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This is going to be an online meetup using Zoom. If you've never used Zoom before, don't worry — it's easy to use and free to join.

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THE IMPLICIT (AND EXPLICIT) POLITICS OF SCIENCE FICTION IN THE 21st CENTURY

INTRODUCTION:

As I mentioned earlier this year, I plan to occasionally take a break from the quantitative, social science topics we usually cover in this meetup and focus instead on more qualitative types of pop culture analysis. And since we just passed Star Wars Day (May the 4th), I figured we could look at science fiction, particularly movies & TV shows, since they tend to have a much larger audience than sci-fi books.
There's a few questions worth considering before we dive into this topic:
(1) How should we define "science fiction"? Genres tend to have fuzzy edges, but for this discussion, we're talking about speculative fiction set in the future societies with advanced science & technology, and possibly involves topics like robotics, cybernetics, artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, space exploration, aliens, time travel, quantum physics and/or parallel universes. However, in this meetup, we'll also look at some dystopian, post-apocalyptic & disaster films, since they tend to have a lot of thematic overlap with the science fiction genre, and they're sometimes classified together as "speculative fiction."
(2) How can stories set in the future relate to contemporary politics? Some of these stories may be consciously intended by their authors & directors to be metaphors for contemporary political issues, such as debates about war, religion, gender, race, etc. Others explore the social, economic & political implications of new technologies (e.g. genetic engineering, artificial intelligence), or looming threats that need to be addressed by policy makers working with scientists (e.g. climate change, pandemics). However, even sci-fi stories that are more fantastical (e.g. Star Wars) still have an implicit morality and often follow Joseph Campbell's "hero's journey", and the archetypal nature of these sorts of stories can encourage more suspension of disbelief and arguably connects more with our deeper psychology, e.g. our sense of what constitutes heroism & villainy, our desires for adventure & meaning, our longing for a "re-enchantment of the world" that provokes awe & wonder, etc. One can argue that these archetypal stories are "implicitly political" since politics is downstream from our deeper intuitions about ethics, aesthetics & meaning.
(3) Can we infer anything about the general public's underlying beliefs by looking at box office receipts for science fiction and disaster films? The general assumption we'll make is that the larger the audience of a film or TV show, the more it connected with people on an emotional level. This doesn't necessarily mean the audience agreed with the director's intended message, but it suggests something spoke to them - even if it was unintended. However, some films with a weak message may have still attracted large audiences due to the star power of some A-list actors and impressive special effects. Other films with a stronger message may have flopped merely due to bad timing in their release date or some bad editing that got fixed with a director's cut, so we may want to look at streaming numbers for older films that have reemerged as "sleeper hits" or "cult classics" (e.g. Children of Men or District 9).
(4) Given that audience reactions to films & TV shows and fan theories can vary quite a bit even among those who saw the exact same story, how can we determine which messages the audience took away from a particular work of fiction? This is the hardest question to adequately answer, although I've linked some studies under each section below that try to address this question.

We can often find empirical studies that delve into the demographics of who watches different film genres - e.g. this 2015 study of film preferences found that fans of science fiction films tend to be male, higher in Openness to Experience and lower in Neuroticism, while a 2015 study of "geek culture" - which includes sci-fi fandom - found an association with narcissism & escapism, and noted that while geeks tend to "have high trust in the government, [they] show less political knowledge and are markedly less involved in the political process (campaigns, voting, etc.)." In terms of correlations with political ideology, all I could find was an older study from 1978 which showed conservatives tended to prefer "hard science fiction" (e.g. Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein) while liberals tended to prefer "New Wave science fiction" (e.g. Harlan Ellison, Ursula LeGuin, Philip K. Dick), but softer "science fantasy" was popular with both.

We should note that since social scientists don't typically run randomized control trials with movies, we're often left with a "chicken & egg problem" - i.e. it's often not clear whether watching science fiction films changed people's minds, or whether specific types of people tend to prefer science fiction. In many cases, we'll have to make educated guesses about audience reactions by extrapolating from reviews by journalists & bloggers and online discussions on sites like Reddit & Goodreads. We should probably keep our opinions on the social effects of movies & TV shows somewhat agnostic until we've got better empirical studies -- but that doesn't mean we can't have some fun speculating until then!

RELEVANT MATERIAL FROM PAST MEETUPS:

We had a meetup back in January entitled "Is Politics Downstream from (Pop) Culture?" where we reviewed some of the basic concepts from media effects theory, and then looked at the debates over the social effects of sex, drugs & violence in mass media, the Marxist argument that pop culture serves as an "opiate of the masses", and the recent debate over diversity in pop culture. We also looked at how the gatekeeping abilities of creators & critics may have weakened as online fandoms arose in the 21st century, allowing the public to reinterpret pop culture and even demand changes.

Back in March, we had a meetup on "The Implicit Politics of Historical Epics & Fantasy Films" where we discussed the ways the fantasy & epic films of the 21st century have reflected ongoing debates about the War on Terror, religious conflict, Occupy-era class conflict, and the "woke" vs "anti-woke" fight over identity politics.

Back in Oct. 2022, we had a meetup on "The Implicit Politics of Horror Films" where we discussed the ways horror films of the 21st century have reflected post-9/11 anxieties about terrorism & invasion, conservative fears about secularization & immorality, and progressive fears about misogyny & racism.

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DIRECTIONS ON HOW TO PREPARE FOR OUR DISCUSSION:

The videos & articles you see linked below are intended to give you a basic overview of some of the different interpretations of the implicit political themes & social messages behind science fiction films in the 21st century. As usual, I certainly don't expect you to read all the articles & watch all the videos prior to attending our discussion. The easiest way to prepare for our discussion is to just watch the numbered videos linked under each section - the videos come to about about 60 minutes total. The articles marked with asterisks are just there to supply additional details. You can browse and look at whichever ones you want, but don't worry - we'll cover the stuff you missed in our discussion.

In terms of the discussion format, my general idea is that we'll address the topics in the order presented here. I figure we'll spend about 30 minutes on each section.

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I. DYSTOPIAN SCIENCE FICTION, ANTI-AUTHORITARIAN HEROES & IMPLICIT SOCIAL CRITIQUE FROM THE WAR ON TERROR TO OCCUPY TO TRUMP:

  • IS THE "DEFENSIVE PESSIMISM" ENGENDERED BY DYSTOPIAN FILMS PSYCHOLOGICALLY BENEFICIAL?
  • DO DYSTOPIAN FILMS OFFER AN IMPORTANT CRITIQUE OF AUTHORITARIANISM? CAN THIS SOMETIMES PROVE DANGEROUS BY PROVOKING MORE PARANOID PEOPLE TOWARDS VIOLENCE?
  • TO WHAT EXTENT DID GEORGE LUCAS'S VIEWS ON THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION & ITS CONFLICTS WITH THE ACTIVIST LEFT SHAPE THE WAY STAR WARS PROTRAYED THE EMPIRE & THE REBELS?
  • DID THE WAY THE STAR WARS PREQUELS SHOWED HOW REPUBLICS CAN BE SUBVERTED BY LEADERS ABUSING EMERGENECY POWERS GET AUDIENCES TO SEE THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION'S WAR ON TERROR MORE CRITICALLY?
  • DID DYSTOPIAN FILMS FEATURING TEENAGE REBELS BECOME POPULAR IN THE 2010s (HUNGER GAMES, MAZE RUNNER, DIVERGENT, THE GIVER) DUE TO THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT? IF SO, WHY DID MANY CONSERVATIVES ALSO LIKE THESE FILMS, SEEING THEM AS A CRITIQUE OF BIG GOV'T (AND A CRITIQUE OF "ERUDITE" SECULARISM, IN THE CASE OF DIVERGENT)?
  • WHY WEREN'T LIBERAL FILM CRITICS MORE FAVORABLE TOWARDS POST-OCCUPY SCI-FI FILMS FEATURING CLASS CONFLICT LIKE ELYSIUM, IN TIME, SNOWPIERCER, REPO MEN,
  • DID THE STAR WARS SEQUEL TRILOGY HAVE A RECOGNIZABLE POLITICAL MESSAGE, ASIDE FROM THE "GIRL POWER" MESSAGE?
  • IS ANDOR A VEILED ENDORSEMENT OF MARXIST REVOLUTION, AS MANY LEFT-WING CRITICS ALLEGED? IF SO, WHY DID MANY RIGHT-WING CRITICS LIKE IT AND NOT DISMISS IT AS "WOKE" LIKE THE STAR WARS SEQUEL TRILOGY?
  • WHY DO SO MANY SCI-FI FILMS FEATURING REBELLIONS FALL PREY TO AN UNREALISTIC "CHOSEN ONE" TROPE? DID THE HUNGER GAMES & ANDOR AVERT THIS & SHOW HOW REBEL CELLS FUNCTION IN THE REAL WORLD?

1a) Cass Sunstein, "How Star Wars Helps Us Understand Authoritarianism" (video - 4:37 min, start at 1:08)
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1b) Just Write, "The Hunger Games [vs Mr. Robot, The Matrix, Westworld]: Revolutions Are Hard To Write" (video - 14:28 min, listen to 13:07)
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II. THE IMPLICIT RELIGIOSITY OF SCIENCE FICTION AMID AMERICA'S GROWING SECULARIZATION:

  • ARE THE QUASI-RELIGIOUS THEMES IN SCI-FI AN ATTEMPT TO CREATE A POSTMODERN RELIGION THAT'S BETTER ADAPTED TO OUR SECULAR AGE? CAN SOME SCI-FI MOVIES ENCOURAGE AUDIENCES TO TRANSCEND THEIR EGO & IDENTIFY WITH ALL HUMANITY - AND IF SO, WHICH ONES?
  • WHY DO SO MANY SCI-FI FILMS (E.G. THE MATRIX) FROM THE LAST 25 YEARS HAVE BUDDHIST, PLATONIC OR GNOSTIC THEMES WHERE WE'RE TRAPPED IN A FALSE REALITY? DO THESE MOVIES CONTRIBUTE TO RADICAL POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES ON THE FAR LEFT & FAR RIGHT THAT POSIT A "FALSE CONSCIOUSNESS" MAINTAINED BY A VAST CONSPIRACY?
  • ARE SCI-FI PORTRAYALS OF VIRTUAL REALITY SEDUCTIVE TO MANY PEOPLE, OFTEN UNINTENTIONALLY, LEADING TO SUPPORT FOR TRANSHUMANISM?
  • DOES THE POPULARITY OF AVATAR & ITS SEQUEL, ALONG WITH THE DUNE REMAKE, SUGGEST A GROWING INTEREST IN ECO-SPIRITUALITY? TO WHAT EXTENT DO THEY DRAW UPON CHRISTIAN NOTIONS OF EDEN & THE FALL FROM GRACE (IN AVATAR) AND THE MESSIAH (IN DUNE)?
  • TO WHAT EXTENT DO RIDLEY SCOTT'S SCI-FI FILMS (BLADE RUNNER 2049, ALIENS, PROMETHEUS) AVERT RELIGIOUS THEMES BT FOCUSING ON OUR COSMIC INSIGNIFICANCE?
  • WHAT SHOULD WE MAKE OF THE WAY IN WHICH SOME CHRISTIANS INTERPRETED THE ENDING OF "ARRIVAL" (WHERE THE FEMALE PROTAGONIST CHOOSES TO GIVE BIRTH TO A DISABLED CHILD) AS A PRO-LIFE MESSAGE?
  • WAS REY'S ABILITY TO LEARN HOW TO USE THE FORCE WITHOUT MUCH TRAINING CONNECTED TO THE CURRENT TREND OF LIBERALS TO BE "SPIRITUAL BUT NOT RELIGIOUS"?
  • DOES THE RECENT FOCUS ON MULTIVERSES IN SCI-FI INEVITABLY PROVOKE NIHILISM SINCE WITH INFINITE WORLDS NOTHING WE DO MATTERS, OR DOES IT GIVE US A CHANCE AT IMMORTALITY?

2a) David Fuller w/ Damien Walter & Jonathan Pageau, "The Matrix: Upside Down Spirituality" (video - 10:33 min.)

2b) James Cameron & Denis Villeneuve, "Avatar and Dune" (video - 29:17 min, start at 25:07)
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2c) Tom van der Linden, "Multiverses, Nihilism, and How it Feels to be Alive Right Now" (video - 28:50 min, start at 14:46 & listen to 18:54)
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III. ENVIRONMENTALISM IN 21st-CENTURY SCI-FI AMID THE DEBATES OVER CLIMATE CHANGE, RESOURCE WARS, BIOTECH & PANDEMICS:

  • DID "THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW" HELP SPREAD CONCERN ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE, OR DID IT DISTORT PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF IT?
  • DID AVATAR & ITS SEQUEL, AS WELL AS THE DUNE REMAKE, HELP SHOW DRAMATIZE THE RESOURCE WARS WE'VE SEEN OVER OIL IN THE MIDDLE EAST, OR DO THEY PRESENT AN OVERLY SIMPLIFIED NARRATIVE COMPARED TO A MOVIE LIKE "SYRIANA"?
  • DO AVATAR & DUNE USE "WHITE SAVIOR" AND "ECOLOGICAL INDIAN" TROPES - AND IF SO, WHY DO SOME CRITICS CONSIDER THAT OFFENSIVE?
  • WERE THE "PLANET OF THE APES" REMAKES SUCCESSFUL IN GETTING AUDIENCES TO SYMPATHIZE WITH THE PLIGHT OF ANIMALS? COULD THIS HELP US UNDERSTAND THE FULL COST OF HUMAN ACTIVITIES ON THE NATURAL WORLD?
  • HAVE WE SEEN A RECENT SHIFT TOWARDS "GREEN APOCALYPSE" MOVIES & SHOWS (E.G. THE LAST OF US, STATION ELEVEN) THAT SHOW THE NATURAL WORLD FLOURISHING ONCE MOST HUMANS DIE OFF? IS THIS CONSISTENT WITH A STRAIN OF MISANTHROPY AMONG RADICAL ENVIRONMENTALISTS, OR IS IT ALSO OPTIMISTIC BECAUSE IT SHOWS HOW SOME SURVIVORS LEARN TO LIVE IN HARMONY WITH NATURE & EACH OTHER?
  • WHY MIGHT FANS OF ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE MOVIES HAVE FARED BETTER PSYCHOLOGICALLY DURING THE COVID PANDEMIC?
  • DID "DON'T LOOK UP" SUCCESSFULLY SATIRIZE SCIENCE DENIAL WE'VE SEEN WITH CLIMATE CHANGE & COVID, OR IS THE ANALOGY WITH A COMET FLAWED? IS "TRUSTING THE EXPERTS" ACTUALLY HARD IN THE MOVIE, WHICH SHOWED A SPLIT AMONG THE EXPERTS?

3a) Charlie Johnson, "The Day After Tomorrow: Why Cli-Fi Matters" (video - 5:02 min.)
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3b) The Take, "Planet of the Apes: Science Fiction of Social Fears" (video - 11:50 min, start at 6:23)
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IV. CYBERPUNK FILMS AMID THE RISE OF SOCIAL MEDIA, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, DARK WEB HACKERS & BIG TECH MEGACORPS:

  • DO SCI-FI FILMS FEATURING SURVEILLANCE TECH LIKE 'MINORITY REPORT' & 'EAGLE EYE' & SHOWS LIKE 'PERSON OF INTEREST' HELP AUDIENCES UNDERSTAND REALISTIC PRIVACY CONCERNS, OR DOES IT TEND TO MAKE THEM PARANOID?

  • DO SCI-FI FILMS FEATURING KILLER ROBOTS LIKE THE MATRIX TRILOGY, 'I, ROBOT', 'EX MACHINA' & TV SHOWS LIKE 'WEST WORLD' HELP AUDIENCES FORM REALISTIC CONCERNS ABOUT A.I., OR DOES IT TEND TO MAKE THEM FEAR AN UNREALISTIC "ROBOT REVOLT"?

  • ARE RECENT CYBERPUNK FILMS LIKE BLADERUNNER 2049 & THE NEFLIX SERIES 'ALTERED CARBON' RELY TOO MUCH ON OUT-DATED TROPES FROM FILM NOIR? DO THEY ALSO FAIL BY MAKING RAMPANT CONSUMERISM LOOK COOL RATHER THAN THREATENING?

  • WILL ADVANCES IN CYBERNETICS & GENETICS BE MOSTLY BENEFICIAL, OR DO FILMS LIKE 'REPO MEN' & THE SERIES 'PERIPHERAL' SHOW HOW IT COULD TRAP PEOPLE IN MEDICAL DEBT?

  • DOES TV SERIES LIKE 'BLACK MIRROR' & THE FILM 'SURROGATES' ACCURATELY CAPTURE THE ASPECTS OF MODERN LIFE THAT SEEM LIKE "PROTO-CYBERPUNK", SUCH AS SOCIAL MEDIA'S DISTORTION OF OUR PERSONAL LIVES & THE TEMPTATION TO GET LOST IN VIRTUAL REALITY?

4a) Wisecrack, "The Philosophy of Black Mirror" (video - 12:34 min.)
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4b) Just Write, "Blade Runner, Altered Carbon, and the Relevancy of Cyberpunk" (video - 12:19 min.)
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Climate Change
Science Fiction
Star Wars
Transhumanism
Technology

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