to me were "The World Dick Made" and "Flow my Tears the Ethicist Said. Each of these sections had the most interesting essays that explored the concepts in the most fascinating ways. The least interesting section has several essays devoted to the I Ching called "Captives of Unchance." I mean that was kinda my least favorite aspect of the novel.
I did find my self noticing moments here and there in various essays when the author didn't even get the events or timeline of the TV show correct. One could argue that maybe they viewed the show from another reality but I doubt that. The best most informed essays made the best experiences. My three favorite essays were "Cruel Optimism and the Good Nazi Life" by Lukasz Muniowski, "What If your Hero Is a Fascist" by Bruce Krajewski, and "In the Neutral Zone, a Libertarian's Home is Their High Castle" by M. Blake Wilson.
Cruel Optimism and the Good Nazi Life deals with John Smith the American turned Nazi and Frank Fink the Jewish man on the west coast. There is room for more discussion here but introduces the ideas. Something we dealt with on the podcast at length was the idea that PKD was rightfully hard on the Nazis but gave the Japanese a pass in the narrative.
"What If your Hero Is a Fascist" is one we talk about in length during the interview with co-editor and author of this piece Bruce Krajewski. (Link below) Bruce uses quotes from PKD late in his life to point to statements he made that on the surface appear to support fascist leaders. Many of his quotes are disturbing but anyone who followed the man's life knows he contradicts himself. Either way those of us who are Dickheads need to contend with this.
Most interesting is one with a mile long title "In the Neutral Zone, a Libertarian's Home is Their High Castle." This author really thinks PKD is a libertarian. At least the author of this piece understands that PKD is all over the map with his views. This was one of the better researched and thought-out essays.
This is a cool read for anyone really wanting to dive into ideas behind the show and the novel. I think this is one that should be in libraries, I ask for it at your library, see if they can order it.
Check out the interview we did on Dickheads with the Co-editor of this book... It is also on Youtube...
https://soundcloud.com/dickheadspodca...
August 21, 2019
(NOTE: I'm stingy with stars. For me 2 stars means a good book or a B. 3 stars means a very good book or a B+. 4 stars means an outstanding book or an A {only about 5% of the books I read merit 4 stars}. 5 stars means an all time favorite or an A+ {Only one of 400 or 500 books rates this!).
This book has a very interesting premise. What if the Allies did not win World War 2? Dick envision all of the U.S. west of the Rockies as part of Japan and almost all the rest of the country as part of Nazi Germany. He views the remnant of what is left of the U.S. as Colorado. I thought all of this sounded very interesting but the book did not live up to its premise.
This book has a very interesting premise. What if the Allies did not win World War 2? Dick envision all of the U.S. west of the Rockies as part of Japan and almost all the rest of the country as part of Nazi Germany. He views the remnant of what is left of the U.S. as Colorado. I thought all of this sounded very interesting but the book did not live up to its premise.
December 17, 2019
This compilation of short essays discusses the nature of reality in the world of The Man In the High Castle. Each essay is about ten pages, and unpacks hefty topics such as morality, time and concurrent realities as depicted in the novel and television series. This is a entertaining pop-rooted philosophy book that employs the timeless questions of the discipline. The format is limiting whereby the brevity of each segment rarely allows for the reader to immerse themselves in the questions and the worlds that Philip K. Dick built. Fans will see this as enjoyable mental fodder for future engagements with The Man in the High Castle.
May 8, 2019
Despite some poorly edited essays, this is a strong volume that looks at the TV series and novel in very interesting ways. Many of the authors apply philosophical principles to Philip K. Dick’s novel and the show in ways that help to illuminate both of them. There was just one essay that I did not finish because I lost patience with the poor writing. Others also suffered from annoying things like the use of too many exclamation marks and run-on sentences. But even in those, the ideas were strong and the essays well conceived.
November 4, 2023
This “The Man in the High Castle and Philosophy” has got to be, in my opinion, on the best in the series. It seemed to go a tad deeper than most of the others. I suppose anything dealing with Nazis requires a deeper dive unless you’re Mel Brooks (see “Springtime for Hitler). There’s a lot to contemplate in the various essays. A very solid, thought-provoking read.
November 22, 2025
Für mich war es leider ein flop. Von so einem wichtigen Thema hätte ich mehr erwartet. Das Buch ist flach und belanglos geschrieben. Es besteht natürlich aber auch die Möglichkeit, dass ich den tieferen Sinn nicht begriffen habe. So oder so, sehr schade.
December 30, 2018
Interesting concept, weird read
February 9, 2023
This "book" is a definition for pseudo-intellectualism. Absolute garbage.
December 31, 2025
It's a fun experiment, really shows how much variability in the hugo award there can be.
October 4, 2021
I really enjoyed this book because it opened my eyes to the importance of the Allies in World War Two. The book was very engaging and always had my mind racing to figure out what will happen next. In all of the things, it was very exciting to read but also a possible history lesson If the Allies lost.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews