Gernsback had many flaws, which Westfahl does not ignore.
He offers a chapter-long analysis of Ralph 124C41+. As the first person setting critical standards for SF, Gernsback got to define what a good science fiction story is. Westfahl examines how the novel fails in interesting ways to be a good science fiction story.
It also fails to be a good romance, a good adventure story, a good horror story, a good utopian novel, or a good scientific treatise, although it contains elements of all these.
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He offers a chapter-long analysis of Ralph 124C41+. As the first person setting critical standards for SF, Gernsback got to define what a good science fiction story is. Westfahl examines how the novel fails in interesting ways to be a good science fiction story.
It also fails to be a good romance, a good adventure story, a good horror story, a good utopian novel, or a good scientific treatise, although it contains elements of all these.