Why Speculative Fiction Is Needed Now More Than Ever

by Emmanuel Nataf, @EmmanuelNataf 

When people think of speculative fiction, they might conjure images of sentient robots, talking dragons, dystopian societies, supernatural beings, elaborate subplots, and other staples of the stories that can be classified as “speculative.”

But speculative fiction is also an important place to explore social, political, and economic issues. The loose boundaries of the genre allow authors to address those issues and ask “what if?” — resulting in worlds different from our own in significant and specific ways, which often reflect or comment on aspects of actual society.

Now, with technology progressing so quickly (and leading to rapid social and ethical changes and dilemmas), it’s critical to use speculative fiction as a means of thinking about the future. Here’s why speculative fiction is needed now more than ever.

It can question the status quo and imagine how society could function differently

Nichelle Nichols is the actress who first played Lieutenant Uhura on Star Trek — a groundbreaking role because she was one of the first black women to be featured in a major television series. During the first year of the series, Nichols was tempted to leave the show to pursue a career on Broadway. But none other than Martin Luther King Jr. convinced Nichols to stay, urging her to recognize how her role on Star Trek provided a role model for black children and women who were sorely lacking any public representation.

After Star Trek was cancelled, Nichols went on to volunteer for a special project with NASA to recruit minority and female applicants. This program led to the selection of NASA’s first female and first minority astronauts: Sally Ride and Guion Bluford. Eventually, it also led to NASA’s first female astronaut of color, Mae Jemison, who directly credited Star Trek for inspiring her career choices — and Jemison even later appeared on Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Because speculative fiction and media takes place in worlds with different “rules” than our own, it allows people to imagine different kinds of societies — including those where anyone can go after their dreams, no matter who they are or where they come from.

It can provoke critical discussions about social issues

Speculative fiction, such as fantasy, helps readers leave their inherent biases at the door when it comes to social issues. Because these stories often take place in otherworldly settings or societies that don’t resemble our own, authors can subtly encourage readers to consider different perspectives on actual issues.

For instance, Octavia Butler’s Kindred uses the appeal of a time-traveling narrative to discuss the long-lasting trauma of slavery, as well as to spotlight many other social issues. Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho uses fantasy tropes like magic and romance, all the while examining matters related to gender and racism. Ender’s Game examines child labor and slavery, while Elysium looks at health care. The list goes on and on, but one thing is clear: speculative fiction isn’t entirely “speculative,” because it absolutely tackles real-world issues.

It can help increase public understanding of technology’s impact

How many people have read the journal Science, Technology and Society? Now, how many people read Ready Player One? We can confidently say that the general public is much more likely to read popular sci-fi novels or go watch a fantasy movie than they are to seek out research articles pertaining to technology.

In that way, fiction and other forms of popular entertainment play a huge role in shaping public opinion and knowledge — particularly the public perception of contemporary issues regarding technology. For instance, there is much discussion around that fact that AI and automation has lead to the redundancy of many kinds of jobs, leading to whole classes of workers struggling to find employment.

Of course, unless this problem affects you directly, you’re unlikely to spend too much time thinking about it of your own accord. However, reading a science fiction book that closely examines the issue — all the while incorporating favorite tropes of the genre — might incite you to think more deeply about the implications of technology and the consequences it can have.

It can offer cautionary advice

When Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale came back into the spotlight in 2017 as a television series, one thing critics and viewers alike remarked upon was how closely the plot hit home. This could happen, many commented — while others noted this has basically already been happening. The book and show present an alternate reality, but one that takes place in the “real world” and that depicts extreme versions of actual, current issues.

Black Mirror is another example of a popular TV series that looks at current technological trajectories and pushes them just far enough that they feel speculative, but not so much that they feel completely fantastical.

Both these examples demonstrate how speculative fiction offers cautionary advice by presenting readers with a version of the world that is hard to look at — and a world that may not be in the distant future, but in the near future.

It can encourage readers to consider potential solutions to problems

Speculative fiction is not all about casting a critical eye on society; it’s also an invitation to think outside the box, engage in progressive thinking, and believe in the notion of possibility. Readers can be encouraged to not only see the potential pitfalls of current trajectories, but also the potential solutions to them.

As Isaac Asimov wrote: “It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be.” We need speculative fiction to make these change-based decisions — to find solutions to problems that might otherwise lead us down a dark path.

Emmanuel Nataf is the founder and CEO of Reedsy, a marketplace that connects authors and publishers with the world’s best editors, designers and marketers. Emmanuel dedicates most of his time to building Reedsy’s product and is interested in how technology can transform cultural industries. You can find him on Twitter.

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