On Sat, 10 Jan 1998, Umberto Rossi wrote: > Maybe the truth is not that Sf did not foresee the Internet. It was > somewhat given for granted. I think this debate also reveals a bit of ignorance of the purpose of science fiction by those who make the accusation. While it is true that many SF writers have attempted, with widely varying degrees of success, to predict future developments, it would be a great mistake to see this as the PRIMARY purpose of SF. In the end, even the most "accurate" science fiction can only be a reflection of the world as it exists refracted through the lens of fantasy. For instance, are we to stop reading George Orwell's 1984 because the world of 1984 did not, in the direct sense, follow his description? Is there anyone who believes that Orwell intended the novel to be read merely as a prediction of the future? Science fiction is literature, and its usefulness and its failings can only be as adequate as any other type of literature can manage. John Morgan "'One can't always be high.' Oh no? One The University of Michigan only has to properly orient oneself." jbmorgan@umich.edu --Walter Benjamin http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jbmorgan/ including The Colin Wilson Page
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