How to Teach Science Fiction

More than any other genre, science fiction is a literature of ideas, and those ideas need to be discussed for the stories to be understood. Teaching Science fiction requires a different approach than most literature. Characterization, realism, and even plot are often less important than the questions which the novel leads the reader to ask.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Come up with a reading list. Many science fiction classes strive for a modern approach that emphasizes utopian and distopian speculative fiction and cyberpunk novels. Other classes strive for a more broad approach, including early science fiction, space opera, and sci-fi/horror.
2. Relate the science fiction authors and their works to their culture as well as to other authors. Science fiction is always in a dialog with both society and its own history, and both need to be discussed.
3. Do not focus exclusively on the most famous works of speculative fiction. The mainstream literary community has decided that George Orwell's "1984," Ray Bradbury's "The Martian Chronicles," and a few other works are the only science fiction stories worthy of study. If you only have a limited amount of time, consider only addressing science fiction novels that your students will not be assigned in another course. For example, instead of reading "1984," read Evgeny Zamiatan's "We," the book from which Orwell borrowed the plot for his novel.
4. Have your students reflect on both what the authors had to say to his own society and whether the message is still applicable today. Although the world changes, the best science fiction stories are remarkably durable.