Robert A. Heinlein, author and critic:
Science fiction is "realistic speculation about possible future events, based solidly on adequate knowledge of the real world, past and present, and on a thorough understanding of the nature and significance of the scientific method" (quoted by Knight in Bishop, Nebula Awards 25, 3).
Theodore Sturgeon, author:
"'A good science-fiction story is a story about human beings, with a human problem, and a human solution, which would not have happened at all without its science content'" (as quoted in Atheling, More Issues, 12).
George Hay
"Science fiction is what you find on the shelves in the library marked science fiction."
(Aforementioned quotes were borrowed from Dr. Agatha Taormina's web page): http://www.nvcc.edu/home/ataormina/beyond/
Which of these quotations aligns with your definition of Science Fiction? Please respond thoughtfully using references to class discussion, prior knowledge, science fiction literature, science fiction films, etc... Type using complete sentences. This blog is due by 6th hour Friday, August 21st.
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Jonthan Pless
ReplyDeleteMy definition of science fiction is an imaginative piece of writing that has scientific knowledge and speculation. Fantasy, space travel, time travel, and life on other planets form the plot of the piece of writing.
I think that Theodore Sturgeon's definition is most like how I think of Science Fiction. I think that science fiction is also based on futuristic ideas and thoughts. "I Am Legend" is directly based on his defenition of a Sci Fi movie. How I define Sci Fi is that it is usually in the future. Crazy ideas and made up creaturs and detailed space ships relates to my definition of Sci Fi.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the first quote the most, "Science fiction is "realistic speculation about possible future events, based solidly on adequate knowledge of the real world, past and present, and on a thorough understanding of the nature and significance of the scientific method" (quoted by Knight in Bishop, Nebula Awards 25, 3)."
ReplyDeleteTo me, Science Fiction is someone putting their imagination into what the real world is. When someone writes a Science Fiction book, or short story, they are giving you a look into what they think the world might possibly turn out to be, or what they wish it could be. Science Fiction is someone giving a little more imagination to the scientific facts.
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ReplyDeleteMy idea of Science Fiction is closely aligned with Robert A. Heinlein's. Science Fiction is the concept that our true human nature is incapable of certain characteristics, but through curious minds an interesting idea can be created with the help of the scientific method.
ReplyDeleteMany thoughts of what may happen if our technology was greater can bloom into a Science Fiction story. For example, Dr. Franklin's Island is a story about an evil scientist who attempts (and succeeds) at turning humans into animals. Even though it is not truly possible for our doctors to achieve such horrific experiments today, there is a possibility that some day in the future it may happen.
Also, Science Fiction is surrounded by thoughts of ways to travel back and forth in time, such as the TV show Star Gate. This series was filled with adventures where a group of people would time travel and discover many different worlds. This idea may also be possible one day with the use of science.
There are many great examples of Science Fiction, and I think it is interesting to see what types of ideas some writers can create. Heinlein's definition is very parallel with my own idea, because I believe it sprouts from the mere dreams of what could possibly happen through scientific estimations.
Scence Fiction is fiction that could be true in the future but not at the current time. We might be able to fly through space, know aliens and make robots just not at our current place in time.
ReplyDeleteThe Sturgeon quote most accurately aligns with my definition of Science Fiction. The last quote is too loose, and the first is too rigid. While I don't think all Science Fiction stories have to be about humans, they almost always include a human problem (the meaning of existence, coping with mortality, exploring the realm of God) and the characters attempts to work a human solution. The solution usually only comes about with some scientific enhancement. The first three episodes of Star Wars (my favorite science fiction work) deal with mortality. Anikin foresees the death of Padmé and struggles with his sense of morals and his desire to save her from destiny. In the end, he chooses the dark side, in order to save her life, but fails in his task. I think that's the appeal of Science Fiction. They center around human problems that anyone of any generation at any time in history can relate to, but they are freed from the technological limitations of modern day. That leaves them the freedom to center more heavily on the human problem, and not the limitations of technology.
ReplyDeleteI will choose Theodore Sturgeon's quote as the one I like the best when defining science fiction. This is mainly due to Theodore Sturgeon being a hottie and a respectable tennis player from what I have read about him on wikipedia.
ReplyDeleteThis one movie, Moon, is a really great example of this quote where the movie is not about how many technical terms the script can throw at us but what a person might do during a situation/conflict caused by a science fiction setting. But yeah Moon is a really great movie and do not let the fact that it played in theaters for only two weeks discourage you from checking it out on DVD or illegal download.
It's about the character Sam Bell who has been on the moon by himself for three years all by himself expect for the robot Gerty (reminiscent of HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey). The movie is when he is nearing the end of his three year contract with the mining company who has found a new source of energy on the moon. That is all I can say about it or else I might spoil it and that would be a real chatch move. But it has all these sci-fi elements but the film's main focus is how Sam Bell (who is played by Sam Rockwell by the way) deals with the craziness. Plus his name is kind of a hint to it all.
Also this other great Sci-Fi dark comedy romantic kung-fu cop action social statement film from South Korea called Save the Green Planet! is about this guy who thinks his boss is an alien so he kidnaps him and tortures him. Pretty funny stuff.
"Science fiction is what you find on the shelves in the library marked science fiction."
ReplyDeleteThis quote relates most to my under standing of science fiction. I don't know too much about it yet. To me it seems a little bit odd and out there. The only knowledge I have of science fiction thus far is "The Twilight Zone", "Star Trek", and "Star Wars" but i am definatly willing to learn more and expand my horizon of different litterature.
My definition of science fiction was most similar to Robert A. Heinlen’s. I said that science fiction is when someone takes a scientific theory and makes it unrealistic or just fictional. When I answered this question I was thinking about movies like Star Wars, and Weird Science. These movies use a lot of science, but don’t seem very realistic to me.
ReplyDeleteMy defintion of science fiction aligns most closely to George Hay's, mainly because I am not very familiar with science fiction. If I had to describe science fiction, I would say it deals with human interaction with non-human ideas, objects, and creatures.
ReplyDeleteGeorge Hay's quote connects most with my definition. I believe this because his depiction of science Fiction seems as if he doesn't know a thing about it, which directly relates to me. I cannot say that i remember reading a specific sci fi book, but i CAN say that i have seen most of the Starwars and Harry Potters, which first come to my head when i think of science fiction. In this class i hope to get a better understanding of what a science fiction book is like.
ReplyDeleteMy definition most associates with Robert A. Heinlein's views. I define scinence fiction as a story with some near-fantasy elements, but are theoretically possible, provided the truth is stretched. His definition is oviously more informed than mine, but has very similar justifications.
ReplyDeleteI like Theodore Sturgeon's quote because in my deffinition I said that science fiction is the way that humans react to a situation that could possible happen bassed on science. Though I don't use the word human as many times the idea of humanity is still very real. One of the movies that i saw this summer was District 9 which was all about how humans have a zenophobic reaction to aliens that have been stranded on earth. This is in my belief exactly what sturgeon was talking about seeing as fear is one of the big human emotions.
ReplyDeleteI originally said that sci-fi was imaginatively exploring the past, present and future. Robert A. Heinlein says a similar thing in his quote. I believe science fiction is a way of connecting nature and story. Science is just looking at the way things happen and interact and grow. It is, like most things, a system of education and observation. Science fiction is about observing your surroundings and playing off the environment you live in. Imagination based on truth.
ReplyDeleteMy definition of science fiction was really not that great but i really liked Robert A. Heinleins view on what science fiction means. Because pretty much every sci fi book i've read or movie i've watched takes something from the present that the puplic is kinda obsessed with at the time and takes it to the extreme.
ReplyDeleteI think that George Hay says it best "Science fiction is what you find on the shelves in the library marked science fiction." That is truly my definition. I don't know anything about science fiction, I really think that Hay's definition gives the overall summary of the definition in my eyes.
ReplyDeleteI think that science fiction is somewhat futuristic and is basically a normal story with little science content. My definition is most similar to the second definition listed because it is about stories about normal people with science incorporated into them. A science fiction movie could be Star Wars because it is very futuristic.
ReplyDeleteRobert A. Heinlein's definition of science fiction most likely aligns with mine because I also view it as realistic inferences about futuristic happenings in our world. A lot of stories and movies classified as Science Fiction are very realistic and include sufficient evidence to occur sometime in the future of our current world. But, based on my current overall knowledge of Science Fiction, George Hay's definition seems pretty good as well, I plan on fixing that this semester, though.
ReplyDeleteMy definition of science fiction closely matches Heinlein’s quote regarding the subject because we both have similar ideas as far as how science fiction can become more of a reality in our lives. Although I possess little knowledge about science fiction and am not very familiar with the genre, I can conclude that there are some realistic aspects involved in science fiction. I believe that many science fiction authors include their knowledge in the field of science in their writing, and they will then add an impossible scenario that brings science and the imagination into one story. They may use scientific knowledge to create a problem that seems plausible in our world, and then the solution to that problem is backed with ideas that are fictitious and unlikely to occur.
ReplyDeleteThe George Hay definition of Science Fiction is the one that is the most similar to mine. I don't really know what science fiction is yet, I hope to have a much greater understanding of it by the end of this semester. The best definition I could give is Science Fiction is a genere where facts and science are combined with imagination and creativity.
ReplyDeleteMy definition goes with George Hay's because I have never read or focused on Science Fiction at all. What science fiction to me is a group of thoughts put together to form a powerful or into the future, semi realistic views on what people would like to achieve or be 1,000 years from now.
ReplyDeleteTo me sci-fi is alot of things one is stuff that mostley won't happen but could happen someday and it could be stuff that is based in the past but made into a story of something that wound'nt have happen. But i think that sci-fi is the best type of storys out there, they are just more fun because they make you think "can that really happen?"
ReplyDeleteMy definition of Science Fiction is closest to Robert A. Heinlein. I think Scince Fiction takes a real world problem and embelishes posible predictions for what the future might hold.
ReplyDeleteeven though the first quote describes it very specifically, i think that i agree with it the most. it is indeed based solely on the past and present, for we know nothing else, yet it investigates and hypothesizes the comings of the future. it projects the progress of things we are doing now (in the science field) and communicates whether or not the author thinks it will affect us as a society for the better, or for the worse.
ReplyDeletemy definition of science fiction is more like Robert A. Heinlein because i do believe the definition of science fiction has to deal with future events, with future weapons and techniques. also dealing with space travel and aliens.
ReplyDeleteMy definition of science fiction is similar to George Hay because I don’t know much about science fiction. The way that I think of science fiction is that it is what people think that life will be like many years from now.
ReplyDelete