Although
every genre has its share of hacks, science fiction seems to draw particular
contempt from the literary community. What these critics overlook is the small
subset of science fiction known as “speculative fiction.” This important
subgenre speculates what could realistically happen in the future based on two
things, current political trends and advanced technology. It’s more of a “What
If” approach, rather than the “I Wish” approach so many modern writers employ.
Sure, laser guns in space sound cool, but are they probable? Do you really
think a consolidated intergalactic community with sexy cat-woman aliens is
coming any time soon?
The most simple distinction
between speculative and science fiction is that in the first, most
elements of the scenarios are probable, not just possible.
Anthem, 1984,
Riddley
Walker, Snow
Crash, Fahrenheit 451, Do
Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, China
Mountain Zhang, The Folk
of the Fringe, The Time
Machine are all examples of speculative
fiction. Probably the most famous of these books is 1984.
George Orwell wrote 1984 in 1949 after the end of the Second World War, as McCarthyism
was gaining momentum. In the novel, the world is divided into three counties,
all controlled by an omnipresent government known affectionately as “Big
Brother.” Big Brother watches one, watches what one does, whom one speaks with,
what one thinks. In this world, one can be arrested for “thought crimes,” and
sent in for “re-education,” until one no longer questions Big Brother. There’s
a famous example towards the end of the book, where one of the protagonists is
tortured until he agrees that, if Big Brother dictates it, 2 + 2 = 5. This is
where society gained phrases such as “thought crimes,” “double speak,” and, most
famous of all, “Big Brother is watching you.”
To bring the book into context, consider the
following: The State of California just passed a mandate requiring DNA samples
from all accused felons. The DNA will be entered into a database to track the
crimes and movements of these people. If one isn’t convicted after being
accused, it becomes the responsibility of one to petition the state to have
one’s DNA removed from the database.
The possibilities for abuse are staggering. Say a
major computer manufacturer decides that they disagree with my ideas. They
accuse me of profiting through web design and writing (true), using some of
their products (true) to produce my projects, but also claim that my software
is pirated (false.) The relative value of the software and equipment, as well
as my profits from their use, constitutes grand theft, a felony. If I resist
the harvesting of my DNA, I can be charged with assault, maybe even assault
with a deadly weapon since I study Aikido. Not only is my DNA stolen, I might
face the Three Strikes Law, and life in prison without possibility of parole.
Anthem probably
weighs in as the second most well-known piece of speculative fiction. Written
by Ayn Rand in 1938, the novella takes place in a post-apocalyptic world governed
by a collectivist theology. Committees determine not only what people do, but
also whom they breed with. Children are raised by the collective, unknowing of
words such as “I” or “me.”
Bringing it back to real life, last week in the
United States, eleven states passed laws stating marriage is only legal between
a man and a woman. Ignoring the separation of church and state, proponents of
the law cite “morality” and “the bible.” It’s the same logic being used to push
a federal ban on abortion. Let’s not forget the famous “No Child Left Behind”
bill, which increased the power of standardized testing in determining the
future of a child. Speaking of theologies, there are even public schools in the
United States where it is forbidden to teach the Theory of Evolution.
Taking it back to the academic world, The Time Machine by H. G. Wells is, from
my research, the first piece of speculative fiction ever published.[ii]
In this novel, the Inventor, who is never named, builds a Time Machine. With
it, he travels into the future, only to discover that humanity has devolved
into two separate sub-species, the Morlocks, and the Eloi. He eventually
realizes that this is the result of class separation, with the Morlocks
devolving from the workers on the London Underground, and the Eloi the remnants
of the privileged upper class.
Even this work, written over one hundred years ago,
has relevance in my lifetime. Recently, The
Wall Street Journal ran a series of articles exposing hospital’s uneven
billing practices. In short, if a person has insurance, the insurance company
is billed less than what a person without insurance would be billed. Also
determined by class lines are veteran’s benefits, the proposed privatization of
social security, tax breaks for the rich, and even who joins the military, and
subsequently dies for our country.
But speculative fiction doesn’t just address
straight politics and social issues. No, “political trends” cover a great deal
more than that, including what’s considered “decent” or “fit to print,” or what
our “community standards” are. Take Fahrenheit
451: This classic by Ray Bradbury follows the exploits of a firefighter. In
this future, firefighters are responsible for enforcing the ban on reading
books by burning the houses, books, and other possessions of law breakers.
While I haven’t heard of any good book burning
lately, I have heard of libraries, community groups, school districts,
churches, and parents fighting to have books banned in their home towns. Books
like Harry Potter, The Wizard of Oz, and The Chronicles of Narnia have been
alleged to
teach witchcraft and promote Satanism. Books like johnny got his gun have been called
obscene. The methods are the similar, but the motives are identical.
Other current political trends in the United States
include the seizure of suspected terrorists, who are then held without trial or
counsel. Not only does this tie in with the re-education rationale of 1984, but it also ties in with ideas
about racism, xenophobia, and group disenfranchisement. Probably the best book
within the genre that I’ve seen address these ideas is Brown Girl in the Ring.
Speculative fiction has also tacked sticky issues
such as protection of the environment. Charles DeLint’s Svaha takes place in a futuristic world where Native Americans
regained their territories in world court. This is the background for the
story, and an important one: The rest of North America was environmentally
destroyed, leaving wasted necropolises scattered across the badlands. Only the
enclaves of the Native Americans remain pristine, before they, too, are
threatened by corporate greed. Makes one question the wisdom of having a
commander-in-chief from an oil family, doesn’t it?
I could continue this list of speculative fiction,
and its real-life counterparts, for pages. What does Orson Scott Card’s Folk of the Fringe say about the Church
of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints[iii]
in particular, and our society in general? What does Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep have to say about society’s
current values? What does Riddley Walker
say about linguistics and the evolution of language and folklore?
But I don’t want to just spell it out for you.
Instead, I hope you go read these and form your own opinions. It seems to me
that only the wrong people are reading these books, if they’re trying to model
society after them, but I have higher hopes for Heartless Bitches. And if
anyone gives you a hard time about reading sci-fi, just inform them in a lofty
voice, “It’s not science fiction, it’s speculative
fiction.”
