Sustenance: Aliens, Language, and What We Get Wrong

Philosophics — Philosophical and Political Ramblings · May 21, 2025 · 7m

This segment describes the book Sustenance, a work of speculative fiction published under the pseudonym Ridley Park, which uses aliens as a lens to examine human behaviour and assumptions. The book critiques anthropocentrism and the ways humans impose their own frameworks onto others, particularly in areas like language, which is presented as a tool for projection rather than mutual understanding. It challenges established human concepts of culture, sex/gender, and consent by showcasing what happens when these ideas are not shared or even comprehensible to other beings. Ultimately, the text…