Sci-Fi Odyssey: A Tour Through the Great Works of Speculative Fiction – Isaac Asimov

Come join David White for the beginning of a salon series dedicated to exploring the themes, ideas, and world-building of science fiction. We will begin by looking at several Asimov short stories and establishing a general scaffolding for analyzing worlds very different from our own.

Science fiction serves as an important culture touchstone and imaginative workspace for much of the modern world. So many of the inventions and preoccupations of the current world started as themes in fictional scientific/technological worlds.  Many people have drawn inspiration and critically examined prevailing social, political, and economic questions through the lens of other worlds, similar but different to our own.

Come along for introduction to a 10-month odyssey of sci-fi as we examine a series of books starting with several Asimov short stories. Two of the books for future salons will be chosen based on attendees’ preferences. We will explore many questions along the way, including: How is the future a useful setting to talk about the present? How can technology change societal relations? To what extremes should we go to protect our way of life from outside forces?

Asimov’s books and short stories served as inspiration for a generation of authors to think about different worlds, how we would interact with robots, and societies shaped by technologies much different from our own. We will explore themes from the short stories listed below and talk about a world without night, the limitations of computation, and a world with a very different educational system.

Suggested Reading:

• Nightfall by Isaac Asimov
• The Last Question by Isaac Asimov
• Profession by Isaac Asimov

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