Science fiction tells us more about the development of society than it does about the development of science. 

Lakes of Science Fiction: A Reflection of Society

In front of you, there is a lake. You approach it and you see it as it is. You see green seaweed swaying in time with the gentle ripple of the water, you see schools of fish darting around, you see rocks spotted with moss and algae. Let’s say you take a step back, then a few more, until you’re quite some distance away. You gaze at the lake, and you see a reflection of your own surroundings. 
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This lake can represent many things, but today, it represents the genre of science fiction. As we read science-fiction texts or watch science-fiction films, we often get sidetracked by the contents of the lake. We get distracted by the sheer development of science, the futuristic setting, the existence of extraterrestrial beings. Who wouldn’t? I know I would. Imagine living in a world where you can genetically modify your children to make them perfect. Or maybe you’d like to escape to a world with intelligent police cars? Oh, what about dinosaurs? What if humans had the power to resurrect extinct beings? 

What we often don’t see is the big picture, the reflection of society. Take a step back, now look at the lake. Look at the reflection of society in literary worlds of sci-fi. These composers create because they have a purpose. They have a message to convey, and it’s not solely about science. 

Take the film Gattaca for example. Directed by Andrew Niccol in the late 90s, Gattaca portrays a world so advanced that it’s possible to genetically modify a fetus to improve their potential. To be perfect. Or at least achieve the illusion of perfection. Beneath the glamour of genetic modifications and scientific progression, there lies a deeper message.

“"Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?" Ecclesiates 7:13.” This is the quote Niccol used at the start of the film. What does this imply? Is he not foreshadowing how humans may attempt to undermine God’s power and tamper with his creations? Is he not evoking a sense of uneasiness in his audience, provoking them to question what humankind can really achieve? 

Will it have consequences? Are there any dangers? What will the future become? 

While he conveys the technological advancement of the society in Gattaca, Niccol also reflects the consequences of such technological advancements, which transforms society as we know it today. As seen from the film, their societal values differ tremendously from ours, discrimination eventually shifts, no longer focusing on nationality, gender, or sexuality, but on the basis of science and the combinations of “ATGC”. 

Let’s shift a couple decades back and look at another example, Ray Bradbury’s short story, “The Pedestrian.” (1951)

When we start a story, the first thing we do is read the title. “The Pedestrian”. Pedestrian has two meanings, “a person walking rather than travelling in a vehicle” and “lacking inspiration or excitement; dull.” 

Empty, dark streets with artificial lights glowing from the houses nearby. This is the world of Bradbury’s “The Pedestrian”. The protagonist, Leonard Mead, enjoys walking around the neighbourhood, peering into each household, wondering which TV channel each family is watching obsessively.

A walker. A pedestrian. 

Yet, the irony is that in a society where humans are addicted to technology, addicted to consuming TV programs, the “pedestrian” is the only individual that’s not pedestrian. 

“Everything went on in the tomblike houses at night now, he thought, continuing his fancy. The tombs, ill-lit by television light, where the people sat like the dead, the gray or multicolored lights touching their faces, but never really touching them.” 

In this world, humans have lost their ability to connect, to be inspired, to live. In this world, even the most mundane activity, such as walking, is considered abnormal and “recessive” as the intelligent police car put it. Once again, let’s take a step back, let’s look at the lake from a distance. Bradbury is warning us. He is warning his readers that this is what our society will become if we allow technology to influence us in such a way.

Distant. 

Detached.

Pedestrian. 

Is he wrong? I don’t believe so. Take a look at us now, take a look especially at the younger generations (ahem ahem Gen Alpha). Addicted to technology, to our reels, shorts, TikToks, tweets, snaps, “brain-rot” and the list goes on.  
  
Bradbury’s message wasn’t about how science has developed so much that the production of intelligent police cars is possible, but instead about how the development of consumeristic technology affects society as a whole. His message wasn’t focusing on the flowy green seaweed, or the lichen growing on the rocks, but rather the reflection of our surroundings.

Now you may be thinking, “Okay cool, those are valid points. But how is that significant?” 

Two different texts with two distinct ideas. What’s the common factor?

From the way I see it, while their ideas are different due to their contextual background, these composers explore different pathways that our society could go down in the future, warning us of the potentially detrimental impact of technological advancements through science fiction. 

Science-fiction texts may have a wide variety of plot-lines to follow, but in the end, the most impactful texts are the ones that pinpoint a potential danger and apply it to society.

Take a few steps back with me and let's look at the lake from afar. 

Word count:  900 (not inclusive of title)

Overall: you are quite a talented creative writer, I read your imaginative as well which we can do next week and I was writing nothing like this in y10.