Britney Scott: "The Given World in Science Fiction and Fantasy"

The Given World in Science Fiction and Fantasy

By

Britney Scott

It’s been debated for a long time, and will continue to be, where the line between science fiction and fantasy should be drawn. While there is no way to distinguish between them which creates a clear category for every novel under the speculative fiction umbrella, one way to do this is to examine the given worlds in the texts.

In science fiction texts, the given world is typically our own with modifications. These modifications can include advances in technology, the passing of future events, or even slight modifications to the way that objects behave. For example, in the book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick, the characters live on an Earth which appears to be similar to our own. As time progressed past the present day, the condition of the Earth and the lifestyle of its occupants evolved, but it is our planet nonetheless. Such a setting could justify DADES? as being classified as a science fiction text. A piece of work categorized as science fiction could be seen as an advancement of the world which we live in.

Fantasy, on the other hand, takes place in a different world entirely. This world can stand alone or exist in line with our own, depending on the text. The non-Earthly world often contains elements which would not realistically exist in our own world regardless of how much technology and science is advanced. For example, fantasy texts may include magic with no scientific rationale or creatures which we know not to exist in our own world such as unicorns or elves. This can be seen in the novel The King of Elfland’s Daughter by Lord Dunsany. While Earth exists in the novel, Elfland exists alongside it. In Elfland, many creatures which do not exist on Earth roam and the King has the ability to do essentially anything he’d like through the use of scrolls, a magical ability.

However, this boundary is blurred at times.  For example, in Peter S. Beagle’s short story, Professor Gottesman and the Indian Rhinoceros, we see a creature which claims to be a unicorn existing in an Earth which is strikingly similar to our own. Is this fantasy or science fiction? Does it matter?

In the end, it really doesn’t. You should read what you enjoy without worrying about categorizing and labeling it. If you typically enjoy reading science fiction and find Beagle’s piece enjoyable despite the fact that it includes some elements of fantasy, which is perfectly fine, you should not be hindered by the fact that it doesn’t perfectly fall under the genre which you typically associate yourself with. At the end of the day, genres are boxes which some pieces fit very snugly into, while others don’t necessarily fit into any one of them. The lines between genres and subgenres are blurry at best. What is most important is the fact that reading is a joy and you should read what most intrigues you, regardless of which box it’s marketed to fit into.