Extra Sci Fi

We kick off a new season of Extra Sci Fi exploring the theme of dystopias and apocalypses. We begin with Aldous Huxley's *Brave New World*--a very early novel that make a compelling argument for *why* the dystopia exists at all.

What makes 1984 still relevant to modern readers is that it serves as a warning against fascism in all its possible forms. George Orwell's service fighting in the Spanish Civil War led him to see that the heart of totalitarianism is about xenophobia and nationalism no matter which kind of government it came from.

The Cold War prompted science fiction to take a turn from the darkness of humanity, to the end of humanity itself. Earth Abides is a keystone novel at this turning point, exploring the viewpoint of a lost hiker who returns to his California residence to find that humanity is gone... and yet, is rebuilding.

A Clockwork Orange reflects a cultural fear of society's moral decay in the 1960s. Its usage of a mashup slang language known as "nadsat" illustrates the complexities of rebellious youth culture. Ultimately, Anthony Burgess's work asks us to think about if or when free will should ever be suppressed, but the major differences between the book and the film version of this story present contrasting takeaways.

How do we cope with a crowded world we as humans were never evolutionarily designed for? Stand on Zanzibar was written in 1968 but it uncannily, accurately predicts many of our present day's social tensions and stressors. However, it also has a certain optimism that makes it stand out among other dystopic fiction we've discussed.

Harlan Ellison was a little dismissive of this short story that you've might only heard of because you saw it on a Steam summer sale, but at the time of its publication (1967) its ideas about the possibility of "evil AI," as well as the possible degeneracy of humanity, were shocking and unexpected, and it set the stage for the wave of sci-fi we'll talk about next season: New Wave!