Great Books and Genre Books—Intro
Over at Volokh conspiracy, the libertarians and lawyers are debating a question fascinating to me.
The ask: “A well-crafted sci-fi book can be a fun read, but are there many modern science fiction works that would qualify as ‘literature’? Any science fiction books that would qualify as literary masterpieces?” http://volokh.com/posts/1167155572.shtml
Over at First Things, Joseph Bottum wonders whether the Volokh conversation is being fair to literature. He seems to think the Volokhians are deconstructing and dismissing the very idea of objective standards in literature. http://www.firstthings.com/onthesquare/?p=575
He asks: “I would have preferred to see the discussion begin with the acknowledgement that Homer, Virgil, Dante, Shakespeare, and Goethe produced literature. Now, does any science fiction stand near them?”
The answer here is ‘No.’
As much as it pains me to say it, my reluctant conclusion is that there is no great Science Fiction literature.
Now, before you get out your crying bags, fanboys, keep in mind that the standard for being a Great Book is extremely, absurdly high. It is the best of the best of the best. There is no Western that makes the cut for being a Great Book; no mystery novel; no horror novel (unless we stretch a point to include HAMLET, because it has a ghost scene). One might even argue that no romance novel that makes the cut, not even GONE WITH THE WIND, and that is a damn fine novel. Genre writing does not reach the stratospheric heights of Homer, Virgil, Dante, Shakespeare, and Goethe.
Still, it does not sit well. Let us look further, to see if this unpleasant conclusion can be defended, or if there is some exception or escape from it. For this let us break the question into parts.
- First, what makes a Great Book great?
- Second, what makes a Great Idea?
- Third, what makes Great Literature Great?
- Finally, what makes Good Science Fiction Good?
This final question is of most interest to me (as one might expect, being a science fiction writer) so it also needs to be broken down further:
- What is Science Fiction?
- Does Science Fiction have a universal, timeless, eternal appeal?
- Is the Best SF good enough to be Great?
The topic deserves study, so I will break this up over several posts.
About John C Wright
John C. Wright is a practicing philosopher, a retired attorney, newspaperman, and newspaper editor, and a published author of science fiction. Once a Houyhnhnm, he was expelled from the august ranks of purely rational beings when he fell in love; but retains an honorary title.
