Title: Science fiction and political philosophy : from Bacon to Black Mirror /
Authors: McCranor, Timothy; Michels, Steven; Dolgoy, Erin A.; Hale, Kimberly Hurd, 1983-; Wilford, Paul; Anderson, Nicholas; Black, Jeff J. S., 1970-; Craig, Tobin L.,; Picariello, Damien K.; Bagchi, Nivedita; Sottosanti, Danielle,; Kapust, Daniel J., 1976-; Hunt, Constance C. T.,; Whitney, David N.
Year: 2020
Subjects: Science fiction History and criticism; Politics in literature; Politics in motion pictures; Politics on television; Political science Philosophy; Politics in literature; Science fiction
Abstract: "Sometimes called the "literature of ideas," science fiction is a natural medium for normative political philosophy. Science fiction's focus on technology, space and time travel, non-human lifeforms, and parallel universes cannot help but invoke the perennial questions of political life, including the nature of a just social order and who should rule; freedom, free will, and autonomy; and the advantages and disadvantages of progress. Rather than offering a reading of a work inspired by a particular thinker or tradition, each chapter presents a careful reading of a classic or contemporary work in the genre (a novel, short story, film, or television series) to illustrate and explore the themes and concepts of political philosophy."--publisher description.
Contents: An introduction to science fiction and political philosophy / Timothy McCranor -- Fiction and the science of self-reflection: Francis Bacon's New Atlantis and the idols of the mind / Erin A. Dolgoy and Kimberly Hurd Hale -- Utopianism and realism in Shakespeare's The Tempest / Paul T. Wilford and Nicholas Anderson -- Frankenstein and the ugliness of enlightenment / Jeff J. S. Black -- Technology and anxiety in Melville's "Lightning-Rod Man" / Tobin L. Craig -- The head, the hands, and the heart: Political rationalism in Fritz Lang's Metropolis / Damien K. Picariello -- Technology and human nature in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World / Nivedita Bagchi -- An exhortation to secure humanity against the Buggers: Ender's Game / Steven Michels and Danielle Sottosanti -- Seeing and being seen in the kingdom of ends: On Immanuel Kant, Adam Smith, and Star Trek: The Next Generation / Daniel J. Kapust -- Knowledge of death in Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go / Constance C. T. Hunt -- Founding a posthuman political order in M. R. Carey's The Girl with All the Gifts / Erin A. Dolgoy and Kimberly Hurd Hale -- Bacon, Transhumanism, and reflections from the Black Mirror / David N. Whitney and Steven Michels.