A very welcome post. Of course there are other prior claimants for the invention of SF, including Margaret Cavendish, but it’s important to dispose of any notion of SF as a ‘masculine’ genre. Apart from Le Guin, whom you referenced, there have long been many notable female authors in the field; just from quick recollection there are classics like Octavia E Butler, Andre Norton (one from my formative years), Anne McCaffrey, through to more recent names like Ann Leckie, Becky Chambers, Martha Wells, and N K Jemisin. And plenty more besides.
It also struck me that 1816 was the year before Jane Austen’s death and presumably she was writing Persuasion at the time. I
I’m always fascinated by the way certain things turn out to be synchronous.
There's also the under-appreciated ways in which Austen used Ann Radcliffe's gothic novels to parody in Northanger Abbey. Not that they were exactly sci fi, since all the horror turned out to be in the heroines' minds, but there's a lot in there for genesis to incredible writing.
Great list you have here! So many of the best. I've been rereading Patricia C. Wrede and Vonda Macintyre again and they really hold up from the early 1980s.
With Frankenstein, Mary Shelley also gave us the first and most profound parable of the modern industrial age: our creations become our undoing and ultimate destruction. It's interesting that she saw Frankenstein as Promethian where as the contemporary mind thinks of him more as Deus ex Machina.
I always loved this story, how Mary Shelley took them all by storm (pun intended--a cold and rainy night). Let's hear it for her generation of Gen-Zers. Perhaps youth is not always wasted on the young.
What an evocative post. Love the title and also the point you make about Mary Shelley not getting the credit she deserves. Did you read Frankisstein by Jeanette Winterson ? The story veers between two worlds — Mary Shelley and the writing of Frankenstein in 1800s Europe and a futuristic world of AI in Memphis, USA, where a Silicon Valley-like patriarchy decides to provide “sexbot” alternatives to women ! https://www.hindustantimes.com/books/book-box-fighting-the-patriarchs-with-a-bookstore-crawl-in-nyc-101679126345382.html
This is an excellent piece. Interestingly enough, I was fortunate enough to take a course in college where Frankenstein was read and studied. This was over 40 years ago. Perhaps just an anomaly that it was taught or perhaps a tribute to the English Department of my college for recognizing properly this masterpiece. I prefer to think the latter.
Thank you for this. I’ve always admired Mary Shelley and discussed many times over the years how amazing it was to write Frankenstein at such a young age. It still holds up today, a truly good book which was way ahead of its time 🙏
Lucian of Samosata, 2nd century CE, wrote about a trip to the moon and what happened there in his True Stories. Ok, well, it didn't catch on right away. At least not until Johannes Keppler’s Somnium. Oh dear, guess that didn't get much traction right away either. I just think it's important that we not forget the ancients and early moderns.
A very welcome post. Of course there are other prior claimants for the invention of SF, including Margaret Cavendish, but it’s important to dispose of any notion of SF as a ‘masculine’ genre. Apart from Le Guin, whom you referenced, there have long been many notable female authors in the field; just from quick recollection there are classics like Octavia E Butler, Andre Norton (one from my formative years), Anne McCaffrey, through to more recent names like Ann Leckie, Becky Chambers, Martha Wells, and N K Jemisin. And plenty more besides.
It also struck me that 1816 was the year before Jane Austen’s death and presumably she was writing Persuasion at the time. I
I’m always fascinated by the way certain things turn out to be synchronous.
There's also the under-appreciated ways in which Austen used Ann Radcliffe's gothic novels to parody in Northanger Abbey. Not that they were exactly sci fi, since all the horror turned out to be in the heroines' minds, but there's a lot in there for genesis to incredible writing.
Great list you have here! So many of the best. I've been rereading Patricia C. Wrede and Vonda Macintyre again and they really hold up from the early 1980s.
With Frankenstein, Mary Shelley also gave us the first and most profound parable of the modern industrial age: our creations become our undoing and ultimate destruction. It's interesting that she saw Frankenstein as Promethian where as the contemporary mind thinks of him more as Deus ex Machina.
I used to teach Frankenstein with Blade Runner 🫀❤️🫀so glad to read this tribute!
Love that!
Indeed, the depth, originality, and impact of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein can't be overstated.
I always loved this story, how Mary Shelley took them all by storm (pun intended--a cold and rainy night). Let's hear it for her generation of Gen-Zers. Perhaps youth is not always wasted on the young.
I never thought about this distinction between gothic and sci fi. Thank you for another incredible essay!
What an evocative post. Love the title and also the point you make about Mary Shelley not getting the credit she deserves. Did you read Frankisstein by Jeanette Winterson ? The story veers between two worlds — Mary Shelley and the writing of Frankenstein in 1800s Europe and a futuristic world of AI in Memphis, USA, where a Silicon Valley-like patriarchy decides to provide “sexbot” alternatives to women ! https://www.hindustantimes.com/books/book-box-fighting-the-patriarchs-with-a-bookstore-crawl-in-nyc-101679126345382.html
Nope, she didn't get the recognition she observed. Just like any other woman in history who did something groundbreaking.😣
This is an excellent piece. Interestingly enough, I was fortunate enough to take a course in college where Frankenstein was read and studied. This was over 40 years ago. Perhaps just an anomaly that it was taught or perhaps a tribute to the English Department of my college for recognizing properly this masterpiece. I prefer to think the latter.
Frankenstein was one of the first classic literature books I ever read and remains my favourite novel of all time today
.. bravo ! A delightful reflection .. ! 🦎🏴☠️
I love the story of Mary Shelley's brilliant, creativeind asuch as I love her novel, Frankenstein, which I've read several times over the years.
Thank you for this. I’ve always admired Mary Shelley and discussed many times over the years how amazing it was to write Frankenstein at such a young age. It still holds up today, a truly good book which was way ahead of its time 🙏
Lucian of Samosata, 2nd century CE, wrote about a trip to the moon and what happened there in his True Stories. Ok, well, it didn't catch on right away. At least not until Johannes Keppler’s Somnium. Oh dear, guess that didn't get much traction right away either. I just think it's important that we not forget the ancients and early moderns.
Nicely written. I've recently did a little research on the origins of science fiction as a genre, with similar conclusions:
https://tapwatersommelier.substack.com/p/who-was-the-first-sci-fi-writer