Science fiction (SF) stands amongst the world’s most popular genres of literature and cinematography alike. To define it, one should first look more closely at the two parts its name consists of – science and fiction. When separated, they seem incompatible since fiction stands for something not real by default, while science operates with more than real things like proofs, facts, or numbers. That is precisely the heart of the matter: SF is born in an attempt to provide a realistic proof of existence for something that does not, or even cannot, realistically exist. Well, for the time being, at least.
Amongst all other definitions, those provided by SF writers might be the most authentic. In the “Introduction” to the 1975 edition of The Left Hand of Darkness (2000), Le Guin compared SF to the mathematical extrapolation, which serves to predict the function’s course based on the given knowledge. Following this logic, she then reached SF writers to scientists experimenting with what they have to see what might become (Guin, 2000). So far, Le Guin’s definition corresponds to the one mentioned above – extrapolation does not define the function’s course, but it provides realistic evidence of how it might look.
In the end, however, Le Guin’s definition becomes more emotional, in contrast to our emotionally neutral version. Le Guin (2000) points out the pessimistic tendency in the SF genre, comparing it to the results of Club of Rome’s modeling of the future. I think this tendency can be explained by the authors’ desire to draw attention to their writing. By displaying dreadful pictures of a possible future, writers try to impress readers by shocking them and leaving the rest to their imagination. Unfortunately, finding an explanation to the Club of Rome’s prediction might not prove to be as simple.
Reference
Le Guin, U. K. (2000). The Left Hand of Darkness: 50th Anniversary Edition. Penguin Publishing Group.