Science fiction literature has undergone profound transformation from its origins with H.G.

Wells to the present, shaped by cultural, technological, and social forces.

Wells, with works like *The Time Machine* (1895) and *The War of the Worlds* (1898), established foundational concepts such as time travel and alien invasions, using speculative narratives to critique technological progress and societal anxieties, thus legitimizing science fiction as a literary form .

Even earlier, Mary Shelley's *Frankenstein* set a precedent for exploring the consequences of scientific experimentation .

The early 20th century saw science fiction popularized through pulp magazines and, later, affordable paperbacks, which broadened readership and introduced new voices .

The genre reflected contemporary political ideologies, such as capitalism and communism, and addressed issues like war, nuclear power, and social justice, with authors like Isaac Asimov and Arthur C.

Clarke questioning human nature and societal collapse in response to global conflicts .

Technological advancements, including the rise of communication and transportation technologies, inspired narratives about humanity’s relationship with machines and the impact of innovation .

As the genre matured, it diversified into subgenres like dystopian fiction, space opera, and cyberpunk, reflecting evolving societal concerns and technological anxieties.

Frank Herbert’s *Dune* exemplifies the expansion of themes, exploring ecology and politics through intricate world-building .

Contemporary science fiction often interrogates the ethical implications of technology and the nature of human identity .

The genre’s inclusivity has grown, with women and authors of color making significant contributions.

Octavia Butler’s works address race, gender, and identity, while N.K.

Jemisin’s *Broken Earth* trilogy, a multiple Hugo Award winner, challenges traditional narratives and explores power and oppression .

Science fiction literature has undergone profound transformation from its origins with H.G.

Wells to the present, shaped by cultural, technological, and social forces.

Wells, with works like *The Time Machine* (1895) and *The War of the Worlds* (1898), established foundational concepts such as time travel and alien invasions, using speculative narratives to critique technological progress and societal anxieties, thus legitimizing science fiction as a literary form .

Title:

Content: 50 Years Of Suspense

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

At some time during the life of many readers of this column, and quite a while before that for the younger ones, we experienced the death of virtually all fiction magazines.

During much of the first half of the 20th century, the pulps (named for the cheap pulpwood paper on which they were printed) and the slicks (for the corollary shiny paper on which they were produced) combined to produce hundreds of magazines each month, tens of thousands of stories every year.

Fitzgerald, Hemingway, John P. Marquand and many others could earn $100,000 a year – in 1930s dollars – just from magazine work. The glossies that published them (Collier’s, Scribners, Atlantic, the Saturday Evening Post, and the rest) were delivered to homes and picked up at railroad stations and newspaper stands. For the less affluent (and, often, less educated), Black Mask, Argosy, the Shadow, Weird Tales, and other pulps filled the racks with garish covers and thrilling, if overheated, prose.

Intellectuals believed the popularity of radio would knell the end of literature, but it didn’t happen. The next nail in the coffin of literacy was identified as movies, made so well and in such numbers that it was assumed they would lure those who loved the printed word away from books and magazines. It still didn’t happen.

What killed the vast majority of fiction magazines was the introduction to American mass culture of the paperback book, inexpensive (25 cents) and convenient. Generically referred to as pocket books, they could fit into a man’s suit pocket or a woman’s, well, pocketbook.

It is into this abyss that Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine decided to leap. The first issue bravely poked its head into the air in December 1956 and, against odds longer than Nathan Lane winning the swimsuit competition in the next Miss America pageant, continues to be published to the present day.

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, a huge anthology compiled by the current editor of the magazine, Linda Landrican, has just been published. “Fifty Years of Crime and Suspense” (Pegasus, 542 pages, $16.95) collects 34 of the best tales from the digest-size periodical.

The editor (as well as readers of the magazine, who were polled for their favorite stories),was evenhanded in making selections that would represent the history of the magazine. Hard- and softboiled, noir and whimsical, suspense, crime, and detection are all represented.

Lawrence Block, a frequent contributor, is represented with a splendid Matt Scudder story, “A Candle for the Bag Lady,” which is laced with compassion and insight. In it, a woman who lived on the street leaves a legacy of $1,200 to the baffled former cop. A lawyer hands him the check, and he heads off, as he does most days, to get drunk.

“I made a point of stretching my drinks,” Scudder says,

mixing my bourbon with coffee, making a cup last a while … but that never really works. If you’re going to get drunk you’ll manage it somehow. The obstacles I placed in my path just kept me up later. By two-thirty I’d done what I had set out to do.I’d made my load and went home to sleep it off. I woke … with less of a hangover than I’d earned.

The story ran in 1977, and Scudder continues as a favorite of current mystery readers, as witnessed by last year’s luminescent “All the Flowers Are Dying.”

Even earlier, in 1965, Edward D. Hoch, the most prolific and consistently high-level short story writer of the past half-century, produced one of his famous (and often anthologized) stories for AHMM, “The Long Way Down,” on which an episode of the TV series “McMillan and Wife” was based. In it, a man evidently defenestrates from the 21st floor of a New York office building. When colleagues race down the elevators to the street below, all is normal. He has simply disappeared during the steep drop somewhere between the pavement and the office with its shattered window.

The Sara Paretsky story about V.I. Warshawski ran in AHMM soon after the publication of her first novel, and the story is a good one. Happily, there is also a first-rate story by Evan Hunter and another under his Ed McBain pseudonym. The superb Donald E. Westlake is here, too, and so is a fine tale by the underappreciated Loren D. Estleman.

Inevitably, with this many stories, some – how does one say it? – may not gleam quite as brightly as sunlight on new-fallen snow.

The temptation, impossible to resist for most editors, is to use work by bigname authors, and the excellent Ms. Landrican has succumbed to the siren call. The first story is by the occasionally brilliant Jim Thompson, who, as evidenced by “The Frightening Frammis,” also can be painfully terrible. Here, there are more coincidences than in a full season of “Murder She Wrote,” using language that was becoming dated faster than the ink was drying.

A woman describes her husband as “a double-distilled jerk … scared to death that someone might make a play for me.” This is from 1957, not 1927, sounding like dialogue from one of the lesser pulps.

Being ever curmudgeonly, I also had a moment of frustration with the introduction, in which a story from the first issue of AHMM, “A Bottle of Wine,” is mentioned because it was immediately selected for the classic TV series “Alfred Hitchcock Presents.” I thought I’d better read this story first because that’s pretty cool. It’s not in the book. Don’t show the gun in the first act if you’re not going to use it in the second.

Look. Forget those last few paragraphs. They make it seem that I’m looking for something to complain about, which I’m not. It’s a wonderful collection, and ridiculously inexpensive for all those delightful stories.

You could go out and buy a Hitchcock DVD for the same price as this book. Less than two hours versus several satisfying evenings. It should be an easier decision than whether to order the celery tonic or the Puligny-Montrachet.

Mr. Penzler is the proprietor of the Mysterious Bookshop in Manhattan and the series editor of the annual “Best American Mystery Stories.” He can be reached at ottopenzler@mysteriousbookshop.com.

OTTO PENZLER

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Title:

Content: 60 Sci-Fi Books That All Science Fiction Fans Must Read

Are you looking for a new science fiction book to read? Looking to fill up your reading list with journeys to strange new worlds and fast-paced science fiction adventures? You're in luck because we've compiled a list of the best sci-fi books.

Whether you're looking to dive into the great sci-fi classics you missed out on or you're looking to delve into brand new tales from up-and-coming indie authors, you're sure to find something that will spark creativity and excitement for you. Science fiction and fantasy novels provide us with allegories, cautionary tales, and deep dives into the human condition told through the lens of the fantastical and the cutting-edge.

The Best Sci-Fi Origins Books

Where did it all begin? Read these early tales with impossible futures, fascinating creatures, time travel, and alien invasion!

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein brought us the iconic monster made by Victor Frankenstein. Considered the first true science fiction novel of the modern era, it would foreshadow genetic tinkering stories of the future.

The Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish (also called The Description of a New World, Called the Blazing-World)

Considered to be the first science fiction work, in the 17th century, Duchess of Newcastle Margaret Cavendish wrote of a utopian world.

Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum

The third Oz book by L. Frank Baum features Tik-Tok, the wind-up clockwork man Dorothy Gale encounters in the Land of Ev. Tik-Tok is basically one of the first robots in literature. Other wacky features in Ozma of Oz include a sand-sailing boat and lunch pail tree.

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells

A 19th century classic by Wells, depicting time travel and inspiring science fiction tales for over a century.

The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

The book would go on to inspire a radio program that terrified people into thinking Martians were actually invading Earth. Wells would kickstart first contact stories and alien invasion at the same time, offering up a cautionary tale that touches sci-fi to this day.

The Best Sci-Fi Space Epics Books

Transport yourself across the universe with these pillars of world-building in science fiction, all of which are either now adapted for TV or film or soon will be.

Dune by Frank Herbert

Frank Herbert’s Dune is considered a masterwork of world-building and family intrigue, inspiring other famous series and their respective houses. In the first book, Paul Atreides encounters the resident free people of the planet Arrakis (Dune), the Fremen, and achieves a destiny of messianic proportions. Dune recently graced the big screen in a new adaptation by Denis Villeneuve.

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Nnedi Okorafor's Binti novella series begins with Binti, a Hugo-award-winning Africanfuturistic science fiction horror story published by Tor.com. Binti is the first of the Himba people ever to be offered a place at Oomza University, the most exalted institution of higher learning in the galaxy. She faces the choice to accept the offer and give up her place in her family so that she can travel among the stars. Hulu has ordered a pilot for Binti.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov

The beginning of the Foundation series reveals the “psychohistory” developed by mathematician Harry Seldon. Seldon would establish a new empire called Foundation to preserve the culture from societal collapse. Foundation debuted as a TV show on Apple TV in 2021.

Embers of War by Gareth L. Powell

Gareth L. Powell's award-winning trilogy Embers of War follows the war-weary crew of the sentient spaceship Trouble Dog, who after becoming disgusted by her role in war joins the House of Reclamation. Trouble Dog and her captain Sal Konstanz are sent on a rescue mission, which intersects a mission to find missing poet Ona Sundak. The galaxy teeters on the brink of another war, just as an alien presence makes itself known, altering the course of things to come. Now under development for TV.

Rendezvous with Rama by Sir Arthur C. Clarke

A strange spacecraft enters the solar system, and humanity investigates. The secrets within the enormous craft, called Rama, reveal the heritage of an advanced alien civilization. Rendezvous with Rama is in development for a film adaptation with Denis Villeneuve at the helm.

The Best Hard Sci-Fi Books

If you like your science fiction taut with the edginess of battle and the implication of future wars, you must add these books to your collection!

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

This classic military sci-fi epic details the tragic effects of time dilation on a group of soldiers fighting a seemingly endless war.

Ringworld by Larry Niven

Set in the 29th century, Louis Wu and his companions explore a vast, Earth-orbit-sized, constructed world. Their adventures uncover the alien civilization that built it.

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

First set with the backdrop of China’s cultural revolution, this new epic involves secret scientific experiments, alien invasion, challenging moral dilemmas, and impressive world-building.

Old Man’s War by John Scalzi

A man in his 70s is recruited as a soldier in the Colonial Defense Force, and altered physically in unexpected ways. Strong on character development, this kickstarts the Old Man’s War Series.

Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein

This classic military sci-fi tale follows Johnny Rico and military recruits who become involved in a battle between humans and aliens nicknamed Arachnids or “Bugs.”

If you love Starship Troopers, check out our review of the wisdom of Grand Admiral Thrawn – Michael

The Best Sci-Fi Robot Stories

The future of robots is here and is complex and necessary reading in these sci-fi tales.

I, Robot by Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov’s intriguing work introduced the laws of robotics that all robots must adhere to work alongside humans.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

The first novel in the Murderbot Diaries, All Systems Red, follows a cyborg that goes by the name Murderbot contends with self-awareness in the corporate-dominated future.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

The beginning of the Lunar Chronicles series is a retelling of Cinderella from the point of view of a cyborg.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick

Famed for its eventual big-screen adaptation, Blade Runner, this novel recounts a future in which highly realistic artificial fugitives are on the run from bounty hunter Rick Deckard.

The Alchemy of Stone by Ekaterina Sedia

Mattie is an automaton in this steampunk and urban fantasy novel involving gargoyles, Mechanics, and Alchemists.

The Best Sci-Fi Mars Stories

Our neighbor, the red planet Mars, beckons to us. What would it be like to walk on the shifting red sands of Mars? Find out in these Martian classics.

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury’s mesmerizing prose introduces us to a Mars full of exotic possibility, soon plundered by humanity’s arrival.

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

The first in the Mars Trilogy, Red Mars, involves the colonization and terraforming of Mars and the conflicting moral questions that result.

The Martian by Andy Weir

Astronaut Mark Watney is left behind on a Mars mission and must draw upon his skills and ingenuity in order to survive.

Mars by Ben Bova

Navajo geologist Jamie Waterman joins the first expedition of scientists exploring Mars. The grounded approach Bova takes to all the interaction, politics, and bureaucracy help achieve a plausible future story.

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

The first book in the Red Rising Trilogy envisions a future of planetary colonization in which caste systems abound. Darrow must fight against this system of overlords.

The Best Sci-Fi Fantasy Books

Fly high with dragons, roam lands on epic quests, and learn the hearts of true heroes in the fantasy masterpieces.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

J.R.R. Tolkien’s magnum opus spans three books, opening up a fantastically detailed and wholly invented universe in Middle Earth that was hinted at in The Hobbit. Considered the ultimate work of fantasy, The Lord of the Rings brings myth, allegory, poetry, song, war, and melancholy to heights of realism and wonder.

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

The first novel in The Earthsea Cycle tells the tale of the wizard Ged, and his journey to redeem his reckless past.

A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin

Beginning with A Game of Thrones, Martin’s elaborate, dark fantasy series covers land in which seasons last decades, and a terrible force from the north threatens to bring an icy apocalypse to an area filled with rulers jockeying to take the Iron Throne.

The Dragonriders of Pern Series by Anne McCaffrey

This remarkable series takes place in the world of Pern, where people telepathically bond with dragons. Dragonflight is the first in the series.

The Fifth Season: The Broken Earth, Book 1 by N.K Jemisin

The Fifth Season marks the first book of the award-winning The Broken Earth trilogy. Set against civilization’s collapse and natural disaster, Essun endures great personal tragedy in her quest to rescue her daughter.

The Best Sci-Fi Dystopian & Apocalyptic Books

Set in a nightmare future, these dystopian and apocalyptic legends will keep you up at night.

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

In a totalitarian future America, handmade Offred is forced to bear children to men of a ruling class. The tale follows her harrowing life in a bleak future, and the attempt to escape and bring down the subjugating class to restore rights.

The Stand by Stephen King

A deadly pathogen escapes a military installation, rapidly spreading and bringing civilization essentially to an end. A group of survivors makes its way to a form of a promised land while battling a malevolent group seeking domination.

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

In the near future breakdown of the society of Los Angeles, empathic teenager Lauren believes in a better future entailing traveling to other planets. Lauren gathers followers to her belief as she makes her way north.

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Set in the Great Lakes region of America, a group of nomadic creatives picks up the pieces after the fall of civilization due to pandemic flu. Station Eleven has been adapted for HBO Max.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The first book in the Hunger Games Trilogy follows the immense challenges that Katniss Everdeen faces in the post-apocalyptic version of America called Panem. She takes her sister’s place in the government-sponsored Hunger Games to compete for survival in a no-holds-barred and deadly competition.

The Best Sci-Fi Near Futures Books

The future is here, or nearly so, in these ground-breaking novels set close to our present day.

Contact by Carl Sagan

Scientist Ellie Arroway detects a potential extraterrestrial signal from space, which appears to instruct humanity in how to build a machine. She faces self-doubt amid scrutiny to uncover the mysteries of the discovery.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

This cautionary tale about genetic engineering in which scientists make living, cloned dinosaurs for an amusement park. Mayhem ensues.

2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke

Mysterious monoliths appear across many worlds, seeding life with intelligence. Following the discovery of one such monolith on the moon, Dr. Bowman and a team of scientists investigate the signal it sends to Saturn’s moon Iapetus. The onboard AI begins exhibiting dangerous behavior during the journey.

Flashforward by Robert J. Sawyer

A physics experiment creates an unintended consequence of everyone on earth losing consciousness for two minutes. Each person sees a “flash forward” decades in the future while they are unconscious. The resulting accidents and visions challenge everyone’s ideas of free will.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

In dystopian 2044, impoverished Wade Watts navigates through the virtual reality world of the OASIS, seeking to reverse his fortune.

The Best Sci-Fi Books for Younger Readers

Take adventures through time and space, no matter your age!

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

The Murry children and Calvin O’Keefe crosses universes and space-time to try to find their missing father. Their tale is a mind-bending adventure of good vs. evil.

His Dark Materials Trilogy (The Golden Compass/The Subtle Knife/The Amber Spyglass) by Philip Pullman

The Golden Compass/Northern Lights begins this sweeping saga of two children, one born in a parallel universe, one born in our own. In Lyra’s world, people’s souls exist in animal form, called daemons. Her father and mother represent warring factions determined to control all universes. Filled with talking animals, witches, airships, and strange creatures, His Dark Materials packs an emotional punch.

The Apothecary Series by Maile Meloy

Set in the 1950s, The Apothecary starts this highly entertaining, thrilling adventure series in which American Janie Scott meets Benjamin Burrows, the son of an apothecary. After Benjamin’s father is kidnapped, the teenagers uncover a terrifying plot that could result in humanity’s end. They use potions with magical effects to try and stop the impending doom.

The Serpent's Secret (Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond #1) by Sayantani DasGupta

The first of the Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond series, book one begins with Kiranmala discovering her parents are missing, and there is a demon in her kitchen! Two princes recruited her and sent to another dimension, where she must battle the Serpent King and the Rakkhoshi Queen to rescue her parents and save the Earth.

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

This delightful middle-grade novel recounts a discarded robot named Roz and her search for love and acceptance.

The Best Sci-Fi Ponderous Books

These mind-bending sci-fi novels will have you thinking for a long time afterward.

Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein

Raised on Mars, Valentine Michael Smith returns to Earth and tries to fit in. His unusual upbringing makes him seem superhuman, but he attempts to help his Earth kin understand things from a different perspective.

The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester

Set in the 24th century when telepaths (“Espers”) are common, and police are telepathic as well. Ben Reich tries to evade the telepathic police for a murder he wants to commit. The story opens up the moral issues of using telepathy, regulated mostly by a guild, but raises concerns about the exclusion of telepaths who run astray as well as psychological intrigue.

Solaris by Stanislaw Lem

Solaris follows humans’ failed attempts to communicate with extraterrestrial intelligence. The sentient planet tests the researchers with their memories and emotions.

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

A story spanning time and space and connections between various characters, Cloud Atlas explores the theme of fate with a mind-bending narrative.

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

This classic tale follows the journey of Genly Ai on his mission to the planet Gethen. The ambisexual Gethenians present challenges and growth for Ai.

The Best Sci-Fi Cyberpunk Books

If you dream of the future lit by neon, shadowed by noir, and fueled with intrigue, these seminal cyberpunk novels are for you!

Neuromancer by William Gibson

In the first novel of the Sprawl Trilogy, hacker Henry Case is hired to help an AI take over the global network called The Matrix.

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

A modern cyberpunk tale is weaving together magic and science, with wit and feeling.

Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan

Set in the 25th century, humans have spread through the galaxy and can be preserved after death via cortical stacks, then essentially regenerated or “re-sleeved” into another body. Takeshi Kovacs stumbles upon a vast conspiracy after his latest “sleeve.”

The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester

This early entry into cyberpunk sci-fi follows teleporter Gully Foyle, an outcast considered dangerous.

Synners by Pat Cadigan

The synthesizers, or Synners, are people who can turn mental images into products for consumption. The story is told via various characters’ viewpoints.

The Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books by Indie Authors

Discover the latest sci-fi and fantasy stories, while supporting independent authors!

Mindful Things by Mya Duong

Nineteen-year-old Lauren begins to experience visions and uncovers the fact her deceased parents were witches. A madman hungry for power pursues her, and she must embrace her magical heritage to try to stop him.

The Infinite by John W. Akers

The inventor Pax works on a secret project that can revolutionize human cognition. His plans are derailed by a computer virus that could end civilization, so Pax is forced to choose how he can help humanity survive.

Threadwalkers by Joanna Volavka

Miranda Woodward undergoes a discordant series of events following her father’s death. This is a young adult time travel tale.

Resonance by Jennifer Greenhall

In Book One of the Resonance Series, Sophia Walsh uses her psionic abilities for good but finds herself the next target of a killer.

Heliopause: The Questrison Saga®: Book One by J. Dianne Dotson

Heliopause by J. Dianne Dotson kickstarts The Questrison Saga®, a four-book series science fiction and fantasy series. In Heliopause, a mystery at the edge of the solar system reveals a galactic menace. A galactic natural disaster unfolds, aiding the monster in the void. Human Forster and human-looking, ageless Galla-Deia team up with telepaths, galactic mages, aliens, and androids to face the greatest threat to all life in the galaxy. Full of diverse characters and exotic worlds, found and made families, heartbreak, and whimsy, this space opera recalls Star WarsDoctor Who, and Game of Thrones.

At Your Money Geek, we are huge fans of the science fiction genre, everything from military science fiction to novels about space travel, parallel worlds, and fantasy novels. We are always looking for new books to read and exciting sci-fi writers to profile, let us know in the comments what authors you are currently enjoying.

This post was produced and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.

| Website | + posts

J. Dianne Dotson dreamed up other worlds and their characters as a child in the 1980s in East Tennessee. She formed her own neighborhood astronomy club before age 10, to educate her friends about the universe. In addition to writing stories, she drew and painted her characters, designed their outrageous space fashions, and created travel guides and glossaries for the worlds she invented.

As an adult, Dianne earned a degree in ecology and evolutionary biology, and spent several years working in research. She published Heliopause: The Questrison Saga®: Book One (2018) and its sequels Ephemeris: The Questrison Saga®: Book Two (2019), Accretion: The Questrison Saga®: Book Three (2020) and her last novel in the saga, Luminiferous: The Questrison Saga®: Book Four (2021).

Dianne is also a science writer, content writer and manager, short story writer, watercolorist, and illustrator. She lives with her family.

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Content: (Credits: Far Out / Picryl / LSE)

Film

The classic science fiction movie that H.G. Wells hated: “Originality there is none”

Although the English author H.G. Wells wrote in many genres of fiction and also extended his writing to the realms of politics and social commentary, his contributions to the creative world of science fiction are perhaps what he is best known for and which led to him sometimes being considered the “father of science fiction”.

But it’s fair to say that the very nature of science fiction often makes it the perfect literary and artistic output to explore the ills and issues of a collaborative society, and Wells’ utopian works at points foresaw the rise in technology that seems to be almost symbiotic with humankind today, whilst his science fiction works explored concepts such as time travel and the existence of aliens.

Seeing as Wells’ science fiction work, including The Time MachineThe Island of Doctor MoreauThe Invisible Man and The War of the Worlds, are so well admired, we’d think that the writer would be well positioned to consider other notable efforts in the genre, whether in fiction or other mediums. With that in mind, it’s worth bringing to attention that Wells was no great fan of one of the most significant science fiction movies of all time, at least from a pioneering perspective.

Wells once reviewed Fritz Lang’s 1927 German expression science fiction silent movie Metropolis and called it “the silliest film” that he’d ever seen, claiming “it would not be possible to make one sillier.”

Via Wired, Wells wrote: “It gives in one eddying concentration almost every possible foolishness, cliché, platitude, and muddlement about mechanical progress and progress in general served up with a sauce of sentimentality that is all its own.”

Metropolis is one of the first-ever feature-length science fiction movies and takes place in a futuristic urban dystopia, focusing on the affluent son of a city’s master who tries to help the workers of the city rise up out of their lowly position in partnership with a saintly figure of the workers, Maria, and the city master, Joh Fredersen.

Upon release, Lang’s film was praised for its art direction and special effects, but the story was considered a touch naïve and cliched, which Wells also took issue with. The writer criticises Metropolis at great length, but some highlights from the review see him point out the production’s expensive cost, the film’s title, its characters and pretty much everything in between.

“Originality there is none. Independent thought, none,” he wrote. “The pity of it is that this unimaginative, incoherent, sentimentalising, and make-believe film, wastes some very fine possibilities.”

Evidently, Wells was no great fan of Metropolis and considered it “a waste of money”.

Even earlier, Mary Shelley's *Frankenstein* set a precedent for exploring the consequences of scientific experimentation .

What is considered the first true science fiction novel of the modern era, which foreshadowed genetic tinkering?

The early 20th century saw science fiction popularized through pulp magazines and, later, affordable paperbacks, which broadened readership and introduced new voices .

What time period produced science fiction works that included idealogies such as capitalism, and communism, and also threats of nuclear power, racism, pollution, and more?

The genre reflected contemporary political ideologies, such as capitalism and communism, and addressed issues like war, nuclear power, and social justice, with authors like Isaac Asimov and Arthur C.

Clarke questioning human nature and societal collapse in response to global conflicts .

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Content: Ballard from beyond: six of the famed author's redefinitions

J.G. Ballard, whose relevance never waned during his writing career, is perhaps more relevant since his passing in 2009. His latest book, Selected Nonfiction, 1962-2007 (The MIT Press, 2023), more than illustrates the claim. The chapter "Lists, Captions, and Glossaries" includes and excerpt called "Project for a Glossary of the Twentieth Century" from the 1992 book, Zone 6: Incorporations. Here are six of those terms:

Typewriter
It types us, encoding its own linear bias across the free space of the imagination.

In this one line, Ballard invokes the thought of Friedrich Nietzsche ("our writing tools are also working on our thoughts"), Marshall McLuhan (assembly line), and Harold Innis (biases of media).

Telephone
A shrine to the desperate hope that one day the world will listen to us.

We could apply the same sentiment to social media, huh? Is this thing on? Hello?

Science fiction
The body's dream of becoming a machine.

If only.

Prosthetics
The castration complex raised to the level of an art form.

How quaint, the missing pieces of this body. We can fix it.

Robotics
The moral degradation of the machine.

Perhaps one of his more famous aphorisms and more and more relevant today.

Genocide
The economics of mass production applied to self-disgust.

Our hate of our own humanity is scalable.

Previously: JG Ballard (1930-2009)

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Content: Explanation of the sci-fi trope “Simulation of Life”

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Science fiction is the art of imagining what the distant future or the far corners of space might be like if humanity ever survives to see those times and places. However, one uniquely common image of this genre does the opposite, suggesting that the banal everyday appearance that can be expected on Earth is only a technological illusion.

When Neo woke up for the first time in Wachowski’s groundbreaking 1999 science fiction The Matrix, it was one of the best twists in modern cinema. This momentous moment in the history of science fiction is built on a mountain of previous material and influenced everything that followed it.

The easiest way to summarize the image of the simulation of life for most of today’s viewers is to point to the premise of the “Matrix” and stop there. This image suggests that someone or something has created a virtual reality that perfectly mimics the experience of real life. It can be sold as a consumer product that gives you the opportunity to enjoy reality without leaving home. It could be a video game similar to The Sims, but much more advanced, which offers an overly realistic experience thanks to powerful new hardware. But most often it is a technological panoptic super-drama that lures its theoretically infinite victims into a fake reality in which they do not know that they are.

The original philosophical rationale for the simulation of life comes from ancient Greece. Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave”, first published as part of his work The Republic in the early 6th century, is a big idea underlying concepts such as The Matrix. A cave is a narrative thought experiment describing a group of people chained to a wall for life. The only thing they can perceive is shadows playing on their faceless wall, so it becomes their reality. Although it’s not a representation of real life, shadows are all the prisoners know, so this is their version of experiential life. The moral of this story is that reality is perceptible and that conditions can force a person to accept incorrect sensory data as fact. Science fiction, as it often happens, reinforced this idea by presenting technologies of a fantastic future.

One can imagine that the life of those who are in the cave will be hell, but with illusions much more advanced than the shadows on the walls, this state can be improved without real reality seeping in. Lawrence Manning’s 1933 novel “The Man Who Woke Up” tells the story of Norman Winters, a man who plunges into suspended animation for 5,000 years to experience new eras firsthand. In the third story of this anthology, which takes place in 15,000 AD, people voluntarily enter a machine that replaces all stimuli with programmable electrical impulses. This allowed humanity to sleep forever and completely control their sleep, allowing them to live a perfect life. Since most of the population is constantly sleeping, Norman realizes that society will soon collapse due to complacency. It probably wasn’t the first look at this concept, but it laid a great foundation for its future.

The idea of virtual reality achieved surgically is one of the fundamental elements of cyberpunk science fiction. Neuromancer, William Gibson’s 1984 sacred text for this subgenre, postulates life in virtual reality as an excellent substitute for real life, and not as a forced simulacrum. In this novel, the term “cyberspace” was most often defined by the line “A consensual hallucination experienced by billions of legitimate operators every day.” Gibson was based on Manning’s ideas, imagining a complete society and an infinite potential for interaction in a simulated reality, and turning real reality into a nightmare requiring escape.

Gibson’s work inspired decades of further cyberpunk fiction, from Neil Stevenson’s “Snow Crash” to Ernest Klein’s “The First Player to Get Ready.” Of course, the two most diligent researchers of Gibson’s cultural movements were the Wachowski sisters, who even borrowed the name of Gibson’s cyberspace center — The Matrix.

This virtual reality is so prevalent in fiction that it has evolved into real-world conspiracy theory ideas. Countless people have been convinced that the reality in which they were born is an intricately created simulation with a variety of consequences. Some suggest that humanity is a toy of some incredibly advanced alien species, an intelligent Sim. Others legitimately claim that the machines have already taken over, perhaps suggesting that The Matrix was a documentary and a form of bragging. Some even wake up every morning, convinced and grateful for the false reality they have created. The nature of reality is perceptual, and this creates constant idiosyncrasies in everyday life. If someone were looking for this, people could convince themselves that computer code better explains their reality.

Technological advancements, including the rise of communication and transportation technologies, inspired narratives about humanity’s relationship with machines and the impact of innovation .

As the genre matured, it diversified into subgenres like dystopian fiction, space opera, and cyberpunk, reflecting evolving societal concerns and technological anxieties.

Frank Herbert’s *Dune* exemplifies the expansion of themes, exploring ecology and politics through intricate world-building .

What did Frank Herbert's "Dune" manage to achieve?

Contemporary science fiction often interrogates the ethical implications of technology and the nature of human identity .

Title:

Content: Science Fiction and Politics in Literature and the Arts (Symposium, Toulouse)

Science Fiction and Politics in Literature and the Arts

The aim of this symposium run by the LLA-Créatis laboratory at the University of Toulouse Jean-Jaurès is to develop open thinking about “political” questions, in the broad sense of the term, that science fiction narratives allow. Different types of stories can be considered, in different literary genres or in cinema, video series and comics. It can be studied and interrogated from a historical, political and social perspective by involving, where appropriate, the possible contributions of different analyzes (anthropology, semiotics, feminist studies, postcolonial studies, etc.) Diversity of perspectives and questions raised by gender.

The entire twentieth-century period produced works in San Francisco that were marked by ideologies such as capitalism and its “communist” counterpart, but also by threats associated with civilian and/or military nuclear power, religious-related abuses, racism, minority liberation struggles, and pollution. , etc. These perceptions persisted, but in the period from the last 20 years of the 20th century to the first 20 years of the 21st century, other concerns were voiced: ecological pesticides, the climate crisis, demographic crises, resource depletion, or the danger. The scientific and technical potential (transhumanism, “artificial intelligence”, etc.) is being carried away.

The link to the realities of the times (as in the collection “Le Passager Clandestin / Dyschroniques”) can of course depend on one or more authors, take into account a work or compare several (especially in the case of short stories and short films). The broader perspective will consist in considering the basic ideologies, either in relation to the literary prizes awarded, or in relation to the works themselves, the semantics of these presenting themselves from the outset sometimes as criticism, sometimes as propaganda, the two being able to be combined according to modalities that tend to be ironic, Satirical, disruptive, etc.

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In any case, it would be a matter of highlighting the “exploratory potential” in these works, of identifying the “problematic tools” and of making the ideas put forward in fictional form productive from the point of view of political theory. (Y Rambhala).

Of course, it is advisable to include works belonging to different geographical and linguistic fields so that the panorama of this search is sufficiently realistic.

Provisional schedule of courses (date adjustments possible)

Oct 20, 2-4 PM / Nov 17, 2-4 PM / Dec 15, 2-4 PM / Jan 19, 2-4 PM / Feb 9, 2-4 PM / Mar 15, 2-4 PM / May 31 , 2-4 p.m

Contribution proposals must be sent Before October 1, 2023 To the following addresses: frederics[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

What concepts does Ishiguro's literary science fiction novel bring up?

The genre’s inclusivity has grown, with women and authors of color making significant contributions.

Octavia Butler’s works address race, gender, and identity, while N.K.

Jemisin’s *Broken Earth* trilogy, a multiple Hugo Award winner, challenges traditional narratives and explores power and oppression .

Title:

Content: Julia Nagel/Sun Photography Editor

Fantasy author N. K. Jemisin speaks at a Bartels World Affairs Lecture in Klarman Hall on Oct. 4.

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N.K. Jemisin Gives Bartels World Affairs Lecture, Speaks on Building a Better World

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N. K. Jemisin, best-selling science fiction and fantasy author well known for her book trilogy “The Broken Earth,” spoke about building a better world at this year’s Bartels World Affairs Lecture on Wednesday, Oct. 4 at 5:30 p.m. in a packed Rhodes-Rawling Auditorium. Jemisin spoke about how building fictional worlds helps her discuss the reality of our society, and concluded by calling on the audience to make choices in order to build the world they wish to see.

Following her talk, Jemisin joined a panel of Cornell faculty to kickstart the latest Global Grand Challenge: The Future. Global Grand Challenges bring together people and resources to understand and develop solutions to humanity’s most urgent challenges. The first challenge launched in 2019, and this year’s challenge, “The Future,” focuses on how to employ creativity to build a more equitable and sustainable future world.

Supported by the Henry E. and Nancy Horton Bartels World Affairs Fellowship, the Bartels World Affairs Lecture is an annual, signature event hosted by the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies that brings renowned individuals to Cornell’s campus to speak on international matters with students and faculty.

Seats at the event sold out and an estimated 330 people attended. In-person watch party tickets were made available as well, where attendees live streamed the lecture from an adjacent classroom near the auditorium. More than 270 local, national and international viewers who registered through eCornell also streamed the event live.

Vice Provost for International Affairs Wendy Wolford said that in addition to launching this year’s Global Grand Challenge, this event also fits into Cornell’s academic year theme of Freedom of Expression. Wolford explained that the world building, kindness and empathy in Jemisin’s work encouraged the Einaudi Center to select this event as the launch for the University’s new Global Grand Challenge.

“The theme of this new challenge is fittingly ‘The Future.’ With this challenge, we invite all of you, students, staff and faculty to step back from the immediate questions of your studies, your work and your research, to think about the world you want to live in,” Wolford said. “The Global Grand Challenge calls on us to go beyond the cutting edge… to imagine what the world would look like if we asked not just what can I do, but what do I want? What do we want?”

Jemisin began her lecture by describing her background in higher education, in which she spent 20 years working as a career counselor, academic counselor and director of experiential education before becoming an author. Jemisin writes science fiction and fantasy novels that explore a variety of themes, including power, cultural conflict and systems of subjugation.

“Many of the questions I tend to get are: Why science fiction? Why fantasy? Why would you, an ostensibly intelligent and mature person, write this kid’s stuff? And I tell people the same thing that Octavia Butler has said in interviews, which is in science fiction, I can do anything,” Jemisin said during her lecture.

Jemisin explained how people’s fears in a specific time period are reflected in their writing, especially in science fiction. She cited underlying fears of the sexual revolution displayed in 1960s feminist science fiction as an example.

“There’s another misconception out there that typically happens, which is that people think of science fiction as being about the future. They think of fantasy as being about the past,” Jemisin said. “It’s neither. Science fiction and fantasy are actually about our present world.”

Jemisin also described the process of science fiction worldbuilding on two levels — macro and micro. Macro worldbuilding involves creating the physical world of a story, including planets, continents, climate and ecology. Micro worldbuilding is crafting the society the characters will exist in, which includes species, morphology, racialization and power, among other things.

“The point of this [worldbuilding] exercise is to get people to start questioning their assumptions,” Jemisin said. “Understanding how our society functions is a lot more constructive than they think, so it’s important that I get across that all of this is changeable.”

Jemisin also spoke about how real people build worlds, and how our current world is not arbitrary, but rather the result of a series of choices. She emphasized that different choices remain possible, and that our understanding of ourselves and self-identity is evolving. Jemisin encouraged the audience to consider reasons for both creating and resisting change.

“We are being blasted with a constant firehose of disinformation which is fueled by a whole lot of money,” Jemisin said. “The only thing that we can do in order to resist this is begin to question and push back on how we became the society that we are and begin to recreate that society in our own design.”

Following her lecture, Jemisin joined a panel with Cornell faculty members Prof. Anindita Banerjee, comparative literature and feminist, gender and sexuality studies; Prof. John Albertson, civil and environmental engineering; and Prof. Kaushik Basu, international studies and economics. Each professor took turns briefly speaking about how their field of expertise relates to building a better world, and Jemisin followed with her thoughts.

“We see society now envisioning futures and being bold, making pledges of decarbonizing our energy supplies, decarbonizing our economy and setting ambitious timelines on which to do that,” Albertson said. “It’s relatively straightforward to plan the direct linear path of what you need to do there. But the question is: where are all the other parts of society that are touched by each of these changes?”

Asher Bergmann ’26 said his goal going into his sophomore year was going to more school  events, and was excited to find this lecture as someone who reads a lot of fantasy.

“I think she did a good job of not diving too deep into fantasy to where some people wouldn’t be interested, because while she’s a fantasy author, the point of this lecture wasn’t actually writing fantasy,” Bergmann said. “I think she did a good job of balancing her goal with what other people may have come here to see her speak about.”

Annabel Baniak ’24 decided to attend the event at the encouragement of both her professor  and her mom, whose favorite book is “The Fifth Season” by Jemisin. Baniak said she enjoyed the event and left feeling motivated and inspired to create change in the world.

Jemisin left the audience with a message to continue questioning the current world and to work towards building an ideal society.

“I have been having conversations all day with the students here, and they’re thinking ahead of me. I have to catch up. It is an innate part of youth to question our reality, and if the way that we live makes any sense,” Jemisin said. “I have to retain my own youthful questioning. They are right to question reality, and the rest of us need to keep doing that.”

Grace Liu ’27 is a Sun contributor and can be reached at [email protected].

N.K. Jemisin is best known for which of her books?

N.K. Jemisin is best known for which of her books?