Speculative fiction

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vampire, face of little green man, feather pen (quill) and fire-breathing dragon – to the right of that are scripted words "Speculative (over) Fiction"
Speculative fiction
Alternate history
Fantasy fiction
Science fiction
Horror fiction
Miscellaneous
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Speculative fiction is an

magical realism,[3] superhero fiction, alternate history, utopia and dystopia, fairy tales, steampunk, cyberpunk, weird fiction, and some apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction. The term has been used for works of literature, film, television, drama, video games, radio, and their hybrids.[1]

Distinguishing science fiction from other speculative fiction

"Speculative fiction" is sometimes abbreviated "spec-fic", "spec fic", "specfic",[4] "S-F", "SF", or "sf".[5][6] The last three abbreviations, however, are ambiguous as they have long been used to refer to science fiction (which lies within this general range of literature).[7]

The term has been used by some critics and writers dissatisfied with what they consider to be a limitation of science fiction: the need for the story to hold to scientific principles. They argue that "speculative fiction" better defines an expanded, open, imaginative type of fiction than does "genre fiction", and the categories of "fantasy", "mystery", "horror" and "science fiction".

modernist directions,[9][10] broke out of genre
conventions to push the boundaries of speculative fiction.

The term "suppositional fiction" is sometimes used as a sub-category designating fiction in which characters and stories are constrained by an internally consistent world, but not necessarily one defined by any particular genre.[11][12][13]

History

Statue of Euripides in front of titles of his works
Euripides

Speculative fiction as a category ranges from ancient works to

Athenian audiences when he speculated that the titular shamaness Medea killed her own children, as opposed to their being killed by other Corinthians after her departure.[16] Additionally, Euripides' play, Hippolytus, narratively introduced by Aphrodite, Goddess of Love in person, is suspected to have displeased his contemporary audiences, as his portrayal of Phaedra was seen as too lusty.[17]

In

Merovingian Germanic sovereign Oberon, in A Midsummer Night's Dream.[20]

In

mythography the concept of speculative fiction has been termed "mythopoesis", or mythopoeia. This practice involves the creative design and generation of lore and mythology for works of fiction. The term's definition comes from its use by J. R. R. Tolkien, whose novel, The Lord of the Rings,[21] demonstrates a clear application of this process. Themes common in mythopoeia, such as the supernatural, alternate history and sexuality, continue to be explored in works produced within the modern speculative fiction genre.[22]

The creation of speculative fiction in its general sense of hypothetical history,

Shiji.[26][27]

These examples highlight the

scientific research and advances, and the philosophy of science.[28][29][30]

Robert Heinlein

In its

The Bookman said that John Uri Lloyd's Etidorhpa, The End of the Earth had "created a great deal of discussion among people interested in speculative fiction".[31] A variation on this term is "speculative literature".[32]

The use of "speculative fiction" in the sense of expressing dissatisfaction with traditional or establishment science fiction was popularized in the 1960s and early 1970s by Judith Merril, as well as other writers and editors in connection with the New Wave movement. However, this use of the term fell into disuse around the mid-1970s.[33]

In the 2000s, the term came into wider use as a convenient collective term for a set of genres. However, some writers, such as

Martians" type of science fiction, "about things that really could happen."[34]

Speculative fiction is also used as a genre term that combines different ones into a single narrative or fictional world such as "science fiction, horror, fantasy...[and]...mystery".[35]

The Internet Speculative Fiction Database contains a broad list of different subtypes.

According to publisher statistics, men outnumber women about two to one among English-language speculative fiction writers aiming for professional publication. However, the percentages vary considerably by genre, with women outnumbering men in the fields of

young adult fiction.[36]

Foundation.[37]

Genres

Speculative fiction may include elements from one or more of the following genres:

Subgenres of speculative fiction
Name Description Examples
Fantasy Includes elements and beings originating from or inspired by traditional stories, such as
magic, witchcraft, potions
, etc. 		The Lord of the Rings, Dungeons and Dragons, The Legend of Zelda, Harry Potter, A Song of Ice and Fire, Magic: The Gathering, Percy Jackson & the Olympians
Science fiction Features technologies and other elements that do not exist in real life but may be supposed to be created or discovered in the future through scientific advancement, such as
advanced robots, interstellar travel, aliens, time travel, mutants and cyborgs
. Many sci-fi stories are set in the future. 		Star Wars, Star Trek, Halo, Godzilla,The Time Machine, Cyberpunk 2077, Mass Effect, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Terminator, Blade Runner, Stargate
Horror Focuses on terrifying stories that incite fear. Villains may be either supernatural, such as
ghosts and demons
, or mundane people, such as psychopathic and cruel murderers. Often features violence and death. 		The Exorcist, Cthulhu Mythos, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Us, Books of Blood, The Hellbound Heart, Resident Evil, Scream
Utopian Takes place in a highly desirable society, often presented as advanced, happy, intelligent or even perfect or problem-free. Island, Ecotopia, 17776
Dystopian Takes place in a highly undesirable society, often plagued with strict control, violence, chaos, brainwashing or other negative elements.
The Last Of Us, Neon Genesis Evangelion, 1984, Brazil, The Handmaid's Tale, A Clockwork Orange, The Hunger Games
Alternate history Focuses on historical events as if they happened in a different way, and their implications in the present. The Man in the High Castle, The Last Starship from Earth, Inglourious Basterds, The Guns of the South, Fatherland, The Years of Rice and Salt, Wolfenstein, Gravity Falls
Apocalyptic Takes place before and during a massive, worldwide catastrophe, typically a pandemic or natural disaster of extremely large scale or a nuclear holocaust. On the Beach, Threads, The Day After Tomorrow, Birdbox, 2012, War of the Worlds
Post-apocalyptic Focuses on groups of survivors after massive worldwide disasters.
Mad Max, Titan A.E., Waterworld, Fallout, Metroid Prime, Metro 2033, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Wasteland, Z213: Exit
.
Superhero Centers on superheroes (i.e., heroes with extraordinary abilities or powers) and their fight against evil forces such as supervillains. Typically incorporates elements of science fiction or fantasy, and may be a subgenre of them.
Metal Heroes
,
Supernatural Similar to horror and fantasy, it exploits or requires plot devices or themes that often contradict commonplace, materialist assumptions about the natural world.
Charmed, The Others, The Gift, The Skeleton Key
Speculative evolution Focuses on hypothetical future or alternative evolution of animals and/or humans.
Man After Man: An Anthropology of the Future, Snaiad
,

See also

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 978-0-19-020109-8. Archived from the original
    on 18 October 2022. ... a super category for all genres that deliberately depart from imitating "consensus reality" of everyday experience. In this latter sense, speculative fiction includes fantasy, science fiction, and horror, but also their derivatives, hybrids, and cognate genres like the gothic, dystopia, weird fiction, post-apocalyptic fiction, ghost stories, superhero tales, alternate history, steampunk, slipstream, magic realism, fractured fairy tales, and more.
  2. ^ "speculative fiction". Dictionary.com Unabridged (Online). n.d. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  3. ISBN 978-1-921106-43-9. Archived
    from the original on 5 January 2023. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  4. ^ "SpecFicWorld". SpecFicWorld. Archived from the original on 14 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  5. ^ "A Speculative Fiction Blog". SFSignal. Archived from the original on 10 February 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  6. ISBN 9780262539999
    . Retrieved 1 May 2023.
  7. ^ "The Best in Science Fiction and Fantasy". The SF Site. Archived from the original on 29 August 2006. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  8. ^ "Citations and definitions for the term 'speculative fiction' by speculative fiction reviewers". Greententacles.com. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  9. ^ Watts, Peter (Summer 2003). "Margaret Atwood and the Hierarchy of Contempt" (PDF). On Spec. Vol. 15, no. 2. pp. 3–5. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  10. ^ Davies, Philip. "Review [untitled; reviewed work(s): Science Fiction: Its Criticism and Teaching by Patrick Parrinder; Fantastic Lives: Autobiographical Essays by Notable Science Fiction Writers by Martin Greenberg; Robert A. Heinlein: America as Science Fiction by H. Bruce Franklin; Bridges to Science Fiction by George E. Slusser, George R. Guffey, Mark Rose]. Journal of American Studies Vol. 16, No. 1 (April 1982). pp. 157–159.
  11. ^ Izenberg, Orin (2011). Being Numerous: Poetry and the Ground of Social Life. Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 210.
  12. ^ Leitch, Thomas M. What Stories Are: Narrative Theory and Interpretation University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1986; p. 127
  13. ^ Domańska, Ewa (1998). Encounters: Philosophy of History After Postmodernism. Charlottesville, Virginia: University Press of Virginia. p. 10.
  14. ^ Barry Baldwin, Emeritus Professor of Classics, University of Calgary, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, "Ancient Science Fiction", Shattercolors Literary Review
  15. ^ "逆援助紹介PARADOX!". paradoxmag.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2010.
  16. ^ This theory of Euripides' invention has gained wide acceptance. See (e.g.) McDermott 1989, 12; Powell 1990, 35; Sommerstein 2002, 16; Griffiths, 2006 81; Ewans 2007, 55.
  17. ^ See, e.g., Barrett 1964; McDermott 2000.
  18. ^ "Mark Wagstaff – Historical invention and political purpose | Re-public: re-imagining democracy – english version". Re-public.gr. 17 January 2005. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  19. ^ Martha Tuck Rozett, "Creating a Context for Shakespeare with Historical Fiction", Shakespeare Quarterly Vol. 46, No. 2 (Summer, 1995), pp. 220–227
  20. ^ Dorothea Kehler, A midsummer night's dream: critical essays, 2001
  21. ^ Adcox, John, "Can Fantasy be Myth? Mythopoeia and The Lord of the Rings" in "The Newsletter of the Mythic Imagination Institute, September/October, 2003"
  22. ISBN 978-0-8161-1832-8
  23. ^ Herodotus and Myth Conference, Christ Church, Oxford, 2003
  24. ^ John M. Marincola, Introduction and Notes, The Histories by Herodotus, tr. Aubrey De Sélincourt, 2007
  25. ^ Lendering, Jona. "Herodotus of Halicarnassus". Livius.org. Archived from the original on 18 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  26. ^ Stephen W. Durrant, The cloudy mirror: tension and conflict in the writings of Sima Qian, 1995
  27. ^ Craig A. Lockard, Societies, Networks, and Transitions: A Global History: To 1500, 2007, p. 133.
  28. ^ Heather Urbanski, Plagues, apocalypses and bug-eyed monsters: how speculative fiction shows us our nightmares, 2007, pp. 127.
  29. ^ Sonu Shamdasani, Cult Fictions: C.G. Jung and the Founding of Analytical Psychology, 1998
  30. ^ Relativity, The Special and the General Theory by Albert Einstein (1920), with an introduction by Niger Calder, 2006
  31. ^ "Dictionary citations for the term "speculative fiction"". Jessesword.com. 28 April 2009. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  32. ^ "The Speculative Literature Foundation". Speculativeliterature.org. Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  33. ^ "New Wave". Virtual.clemson.edu. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  34. ISBN 978-0-385-53396-6
    .
  35. ISBN 978-1-4654-2988-9
    .
  36. ^ Crisp, Julie (10 July 2013). "SEXISM IN GENRE PUBLISHING: A PUBLISHER'S PERSPECTIVE". Tor Books. Archived from the original on 30 April 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  37. ^ "SF Foundation Journal | The Science Fiction Foundation". Sf-foundation.org. Retrieved 1 April 2020.[permanent dead link]

External links

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