Review of Henry McFarland, “Sacrificing Mercy,” After Dinner Conversation 3, no. 12 (December 2022): 93-107 — Subscribe here. Reviewed by Sara L. Uckelman.
(Note: After Dinner Conversation pairs spec fic stories with philosophical reflection questions. In some reviews, I’ll engage with the questions; in some, I won’t.)
This story centers on issues of reason vs. faith, science vs. religion, and handles them in a rather direct fashion without much nuance. I found Mike, the narrator, unbearably judgemental; the few flashes of self-reflection that he demonstrated (“showing my rage would make it harder to persuade her”, p. 93) never seemed to actually effect any real change in behavior. It was no real surprise to find out he was also a lying bastard.
The only character I felt any sympathy with was Mike’s wife, Jenny; I don’t agree with her decisions, but she at least didn’t give in to the manipulation from her husband and mother, and when she realized how she’d been betrayed, she got herself out of the toxic situation she was in.
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