Kategoria BISAC: Literary Criticism >> Science Fiction & Fantasy

Taken to extremes, social organization--however necessary in itself--leads to the creation of what editors Erlich and Dunn label Clockwork Worlds. This anthology has been organized to define and expand that concept for the reader. Arthur O. Lewis provides a comprehensive overview of clockwork worlds and sets them in their political and literary contexts. Following Lewis' introduction are two series of essays which show how the theme of mechanized environments has been developed in classic works of dystopian fiction, and how it has been treated by some of the major contemporary science...

A Literary Symbiosis studies the merger of science fiction/fantasy and mystery fiction from historical and critical perspectives. Pierce examines the problems and expectations raised by the various literary labels, particularly as regards definition, theme, conventions, stock characters, and setting. While she admits the difficulties inherent in merging idea-oriented, speculative science fiction with the situation-specific and present-time oriented mystery story, she argues that the two genres have much in common. The book examines critically the elements of mystery fiction which have been...

Clareson reveals the interplay between literary expressionism and intellectual history and shows how science fiction was a popular response to world events during the period 1870-1930. He emphasizes that at least before World War II, the predominant tone of American science fiction was optimistic and that one way or another--through advanced technology or a return to primitiveness--the writers were going to produce "Some Kind of Paradise."

Many prominent science fiction writers, artists, and editors began as s.f. fans. This is the first book to survey fandom's history, manifestations, and accomplishments, including clubs, fanzines, and conventions. The 24 essays are divided into sections that consider the following: the types of people who become fans and the satisfactions they receive; the development of fandom in America; fandom in Europe and the Orient; social interactions in the form of local clubs or wider-drawing conventions; and long-term results in the form of beginning professional careers in writing or publishing,...

The authors believe transitional science fiction writer and critic Brian Aldiss represents the evolutionary leap from the older pulp/adventure science fiction to the post new wave genre. They compare his work to that of the early mainstream literary modernists. While science fiction revives the modernist spirit and possesses its ranges, the authors maintain only Aldiss has taken advantage of that potential. His works embody both the potential and contradictions in new wave science fiction. Griffin and Wingrove emphasize the remarkable continuity of Aldiss's work. Neither rebel against the...

This comprehensive volume explores the relationship between sex and the fantastic in science fiction and fantasy literature. More than a dozen scholars have contributed essays in which they discuss almost two hundred novels, short stories, tales, plays, poems, myths, and nearly one hundred authors--from Aldiss to Zelazny. The collection is divided into three main sections, the first of which is devoted to the theoretical analysis of the relationship between sexuality and the fantastic. This section contains essays on sexuality and the allure of fantasy, and sexuality and knowledge in...

The relationship between fantasy and the feminine is explored in this compelling study of women writers of the genre. Spivak provides a revisioning of such archetypes as the wizard, the hero, and the dragon, and considers why women writers are currently dominating this field formerly occupied almost exclusively by men, as well as how women readers identify with the enchanted quest. Chapters provide a feminist perspective and analysis of leading women fantasists of the past two decades as well as promising new voices.

The relationship between fantasy and the feminine is explored in this...

This interesting and unusual collection of essays explores the post-holocaust theme as it has been treated in science fiction and fantasy literature. Seen in a positive mode, this theme offers a powerful metaphor for exploring man's relationship to his social structure. The post-holocaust motif, the editor contends, literally permits the exploration of many sub-topics, such as rebirth, social patterns, evolution, devolution, entropy, history, ecology, ethics, medicine, personal values, and so on.

This anthology of twenty-five essays on fantasy in literature and film gives a striking view of the decline of realism and the penetration of the fantastic mode into the mainstream of fiction. Introduced by William Coyle's illuminating discussion of the nature of fantasy, the essays offer a wide range of perspectives. They include discussions of the creators of fantasy, fantastic creatures, fantasy and the media, the relationship of fantasy to literary tradition, and the relevance of fantasy to contemporary concerns. Among the literary subjects considered are Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein,"...

This new essay collection, edited by Jan Hokenson and Howard Pearce, explores the surprising variety of guises the impulse toward the fantastic has taken throughout history. Incorporating wide-ranging perspectives, the twenty-six essays in the volume include studies of the fantastic in literature, art, philosophy, film, psychology, drama, history, and aesthetics. Among the subjects and forms examined are allegories, animal fables, horror stories and films, and monsters and fabulous beasts. Examples are drawn from Elizabethan drama, German Romantic music, French Expressionist painting,...

Focusing on the connection between metaphor and myth, Thelma Shinn provides a methaphoric reading of fantastic literature by women that enables the reader to glimpse its underlying mythic purpose and content. She examines some seventy novels by twenty-four women writers and draws on a rich variety of secondary sources in literature, women's studies, science fiction/fantasy scholarship, and comparative mythology.

This important contribution to the study of science fiction explores the origins of the basic literary traditions of the genre. Thematic, rather than chronological, organization sets this work apart from previous analyses. The entire range of literary invention within science fiction is explored from its earliest beginnings through the past hundred years of serious development. Emphasis is on enabling the reader to perceive the evolution of science fiction as an organic whole, rather than a mere accumulation of works linked solely by popular publishing trends.

The most comprehensive work of its kind, "Great Themes of Science Fiction" looks at the most important elements of the genre and shows how each has evolved over time. Among the topics examined are aliens and alien worlds, supermen and adapted men, immortality and paranormal powers, robots and computers, space civilizations and colonies, wars on earth and in space, worldwide disasters, time travel, and parallel worlds. Selected examples of each theme are discussed together with changes that have become apparent with shifts in popular attitudes and the increasing sophistication of readers....