Since science fiction can include wholly
invented alien lifeforms, fantasy uses scientific theories to explain story
elements, and superheroes derive supernatural powers from pseudoscientific
origins, how can we draw the line between fantasy and science fiction? What’s
the value of making that distinction?
Bridget Smith
Associate Literary Agent
Dunham Literary, Inc. of New York
I was asked to
make this distinction a while back and like any good student, I put it off
until the last minute and just decided to get a start on it now. So
here we go. Science fiction and fantasy have taking great roots in
society and pop culture, especially with the explosion of the internet.
After all, many of the great memes that I considered putting in this were
of science fiction or fantasy backgrounds (i.e. one does not simply, Morpheus,
etc.) Were lucky to have access to such incredible technologies in
communication and the creation and sharing of ideas, but with great power comes
great responsibility. So as you embark on your science fiction and
fantasy journey, know one thing. It’s not safe to go alone!
Take
this:
Quarantining the Fanboys
By:
Evan O’Brien
12/16/14
Many distinctions
are drawn by fans and creators alike between the differences between fantasy
and science fiction, but to me they are almost one in the same. People
try and argue for the merits of one or the other, but when broken down, many of
the elements that fanboys love about fiction as a whole are shared between
fantasy and science fiction. One of my favorite explanations of the genre
of fantasy comes from Philip Martin’s “A Guide to Fantasy and Literature”. Martin offers that fantasy offers the reader
three stages of emersion into a work.
Recovery is the stage of breaking free of the
real world and returning to a state of imagination in which anything is
possible and all beliefs are suspended. Along the lines of fantasy,
Recovery is when the reader snaps back into their nine year old self and
believes that flying dragons, magic, and dueling knights are all in the realm
of possibility. Much like the suspension of belief that all children have
from age four to eleven, fantasy requires a great deal of assumptions.
Rather than asking why things happen, you simply have to take them at
face value. Science fiction is really one in the same. Most science
fiction stories involve a great deal of phlebotinum answers to very scientific concepts,
but it is a lot easier to just say that positrons make the robot work, and it’s
a hell of a lot easier to understand that on the part of the reader. Most
elements of works of fiction, from the one ring only being able to be destroyed
by Mordor to Superman getting his powers from a super planet, have
supernatural, fantastic, and made up explanations, and I’m just fine with that.
Escape has to do with leaving behind the
constraints of the real world in favor of a different, but not particularly
better, one where dreams come true and everything is awesome. To me, this
is the basis of all fictional works of literature; creating a false world
parallel to the real one allows for a creative escape and an enjoyable time.
Fantasy draws on walking through train station walls or wardrobes in
order to have the main characters find a world better than their own.
Science fiction has characters living in space or on mars using advanced
technologies and having robots do menial tasks, empowering intellectuals and
lazy people. Both genres have alternate worlds that on the whole are
vastly different from the real world, allowing readers to travel to an
alternate universe and escape the problems of life for a while. After
all, no one ever bases their fantasy or science fiction story on the plights of
an office worker or a student in 2015.
Consolation is the process of returning to the
real world and realizing that it isn’t so bad. This is the one element of
this definition that I don’t believe fits every story. Sure there are fantasy
stories with happy, fairy tale endings where the main character learns his
lesson, but there are stories in every genre that have this. It’s the
gritty endings that I enjoy, where robots take over the planet or the dragon
kills the village, and its desperation that really fuels reconciliation, either
with the story or a deity of some kind. Both fantasy and science fiction
stories have some realization at the end and a lesson is learned, whether it’s
Neo remaining in the matrix for two painful sequels or Percy returning the
lightning.
When broken down into their raw components, it
turns out that the elements of fantasy and science fiction are very similar.
Both involve similar settings, context, plots, and characters, and most
importantly both have more dire fans than any other genre combined. The
basic TL:DR of this can be summed up by my favorite Dr. Evil quote.
Fantasy and science fiction: “We aren’t so different, you and I”.
They're both just Mike Meyers wearing two different costumes fighting
with himself.
(just in case)
Evan:
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of a bold move to abscond with the hallowed trinity of Recovery/Escape/Consolation and plop it on top of sf, just to see what will happen when that genre is viewed through the more traditional fantasy immersion process. It works fairly well, too. (I do think your proofing needed a second go-around here, though; it's there that your last-minute rush is most evident.)
The ornery contrarian in me now wants to go and write an sf/f story based on the life of a high school student in 2015...
Best,
TT