47 pages 1 hour read

William Gibson

Burning Chrome

Fiction | Short Story Collection | Adult | Published in 1982

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Story 8

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Story 8 Summary: “The Winter Market”

Casey is an editor in the business of making virtual reality film work. Studios like the one Casey works for, the Autonomic Pilot, create works with material sourced from people’s subconscious and dreams. Some individuals have a talent for generating especially vivid or notable material. Directly tapping into a person’s subconscious (“jacking” straight across) to engage with “[d]ry dreams” is far too intense for most people, even though the technology is available. The job of editors like Casey is to take the raw material and filter it so that it can be consumed.

Casey describes his mentor, Rubin, as “Gomo no sensei. Master of junk” because he collects an ever-expanding array of cultural detritus (126). Rubin is also known for throwing fabulous parties. At one of these, he meets a woman named Lise who wears a cybernetic “exoskeleton” that damages her body even as it is meant to correct some “congenital” problem.

Casey is introduced to Lise, and she orders him to take her home. She has knowledge of the technological equipment that Casey uses for his job and laughs at his “fast-wipe module” for being inferior (129). Nevertheless, Lise and Casey form a connection, prompted by the powerful allure she has over him.

Related Titles

By William Gibson

Study Guide

logo

Neuromancer

William Gibson

Neuromancer

William Gibson

Plot Summary

logo

The Difference Engine

Bruce Sterling, William Gibson

The Difference Engine

Bruce Sterling, William Gibson

Study Guide

logo

The Miracle Worker

William Gibson

The Miracle Worker

William Gibson

Study Guide

logo

The Peripheral

William Gibson

The Peripheral

William Gibson