Quote:
Originally Posted by Steven Lyle Jordan
Not a bad way to put it; but remember, SF doesn't merely use science, it investigates scientific concepts, and how those concepts impact individuals and society. That's why The Time Machine is SF and not fantasy. And I'd say that a great deal of the most memorable SF is of that type.
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Exactly.
SF uses scientific development and ideas as the *core* of the story, not merely as window dressing for an arbitrary story. Wells' THE TIME MACHINE starts out with the insight that time is as much a direction as up or down and then he explores that idea by extrapolating a future from the world he observed. That is (of course) "classic" SF story-building.
He didn't use the Time Machine to craft a story about romantic relationships or a locked-room murder mystery (both of which have been done) but rather to explore the social tensions induced by the 19th century industrial revolution in early 20th Century Britain. (Note that, unlike the movie version, Wells saw no need for a heroine or a romantic interest to gild the narrative with emotion.)
The divide between the eloi and morlock was meant as a cautionary tale, not merely a clever setting for an adventure, which makes THE TIME MACHINE most precisely a SF story of the "...if this goes on" variety (in Heinlein parlance). And, despite the titular device, it is SF of the so-called "soft" humanistic type that became more prevalent 40 years or so later, more concerned with human psychology and social trends than the hardware. (Chad Oliver, Ursula LeGuin, etc)
Verne is easily identified as an early writer of the Hard Science & Technology school of SF but Wells was more interested in the impact of Science and Technology on people, politics, and the world at large. Just as Orwell, Huxley, Vonnegut, and more often than not, Sturgeon. SF is about ideas but it is also about people and their role in the universe.
For me, the most concise guide to what is SF is Heinlein's.
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http://www.amazon.com/The-Craft-Scie.../dp/0064634574)
He said there were really only four types of SF stories:
- If this goes on... (Extrapolation)
- What if... (Disruption)
- If only... (Innovation)
- "The little tailor"... (The hero's journey)
It is only in the latter category that there can be much overlap with fantasy and adventure. And even there it shouldn't be hard to tell the difference as long as you remember that there is way more to SF than just the Hard SF school.
SF is a broad and influential field so its trappings can be found far and wide, especially in these days of high concept- and SFX-driven movies and TV but it is still easy to tell the difference between SF and the rest: just ask yourself "what is this story really about?"
If its all an extended chase scene, its an adventure story; if it is about a relationship, it is a romance. If it is about a journey through mythical lands it is far more likely to be fantasy than SF even if you find spaceships and rayguns. (Or lightsabres.
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