Teddy Wecker
Saturday May 16, 2020
ITAL 2500
The Importance of Science Fiction: A Manifesto
The importance of reading, watching, and creating works of Science Fiction in the modern world cannot be overstated, as it’s works are investigative analyses of the real world we live in. This manner of re-describing the present into a fictional future allows works of Science Fiction to provide points of view about the real world through the organic observation of the reader in an often, at least somewhat, believable setting. Furthermore, they allow for both commentary on the societal level and exploration of the human condition. Many might dismiss the entire genera as escapist, or even immature. Science Fiction, I will argue, is anything but.
My Manifesto for Science Fiction:
- Works of Science Fiction must continue to be produced
- Works of Science Fiction must continue to be read
- Works of Science Fiction must continue to be watched
- Science Fiction provides a critical lens through which we can look back upon our society
- Critiquing the past is easy, critiquing the present is hard
- Science Fiction allows for explorations into the human condition unachievable by other, similar genera
- By dismissing Science Fiction as an inferior genera we not only deprive ourselves of what it has to teach us, but we are destined to lose the ability to critique ourselves
This Manifesto will support points 1, 2, and 3 constantly, as that is its primary objective. Therefor I will move abruptly to points 4-6, and provide support for the validity of 1-3 throughout.
- Science Fiction provides a critical lens through which we can look back upon our society
Works of Science Fiction set in unfamiliar, far off worlds are rarely set in worlds which are truly unfamiliar. Instead it is the nature of the genera to comment on reality, and its settings are often reflections of the real world with some aspects taken to a point of extreme. Of this commentary on the present, there are two sub-themes which carry messages particularly important for society to understand about itself, these being: “what will happen if we go on like this?” and “how would we react if this ever were to happen?”
Beginning with the first question, an early observation should be that the modern world enjoys many technological luxuries. Arthur C. Clarke defined Science Fiction as “Something that could happen – though you usually wouldn’t want it to,”[1] this definition seems particular fitting as personal entertainment, transportation, powerful nations, and comfortable living are just a few which will become applicable. These luxuries are hardly pure in their existence, with nearly every comfort enjoyed by the modern citizen of a first-world country. It is vitally important, as many learned in kindergarten, to take responsibility for your actions and understand that there will be repercussions. How then to teach about the possible repercussions of the actions of the modern citizen? How to communicate the dangers of pollution, weapons of mass destruction, infatuation with personal entertainment, or modern xenophobia? This brings the sub-point:
- a. Critiquing the past is easy, critiquing the present is hard.
Provide people with a cautionary tale from history, it will be immediately dismissed through the fallacy of a superior modern intellect. Teach them about the modern situation and people become bored or insulted, few are interested in hearing how their way of life is harmful. Science Fiction provides the manner to critique the present through a critique of the future. Since there is no doubt that those in the future will be smarter than us, nor is there any direct criticism of the present-day individual, it is received and able to be digested. This is the trope of the “cautionary tale,” asking the question: What will happen if we continue down this path? For example, what will happen if we don’t control our addiction to personal entertainment? Lino Aldani’s 1973 “Goodnight Sophie,” imagines a world of personal entertainment addiction where love and sex are replaced by the thrill of living vicariously through actors in virtual reality movies, a mere novum for 1973 when the work was written. The story imagines a grey, sad future where people stay inside simply because they know there is nothing for them that could be better than their virtual-reality video players.[2]
Though cautionary tales for the future often revolve around new inventions of the time, they are not always positive changes in the short term. In 1962 Julian Kawalee wrote “I Kill Myself,” a story about a scientist’s desire to destroy a weapon of mass destruction being overcome by the allure of the power the weapon would grant him.[3] The story is a product of the nuclear age, the world had recently held witness to the atom bomb and the cold war was going strong[4]. Reading stories like this with a new historicist viewpoint is essential, the time period the story was written provides great insight into not only the true intended meaning of the story but also the sentiment of the time it was written. Even today, long after the cold war has ‘ended,’ this story carries weight and reflects the how nations can become intoxicated with the allure of absolute military power with a nuance nonfiction editorials could only dream of capturing. The eventual end of such a future is depicted in Ray Bradburys “There Will Come Soft Rains,” an almost poetic piece painting a picture of a perhaps not-so-distant future of nuclear holocaust[5]. Bradburys work was also inspired by the atom bomb, written in 1950, and works as perfect example of a cautionary tale for the future. The story subtly outlines how if we continue to build the tools of our own destruction, a total nuclear holocaust is almost inevitable. The argument is made, however, by presenting the reader with a very intimate presentation of the end of human life on earth as a result of its technological advancement. This is why Science Fiction is so crucial; if people are not thinking foreword about the limits of humanity, telling cautionary tales and considering the ends of our means, then we are doomed to not only repeat old mistakes but invent new, easily avoidable ones. It is imperative that as a global society humanity is constantly considering the possible outcome related to continuing down its current path, Science Fiction is the medium in which it is done.
Not only is science fiction used to look to how humanity might change in the future, but also to reflect on how we might respond as a society to events in the future. These pieces are still a product of their time, exposing the worries of people at different points in history, but they are also the product of where and by whom they were written. One fairly common trope is “doomsday,” exploring how humanity would respond to the end of the world. For two examples unified in topic look at “Mono No Aware” by Ken Liu and “The Star” by H.G. Wells. Both have a very similar premise: a large body in space is moving towards the planet very quickly, and the all life on Earth will either be killed soon or is already dead.[6] [7] While this trope is explored in the cautionary tale style of stories, the way it is explored here is wholly different. The world ending is, importantly, beyond human control with the only decision humanity having is how to respond. In “The Star,” H.G. Wells describes first skepticism then mass panic, before the eventual deaths of everyone on an entire hemisphere. The aim of his story was to point out the insignificance of humanity on earth, and the lack of control we possess over our own universe. “Mono No Aware” also speaks of mass panic, but a key difference is that this story focuses not on humanity as a whole but on the way different nations react to doomsday. America panicked, Japan was calm, both tried and mostly failed to launch spacecraft to save their citizens. Ken Liu also paints a picture of insignificance, satirizing such practices as saying the pledge of allegiance after the world has ended, but focuses heavily on personal interactions and, especially, the reactions of different cultures. Without works of Science Fiction like these humanity would never be called to question its hypothetical resolve, and rarely would people look beyond the present and past for insight about their society or culture. How the world reacts to a no-win situation is a common theme in Science Fiction works, and it is a vitally important one.
- Science Fiction allows for explorations into the human condition unachievable by other, similar genera
In addition to looking at the experiences of large populations, certain types of Science Fiction works have a way of looking intimately at the psyche of an individual. Typically, works which focus on the interactions between people or the human experience over a big-picture future are known as “soft” Science Fiction, and there are many examples that provide insight to the human experience. This is foundational to Science Fiction, as the perspective it allows its readers and writers to achieve when thinking about these topics is one that can be both extreme and unique. Some stories manage even to analyze both the big and small picture of the future, “The Future is Blue” for example tells a story leaning on the trope of environmental apocalypse. The people in the story live on a giant island of garbage, and the piece showcases how the values of individuals might change after such a disaster as the oceans rising, an idea clearly inspired by recent climate events.[8]
Though “The Future is Blue” touches on both, in most cases the focus falls either on the society or the individual. In this case, the society is often a backdrop to further explore the human experience, the short film “World of Tomorrow” by Don Hertzfeldt in a prime example.[9] This film is, in my opinion, the epitome of Science Fiction’s ability to describe the human condition. The film describes a life in the future where minds are re-downloaded into clones allowing people with some wealth the ability to live forever. The film masterfully presents a world of immortality populated by humans who were not made to live forever, and examines the emotional toll living for hundreds of years might take on a person. The story causes the viewer to question the true appeal in living forever, a proposal that at face value is perhaps the most appealing thing you could offer a person.
- By dismissing Science Fiction as an inferior genera we not only deprive ourselves of what it has to teach us, but we are destined to lose the ability to critique ourselves.
One of the most common dismissals of Science Fiction as a genera is that it is childish, escapist, or perhaps filled with alien monsters with nothing real to say. This sentiment is a rooted in its pulp magazine origins, though today couldn’t be further from the truth. Even thinking of the genera as escapist fails entirely to realize how rooted in our reality it is, or how strong an influence Science Fiction and the real world hold over each other.
What other medium could cause people to question their most basic desire to not eventually die? Moreover, what other medium could present such a theme in a way that is relatable and understandable without mentioning a God or some other detail bound to alienate its consumers? The argument is, none. Science Fiction provides a window to the human soul unlike any other, where readers and viewers can dissect the details of the subjects psyche in a world they can understand. Sam Maskowitz said of Science fiction that it “is a branch of fantasy identifiable by the fact that it eases the ‘willing suspension of disbelief’ on the part of its readers by utilizing an atmosphere of scientific credibility for its imaginative speculations in physical science, space, time, social science, and philosophy.”[10] This couldn’t be more accurate, a large part of the reason Science Fiction is so successful in presenting often easily digestible analysis of the human condition is that it does not get bogged down in the fantastical details of a fantasy world. Its novums are often at least somewhat logical, grounding the reader and allowing for a far more focused analysis than fantasy works could ever hope to achieve. I’ll say it: a commentary on the human condition through the lens of our interaction with computers, for example, is better than elves and dwarves being racist towards each other.
To conclude this manifesto, I will circle back to the beginning. Of all the details I have discussed related to perspectives on society and individuals one thing unifies them: Science Fiction provides a medium for its consumers and creators alike to be critical of both ourselves and the world around us. It causes us to call in to question aspects of our lives in a way no other genera could. Because of this, it remains vitally important that works of Science Fiction continue to be created and consumed long into the future.
[1] Saiber, Arielle. “WSF 2020 class 2 definitions, wells, Asimov, Simak” ITAL 2500. 29 January 2020. Bowdoin College. Microsoft Power Point Presentation.
[2] Aldani, Lino. “Goodnight Sophie.” The Science Fiction Century, edited by David G. Hartwell. Tom Doherty Associates Inc, 1997, 352 – 368.
[3] Kawalee, Julian. “I Kill Myself.” The Vintage Anthology of Science Fiction, edited by Christopher Cerf. Alfred A. Knopf Inc. and Random House Inc, 1966, 260-267.
[4] Timeline of History – 20th Century at a Glance, www.dudeman.net/history.html
[5] Bradbury, Ray. “There Will Come Soft Rains.” The Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction, edited by Arthur B. Evans, Istvan Csicsery-Ronay Jr, Joan Gordon, Veronica Hollinger, Rob Latham, and Carol McGurik. Wesleyan University Press, 2010, 234-240
[6] Liu, Ken. “Mono no Aware.” The Future is Japanese, edited by Nick Mamatas and Masumi Washington. Viz Media LLC, 2012, 11-32.
[7] Wells, H.G. “The Star” The Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction, edited by Arthur B. Evans, Istvan Csicsery-Ronay Jr, Joan Gordon, Veronica Hollinger, Rob Latham, and Carol McGurik. Wesleyan University Press, 2010, 39-49.
[8] Valente, Catherynne M. “The Future is Blue.” Drowned Worlds, edited by Jonathan Strahan. Rebellion Publishing Ltd, 2016, 353-381.
[9] World of Tomorrow. Directed by Don Hertzfeldt, Performances by Julia Pott, Winona Mae, and Sara Cushman, Bitter Films, 2015.
[10] Saiber, Arielle. “WSF 2020 class 2 definitions, wells, Asimov, Simak” ITAL 2500. 29 January 2020. Bowdoin College. Microsoft Power Point Presentation.