...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction
- 102 statements
- 19 feature instances
- 20 referencing feature instances
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | type |
FeatureClass | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | label |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | page |
AsimovsThreeKindsOfScienceFiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | comment |
In 1953, Isaac Asimov published an article titled "Social Science Fiction" in Modern Science Fiction. In that article, he stated that every science fiction plot ultimately falls into one of three categories: Gadget, Adventure, or Social. Gadget: The focus of the story is the invention itself: How it comes to be invented, how it works, and/or what it is used for. The invention is the end result of the plot. Adventure: The invention is used as a dramatic prop. It may be the solution to a problem, or it may be causing the problem itself, but the main focus is on the caper and how the invention's presence helps or hinders it. Social: The focus of the story is on how the presence of the invention affects people's daily lives, whether for good or for ill. The chief distinction between this and the other two types is that the presence of the invention influences the plot rather than causing it or being the goal. To demonstrate what he meant by each, he used the example of three different late nineteenth century authors all being inspired to write new stories about the automobile, each going in one of three directions: Or, to paraphrase it briefly: Prior to the rise of John W. Campbell and his Astounding Stories, the vast majority of science fiction fell under either Gadget or Adventure science fiction, with most of the characters being flat and stereotyped (though there were a few exceptions). Campbell wanted good stories, not merely good science; he wanted people to write science fiction that could stand on its own literary merits and seriously examine the consequences of technology on future society. His philosophy influenced authors such as Asimov and Robert A. Heinlein. Asimov, Heinlein, and a few others in turn influenced New Wave Science Fiction of the 1960s and 70s, which leaned heavily—some might say almost exclusively—into the Social (Harlan Ellison, Frank Herbert, and Ursula K. Le Guin being the most prominent examples). Most modern science fiction stories do not exist exclusively in any one category; they have elements of all three present to some degree or another. However, many clearly place more weight on one emphasis than the other two. Note that this is not Mohs Scale of Science Fiction Hardness. That is a measure of how closely a premise sticks to real-world scientific theories; Asimov's scale categorizes a story on how it uses that premise, wherever it may fall on the scale.note Confusing the issue further is the fact that sociology and psychology are often referred to as "soft sciences", that is, sciences that build models based on statistical consensus rather than underlying mechanisms or strict mathematical laws. A work with a social focus can have a very "hard" (realistic) treatment of soft science, and vice-versa. Do not confuse this with Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics either. Socially Scored Society, Cyberpunk, and PostCyberpunk stories are defined by their focus on the exploration of society through the lens of sci-fi. |
|
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | fetched |
2023-11-23T22:15:35Z | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | parsed |
2023-11-23T22:15:35Z | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | isPartOf |
DBTropes | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_41c887f7 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_41c887f7 | comment |
The Truman Show ranks in the Adventure category. The invention is an environment-mimicking dome that hosts a small town-scaled filming set. How it came to be is never explained, just that it exists 20 Minutes into the Future and is used to trick a person into believing his life is real when, in truth, it's a staged Reality Show. The movie doesn't make a point of how the existence of such advanced biodomes would impact society nor how much of a Crapsack World it must be to allow such an immoral show to be produced. Instead, it focuses on the titular character's journey of realizing his life is a simulation and escaping from it. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_41c887f7 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_41c887f7 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Truman Show | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_41c887f7 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_597e4961 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_597e4961 | comment |
In The Gods Themselves, the characters discuss a trans-dimensional reactor that supplies the energy needs of at least humankind and an alien race, each inhabiting their own universe. The extensive conversation allows the reader to learn the intricacies and dire, long-term, unintended consequences of the use of such technology. The reactor exploits the (fictional) isobar exchange, where two identical substances can be swapped between two parallel universes to generate energy — the problem is that it causes one of the universes to approach its heat death sooner. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_597e4961 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_597e4961 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Gods Themselves | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_597e4961 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_5efbf032 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_5efbf032 | comment |
The Asterisk War focuses on the social aspects of the "Starpulse Generation" (people born with magical abilities after an Apocalypse How that nearly extinguished humanity). In the wake of superpowered individuals, the government believes keeping tight control is the best way to maintain a peaceful society — not to mention a profitable one, since it's One Nation Under Copyright — and what better way to ensure that than by making the "Starpulse Generation" fight themselves to entertain the masses? | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_5efbf032 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_5efbf032 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| The Asterisk War | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_5efbf032 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_7150de56 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_7150de56 | comment |
Nexus Gate is the story of how space travel (through the Jump Drive technology) turns a peaceful World of Funny Animals into an expansionistic, colonialist saddled with space pirates. So, overall, it fits the Social type but since is a Roleplay, each roleplayer's individual stories can shift the classification to Gadget or Adventure. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_7150de56 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_7150de56 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Nexus Gate (Roleplay) | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_7150de56 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_727850de | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_727850de | comment |
Smokey and the Bandit delves into the hypothetical social implications of citizen-band radio, a recently invented real-life technology. In the film, CB radio finds itself being used for crime, law enforcement, entrapment, and social resistance. It also gets a whole community revolving around it. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_727850de | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_727850de | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Smokey and the Bandit | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_727850de | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_74603f32 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_74603f32 | comment |
Much of Arcane's plot is driven by Hextech. The social conflict wedged by the life quality (the idyllic, wealthy Piltover versus the impoverished, polluted Zaun) and technology gap (clean steampunk vs. dangerous chemicals) predates the invention of Hextech, however, the latter's apparition is used to explore the former. For one, the Hexgates turn Piltover into a trading hub of a hitherto inconceivable scale, which showers the city with money and goodies that they don't even think to share with Zaun. Then, when Jayce and Viktor build Hextech-based tools that can frighteningly easily become weapons, the militaristic potential of Piltover suddenly rockets therefore making oppressing Zaun all the easier. All of that despite the two inventors wanting to use their technology to benefit as many people as possible. Eventually, this bites everyone in the ass, as the suffering provoked by Piltover and only festered by Zaun's more ruthless individuals ends up triggering the civil war nearly everyone spends the first season trying to prevent. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_74603f32 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_74603f32 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Arcane | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_74603f32 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_78db2b3b | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_78db2b3b | comment |
Long before Asimov spelled his essay, Gulliver's Travels was making a satire of the social impacts of the mind-blowing technology that makes Floating Continent Laputa possible. In the third story about Laputa, its residents are revealed to be pretentious xenophobes who feign intelligence, waste money on useless gadgets, and oppress the people outside their city. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_78db2b3b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_78db2b3b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Gulliver's Travels | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_78db2b3b | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_8176b3a8 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_8176b3a8 | comment |
Help! I'm a Fish: One of Professor MacKrill's Weird Science inventions is a potion that turns people into fish. MacKrill's lack of safety measures gives a curious little girl easy access to it. This forces her big brother and cousin to use the very same potion to retrieve the antidote from the depths of the ocean. Therefore, it's categorized as an Adventure kind of sci-fi story. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_8176b3a8 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_8176b3a8 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Help! I'm a Fish | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_8176b3a8 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_91cf7917 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_91cf7917 | comment |
Played with in his iconic Foundation Series: Fictional Field of Science Psychohistory is created to prevent the Galactic Empire's fall. Unfortunately, it's already beyond salvation. Barring a brief encounter while The Chessmaster Hari Seldon is still alive, the specifics of Psychohistory are not elaborated upon until the very end of the saga. Meanwhile, the plot revolves around the Foundation which is created by Seldon as the seed for a new, more solid Galactic Empire, and how it's manipulated from the shadows by Seldon's pupils to ensure it succeeds. So, the focus is largely on social conflicts but not ones that are caused by the "invention". Instead, Psychohistory is used to solve said problems, even if it has to provoke some of them to ensure the survival of the Foundation. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_91cf7917 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_91cf7917 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Foundation Series | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_91cf7917 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_986e857e | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_986e857e | comment |
Ben 10 being a Space Opera, it falls squarely in the Adventure classification. Kid Hero Ben Tennyson stumbles onto the alien-originated Omnitrix, a device that allows him to turn into a roulette of aliens, each with their own unique set of superpowers. The exact inner workings of the Omnitrix are spoon-fed to the audience, though never completely revealed and the social implications of such technology are never even glanced at. What the series cares about is Ben fending off extraterrestrial bad guys and sometimes going galaxy-trekking. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_986e857e | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_986e857e | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Ben 10 | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_986e857e | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_a33d799a | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_a33d799a | comment |
In the setting of Paradoxus, there are two ways to travel through time — magically, which is incredibly difficult and requires the approval of demigod-like entities, and scientifically, which was created with the express purpose of circumventing the limitations of the former. Trisha and Tecna are the masterminds behind the scientific marvel that is the Nimbus spaceship. Some paragraphs are spent mentioning that it's Trisha who comes up and computes all of the calculations required to send the ship back in time, while it's Tecna who designs the spacecraft. The reason for such a ginormous effort is to solve a problem: Bloom and Stella have died and the Magix Dimension is in shambles thanks to the Burning Legion, so by preventing the two powerful fairies' deaths, they are expecting to improve the situation. By the time the plot proper starts, the Nimbus is just getting its finishing touches, so it's not a Gadget-type of story. Neither it's a Social-type since it's a military grade-only technology not available to the wider public nor used more than once. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_a33d799a | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_a33d799a | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Paradoxus (Fanfic) | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_a33d799a | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_b87de35b | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_b87de35b | comment |
Super Mario Sunshine falls under Adventure. Whatever unexplained technology Bowser Jr. employs to disguise himself as a water-textured Mario (with occasional red eyes) is what causes the conflict — Mario is accused of and falsely punished for vandalizing Isle Delfino. And it's the water Backpack Cannon F.L.U.D.D. that solves the problem. The video game's plot is first about proving Mario's innocence then defeating the ones responsible and finally just exploring Isle Delfine at one's leisure. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_b87de35b | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_b87de35b | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Super Mario Sunshine (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_b87de35b | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_bf30abce | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_bf30abce | comment |
In his collection I, Robot, the Three Laws of Robotics are the invention in question — the series starts detailing how the Laws are invented as well as their kinks, then moves on to some adventure stories relying on the Laws, and ends up with social science fiction about the impact of Three Laws-Compliant AI on society, setting up his Robot Series novels. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_bf30abce | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_bf30abce | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| I, Robot | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_bf30abce | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_d794a2a2 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_d794a2a2 | comment |
AKIRA's category is Adventure by virtue of being fairly character-centric and more about stopping a super-powered kid with a broken psyche and a penchant for mass destruction. How does the kid get the ability to ravage New Tokyo? He's a test subject of the eponymous project, which aims at granting Psychic Powers to humans through Goal-Oriented Evolution. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_d794a2a2 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_d794a2a2 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| AKIRA (Manga) | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_d794a2a2 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_e69e53ea | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_e69e53ea | comment |
Have Space Suit – Will Travel establishes semi-Casual Interplanetary Travel, and is a ripping good yarn, but has very loving descriptions of how the titular spacesuit works and why it works the way it does, combining Gadget (a technological marvel of a one-man spaceship) with Adventure (a Secret War between hostile and benevolent alien races). | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_e69e53ea | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_e69e53ea | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Have Space Suit – Will Travel | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_e69e53ea | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_edeab2c6 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_edeab2c6 | comment |
Arcadia is an example of the "social" category, where technology (and surveillance in particular) control the daily lives of the citizens of Arcadia to (nearly) the last detail. Stepping out of line in Arcadia is generally not advised, as the government will use technology to find out what you did and punish you accordingly. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_edeab2c6 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_edeab2c6 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Arcadia | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_edeab2c6 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f14e1069 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f14e1069 | comment |
AI: The Somnium Files is the Adventure type. The invention is the Psync Machine, which allows members of the police to dive into the dreams of uncooperative witnesses and suspects to uncover memories or information that they are consciously or subconsiously suppressing, allowing them to solve crimes and catch criminals. Pewter invented it prior to the start of the series, with little in the way of explanation as to how it works or what it was like to make it, and it is top secret, so it hasn't had much effect on society as a whole, disqualifying it from falling into the other two categories. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f14e1069 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f14e1069 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| AI: The Somnium Files (Video Game) | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f14e1069 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f95a1dc9 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f95a1dc9 | comment |
Space 1889: The Gadget and Social types are well represented. In the sourcebooks, the new technologies are described in reasonable detail and the adventures are, well, adventures. The social effects of the inventions mentioned are small (such as the difficulty of keeping clothes in their proper places in zero-G) and Europeans treat the other planets as just other colonies. Instead, the historical conventions of the late Victorian Era are played straight. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f95a1dc9 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f95a1dc9 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Space 1889 (Tabletop Game) | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_f95a1dc9 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_fd7de151 | type |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_fd7de151 | comment |
Psycho-Pass is the Social type and the invention is the Sybil System, which instantaneously analyses a person's psychological profile and calculates the likelihood of that person committing a crime. Then any threat to society is dealt with by the Public Safety Bureau. The anime's Central Theme is whether the Sybil System and the Bureau are worth their cost, since they rob people of their freedom, privacy, and security, and the former can be as narrow-minded and bigoted as the humans programming it. | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_fd7de151 | featureApplicability |
1.0 | |
| Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_fd7de151 | featureConfidence |
1.0 | |
| Psycho-Pass | hasFeature |
Asimov's Three Kinds of Science Fiction / int_fd7de151 |
The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.
Copyright of DBTropes.org wrapper 2009-2013 DFKI Knowledge Management. Imprint. - Thanks to Bakken&Baeck for hosting. Contact.
Copyright of data TVTropes.org contributors under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.
Copyright of data TVTropes.org contributors under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.