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Beggars in Spain
Summary
Beggars in Spain is a 1993 science fiction novel by American writer Nancy Kress. It was originally published as a novella with the same title in Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine and as a limited edition paperback by Axolotl Press in 1991. Kress expanded it, adding three additional parts to the novel, and eventually two sequels, Beggars and Choosers (1994) and Beggars Ride (1996). It is held to be an important work, and is often hailed for its predictions of emerging technologies and society.
The original novella won the Hugo Award and Nebula Award. The novel was also nominated for both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award, but did not win.
Beggars in Spain and its sequels take place in a future where genetic engineering has become a reality, and society and culture face the consequences of genetic modifications (genemods), particularly in the United States. The story revolves around the existence of the "Sleepless": individuals genetically modified to not need sleep, who have greater potential for intelligence and accomplishment than ordinary humans, called "Sleepers".
The world of Beggars in Spain is also powered by cold fusion, named "Y-energy" after its pioneer Kenzo Yagai. Yagai also founded "Yagaiism", a moral worldview Kress based on Objectivism, in which dignity is solely the product of what a person can achieve through his or her own efforts, and the contract is the basis of society. As a corollary, the weak and unproductive are not owed anything.
The novel's title comes from its primary moral question, as presented by character Tony Indivino: what do productive and responsible members of society owe the "beggars in Spain", the unproductive masses who have nothing to offer except need? This is underscored by the rift between the Sleepers and the Sleepless; the Sleepless are superior in mind and body, and easily capable of outperforming their normal cousins. All men are not created equal.
Official source
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