Jun 16, 2025
Оfftopic Community
Оfftopic Community
Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
Featured content
New posts
New media
New media comments
New resources
New profile posts
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Resources
Latest reviews
Search resources
Members
Current visitors
New profile posts
Search profile posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
Technology
Beyond Reality
How should I classify my Sci-fi?
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="StrikeThirteen" data-source="post: 2459400" data-attributes="member: 842884"><p>Question: What kinds of Sci-Fi are there?</p><p></p><p>Answer: Science fiction is a wide-ranging genre, with a lot of blurred edges and overlaps between groupings. But a number of types can be broadly identified: </p><p></p><p>•"Hard" science fiction extrapolates directly from today's modern science and emphasizes scientific detail and accuracy. Hard science fiction writers are often scientists themselves (Isaac Asimov, Gregory Benford). </p><p></p><p>•"Soft" science fiction, in contrast, emphasizes social issues and issues of personal identity. Examples could include Star Trek in television; among novelists, Ursula K. Le Guin. </p><p></p><p>•Space opera involves epic scale and a conflict between idealized heroes (often involving a wizened mentor and an untried youth) pitted against irredeemable villains. In film, the original Star Wars is a classic example; a well-known novelist in this type is E.E. "Doc" Smith. </p><p></p><p>•Alternate History is a branch of science fiction that extrapolates from a point in the past, rather than from today, and takes a different path from the one we took. Questions involve what the world might be like if the Axis powers had won World War II, or if Lincoln had not been shot. Master practitioners include Philip K. Dick and Harry Turtledove. </p><p></p><p>•Dystopia starts by rejecting the idea that "scientific advance" with automatically bring about a superior civilization; the dreamed-up reality might in fact be as corrupt and unjust as the darker days of our own world. After World War II dystopian fiction often assumed a nuclear apocalypse, with survivors fighting to retain their humanity (Mad Max, A Boy and His Dog); but such a cataclysm is not necessary (Blade Runner).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="StrikeThirteen, post: 2459400, member: 842884"] Question: What kinds of Sci-Fi are there? Answer: Science fiction is a wide-ranging genre, with a lot of blurred edges and overlaps between groupings. But a number of types can be broadly identified: •"Hard" science fiction extrapolates directly from today's modern science and emphasizes scientific detail and accuracy. Hard science fiction writers are often scientists themselves (Isaac Asimov, Gregory Benford). •"Soft" science fiction, in contrast, emphasizes social issues and issues of personal identity. Examples could include Star Trek in television; among novelists, Ursula K. Le Guin. •Space opera involves epic scale and a conflict between idealized heroes (often involving a wizened mentor and an untried youth) pitted against irredeemable villains. In film, the original Star Wars is a classic example; a well-known novelist in this type is E.E. "Doc" Smith. •Alternate History is a branch of science fiction that extrapolates from a point in the past, rather than from today, and takes a different path from the one we took. Questions involve what the world might be like if the Axis powers had won World War II, or if Lincoln had not been shot. Master practitioners include Philip K. Dick and Harry Turtledove. •Dystopia starts by rejecting the idea that "scientific advance" with automatically bring about a superior civilization; the dreamed-up reality might in fact be as corrupt and unjust as the darker days of our own world. After World War II dystopian fiction often assumed a nuclear apocalypse, with survivors fighting to retain their humanity (Mad Max, A Boy and His Dog); but such a cataclysm is not necessary (Blade Runner). [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Name
Verification
Please enable JavaScript to continue.
Loading…
Post reply
Top