Overview

In Between Science and Society: Charting the Space of Science Fiction, Douglas A. Van Belle uses interviews with 24 science fiction authors to analyze the conceptual space that science fiction occupies between science and society. Using these interviews, Van Belle studies the similarities and differences between the academic and professional understandings of the genre. Between Science and Society argues that, for authors, all of the aspects of the genre that are emphasized by academics, such as science communication and depictions of scientists, are secondary to the artistic effort to entertain through storytelling. Through his interviews, Van Belle explores both the genre’s place in relation to science and society and key elements to surviving as a professional science fiction author. Van Belle creates a definition of science fiction based on the creative ideals expressed by these authors and compared to those that arise from the academic perspective, showing that academics are struggling to engage one of the two central ideals of the genre.

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9781793605733

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Reviews

"[A]lmost anyone with an academic or personal interest in science fiction will find this interview material very compelling. It presents a wealth of source material for future research in the field...and nicely counterbalances other academic works that insufficiently value the authors' perspectives. -- ""VoegelinView"""

Between Science and Society provides a wealth of valuable information about authors' views and nicely counterbalances other academic works that insufficiently value the authors' perspectives.-- VoegelinView

""[A]lmost anyone with an academic or personal interest in science fiction will find this interview material very compelling. It presents a wealth of source material for future research in the field...and nicely counterbalances other academic works that insufficiently value the authors' perspectives."" --VoegelinView

Author Information

Douglas A. Van Belle is a senior lecturer in media studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

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