Fictional Space: Essays on Contemporary Science Fiction

Fictional Space consists of eight essays by British and American critics on science fiction. The contributors have written especially on the most recent science fiction, taking account of the field's resurgence since what seemed a 'played-out' period in the 1970s. Fictional Space analyses the development of the postmodern science fiction in 'cyberpunk' and other forms; the treatment of political 'taboo areas' such as the Vietnam War and the decline of American hegemony; altered attitudes to 'text', seen in different essays and different images as decayed and abandoned, or as transmuted by technology into newly eternal formats. Among the questions asked are, why is science fiction so different to read, and why do so many sophisticated readers refuse to read it? Can science fiction exist without relevance or 'referentiality' to the society that produces it? Can it be related in normal literary ways to the real-life experiences or frustrations of its authors? -- from back cover.