Jun 272012
  June 27, 2012

Fantasy (of which Science Fiction is a sub-genre) is belittled by supporters of the “mainstream,” both in literature and in film. This is a strange, modern development as the greatest works of literature are fantasies. The Iliad, Beowulf, and Hamlet are all works that shaped the arts, and all are fantasies (some people try to ignore the ghost as a fantastical element in Hamlet, but then some people are very silly). In the last 75 years, the mainstream has become more and more, “slice of life” pieces, reflecting everyday life. In general, you could gain the same meaning by going down to the corner store and watching someone shop. It isn’t just by tradition that fantasies tend to say more about the meaning of life – the genre was made for it. Fantasy allows the reader/viewer to step away from his beliefs and preconceived notions and look at the world in a new way. That gives it an ability to change people that no other genre has.

Science Fiction is fantasy with rules. I’d like to say “rules that make sense”, or “rules based on scientific principle,” but that’s not how it’s worked out in practice, particularly in film. Often in film, a story is science fiction instead of general fantasy just if the characters think there are those rules. After all, is Star Trek’s Vulcan mind meld any closer to reality than Gandalf’s magic? But in Star Trek, the characters know that the mind meld is a part of the natural universe, and is limited by that universe (even if we’re not sure what those limits are).

What makes science fiction so effective is it has all the advantages of fantasy, with the addition of a framework that makes the story easier to understand, and makes it clear what the stakes are. After all, in a fantasy, you never know if the ghost won’t pop up with some new ability, counter to everything we’ve been told in the story, that will save the day.

While the bookshelves are filled with slice-of-life mainstream, it’s hard to find similar movies. The filmmakers keep trying, supposedly making films about our everyday lives (and then pushing those films for awards) but somehow, a murder, or striptease, or monster get added in and we’re off into one genre or another.