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Dear
Bookbird Reader, Much of science fiction is utopian: its charm lies in the search for an ideal world and in the amazing possibilities of technology. According to James Stupple, utopia must be communal for a person to achieve full potential.1 Hence, science fiction plots are elaborate quests that involve establishing communities on space stations or under the sea to escape overpopulation, shortage of living space, environmental pollution, nuclear or chemical warfare. However, the themes of these heroic adventures are the universal ones of maturation, identity, and self-actualization. Closely related to science fiction is the term science fantasy, which combines fantasy, magic, parapsychology, and the supernatural with scientific theories and principles. The new literary motifs and vocabulary devised by this genre are the symbols and myths that reflect our changing reality. Ben Bova believes that science fiction now serves the function of a modern mythology by inducing feelings of awe and majesty, by defining and upholding a system of the universe, by supporting a socialestablishment, and by serving as an “emotional crutch to individual members of society through the inevitable crises of life.”2 Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time and A Swiftly Tilting Planet are outstanding examples of science fantasy for young adults—they recall the past, ancient myths, a transcendental view of nature, and a powerful spiritual approach to life, and at the same time hold humans responsible for the future welfare of the Earth. As a futuristic genre, science fiction not only presents the marvels of science but provides guidance and understanding of problems that confront us today. What does the future hold for us as a people, as individuals? Such speculations raise complex philosophical and moral issues. They have given rise to a pessimistic, anti-utopian literature that warns us of holocausts and dystopias, or as Leon Stover puts it, of “kakatopia” (bad place),3 in order to explain what can happen if we allow technology to control our lives. Science fiction serves as a warning that our actions can determine the future of our planet. We now live in fear of radiation disasters, such as the ones in Bhopal and Chernobyl; with the possibility of computers and robots taking control of our lives, as in 2001: A Space Odyssey; and with losing personal autonomy in an authoritarian society, as the brain IT controls Camazotz in A Wrinkle in Time. In The Giver Lois Lowry pictures a dystopic community that is so technologically sophisticated that it can control the weather, conquer disease, overcome hunger and poverty, and fashion a society that is free of struggles and challenges—but at what cost? This advanced society, which is a sort of cross between George Orwell’s 1984 and Huxley’s Brave New World, displays an utter lack of respect for nature, life, and human needs. Its citizens have become dehumanized robots, without memories, feelings, joys, or sorrows.
Science fiction explores what it means to be human. Do we colonize,
exploit, and enslave “aliens” from other galaxies? According
to Darko Suvin’s concept of “cognitive estrangement”
or defamiliarization (based on the work of Viktor Shklovosky), where
the familiar is made to appear new and strange,4
there is no center or mainstream: we are all aliens—strangers,
foreigners, outsiders—to somebody. The aesthetic excellence of
science fiction depends on how convincingly the author can make us
enter the experiences of others—even of nonhuman beings from
distant galaxies. The themes of understanding, acceptance, and celebrating
diversity are lessons not just for intergalactic travelers but for
creatures like us with two feet and two arms—here, now, on planet
Earth. While Yours
sincerely, 1.
James Stupple, “Towards a Definition of Anti-Utopian Literature,”
Science Fiction: The Academic Correction: In my last editorial (Fall 1997), I stated that the Urdu poet Ghalib was born in Delhi.Please note that Ghalib was born in Agra in 1796 and died in Delhi in 1869. Letters To the Point: science fiction The
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