Abstract
Science fiction (SF) is not primarily about the future, but about the dreams and nightmares of today. Science fiction frequently highlights ideas, opportunities, conflicts and realities of the time and context in which a particular narrative is conceived. This is our point of departure. Our goal is to examine and discuss what the impact of studying a particular imagined future might have on our understanding of contemporary ethical discussions on climate change and ethics of nature.
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Notes
- 1.
Examples of texts that explore the field and have been used as texts books in courses on Science Fiction and ethics are: McGrath JF (ed.) (2011): Religion and Science Fiction. Pickwick Publications, Pinsky, M (2003): Ethics in/as Science Fiction. Associated University Press, Schneider S (ed.) (2009): Science Fiction and Philosophy. From Time Travel to Superintelligence. Wiley Blackwell.
- 2.
The third novel in the trilogy (Maddaddam (2013)), was published after the writing of our article, and is therefore not considered in the present analysis. We do not, however, find that the third novel challenges our analysis of the basic conflicts in “The MaddAddam Trilogy” – but rather that it enhances it.
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Eriksen, M.M.L., Gjerris, M. (2017). On Ustopias and Finding Courage in a Hopeless Situation. In: Baron, C., Halvorsen, P., Cornea, C. (eds) Science Fiction, Ethics and the Human Condition. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56577-4_14
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