A Companion to Science Fiction assembles essays by an international range of scholars which discuss the contexts, themes and methods used by science fiction writers.
This Companion conveys the scale and variety of science fiction. Shows how science fiction has been used as a means of debating cultural issues. Essays by an international range of scholars discuss the contexts, themes and methods used by science fiction writers. Addresses general topics, such as the history and origins of the genre, its engagement with science and gender, and national variations of science fiction around the English-speaking world. Maps out connections between science fiction, television, the cinema, virtual reality technology, and other aspects of the culture. Includes a section focusing on major figures, such as H.G. Wells, Arthur C. Clarke, and Ursula Le Guin. Offers close readings of particular novels, from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale.
Edited by:
David Seed
Imprint: Wiley-Blackwell
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions:
Height: 246mm,
Width: 173mm,
Spine: 36mm
Weight: 1.089kg
ISBN: 9781405184373
ISBN 10: 140518437X
Series: Blackwell Companions to Literature and Culture
Pages: 640
Publication Date: 16 May 2008
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Notes on Contributors ix Introduction: Approaching Science Fiction 1 Part I Surveying the Field 9 1 Hard Reading: The Challenges of Science Fiction 11 ]Tom Shippey 2 The Origins of Science Fiction 27 George Slusser 3 Science Fiction/Criticism 43 Istvan Csicsery-Ronay, Jr. 4 Science Fiction Magazines: The Crucibles of Change 60 Mike Ashley Part II Topics and Debates 77 5 Utopia 79 Phillip E. Wegner 6 Science Fiction and Religion 95 Stephen R.L. Clark 7 “Monsters of the Imagination”: Gothic, Science, Fiction 111 Fred Botting 8 Science Fiction and Ecology 127 Brian Stableford 9 Feminist Fabulation 142 Marleen S. Barr 10 Time and Identity in Feminist Science Fiction 156 Jenny Wolmark 11 Science Fiction and the Cold War 171 M. Keith Booker Part III Genres and Movements 185 12 Hard Science Fiction 187 Gary Westfahl 13 The New Wave 202 Rob Latham 14 Cyberpunk 217 Mark Bould 15 Science Fiction and Postmodernism 232 Veronica Hollinger 16 The Renewal of “Hard” Science Fiction 248 Donald M. Hassler Part IV Science Fiction Film 259 17 American Science Fiction Film: An Overview 261 Vivian Sobchack 18 Figurations of the Cyborg in Contemporary Science Fiction Novels and Films 275 Christine Cornea 19 British Television Science Fiction 289 Peter Wright Part V The International Scene 307 20 Canadian Science Fiction 309 Douglas Barbour 21 Japanese and Asian Science Fiction 323 Takayuki Tatsumi 22 Australian Science Fiction 337 Van Ikin and Sean McMullen Part VI Key Writers 351 23 The Grandeur of H.G. Wells 353 Robert Crossley 24 Isaac Asimov 364 John Clute 25 John Wyndham: The Facts of Life Sextet 375 David Ketterer 26 Philip K. Dick 389 Christopher Palmer 27 Samuel Delaney: A Biographical and Critical Overview 398 Carl Freedman 28 Ursula K. Le Guin 408 Warren G. Rochelle 29 Gwyneth Jones and the Anxieties of Science Fiction 420 Andy Sawyer 30 Arthur C. Clarke 431 Edward James 31 Greg Egan 441 Russell Blackford Part VII Readings 453 32 Mary Shelley: Frankenstein: Or, the Modern Prometheus 455 Susan E. Lederer and Richard M. Ratzan 33 Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Herland 466 Jill Rudd 34 Aldous Huxley: Brave New World 477 David Seed 35 Ray Bradbury: Fahrenheit 451 489 Brian Baker 36 Joanna Russ: The Female Man 500 Jeanne Cortiel 37 J.G. Ballard: Crash 512 Roger Luckhurst 38 Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid’s Tale 522 Faye Hammill 39 William Gibson: Neuromancer 534 Andrew M. Butler 40 Kim Stanley Robinson: Mars Trilogy 544 Carol Franko 41 Iain M. Banks: Excession 556 Farah Mendlesohn Index 567
David Seed is Professor in the School of English at Liverpool University. He has published books on Joseph Heller, Thomas Pynchon, science fiction and the Cold War, and cultural representations of brainwashing. He edits the Science Fiction series of Liverpool University Press and serves as a consulting editor for the journal Science Fiction Studies.
Reviews for A Companion to Science Fiction
?The volume as a whole successfully acquaints diligent readers with an array of substantive avenues of critical inquiry into science fiction ? Highly recommended. Choice ?[This] Companion provides unusual depth and detail ? The main strengths here are the distinguished roster of contributors, who have plenty of thought-provoking ideas ? Anyone seeking an immersion course in the history and criticism of [science fiction] today will find that their time is well repaid.? Science Fiction Studies
