At first emphasizing that science fiction is primarily one of many forms of storytelling, McConnell gradually recognizes science fiction as a modern expression of Gnosticism rejecting bodily concerns for an exclusive emphasis on spirituality.

Contains essays that demonstrate how science fiction can serve as a bridge between science and the humanities. This book shows how early writers like Dante and Mary Shelley revealed a gradual shift toward a genuine understanding of science.

Pilgrim Award-winning critic Gary Westfahl here updates his classic study of the space station theme in science fiction, providing the most comprehensive examination of the topic ever written. From "The Brick Moon" (1869) to Star Trek's Deep Space 9, these literary and cinematic outposts have provided waystations for the imaginative exploration of new worlds and new civilizations. Westfahl's balanced and detailed study will be a necessary addition to modern critical collections on genre fiction. Complete with comprehensive bibliographies of primary and secondary sources, plus a detailed index.

A companion volume to the author's Island in the Sky, this new book covers 975 science fiction novels, stories, films, and television programs dealing with space stations. Each entry includes complete bibliographical data, and is usually followed by a detailed summary and commentary. A massive guide that will prove to be an invaluable resource for scholars, readers, and libraries interested in fantastic literature.

Offering a sustained argument about the idea of science fiction, this volume aims to overturn many received opinions and sacred cows. The author contends that Hugo Gernsback, for decades a derided figure, was the true creator of the genre, and examines the way in which the Gernsback tradition was adopted and modified by later magazine editors and early critics. This involves a re-evaluation of the importance of John W. Campbell to the history of science fiction, as well as a critique of Robert Heinlein's Beyond the Horizon, one of the seminal texts of Amerian science fiction. In conclusion,...

Filmmakers employ a number of images to suggest the strangeness of space, but spacesuits most comprehensively and powerfully communicate the danger of space and the frailty and weakness of humans beyond the cradle of Earth. Many films set in space, however, forgo spacesuits altogether, reluctant to hide famous faces behind bulky helmets and ill-fitting jumpsuits. This critical study examines science fiction films that portray space travel realistically by having characters wear spacesuits. Beginning with the pioneering Woman on the Moon (1929), it discusses other classics in this tradition,...

This book gathers together many of the illuminating essays on science fiction and fantasy film penned by a major critic in the SF field. The pieces are roughly organized in the chronological order of when the movies and television programs being discussed first appeared, with essays providing more general overviews clustered near the beginning and end of the volume, to provide the overall aura of a historical survey. Although this book does not pretend to provide a comprehensive history of science fiction and fantasy films, it does intermingle analyses of films and TV programs with some...

The leading figure in the development of cyberpunk, William Gibson (born in 1948) crafted works in which isolated humans explored near-future worlds of ubiquitous and intrusive computer technology and cybernetics. This volume is the first comprehensive examination of the award-winning author of the seminal novel Neuromancer (and the other books in the Sprawl trilogy, Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive), as well as other acclaimed novels including recent bestsellers Pattern Recognition, Spook Country, and Zero History. Renowned scholar Gary Westfahl draws upon extensive research to provide a...

The topics the essays focus on, as well as the perspectives of the contributors, range widely: genetics, cryonics, Marxism, Darwinism, cyberspace, feminist writing, religion, Italian science fiction, film, children's literature, video games, and comic books.

"The J. Lloyd Eaton Conferences on Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature have been a leading influence in the study of science fiction and fantasy for 30 years.This collection brings together 22 of the best papers--most with new afterwords by the authors--presented in chronological order to show how science fiction and fantasy criticism have evolved since 1979"--