Shakespeare and Science Fiction - (Liverpool Science Fiction Texts and Studies) by Sarah Annes Brown (Paperback)

About the Book

Shakespeare and Science Fiction is the first extended study of Shakespeare's influence on the genre. Sarah Annes Brown investigates why so many science fiction writers have turned to Shakespeare when imagining humanity's possible futures. He and his works become a kind of touchstone for the species in much science fiction, both transcending and exemplifying what it means to be human.

Book Synopsis

In Shakespeare and Science Fiction Sarah Annes Brown investigates why so many science fiction writers have turned to Shakespeare when imagining humanity's future. He and his works become a kind of touchstone for the species in much science fiction, both transcending and exemplifying what it means to be human. Writers have used Shakespeare in a range of often contradictory ways. He is associated with freedom and with tyranny, with optimistic visions of space exploration and with the complete destruction of the human race. His works have been invoked to justify the existence of humanity, but have also frequently been coopted for their own purposes by alien life forms or artificial intelligences.

Shakespeare and Science Fiction is the first extended study of Shakespeare's influence on the genre. It draws on over a hundred works across different science fiction media, identifying recurring patterns - and telling contradictions - in the way science fiction engages with Shakespeare. It includes discussions of time travel, alternate history, dystopias, space opera, posthuman identity and post-apocalyptic fiction.

Review Quotes

'Despite Brown's scholarly rigor, this book is written in a clear and accessible style, and with no small degree of wit. While noting the difficulty SF authors face in trying to create a plausible voice for Shakespeare when they try to depict him, Brown herself demonstrates an admirable facility with language. While the book's primary audience is academic, this book would be accessible to undergraduate students and probably advanced high school students, so it could serve as a useful recommended reading text for such audiences.'

Dominick Grace, SFRA Review

'The speculative imagination loves Shakespeare and, as this well-researched, critically astute, and engaging monograph illustrates, Shakespeare rewards this affection through the richness of his intertextual contributions to sf.'

Veronica Hollinger, Science Fiction Studies

'In Shakespeare and Science Fiction, Sarah Annes Brown offers a comprehensive analysis of Shakespeare's presence in SF to date. The greatest strength of Brown's investigation lies in its evidential data, focusing on explicit references to Shakespeare in SF. Without attempting to locate him as the origin of SF, Brown offers an overview of Shakespearean allusions as proof of Shakespeare's ability to be paradoxically both more and less than other authors... this book is an invaluable resource for scholars looking to think through the ways in which Shakespeare has inspired SF writers.' Noah Slowik, Fafnir

'In this ambitious, erudite monograph, Brown demonstrates just how much the sf genre has invested in "Shakespeareanness"... Her research, aptitude, and acuity shine through on every page.' D. Harlan Wilson, Extrapolation

About the Author

Sarah Annes Brown is Professor of English Literature at Anglia Ruskin University.