Writer of science fiction. Followed the golden-age talents (i.e., [Arthur C. Clarke], [Isaac Asimov]), and was quasi-contemporaneous with the New Wave of sci-fi, but not necessarily a part of it.
Bester had fondnesses for anti-heroes, messiahs, and messianic anti-heroes. It might also be said that, where Zelazny was concerned with individuals and writers like Herbert and Asimov were concerned with institutions, societies, and cultures, Bester was largely interested in relatively small groupings—communities, circles of friends, and lesser institutions.
Bester’s best-loved work is Stars, My Destination (Tiger, Tiger), but of far more interesting philosophical content is his The Demolished Man, which explored the tension between heroic altruism and anti-heroic anti-social rebellion in two quasi-messianic figures, the homicidal magnate Ben Reich and the telepathic policeman Lincoln Powell. His treatment of these issues gets at some of the same problems of responsibility and relationship as Sturgeon’s More than Human.
Further discourse on Bester’s development of the super-human is pending. {FILL!}, and may also get moved to the discussion of the purpose of Science Fiction

Works

• The Demolished Man
  
• The Stars My Destination
  
• Psychoshop
  
• The Deceivers
  
• The Computer Connection
  
  category:writer sci-fi