Marleen Barr

Science Fiction is illuminated by world class scholars and fiction writers, who introduce the history, concepts and contexts necessary to understanding the genre. Their groundbreaking approach provides insights into today's SF world and makes learning how to read Science Fiction an exciting collaborative process for teachers and students.

What do Amsterdam prostitutes, NASA astronauts, cross-dressing texts, and Star Trek characters have in common? In Genre Fission, Marleen Barr wittily and eccentrically revitalizes cultural and literary theory by examining the points where such vastly different categories meet, converge, and reemerge as something new.

This book offers a first step toward spanning the gap between the writing of male critics of speculative fiction, who do not devote enough attention to the contributions of new female voices to this genre, and feminist critics, who should study a genre that opens all possibilities to women. Although Barr clarifies speculative texts for those who may not be familiar with them, her study is neither a complete survey of speculative fiction nor an introduction to the recent concerns of feminist theory; it applies contemporary feminist theory to contemporary speculative fiction.