What is Science Fiction?
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| Title: | What is Science Fiction? |
| Creator: | Steve Kimmel |
| Date(s): | August 1976 |
| Medium: | |
| Fandom: | science fiction |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
What is Science Fiction? is a 1976 essay by Steve Kimmel.
It was printed in Sol Plus #3.
Some Topics Discussed
- science fiction as literature
- the difference between science fiction and fantasy
- much commentary and response to the essay Star Trek... Or Star Trick?
Excerpts
If the Star Trek detractors accomplish nothing else constructive, they will at least have raised the serious questions of "What is Science Fiction?" Some people would have you believe that science fiction must be a form of prophecy of scientific developments. Under such a definition, any lack of accuracy would seriously detract from the quality of the work.
This view has recently been espoused by J.R. Wilson in Sol Plus II. I could scarcely disagree more and I would like to share my thoughts about the very nature of science fiction and on the so-called flaws in Star Trek.
The most important thing to remember is that science fiction is literature first and foremost. Or should be. As such, the quality of science fiction is judged by the same criteria as literature. Does it have permanent value? Is it excellent in form and structure? Does it have a great emotional effect? Does it show us something about ourselves? Does it motivate us? If a science fiction story meets these criteria or the like, then it is good literature and probably good science fiction, regardless of the credibility of it's basic assumptions. This is why the works of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells are great science fiction despite all of their serious flaws; because they are great literature first.
There are several key assumptions behind Star Trek, some of which have drawn fire recently. To me the most obvious are 1) Travel at speeds faster that light with all the necessary requirements; 2) A galaxy that is populated with intelligent, frequently humanoid life forms; and 3) A Terran dominated Federation of intelligent societies. It is my belief that these are supportable and reasonable assumptions. </ref>
Clearly the most serious difficulty is the vast numbers of humanoid life forms. This was a difficulty imposed on Star Trek by restrictions of budget, time and good sense. The cartoon series had greater freedom, in this regard, and made good use of it. Perhaps Wilson was more intellectually satisfied by the variety of creatures found on Lost in Space. In addition, to make the show good literature would require that we be able to identify with as many aliens as possible. This could only really be accomplished with humanoids. I doubt seriously if a good science fiction story could be built on the assumption of Captain Flipper, commanding the I.T.T. Starship Free Enterprise, it's five year mission to seek out new markets, punish hot check writers and boldly go where no salesman has gone before.
Is Star Trek good science fiction? In my opinion Star Trek is very good science fiction at times. Everyone can think of episodes that didn't quite make it (such as The Magicks of Megas Two). The best episodes showed us something about ourselves and what we could be, were well structured, and sometimes had a great emotional impact. It changed lives and prompted people to action. Accordingly, Star Trek was at times literature or art if you prefer. Is Star Trek science fiction? Again I am of the opinion that it is. After suspending a few rules, it stayed within those bounds and was reasonable scientifically consistent. Thus, independent of whether we can get from here to there, Star Trek is good science fiction.
Fan Discussion
"Sol Plus" #4 included dueling editorials, aka, a bit of fight, between Kimmel (author of "What is Science Fiction?") and Wilson (author of Star Trek... Or Star Trek?. From the editors of "Sol Plus":
In SOL PLUS 2 we printed an article, "Star Trek... Or Star Trick?" in which author, J.R. Wilson, expounded a few of his favorite ideas of where the aired ST was in error. We promptly received a rebuttal from Steve Kimmel which was printed in SOL PLUS 3 as "What is Science Fiction?" This generated a heated (and slightly hostile) letter from Wilson to the editors which we handled in our usual courageous way: we sent Wilson and Kimmel each other's addresses and told them to go at it. The following debate is the result. This is a private debate, not a town meeting. Please do not send us ten-page rebuttals of both and/or either debator. If you would like to send in a sentence or two on what is said, we will print these in our "Sensor Readings," as room permits. As usual, the views of either debator are not necessarily those of the editors. We will continue the debate as long as interest is generated or for 10,000 words, whichever comes first.