How Great Science Fiction Works

Kick off your adventure into science fiction by clearly defining what science fiction is, and more importantly, what science fiction is not. Learn how science fiction is distinguished from-yet often confused with-other literary genres such as fantasy and horror. Explore what is often considered the first science fiction novel: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Look at some of the most important names in 19th-century science fiction, including Poe, Verne, and Wells. From the books and stories they penned, the 20th-century science fiction story emerged. Explore select works from each author, gain the context to better understand their writings and lives, and learn how they influenced what we know as science fiction today.

We commonly think of science fiction as dealing with the future, but there is a fascinating subset of science fiction that looks at the past. Learn how science fiction writers often mix real-life with fiction and invoke mechanisms such as time travel to explore alternate histories-looking at how the world might have been different had history gone another direction at pivotal points in our past.

The concept of alternate histories enables vast possibilities. Discover how many science fiction stories tackle massive timescales, taking us from the very beginning to the very end of the universe, and any time and place in between. Examine the ideas science fiction writers proposed about evolution, anthropology, physics, religion, mythology, and more.

One intriguing theme presented in science fiction is the concept of utopia and dystopia-and how remarkably similar these two seeming opposites can be. Explore the fundamental questions of “Can our lives be better?” and “Can our lives be worse?” Take an in-depth look at some of the most poignant portrayals of utopian and dystopian societies and the social contexts that inspired them.

Science fiction battled a long-standing bad reputation, born out of the “pulp era” in history. Survey the rise of pulp science fiction through serials, magazines, and short stories at the turn of the 20th century and through the 1950s. You’ll gain an appreciation of the obstacles the genre had to overcome through this period in history.