it’s monday!. the literature of change. sci fi asks, “what if...” it describes the impact...
TRANSCRIPT
It’s Monday!
The literature of change. Sci Fi asks, “What if . . .” It describes the impact of
technology or science on people in the future.
It explores alternate realities. Though it is a genre of fiction, it is
connected with the principles of science. It can’t be totally unbelievable. An oxymoron:
Science=true/provable Fiction=false/created from the
imagination How can it be both true/false?
How can we define science
fiction?
Science fiction typically removes the reader from the currently-known world. Instead it may be set in one of the following: The future In space On a different world In a different universe or
dimension.
Setting
Science Fiction is also commonly known as the following Speculative fiction Futuristic fiction A sub-genre of fantastics or fantasy
fiction Closely related to fantasy (magic is
a central element), horror, and classical romance.
Other names or related genres
1818: Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley
1864: Journey to the Center of the Earth, by Jules Verne
1898: War of the Worlds, by H.G. Wells
1932: Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
1946: Anthem, by Ayn Rand (Ayn rhymes with mine
1949: 1984, by George Orwell 1953: Fahrenheit 451, by Ray
Bradbury 1953: Childhood’s End, by Arthur C.
Clarke 1974: House of Stairs, by William
Sleator
A general timeline of classics and
their authors
Hard Science Fiction: Stories often featuring believable scientists or scientific inventions. If the scientific elements are both important to the story and plausible, given today’s technology, it is hard science fiction.
Soft Science Fiction: Stories emphasizing the psychological or sociological sciences. Relationship, more than scientific inventions or principles, are the basis for the action.
Some important categories of
science fiction(Taken from Decades of Science Fiction, by Applewhite Minyard,
1998)
Alternate History: Stories in which history as we know it has been altered in some fundamental way, such as Napoleon winning at Waterloo, or Einstein never unlocking the secrets of atomic power. We see a different society because of such changed events.
Future History: Stories set in a distant time and containing a more or less worked out society reflecting the relationship among competing or cooperating species in that universe.
Some important categories of
science fiction(Taken from Decades of Science Fiction, by Applewhite Minyard,
1998)
Cyberpunk: Stories set in a computer-dominated environment, usually in the near future, and containing rebellious characters such as street punks.
Steampunk: Stories set in an alternate history when steam power was prominent, such as Victorian England. These stories usually show technology changed in some way by the addition of more modern inventions, and like cyberpunk, most have rebellious characters.
Some important categories of
science fiction(Taken from Decades of Science Fiction, by Applewhite Minyard,
1998)
Dystopia: Stories in which society is dominated by negative factors.
Utopia: Stories in which society’s ills have, for the most part, been cured and daily life is perfect, or nearly so.
Some important categories of
science fiction(Taken from Decades of Science Fiction, by Applewhite Minyard,
1998)
Fantastic Voyage: Stories where the heroes travel to unknown regions, encountering strange inhabitants.
Space Opera: Stories with outer space or other planets and galactic war as the center of the action. A soap opera played out in space.
Some important categories of
science fiction(Taken from Decades of Science Fiction, by Applewhite Minyard,
1998)