Exploring Identity, Sex, and Society through the lens of New Wave Science Fiction
What does it mean to be human? The topic of cultural and personal identity was a hot topic in SciFi during the New Wave of the 1960’s and 1970’s. New wave feminism and other political agendas could be found in science fiction at this time. Some of the most famous science fiction stories from this time period are also written by noted feminists.
While New Wave SciFi identified itself from the earlier pulp science fiction of the Golden Era of Science Fiction by an emphasis on literary merit and soft science, New Wave authors created alternate societies and new worlds in order to experiment with the themes of sex, society and identity. The high degree of experimentation inherent in New Wave SciFi meant that writers were able to explore an infinite number of societal changes in their stories. Sometimes those societal changes were based on technology, while at other times those changes were a product of alien societies.
During the New Wave, a lot of science fiction began exploring how society would change with different constructs or using the SciFi space to explore what identity meant. From exploration into identity, the larger question emerged. Who are we, and what does it mean to be human?
List of works in this curation project:
1Welcome to the Monkey House, written by Kurt Vonnegut in 1968, is a collection of 25 short science fiction stories. The short story chosen for this collection is “Welcome to the Monkey House,” which is also the name of the story collection. This short story is about a society where sex is illegal due to extreme overpopulation. Unlike many of the other selections chosen, “Welcome to the Monkey House” equates sex with freedom and a lack of sex with oppression.
2The Twilight Zone episode 42, called “Eye of the Beholder” aired in 1960 on CBS. The premise of this episode is that Janet Tyler is undergoing surgery to look “normal.” If the surgery fails, Janet will have to go to exile with her own kind. Her “kind” is everyone who is too ugly to be allowed in society. The twist comes at the end when it is revealed to the viewers that by the viewer’s standards, Janet is a fabulously beautiful woman, and all the other people in this society are incredibly ugly.
3Babel-17, written by Samuel R Delaney and published in 1966. Delaney’s novel explores how language dictates people’s thoughts and perceptions. The story premise includes a weaponized language that can control thought, called Babel-17. In the story, a spy is sent to understand how Babel-17 works, and the reader is confronted with the idea that all languages can be used as a form of thought control.
4The Ship Who Sang, written by Anne McCaffrey and published in 1969. The overarching premise of this story is a relationship between a sentient spaceship and the ship’s captain. In the world of The Ship Who Sang, people who are disabled are given an ultimatum; die or have their brain and nervous system implanted into space ships. McCaffrey uses this dystopian society to explore what a body entails, and also what a lack of any sexual component in a relationship means for friendship and love between men and women.
5The Left Hand of Darkness, written by Ursula K. Le Guin and published in 1969. This novel takes place on an alien world called Gethen, where there is no gender. A human ambassador named Genly Ai is sent to make first contact with this androgynous world, but he struggles to deal with the differences that occur due to a lack of gender.
Works Cited:
Delany, Samuel R. Babel-17. Ace Books, 1966.
Gaughsn, Jack. “The Ship Who Sang First Edition Cover.” Wikipedia, 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:ShipWhoSang.jpg#filelinks.
Le Guin, Ursula K. The Left Hand of Darkness. Panther, 1977.
“The Left Hand of Darkness.” Wikipedia, 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TheLeftHandOfDarkness1stEd.jpg.
McCaffrey, Anne. Ship Who Sang. Walker & Co., 1969.
Podwil, Jerome. “Babel-17.” Wikipedia, 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Babel-17.jpg.
Serling, Rod. “Eye of the Beholder.” The Twilight Zone , season 2, episode 6, 11 Nov. 1960.
“Welcome to the Monkey House .” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WelcomeToTheMonkeyHouse.jpg.
“Welcome to the Monkey House.” Welcome to the Monkey House, by Kurt Vonnegut, Delacourte Press, 1968.
