Thoughts On The Difference Between Science Fiction And Fantasy

THOUGHTS ON THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY In the introduction to an episode of The Twilight Zone, Rod Serling mentioned: “It’s been stated that science fiction and fantasy are two different things. Science fictionâ€"the improbable made potential. Fantasyâ€"the inconceivable made possible.” Science tells us that factor he’s holding in his hand is more than likely why he died of a coronary heart attack at age 50. I wrote that down a pair weeks ago and have been puzzling over it ever since. “Probable,” “potential,” I’m unsure what he was getting at or who said it before him. In the top I’m proud of no matter definition of SF and/or fantasy you’re keen to supply and am delighted by each genres each in the ways they’re completely different and the ways they’re the identicalâ€"and the third factor: the way they work together and comingle with one another. Still, it’s an attention-grabbing query and one that's actually germane to this blog. You may have observed that the interviews you sometimes see here always begin with the same two questions: Please outline “fantasy” in 25 words or much less. and Please outline “science fiction” in 25 words or less. I’ve gotten some terrific solutions to those questions and at risk of abandoning the fundamental query within the title of this publish I’m joyful to agree with each and every definition. But absolutely I even have an opinion on this subject after a lifetime within the SF and fantasy business? To me, fantasy is fiction that presents elements that are not present in the true world (technology, monsters, superhuman skills, and so forth.) and the explanation for these unreal components is some form of magic. In fantasy, things just occur as a result of in that strange different world or alternate reality issues like that (individuals flying around on brooms, turning into monsters, and conjuring information or energies out of thin air) simply work. Science fiction would possibly do all those same unreal/impossible things howe ver the explanation given is predicated on some kind of imagined science or know-how. How did I turn right into a monster? It was a virus that did it, or radiation. How am I capable of fly around? It’s a jet pack cobbled collectively by a genius inventor. That’s science fiction. Obviously, fantasy authors aren’t requited to show how a particular magic spell, ritual, or item actually works. If the explanation is “it’s magical,” I’m perfectly keen to buy into that, understanding full properly it’s entirely invented and irrespective of how hard I research the text or how many live spiders I swallow I is not going to truly ever be capable of cast a spider climb spell. I know what fantasy is and am not only in a position to suspend my disbelief and buy into the fiction of wizards and orcs, but excited by the prospect of doing so for nevertheless long the guide, movie, or sport lasts. Want one. Bad. Science fiction, related to last week’s post, puts a barely higher onus on the author to “get it proper,” however then, only barely. How, exactly, do the flying automobiles in Blade Runner work? I have no idea. And I’m perfectly keen to simply assume, Wow, those are cool . . . want I had one, for the duration of the movie. I’ve mentioned many occasions earlier than that when you actually know the way to get a spacecraft to travel quicker than the speed of sunshine, please at least delay your science fiction writing career and go be the Bill Gates of the FTL Revolution. For the remainder of us, so long as we’re persistently making use of a set of invented guidelines for how folks interact with that FTL drive, we’re good to go. So that being the case, what's the distinction between science fiction and fantasy? They do kind of the identical factor: provide a stage for commentary on, as Douglas Adams mentioned, “life, the universe, and every thing,” by filtering generally very difficult topics via myth and fable to make a point. In some ways science fiction ends with, “and this might truly come to cross,” whether “this” is a nuclear holocaust (a cautionary tale) or “this” is a galaxy-spanning Federation dedicated to the peaceable exploration of house (an aspirational tale). We didn’t quite get to the moon metropolis and industrial space shuttles of the film 2001: A Space Odyssey, but aside from the alien monolith what we noticed in that movie was, and stays, attainable. People have been constructing wonderful gizmos for the reason that Neolithic Period, and like we talked about final week, we’re solely getting better and higherâ€"or, at least, sooner and quickerâ€"at doing that so, positive, the future could very well embody a moon metropolis, FTL starships, ringworlds, and lightweight sabers. If we might work out how to fly, communicate over long distances, arrange so that on the age of 50 I nonetheless have a full set of tooth, and switch the moon into a place individuals have been toâ€"all of which m ight be unimaginable-to-think about miracles to someone from the 12 months 1014â€"what unimaginable miracles does the 12 months 3014 have in store for us? Fantasy, then again, by no means pretends that someday you’ll be capable of make a pact with demons to turn out to be an immortal vampire; that you just’ll ever be able to swallow a live spider, wave your arms round, and climb on walls like Spiderman; or teleport from right here to there by summoning the mana that surrounds us in all living issues. Now, having stated that, someone reading this within the yr 3014 will in all probability say, “Yeah, what? We can do all these things. My sister’s a vampire.” And watching it happen would appear, to me at any rate, like magic. The similar means that I know the computer I’m using to write down and publish this isn’t in any respect magical however a tool cobbled together by my fellow non-magic-using people, but I still don’t have an in depth understanding of the way it tru ly works. Maybe the distinction between fantasy and science fiction is that in science fiction we blame other people for the unhealthy ideas they have and take credit score for the good concepts, and in fantasy, good or dangerous, it’s the gods that did it. I don’t know. You tell me. In 25 phrases or much less. â€"Philip Athans About Philip Athans When I write my fantasy stories, I at all times have an concept of where the magic comes from. There is a course of, a price to the caster, and a source. Of course, after I write sci-fi, I also need to have enough answers to make it probable. The distinction in writing it for me, then, is that one takes faith to consider and the opposite not a lot. Magic takes more religion than science no matter what planet it’s from. Reblogged this on AM Justice Journeys Through Time and commented: Philip Athans’ distinction between science fiction and fantasy completely displays my very own views on the subject. This is why The Woern Chronicles are science fiction cloaked as fantasyâ€"I explain the magic! What an excellent post! I fully concur together with your definition of the two genres. You’ve completely captured the excellence between the fantasy and science fiction, and defined where they overlap. Thanks for giving me one thing to reblog! In sci-fi, a proof must be assumed to exist; in fantasy, no clarification want apply. Emotion fuels reader belief. Many gradations exist. Sci-fi comedies (“Red Dwarf” involves thoughts) the place an explanation exists, however the characters fall laughably in need of anything sensible. Fantasy the place the characters possess fantastic mental rigor, making you suppose that their actuality is explainable. Stories that recommend that magic runs our “scientific” goal reality. Stories like “Lexx” that show star-ships too superior for any of the characters to theorize about and then add layer after layer of magic (aka Pseudo Scientific Garbage, or PSG) on top of that. Stories like “Dune” where every little thing runs by magic- but that’s as a result of slightly drug referred to as Spice awakens the facility in humans. At some level, the decision of style turns into a problem for marketing, as long as the author knows the rules of his story and entertains the reader. I’d say, if in doubt, just discover out which test panel likes your story higher: fantas y fans or sci-fi.