Beyond Apocalyptic Shorthand and Motivational Tools: A Transdisciplinary Encounter with Science Fiction Studies

• In Event: Perspectives on Civic & Participatory Education

Abstract

Science fiction is currently a buzzword to describe a rapidly unfolding and shockingly unfolding future. This use is not simply in mainstream media’s comparison of current events to sci-fi, but also in I.R. where it describes shocking, destabilizing new technologies that seemingly appear out of nowhere. While not always persistent, this use can be traced as far back as the early Cold War.
Science fiction also is used for classroom motivational tool and thus as a pedagogical enhancement for complex theories, rather than an important source of insights.
What might be possible if science fiction were taken seriously on its own in the study of politics? How might political studies be strengthened through both science fiction stories and scholarship. To answer this, this paper maps the term and assesses how well it is used, and explores how I.R. and political science definitions could be strengthened through transdisciplinary scholarship that bring in more accurate definitions from science fiction scholars and authors.

Author

• David Edward Toohey, Nagoya University