Bill MacKenty

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What about the future, what about science fiction?

Posted in Blogging Writing on 01 - March 2024 at 02:47 PM (9 months ago). 808 views.

What is our future in 100 years? 1000 years?

I'm not sure of course, but it is really fun to think about it.

I am a voracious reader and consumer of science fictionEven early we encounter a problem! The definition of science fiction, science fantasy, and fantasy is pretty nebulous. There are sub-genre's of science fiction. More on that in a bit.. Books, movies, TV shows, video games and RPG's all shape and inform my view of science fiction. I note a few common themes in science fiction:

  • a near-future dystopian hell-scape (fallout)
  • a dystopian far-future empire (warhammer, maybe Starfield)
  • a cyberpunk, hyper-modern world (William Gibson, and Cyberpunk 2077)
  • an idealized clean-future federation (star trek)
  • a dark dystopian steampunk-like setting (China MiĆ©ville and Perdido Street Station)
  • a feudal / science-fictiony setting like Star Wars
  • a science fantasy - where magic / multiple races are present (starfinder)
  • a near-future apocalyptic / hard science fiction (Seveneves by Neal Stephenson)
  • a far future, fantastical world (Stanislaw Lem)

We could almost say for every piece of science fiction work, there is a different vision / idea about what the future will be like. This is very interesting because thinking about the future, imagining the future, putting ourselves into a future can start us building towards it.

Of course in all science fiction we explore what it means to be human in a very different culture, place and context. Science fiction is a unique genre allowing this sort of placement-of-self.

In the next few posts, I will be exploring ideas around science fiction, and ask for your thoughts and ideas as I do so.