The science fiction narrative has grown exponentially as the twentieth century has progressed in decades. But it arose much earlier. Some say that Frankenstein or the modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley it was the first of all these novels that today fascinates young and old. But this fascination with science fiction, as we say, comes from further back.
Today, fictions that also fall within science fiction continue to be created, such as the acclaimed The Handmaid's Tale, devised by Margaret Atwood. Although strictly gender needs science, something very real and refutable, which is mixed with fictional alternatives. In other words, scientific knowledge expands thanks to fiction. Although many dystopias enjoy belonging to the genre. Anyway, it is always difficult to talk about novels of a genre in which there is so much and so good. Let's see, then, some examples of science fiction novels.
science fiction novels
Mary Shelley could have been the great pioneer of science fiction; and another woman, Ursula K. Le Guin was in charge of granting literary dignity to contemporary science fiction. Then there are the essential classical authors, such as Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury, Aldous Huxley, George Orwell, Stanislaw Lem, HG Wells or Philip K. Dick, who developed their work during the tree science fiction in the middle of the XNUMXth century.
With all of them there is a mixture that characterizes the genre. Why many of the great works of these writers are dystopias that with deft ingenuity imagine disturbing futuristic perspectives. And for this reason it is of great help then to introduce electronic elements and technological advances. Other works are framed in the dark and infinite space, the place to which our mind travels when we think about the genre. Even fantasy and science fiction also go hand in hand.
Therefore, the imagination and originality in science fiction are undeniable, the possibilities are very, very wide. And this, together with the visual schemes to which the stories adapt so well, has led to the generation of a multitude of film adaptations, which in their own way have known how to consecrate the genre also on an audiovisual platform (although sometimes with more or less success). ).
Similarly no one doubts the importance of gender for the development of culture and literary expression. In addition, there are many new authors who are encouraged to create quality science fiction stories that help us better understand this world.
Likewise, this genre, in addition to understanding our society and making us aware of what surrounds us, alerts us to the dangers that are already here. It also helps us to dream and to continue believing that other realities are truly possible. Science fiction is constituted in perfect harmony with fantasy and what can be perfectly plausible. Or would we have believed hundreds of years, or even decades ago, that smartphones, electric cars, or space travel could be real and part of this world? If he told us, that would have seemed like science fiction.
Science Fiction Novels: Some Notable Titles
Brave New World (1932)
One of the great pioneering books of the last century. Written by Aldous Huxley who gives us a sleeping, almost stunned perspective of the humans who have lost their humanity in this dystopia. Why people, in addition to being conceived in test tubes, are classified from before birth to have a position in society. Somehow the dilemma of freedom is eliminated, what to do with it? To what or where to direct our life? Ultimately everyone has a function on the social scale. In this system everyone is happy and no one ever thinks of rebelling..
1984 (1949)
1984 is a novel by George Orwell that proposes another totalitarian system in which all the steps and actions of the citizens are watched all the time, also in their own apartments. There is no room for any movement that is considered out of order; work, relationships and even thought are controlled under the iron eye of Big Brother. 1984 It is undoubtedly one of the most powerful and remarkable novels of the XNUMXth century.
Martian Chronicles (1950)
Ray Bradbury is one of science fiction's key authors; he has written stories, film scripts, novels and also plays. Martian Chronicles It is composed of a series of stories that narrate the colonization of the planet Mars by humanity.. This must leave Earth and intends to turn the new planet into an exact copy of what they left on the blue planet. The relationship between the colonists and the Martians is shown as a review of what has already been happening on our planet for centuries with conquests and invasions. Some surprising stories that move to reflection.
Fahrenheit 451 (1953)
Ray Bradbury's most celebrated novel. Many will already know that its title is due to the fact that it is at this temperature that paper burns. And the matter is on fire. This is the story of Guy Montag, a firefighter in whose world the professionals in his field are dedicated to starting fires, not putting them out. His job is to burn books, because these objects only cause suffering with the ideas they contain.. Reading is prohibited and it is a true subversive act to keep books at home. This in particular is a book worth rereading every time.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Arthur C. Clarke's work is perhaps best known for the movie directed by Stanley Kubrick. However, this is one of those books that have paved the way for the well-known question: are we alone in the universe? It is about a space journey in human desperation to find answers.. It is an enigmatic story in which time and space are opposed, in which the great existential questions are protagonists. On the other hand, it's also fair to say that the author contributed a lot to Kubrick's film.
The Left Hand of Darkness (1969)
It is an amazing novel by the writing Ursula K. Le Guin that has confirmed that science fiction is a genre worthy of its own and respected. The author created a world called Geden in which its inhabitants do not have a permanent sex or a defined gender, they are androgynous and have a mutable biology depending on what time of the month they are. A novel capable of breaking all taboos.
Dark Frontier (2020)
Award Minotaur 2020, dark border puts the new note to this list, which shows that the powerful and quality genre is still more alive than ever. Sabino Cabeza's novel transports us to the darkest and most remote space. The human population has spread over thousands of planets. On the other hand, a black hole has appeared at the same time as a mysterious ship, on the edge of said hole. The captain named Florence Schiaparelli must decide between saving the crew of that ship or advancing in the study of the hole. The novel points out every feature of traditional space science fiction..
