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Perhaps most of what is considered “science fiction” today do not deserve such a prestigious title. Rather, they should fall under the genre of space adventure, or one of the many fantasy genres. This is what Philip K. Dick argues in an essay titled My Definition of Science Fiction. He regards stories that simply take place in the future—typically in space—cannot automatically be considered science fiction even if they involve advanced technologies beyond our current understanding of the universe. Dick wrote his definition in 1981, and his claims do align with many of his written stories; We Can Remember It for You Wholesale is one such story. First published in 1966, it is universally considered science fiction and effectively serves as an example for what science fiction should be. In his definition, Philip K. Dick states that a science fiction story must be based on our current reality. It must use
Initially, his existence is that of an ordinary clerk who has been ordinary his whole life. He then learns that he was a secret agent/assassin and is also the man currently saving Earth from an alien invasion. Quail is an example of someone who cannot be sure if “reality” really exists, or if it is just something in our heads. Having the memory of a trip to Mars would then actually be a “real” trip to Mars. This brings up the idea of Last Thursdayism which says that it is impossible to prove that the entire universe, including our memories, was not created last Thursday. These are the thought-provoking ideas that Dick says science fiction must do. It is important to ponder philosophical ideas in order to improve critical thinking and open our minds to new ideas. Questioning our reality is one of the human practices that most set us apart from other animals, and science fiction is an excellent facilitator of philosophical
In literature there are over 20 different genres of reading, and each of them contains many similarities and differences. Science fiction, arguably one of the most popular genre’s, is also one of the hardest to understand, however there are certain elements/characteristics that can easily determine if a book is or is not science fiction. The characteristics that make up science fiction are, advancements in technology and the application of advanced technology. In books such as The Veldt and Fahrenheit 451 both technological advancements and there application play a crucial role on determining that these books fall into the science fiction genre.
Some writers would tend to avoid controversy in their writing, to avoid offending or limiting their audience. Many choose to write brilliantly designed worlds, times or characters, that simply take a reader on a journey. They can use traits of realistic, non-realistic, and semi-realistic fiction. An effective storyteller can create plots, characters and settings which involve themes based on historical events, or mythology to present their tale. Classic themes within the science fiction genre; is this classic blending of scientific and technological facts. Then it is their job to take you to a place or time that shows their finely crafted potential situation and events.
Darko Suvin defines science fiction as "a literary genre whose necessary and sufficient conditions are the presence and interaction of estrangement and cognition, and whose main formal device" (Suvin 7-8) is a fictional "novum . . . a totalizing phenomenon or relationship" (Suvin 64), "locus and/or dramatis personae . . . radically or at least significantly" alternative to the author's empirical environment "simultaneously perceived as not impossible within the cognitive (cosmological and anthropological) norms of the author's epoch" (Suvin viii). Unlike fantasy, science fiction is set in a realistic world, but one strange, alien. Only there are limits to how alien another world, another culture, can be, and it is the interface between those two realms that can give science fiction its power, by making us look back at ourselves from its skewed perspective.
Philip K. Dick is one of the more prolific science fiction writers of the second half of the 20th century. His dark plots, themes, and characterizations differ greatly from those who preceded him. This has seemingly translated well onto the big screen, as at last count, nearly ten of his novels and short stories have been adapted into films. Several of these films have garnered critical acclaim for both their movie credentials and use of source material. Blade Runner, originally released in 1982 and based off a 1968 novel entitled Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? along with A Scanner Darkly, a 2006 film based off a book of the same name released in 1977, are two such examples. They provide an excellent base to compare the adaptations in terms of visual style, plot authenticity, and characterization. Both movies took alternate routes, yet both were very well received, though one’s financial success is far greater than the other.
Rose, Lois and Stephen. "The Shattered Ring: Science Fiction and the Quest for meaning." Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Carolyn Riley. Detroit, MI: Gale Research Company, 1969. Vol. 3, 226-227.
Suvin, Darko. Metamorphoses of Science Fiction: On the Poetics and History of a Literary Genre . New Haven : Yale University Press, 1979.
In the short story, “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale,” the storyline takes place in Chicago, Illinois. This story employs mainly two genre conventions that make it a science fictional reading. The first one is called future science fiction. This is shown in the text because of the tropes of calling the Earth as “Terra” and the futuristic drug called “narkidrine”. Spy Fiction, or Spy-Fi is also another genre convention because of essential tropes such as suspicion and uncertainty. These two genre conventions project the fallacies of the American Government, which Dick uses to persuade the audience into believing that the text is science fiction. Moreover, blending these two distinct genres together makes the storyline much more amusing to the audience because of the supernatural characteristics mentioned above. In the short story, “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale,” Phillip K. Dick utilizes satire, diction/neologisms, and ethical appeal in order to raise awareness of government interference in daily life for the audience.
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. is a famous American author "known for works blending satire, black comedy, and science fiction" (Kurt Vonnegut). Although Kurt Vonnegut is most widely known as a science fiction writer, what if his readers knew that he didn't consider himself that at all? He once said he "learned from the reviewer" that he was a science fiction writer. Regardless of what Kurt Vonnegut considers himself, he is one of the most sought-after science fiction writers in history. Plagued by the Great Depression, World War II, the suicide of his mother, and a long list of other dramatic events, Kurt Vonnegut Jr. lead a difficult life. Even though these events sound terrible, it is not unreasonable to call them the core of his literary success.
Jules Verne heavily impacted science fiction and the technology of today through his novels. His science fiction novels grew popular and as a result made this genre well-known. More importantly, his novels predicted the moon landing, skyscrapers, submarines, planes, hot air balloons, and more. These works were read by scientists and explorers, like Simon Lake who designed the submarine, and these readers attempted and succeeded to create these inventions and explore to the places, like the moon, that are in his stories.
Have you ever thought of the motives behind writing the greatest Sci-Fi stories in history? Behind those who wrote the stories of “The Matrix” and the “Harrison Bergeron”. They are stories written which were inspired by the predictions of what will it be like with speculative thinking; typically, dealing with imaginative concepts such as futuristic science, futuristic technology, parallel universes and extra-terrestrial life. The two stories have many different ways of presenting themes that can relate to Joseph Campbell’s theory; which is the “Hero’s Journey”. Choice, Control and Freedom are some of the main debatable topics when it comes to Sci-Fi stories in General. Moreover, this is due to the owing fact that it makes the audience to think otherwise if they have different interpretations of the three themes.
“A good scenario doesn’t make a good science fiction story - but it’s setting within which a good science fiction story might be told.” - Jamais Cascio, an author. Orson Scott Card definitely paid attention to descriptive words and setting while writing the novel Ender’s Game, which portrays several young boys, and a few girls too, being shipped off to space. The novel Ender’s Game contains profound ideas of what will occur in the future; however, not all of the novel’s innovations and individual elements are valuable. Portrayed as a futuristic realm of ethical issues, the setting is efficiently described as the age of peace which seemingly manipulates time, alternate universes developing and evolving in somewhat unconventional places, and
In the early 1980's, cyberpunk was used as a label to describe a new form of science fiction written by a group of five writers, which challenged the traditional genres associated with science fiction (Shiner, 7). SF used highly imaginative ideas to project scientific phenomenas, resulting in dreamy, stylized stories of space colonies and flying space crafts. This new science fiction was different, because it incorporated present global, social and technological situations to help induce the future of the world. It generated new outcomes for the future's high technological, society and global environment that would help categorize it into a specific form of writing known as cyberpunk.
The human imagination is a very powerful thing. It sets humanity apart from the rest of the creatures that roam the planet by giving them the ability to make creative choices. The imaginary world is unavoidably intertwined with the real world and there are many ways by which to illustrate this through literature, either realistically or exaggerated. Almost everything people surround themselves with is based on the unreal. Everything from the food we eat to the books we read had to have been thought of by someone and their imagination. The imagination empowers humans.^1 It allows people to speculate or to see into the future. It allows artists to create, inventors to invent, and even scientists and mathematicians to solve problems. J.R. Tolken wrote “Lord of the Rings” by sitting in his backyard and imagining everything coming to life.^2 He thought about all the “what if” possibilities. But this method of storytelling can be used in much more subtle and/or sophisticated ways than in science fiction or fantasy novels. Through such works as the short story Dreams and the novel “Headhunter” by Timothy Findley, the film “the Matrix”, and the short story the Telltale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, one can see how a writer can use the concept of the imaginary invading reality to write their story.
The genre of what is called science fiction has been around since The Epic of Gilgamesh (earliest Sumerian text versions BCE ca. 2150-2000). The last 4000 years has evolved science fiction and combined it with all categories of genres comprising action, comedy, horror, drama, and adventure in many different ways. From chest bursting aliens, to robot assassins sent back in time science fiction has successfully captured the imagination of nearly everyone that has been introduced to it. The movies Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Independence Day are both examples of films created with the idea of advanced life existing outside the boarders of our own world. The foundation for each film in view of how extraterrestrial life will affect human affairs, however are very different.
Hoberek, Andrew P. "The 'work' of science fiction: Philip K. Dick and Occupational masculinity in the post-world war II United States." MFS Modern Fiction Studies. Summer 1997.