Reality Simulation in Science Fiction Literature, Film and Television

Reality Simulation in Science Fiction Literature, Film and Television PDF Author: Heather Duerre Humann
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476677530
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 204

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Book Description
In recent decades, science fiction in both print and visual media has produced an outpouring of story lines that feature forms of simulated reality. These depictions appear with such frequency that fictional portrayals of simulated worlds have become a popular sci-fi trope--one that prompts timeless questions about the nature of reality while also tapping into contemporary debates about emerging technologies. In combination with tech-driven tensions, this study shows that our collective sense of living in politically uncertain times also propels the popularity of these story lines. Because of the kinds of questions they raise and the cultural anxieties they provoke, these fictional representations provide a window into contemporary culture and demonstrate how we are reassessing our own reality.

Reality Simulation in Science Fiction Literature, Film and Television

Reality Simulation in Science Fiction Literature, Film and Television PDF Author: Heather Duerre Humann
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476677530
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 204

Get Book Here

Book Description
In recent decades, science fiction in both print and visual media has produced an outpouring of story lines that feature forms of simulated reality. These depictions appear with such frequency that fictional portrayals of simulated worlds have become a popular sci-fi trope--one that prompts timeless questions about the nature of reality while also tapping into contemporary debates about emerging technologies. In combination with tech-driven tensions, this study shows that our collective sense of living in politically uncertain times also propels the popularity of these story lines. Because of the kinds of questions they raise and the cultural anxieties they provoke, these fictional representations provide a window into contemporary culture and demonstrate how we are reassessing our own reality.

Alternative Realities

Alternative Realities PDF Author: Carl Plantinga
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
ISBN: 0813599814
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 169

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Book Description
"Movies are uniquely capable of creating and displaying fantastical worlds. With the rise of CGI came the ascendance of animated fantasy, superhero, and science fiction films. The movies are also capable of representing unique subjective experiences; a movie can be an "experience recorder." Somewhat paradoxically, however, movies are thought to have a strong connection to everyday reality and to have roots in realism. Alternative Realities explores the complex intersection between movies, reality, and fantasy; between subjective and objective representation. It shows that even the most surreal fantasies ground their images, sounds, and narratives in quotidian reality. On the other hand, even the most realistic documentaries and realist dramas rely on creative structures that are products of the human imagination. This combination of realism and imagination, of the objective and the subjective, is the key to the power of movies"--

A Tale Told by a Machine

A Tale Told by a Machine PDF Author: Heather Duerre Humann
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476649774
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 171

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Book Description
Intelligent machines have long existed in science fiction, and they now appear in mainstream films such as Bladerunner, Ex Machina, I Am Mother and Her, as well as in a recent proliferation of literary texts narrated from the machine's perspective. These new portrayals of artificial intelligence inevitably foreground dilemmas related to identity and selfhood, concepts being reassessed in the 21st century. Taking a close look at novels like Ancillary Justice, Aurora, All Systems Red, The Actuality, The Unseen World and Klara and the Sun, this work investigates key questions that arise from the use of AI narrators. It describes how these narratives challenge humanist principles by suggesting that selfhood is an illusion, even as they make the case for extending these principles to machines by proposing that they are not so different from humans. The book examines what is at stake with nonhuman narration, the qualities of AI narratives, and what it might mean to relate to a narrator when the voice adopted is that of an AI.

Dystopian States of America

Dystopian States of America PDF Author: Matthew B. Hill
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1440873399
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 393

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Book Description
Dystopian States of America is a crucial resource that studies the impact of dystopian works on American society-including ways in which they reflect our deep and persistent fears about environmental calamities, authoritarian governments, invasive technologies, and human weakness. Dystopian States of America provides students and researchers with an illuminating resource for understanding the impact and relevance of dystopian and apocalyptic works in contemporary American culture. Through its wide survey of dystopian works in numerous forms and genres, the book encourages readers to connect with these works of fiction and understand how the catastrophically grim or disquieting worlds they portray offer insights into our own current situation. In addition to providing more than 150 encyclopedia articles on a large and representative sample of dystopian/apocalyptic narratives in fiction, film, television, and video games (including popular works that often escape critical inquiry), Dystopian States of America features a suite of critical essays on five themes-war, pandemics, totalitarianism, environmental calamity, and technological overreach-that serve as the foundation for most dystopian worlds of the imagination. These offerings complement one another, enabling readers to explore dystopian conceptions of America and the world from multiple perspectives and vantage points.

Human Contradictions in Octavia E. Butler's Work

Human Contradictions in Octavia E. Butler's Work PDF Author: Martin Japtok
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030466256
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 254

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Book Description
Human Contradictions in Octavia Butler’s Work continues the critical discussions of Butler’s work by offering a variety of theoretical perspectives and approaches to Butler’s text. This collection contains original essays that engage Butler’s series (Seed to Harvest, Xenogenesis, Parables), her stand-alone novels (Kindred and Fledgling), and her short stories. The essays explore new facets of Butler’s work and its relevance to philosophy, sociology, anthropology, psychology, cultural studies, ethnic studies, women’s studies, religious studies, American studies, and U.S. history. The volume establishes new ways of reading this seminal figure in African American literature, science fiction, feminism, and popular culture.

Science Fiction Literature through History [2 volumes]

Science Fiction Literature through History [2 volumes] PDF Author: Gary Westfahl
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 1440866171
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 814

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Book Description
This book provides students and other interested readers with a comprehensive survey of science fiction history and numerous essays addressing major science fiction topics, authors, works, and subgenres written by a distinguished scholar. This encyclopedia deals with written science fiction in all of its forms, not only novels and short stories but also mediums often ignored in other reference books, such as plays, poems, comic books, and graphic novels. Some science fiction films, television programs, and video games are also mentioned, particularly when they are relevant to written texts. Its focus is on science fiction in the English language, though due attention is given to international authors whose works have been frequently translated into English. Since science fiction became a recognized genre and greatly expanded in the 20th century, works published in the 20th and 21st centuries are most frequently discussed, though important earlier works are not neglected. The texts are designed to be helpful to numerous readers, ranging from students first encountering science fiction to experienced scholars in the field.

Making Futures Work

Making Futures Work PDF Author: Phil Balagtas
Publisher: "O'Reilly Media, Inc."
ISBN: 1098148878
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 438

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Book Description
Learn how to get started with Futures Thinking. With this practical guide, Phil Balagtas, founder of the Design Futures Initiative and the global Speculative Futures network, shows you how designers and futurists have made futures work at companies such as Atari, IBM, Apple, Disney, Autodesk, Lufthansa, and McKinsey & Company. This book demystifies the process of Futures Thinking into a language that's practical and useful for both designers and strategists. You'll learn about Strategic Foresight for using ideas about the future to anticipate and prepare for change; explore Speculative Design to deal with the relationship between science, technology, and humans; and Design Fiction to explore and critique possible futures. Balagtas also shares stories from his journey to build a global community and describes how he works with clients to reshape the futures vocabulary. With this guide, you'll learn how to: Prepare your client, team, and/or audience for futures Facilitate and work with the fundamental methods and frameworks Gain advocacy and support within your organization Provide measurable value from the process and outcomes Build a futures culture and team Sustain a culture and support system beyond projects

Simulacra and Simulation

Simulacra and Simulation PDF Author: Jean Baudrillard
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 9780472065219
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 174

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Book Description
Develops a theory of contemporary culture that relies on displacing economic notions of cultural production with notions of cultural expenditure. This book represents an effort to rethink cultural theory from the perspective of a concept of cultural materialism, one that radically redefines postmodern formulations of the body.

Science Fiction Film

Science Fiction Film PDF Author: J. P. Telotte
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521596473
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
Examines one of the most enduring genres of Hollywood cinema: the science fiction film.

Vurt

Vurt PDF Author: Jeff Noon
Publisher: Watkins Media Limited
ISBN: 1915202965
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 341

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Book Description
Hailed as the novel that reinvented cyberpunk, The 30th Anniversary edition of Jeff Noon's award winning cult classic, Vurt. Scribble and his gang, the Stash Riders, haunt the streets of an alternate Manchester, chasing the immersive highs that come from Vurt Feathers. Place a feather in your mouth and it takes you to the Vurt: another place, a trip, a shared reality of all our dreams and mythologies. Different coloured feathers provide different experiences, but Scribble is searching for his lost love and only one feather offers the hope of finding her. It’s the ultimate feather, it may not even exist at all: Curious Yellow. But as the Game Cat says, “Be careful, be very careful. This ride is not for the weak.” First published in 1993, Jeff Noon’s extraordinary, influential, award-winning novel transcended SF boundaries and resisted categorization. Alluding to noir and surrealism alike, it was defiantly its own thing and remains so thirty years later. File Under: Fantasy [ Curious Yellow | Urban Wonderland | Game Cat | Living on the Dub Side ]