Defining Science Fiction/The Problem of Doing So

Defining Science Fiction, or any sub-genre of literature for that matter, can be problematic. For almost any definition generated there are exceptions. In this way defining science fiction is very similar to learning a language as they are more defined by exceptions to the rules than the rules themselves. Simply put, for a definition to work it must be very specific or extremely broad (though even then there will be acceptable exceptions).

This notion of very specific sub-genres of science fiction is what first comes to mind when I think of science fiction as a whole. To clarify, I will see a specific type of science fiction such as Star Trek (I call it talky/ techy sci-fi thanks to a YouTube video) but will instantly think of another work that falls in the science fiction category but differs from Star Trek. Example: I see Star Trek but think of Cowboy Bebop. They share space and … spaceships but what else? Cowboy Bebop falls more under the sub-genre of Space Western (with a noir influence?) but is still Science Fiction. In one (Star Trek) the technology is futuristic and fantastical, it’s shiny and new. Everything in Bebop is old, rundown, and blatantly post-apocalyptic for the episodes that take place on Earth. Another sub-genre, though I have much less experience with it than I’d like, is Cyberpunk. The best example of this is Blade Runner. It is similar in appearance to Space Westerns (at least the ones I’ve seen) but is thematically different. Introducing all these sub-genres and showing their similarities and differences helps me arrive at my definition of Science Fiction.

Science Fiction is an umbrella term for a collection of similar yet vastly different sub-genres of fiction; these sub-genres have more in common with each other thematically and stylistically than other sub-genres of fiction and thus are grouped together. Even though this is my definition I don’t love it. I prefer defining works on a case by case basis while keeping mind of the enormity of all the literature out there.