Analysis of Science Fiction as a literary genre

with reference to the text “Homesick by Sarah Gailey”

Written by: Shreya Grover

Science fiction also often known as 'sci-fi' is a form of fiction that deals with the impact of actual
or imagined science upon society or individuals. The term science fiction was found in the
1920's by one of the genre's famous names, American publisher Hugo Gernsback. The Hugo
Awards, given annually since 1953 by the World Science Fiction Society, are named after him.
These achievement awards are given to the top SF writers, editors, illustrators, films, and
fanzines.
Science fiction is a relatively new genre, although early writers tried to write along the same
concepts, they lacked the factual information and scientific details. It emerged in the west, where
after the industrial revolution writers were exploring what science could bring to our future. One
of the charms of this genre is its connection to real life and applicable science, it makes it more
exciting and thrilling to read. It creates a stronger imagination and sometimes even a hope of
fiction turning into reality. This hasn't remained as a mere hope, there are real life examples of
science fiction inventions turned into reality, for example the defibrillator from Frankenstein,
where he famously reanimates dead flesh, and by the 1950's a version of the same was reviving
patients all over the world. Another example is space stations in Edward Everett Hale's 1869
novella, The Brick Moon, four old college friends use a river- •powered flywheel to sling a
•skyscraper- size brick sphere stuffed with people into orbit. The Soviet Union's •Salyut program
launched a 65-foot •cylinder— the seminal space station—in 1971. The crew snapped photos of
Earth and experimented with gamma rays and a secret •military radiometer.
By the beginning of the 20th century major science fiction themes had developed like time travel,
robots, aliens etc. Certain aspects like prophecy's, doomsday, alien invasions, and more,
happening in completely imaginative parallel worlds and even our own earth became popular.
Science fiction writers often seek new scientific developments to incorporate in their work with
the aim to stimulate the reader's mind even more. The connection of this imaginative world with
their own reality makes the reading experience thrilling. So, by the 21st century sci-fi became
more than a literary genre, avid fans would endlessly consume science fiction related
merchandise, television shows, toys, DVD's etc. It was a way to escape reality and to indulge in a
parallel imaginative world where they could experience thrill, horror, and more importantly-
Freedom to become a part of an amazing experience, to save cities, and fight villans or maybe
feel like the master of the universe- a world with endless possibilities.
 Summary of ''Homesick'' by Sarah Gaiely

It plays with the end-of-the-world scenario of humanity being forced to leave Earth, but then
adds a scintillating follow-up question: What if someone was desperate to go back? The
protagonist, whose name is not revealed in the text, is the last person to leave earth to travel to a
new planet- the planet of the crab people. The first-time humans had contact with aliens and they
turned out to help them leave earth and move to their huge unused planet on 2 conditions- they
must not treat this planet like earth, secondly promise not to kill the crab people. Humans
eventually gathered, and they did a pretty good job protecting their promises. The protagonist
was hesitant leaving earth, it was actually quite blissful living on earth alone- not a single human
soul in sight. She would stand at the beach, meet the whale and sleep under a blanket of star-
studded sky, the lack of light pollution had opened the skies, bright enough for her to admire
every single one of the little sparkling dots. It wasn’t long enough before she had to leave, but
her heart was heavy. After arriving to the new planet, she would try to talk to others about the
possibility of going back to earth, how a tree actually bore fruits and the seeds she planted
thrived, but no one believed her, and honestly, they were quite satisfied breathing pure oxygen
and visiting the huge oceans here. But she didn't want to settle just yet, she saw the possibility of
making earth habitable again. She meets Moira here, and used her ability to see the future to
keep an eye on her saplings, and the whale, who she just discovered had another partner. One
day, she asks Moira to look into her future again, and moira's glass blue eyes turn frosty, she sees
something, something dangerous. Moira is taken aback and asks her to not do it, 'not do what? I
have no choice.’ says the protagonist. Will they send me back- this is a question she asks
constantly, Moira says yes but you'll be all alone, by yourself in that hellhole. This was it; she
got her answer, she's going back. She picks up a crystal ball and smashes Moaira’s head and
carries her carapace outside till the screaming starts on the roads. This is her moment, she's going
home.

Why I chose to analyze Science Fiction and this text in particular:

Science fiction has always been fascinating to me, I enjoyed reading encyclopedias and watching
discovery channel every day, and once I stumbled upon a sci-fi story it got me hooked! The
imaginative freedom I got felt amazing. Entering a new world every day, it felt like I was living
the life of the characters I was reading about, a part of their battles and discoveries felt like mine
and I loved to relive these experiences by reading those books again and again.
I had come across a few short stories written by Sarah Gaiely, the author of 'homesick’ in the
lockdown period. Her imaginative creativity and depth really caught my eye. This work in
particular was very well written, it made me delve into moira's planet and feel the protagonist's
desperation to go back home. How would I have felt if I knew I had a chance to bring my
homeland back to its glory? This story grasps this emotion beautifully.
Analyzing the characteristics of Science Fiction with reference to the text

Science Fiction is mainly of two types-

1. Hard science fiction: it strictly follows scientific facts and principles It is strongly
focused on natural sciences like physics, astronomy, chemistry, astrophysics, etc.
Interestingly, hard science fiction is often written by real scientists, and has been known
for making both accurate and inaccurate predictions of future events. For example, the
recent film Gravity, the story of an astronaut whose spacecraft is damaged while she
repairs a satellite, was renowned for its scientific accuracy in terms of what would
actually happen in space.
2. Soft science fiction: It is characterized by a focus on social sciences, like anthropology,
sociology, psychology, politics—in other words, sciences involving human behavior. So,
soft sci-fi stories mainly address the possible scientific consequences of human behavior.
For example, the Disney animated film Wall-E is an apocalyptic science fiction story
about the end of life on Earth as a result of man’s disregard for nature.
The story I chose, i.e., ''Homesick'' by Sarah Gaiely falls under the category of soft science
fiction. The whole text revolves around the protagonist's emotions and provides a glimpse into
the complex human behavior. The consequence of her emotions is what drives the entire story
and ends with the same. On one hand we can see her trying to save her homeland, but at what
cost? Does sacrificing another race who was the savior for yours, acceptable? Her true motives
and emotions are built up slowly from the start- to reveal the horrifying end.

Setting:
The setting of the story involves both a dystopian near to end earth and a new alien planet ready
to accept humanity. It's most likely set in a future timeline, where humans have destroyed the
earth and there's no point living in such a toxic planet. In search of alternatives, they find another
alien species who are willing to accept humans in their planet and save them from doomsday.

Characterization:
The story involves only two characters, the protagonist, who remains un named and moira, one
of the crab people. The protagonist seems very emotional and passionate about saving her planet
and moira is kind and helping like the rest of her people. There is little scope for any character
development here, but we do see the relationship between these two characters take a deadly
turn- quite literally.

Plot:
The plot is having flashbacks, the protagonist keeps remembering her life back at earth, she even
uses the crystal to keep an eye on her planet. Her flashbacks are what keeps her mind running to
find a way back home. Her memories fuel her rage and motivate her to leave this planet, at any
cost.
Conflict:
The main conflict of the protagonist is to find a way to make earth habitable again. She fails to
convince others at the new planet to go back to earth and start anew. She realizes it's something
that she has to do, even if she has to do it alone and the struggle to find a way back home begins.

Climax:
The moment that the protagonist decides to kill moira, so that she can go back home, can be
considered the climax of the story. She goes to an extreme end, finding a way back home. And
she succeeds, she's going back, alone.

Theme:
The theme revolves around alien encounter, space travel and a dystopian end of the world
scenario. But this story does not stick to a typical alien encounter narrative, here the alien species
offer help and shelter to humans rather than the typical '' we are here to destroy your race''
narrative. Humans travel to another planet, settle there happily, forgetting their homeland,
leaving no hopes for going back, but that's only until our protagonist arrives.

Conclusion:
Science fiction provides scientific imagination, there is no limits to what one can do in fiction.
All impossible seems possible, it takes the readers on a trip to another reality. It has the power to
neglect methods of realistic description. There are endless possibilities and predictions. There is
no normal, the rules by which reality abides are not relevant. The uncertainty and
unpredictability drive the reader's emotions. It feels like being a part of something unreal, and the
whole experience of reading is thrilling. The creative freedom this genre gives to it's writers
bring out endless number of jaw dropping and emotional works. It is a completely magnificeint
literary genre.

Bibliography
Definition- Britannica.com
The text- firesidefiction.com
https://firesidefiction.com/issue36/chapter/homesick/