The reality of oppression and discrimination in science fiction.

摘要

Science fiction literature is often criticized for being unrealistic, but it actually depends upon rationality and realism. Rational explanations are a mainstay of the genre, and this coincides with its realistic properties. Science fiction regularly comments on reality through fictional settings; for this purpose, utopias and dystopias are commonly used. The oppression and discrimination found in dystopian fictions closely resemble reality. The dystopian vision of Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? depicts a society that practices slavery in a manner not unlike actual slavery from our reality. Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale portrays a fictional patriarchal society whose customs strongly emulate patriarchies from reality. Both novels are dystopian fictions that mirror reality very accurately. Their emphasis on realism has been a constant of the genre; science fiction has since its inception focused upon discussing reality through creating fictional worlds that appear radically different.