Die, SF, Die!
26. Dec, 2009 
15 Comments
Jetse DeVries has offered up a very thought-provoking piece on the future of SF in his recent piece entitled Should SF Die?
Full disclosure: almost a year ago (maybe a year ago) Jetse wrote a piece on optimism in SF that I took great (early morning) exception to. I wrote some things that ultimately caused me to apologize to Jetse and to clarify some thoughts here, and then, with Jetse’s agreement, I removed the post, his comments and etc.
I’ll say this: Jetse is certainly passionate about this subject.
In his piece he rounds up several arguments from various and sundry that most concern themselves with the gender fail/race fail aspects of the industry, posits mostly agreement with those assessments and then enumerates where (he thinks) SF must go in order to avoid a slow and agonizing death.
The things that it must do are cataloged as: open up to more writers who are not WASPs, get rid of the anglophonic nature of the genre and embrace change.
He offers some interesting and much hashed over stats in support of this, particularly going to the low percentages of non-male/non-white authors who win awards – which support I take issue with as there are so many outside factors at play that are not under the ‘control of’ or not really influenced by the “genre” that it is not truly representative of what may or may not be going on (starting with not having a real handle on how many writers of what ilk there are out there who are producing award-worthy work: does the cadre of writers represent, 1-to-1 the make-up of the world population? I don’t know. Is it fair to compare the percentages of awards given over half a century with those won by minority groups who have not really had a voice during much of that time? I don’t know.)
But that’s minor and subject to analysis and correction if necessary (should someone choose to do the research).
The anglo-centric contention I have no problem with, except to note these two points: I believe that much of that is circumstantial and technologically-based. Historically, we know of a vibrant Soviet SF community (I think Pohl and others paid a visit to their counterparts during the cold war era; Asimov edited an anthology). I think that in the past the market just didn’t justify the difficulty and expense of translating many works. Indeed, we’re seeing am absolute outpouring of non-western SF (World SF, Haikasoru, etc) just in the past year, one which has been well-received this time around and one that I expect is going to expand mightily in a very short period of time.
Finally – change. Accusations that writers just aren’t far enough out there, aren’t riding the crest of scientific research, etc., etc.
If I have to be critical of the argument advanced by Jetsie on behalf of himself and the others he’s representing, I’d say this: change takes time. If you could stand in my shoes and look at the changes/advancements/expansion of SF over nearly half a century, I think the perspective might shift a little.
I think SF is changing. It may not be happening as quickly as some would desire, but it is happening.
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As the genre changes, so does the readership. We who have been reading SF for many decades often find the novels and short stories that are based upon and incorporate the latest 21st century science, sociology and politics to be so concerned with issues that they lack solid plot, characterization and world building, and that they just aren’t very interesting or fun to read.
I for one don’t like novels which make me feel that I’m being lectured to. Not everyone seems to realize these days that people read science fiction for pleasure.
If SF is going to lose shrivel up and die as a fiction genre, it’s more likely to be the result of it’s not being very well written, interesting or appealing to the reader. Readers want to be entertained. Those who are deeply committed to “making things better” often can’t see much beyond their own beliefs, and are often of the opinion that the small sliver of life on which they are so intently focused is only part of a greater whole containing large numbers of people who don’t take the whole business so seriously, but instead just want to have some fun.
“Not everyone seems to realize these days that people read science fiction for pleasure”
Amen! When I read these ‘debates’ I often choose not to get involved simply because I realize I just must not be the same kind of reader as the majority of people who posit these theories. Science fiction, both old and new, still entertains the heck out of me. I’m looking for a good story and I find the sense of wonder alive and well in SF. Maybe I am easily entertained, but I just don’t see these issues being anything to get up in arms about. There are a lot of science fiction authors putting out books today and I for one am enjoying them…these same authors, and new ones, are also writing SF right now. If they don’t subscribe to this so-named ‘manifesto’, does that mean what they are doing is worthless, not forward thinking enough, not good for SF? In my opinion, no. If they are writing good stories then I applaud them.
I also get tired of reading the arguments about race and gender in SF writing. My opinion can easily be written off since I am a white male. I don’t think is should be, but I suspect it will be. When I read SF I don’t look to see if the author is male or female, if the writer is white or a person of color, if the author is American or British or Russian, etc. Does the cover art draw me in? Does the story sound interesting? How are other respected authors, etc. receiving this? (based on cover blurbs). What are folks online saying? Those are the things that may have some influence over whether or not I pick something up. Not an author’s race/gender or the race/gender of the protagonist in the story. Again, I’m looking for a good story.
Should there be more female SF authors and authors of color represented in SF? Sure, if they write good stories. But that should be the only criteria in judging whether a book should be published, marketed, etc. If the industry goes out of its way to publish stories simply because of the gender/race of the author then I personally believe it opens things up for weaker stories (and not because females/people of color right weak stories…don’t get me wrong, but because if the writing itself isn’t the first and best criteria for publishing a book, the reader risks not being given the very best writing out there). Again, just an opinion, and one that probably doesn’t make a difference.
And finally, in a country where a call for “change” is bringing about record government debt that it will take generations to pay off (and I laugh, because it never will be), I hate to see the most recent presidential slogan being bandied about in connection with my favorite genre. Thanks, but no thanks.
And I agree with the amen.
But Carl, on the other hand, I disagree with your implied critique of the current administration. So let’s stick to the genre (which is something we can all HAPPILY agree to agree or disagree on).
It may be interesting to note that the fiction genre Crime Fiction seems to have no trouble accepting it’s various sub-genres of cozy, hard-boiled, police procedural, legal, medical, private eye, thriller and so on. Mystery fans don’t worry about the death of the mystery genre, except in regards to the age of the readership, something SF seems not to worry about (nor need to). People who criticize the SF genre and call for change don’t seem to be willing to simply let sub-genres co-exist and the readership buy and read what it likes.
Point taken, COF, it is just really hard for me to read the word “change” anymore without cringing. And my problem is with both parties, not just the current administration. I’d like to see a big ‘reset’ button.
Richard. Well put! I do find it discouraging to see these episodes of dissent and discontent in this community. As a whole I believe these things run their course and more often than not the community gets along, but there does seem to be a stronger division among sub-genres of sci fi and I am not really sure why that is the case. I’m not sure it happens that way with any other genre, but I haven’t really spent a great deal of time finding out. There does seem to be a little less dissent on the fantasy side, but again, I could be completely wrong on that.
What I do know is that I read a wide variety of genres, but when I am immersed in science fiction reading I like to spend significant time on various sci fi blogs, and it seems like more often than not something is being criticized, whether it be gender issues, race issues, what type of SF is legitimate SF. What type of stuff is “crap”. And it goes on and on. I feel that whenever I get a chance to turn folks on to sci fi that I have to warn them off visiting the greater sci fi community online because of all the apparent bickering.
I’m looking for a good story and I find the sense of wonder alive and well in SF. Maybe I am easily entertained, but I just don’t see these issues being anything to get up in arms about.
I think one of the things that you are missing is that many SF stories – especially the “classics” – are so heavily focused on the experiences of white men that those of us who aren’t can feel left out. I am a woman, and I want to experience wonder and adventure and not just be in charge of the cooking and housekeeping and child rearing and sexual needs of the “real” adventurers.
Back in the late 80s, when I was in a heavy Asimov phase, it was like a slap in the face to read a passage in one of the robot novels where Elijah Bailey is taken by surprise that one of his superiors in the police force was a woman – a woman who is described in not particularly flattering terms – and this was a novel written in the 80s. That wasn’t the future of my imagination.
Peggy,
I think you’re probably referring to Naked Sun and, if I remember correctly (been a while) the woman was a ’spacer’ woman. Again, if I remember correctly, the scene you speak of contrasts Earth’s rather hidebound and traditionalist culture with Aurora’s more equitable one – and a comment on the (possible) effect of population on such issues.
Of course, that could be entirely erroneous memory….
I know, for myself, I had no hesitancy over reading and enjoying, say, Podkayne of Mars as much as I did Starship Troopers, and I think I read Joanna Russ’ The Female Man immediately after reading Spinrad’s The Iron Dream (if ever there was a “celebration” of macho mystique…not a single woman appears in that book, ever);
I’m conscious of sex/orientation/race/religion only when the author bothers to point it out to me.
Most of the early classics were written for a market that was decidedly all male, all white (or so the publisher’s presumed); most of it was written and published during eras in which ‘boys played with rocket ships and girls played with dolls’. I hear your point and it is a valid one, but I don’t really think it is fair to hold “ancient” works accountable for not living up to new sensibilities.
Is it really my white, male (middle class, jewish, short) experience that allows me to not have a problem with a story when the main character is, say, a lesbian of color, or a female pope?
I can say I’ve never put a story down because of the identity of the characters, nor of the author (tho I do avoid certain authors due to politics). Not even Fred Pohl’s Day Million made me squick.
Peggy: I certainly do see that side of it, being a white male and reading books with characters that are primarily white males for most of my life certainly means, for me, that I have not been conditioned to even notice gender/race issues unless, like COF says, the other makes a particular issue of it. I certainly notice inequitable treatment or portrayals of women or people of color, etc. in some older science fiction, but when characters are treated fairly regardless of race or gender I generally don’t make any kind of conscious acknowledgment of whether the character is male or female, white, black or what have you.
It is interesting that Podkayne of Mars is mentioned. I just read that last month and really enjoyed it. In this book and in the short story Menace from Earth, Heinlein, given the time period these were written in, does an admirable job in portraying a strong teen female protagonist. I
I have no problem with SF being equitable across the board, I just don’t want story to be sacrificed for pressure to make sure that bookshelves are stocked with equal numbers of books representing all races, genders, etc. If it gets that way because authors choose to tell those stories, fantastic!!! Conversely, I don’t want to be cheated out of the opportunity to read a really good story because an editor or publisher chooses that it is more profitable to put a novel by a white male vs. a woman or person of color on the store shelves.
I believe The Naked Sun was written in 1955, was serialized in Astounding Science Fiction in 1956 and was published in book form in 1957.
Nope, the novel was Robots of Dawn (1983), and the scene was Elijah Baily being called into the office by a superior officer who – shock – is a woman. Now it’s a minor scene in an otherwise entertaining novel – most people probably don’t even remember it at all – but it stuck out to me because it was so unnecessary to the plot. But it seemed to me when I read it for the first time as if Asimov had gone out of his way to make the point that even 100s of years in the future a woman with bureaucratic power would be an anomaly. In the meantime I’ve come to realize that for a smart man with interesting ideas, Asimov didn’t seem to understand women as people very well at all.
Carl V., I think it’s a bit of a strawman to suggest that what people are asking for is some kind of SF quota system for the depiction of women and people of different races to the sacrifice of story (Ben Bova appeared to do that in Mars Life and it fell flat for me). What I would like, and what I’ve read many other people suggest, is that more authors consider including well-rounded characters who don’t look like them. I don’t know where you live, but where I do there are people of different skin colors and ethnicities running businesses, in the military, making art and the like. Women are doing that stuff too. Depicting a future where only white men are doing interesting things ignores the fact that that isn’t even the case in the present.
But I don’t really agree with what Jetse wrote. Science fiction, like all fiction, is much better at representing a variety of characters than it used to be. It could definitely do better, but that doesn’t mean it should die now. And the idea that SF should only focus on the optimistic and propose solutions to mankind’s for the future makes me cringe.
Peggy,
thanks for coming back on that.
One thing to consider, I think, is that it is difficult for an author to write a character who is not ‘them’. I personally do try: I imagine myself as someone else I know, how I believe they’d react, etc and then try to be them while writing.
I knew Dr. Asimov a bit, having the opportunity to hang with him at numerous conventions (lunch even on one memorable occasion), listened to him speak live quite a number of times. I was much younger back then, so everything I saw and heard was filtered through rather naive eyes and ears, but I found him to be very personable, very caring, sensitive and not at all disposed to (conscious) prejudice. (He sure did know how to play the dirty old man though and let me tell you, dirty old men with general public acceptance and a twinkle in their eye can get away with an awful lot. I know that on the few occasions when I’ve put my Ike-as-Dirty-Old-Man hat on, I was doing schtick – but I can only say that I believe that Asimov was doing the same – playing a fun routine and not being serious. Others played along and seemed to enjoy the show, but I’ve never had the opportunity to ask them if they played along because they were playing along, or because they were too intimidated, over-awed or whatever to object.)
I’ll have to re-read Robots of Dawn, which I’ll do shortly, and get back to you on my opinion of that scene.
I too think that Jetse has gone a bit astray; only time will tell though.
“And the idea that SF should only focus on the optimistic and propose solutions to mankind’s for the future makes me cringe.”
I couldn’t agree more. Some SF, sure, but certainly not all. I don’t want a ‘one size fits all’ story structure in any genre, especially not sci fi.
The point I was trying, probably not effectively, to make is that many times I’ve read people’s thoughts/frustrations about gender and race issues in genre fiction and what they say comes off sounding like a quote system is exactly what they are advocating. They are not, but their lack of any real solutions to an issue that bothers them comes across sounding like they are asking for someone to step in and force equality. Where I live there are all kinds of different people, and I don’t have any problem with well rounded characters of either genre or any race…I just want them to be written by the hand of a skilled author who does this because it is a part of the story they are wanting to tell, not because they feel some external pressure to do so.
I was reading something about gender issues and female authors on Liz Williams’ site today and it was one of the more well reasoned posts I’ve read about this issue. It wasn’t just complaining about an issue and moving on. It, and the comments in the post, were a really good start to this conversation, in my opinion.
that should read ‘quota’ system…spell check and then submit! Doh!
I enjoyed reading Jetse’s post and this thread – equally! Looks like “The Crotchety Old Fan” is now something I’ll have to read on a regular basis.
TC – I welcome you aboard and thanks for the comment!