Title: Religion in Science Fiction: The Evolution of an Idea and the Extinction of a Genre (Scientific Studies of Religion: Inquiry and Explanation)
Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
Publication Date: 2016
Language: English
ISBN 10: 1474273173
ISBN 13: 9781474273176
Binding: Soft cover
Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Religion in Science Fiction investigates the history of the representations of religion in science fiction literature. Space travel, futuristic societies, and non-human cultures are traditional themes in science fiction. Speculating on the societal impacts of as-yet-undiscovered technologies is, after all, one of the distinguishing characteristics of science fiction literature. A more surprising theme may be a parallel exploration of religion: its institutional nature, social functions, and the tensions between religious and scientific worldviews.

Steven Hrotic investigates the representations of religion in 19th century proto-science fiction, and genre science fiction from the 1920s through the end of the century. Taken together, he argues that these stories tell an overarching story-a 'metanarrative'-of an evolving respect for religion, paralleling a decline in the belief that science will lead us to an ideal (and religion-free) future.

Science fiction's metanarrative represents more than simply a shift in popular perceptions of religion: it also serves as a model for cognitive anthropology, providing new insights into how groups and identities form in a globalized world, and into how crucial a role narratives may play. Ironically, this same perspective suggests that science fiction, as it was in the 20th century, may no longer exist.

About the Authors

Steven Hrotic is a member of faculty at the department of Religion, University of Vermont.

Donald Wiebe is Professor of Philosophy of Religion at Trinity College, University of Toronto, Canada.

Luther H. Martin is Professor of Religion Emeritus at the University of Vermont, USA.

Radek Kundt is Assistant Professor in the Department for the Study of Religions, Masaryk University, Czech Republic. He is also a Research Fellow at the LEVYNA Laboratory for the Experimental Research of Religion, Masaryk University, Czech Republic.

Dimitris Xygalatas is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Head of the Experimental Anthropology Lab at the University of Connecticut, USA.

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