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Good science fiction is almost always about the present, not the future. As Ursula Le Guin put in the introduction to The Left Hand of Darkness[1] "Science fict
by Fargren 13y ago
Good science fiction is almost always about the present, not the future. As Ursula Le Guin put in the introduction to The Left Hand of Darkness[1] "Science fiction is not predictive; it is descriptive. (...)Prediction is the business of prophets, clairvoyants, and futurologists. It is not the business of novelists. A novelist’s business is lying."
[1]Full text here: http://somethingcompletelydifferent.wordpress.com/2011/02/15/science-fiction-isnt-about-the-future-or-the-past/ http://somethingcompletelydifferent.wordpress.com/2011/02/15...
- bradleyland 13y agoSometimes it's about both. When I watched Gattaca, I was really impressed with how well they tied together a broad social commentary on the present with a more literal warning about the impending future.
- kbenson 13y agoIt's about both because they are often the same thing. How we deal with the present informs us how we may react to the future, and how we view hypothetical future situations tells us something about our present, often by drawing parallels that point out the ways in which our assumed (often inherited) beliefs are often in opposition with our stated, rational beliefs. It's always boggled my mind that some authors have such little regard for science fiction. In my opinion, it's one of the most powerful contexts you can use, when done well.