Science Fiction and Postcolonialsm

As a genre, science ction is a form of creative dislocation of cultural issues. That is, we talk about today by projecting out into the future. One of the most contemporary issues that sci- takes on is colonialism. Colonial ambitions are abound in the genre - new frontier worlds, plump with resources, are scattered amongst the galaxy for our space-faring heroes to reap. In the genre we read of future colonizations on distant worlds and, just as often, the dystopian colonizations of our own world, The genre itself becomes a very self-referential form of colonial narrative. Suffice to say that science ction relies heavily on the presence of otherness. Both aliens and the worlds that they inhabit are identied as foreign, hostile, or exploitable. Herein lies the paradox of science ction for a genre whose hayday has come about during a time in which western society increasingly prides itself on shirking colonial racism, exploitation, and hatred of the past, science ction revels in otherness and the exploitation of otherness. As Greg Grewell points out in his essay Colonizing the Universe: Science Fiction Then, Now, and in the (Imagined) Future, This problem is one the science ction industry, with its tendency to (dis)place other-ness to a (de)familiarized universe out there, continues to promulgate through its use of the all-too-familiar colonial narrative, a narrative that both sanctions and justies violence against others, regardless of their planet of origin. Hence, the colonizing impulse is not just a matter of ction: it has once again captured (if it has ever ceased to attract) the imaginations of myriads of people. How, then, can postcolonialism work in the world of science ction?

There are Two Major Types Of colonial Narratives In Science fiction Inward:
The inward narrative focuses on an alien invasion of Earth it is most often a repository for fears that we, in turn, as western citizens will be colonized in the way that we have colonized in the past. The narrative is entirely centered around a barbaric fear of otherness - the invaders will most likely exhibit traits wholly unlike anything found on Earth, or as far from human as possible. Think Independence Day.

Outward:
The outward narrative focuses on exploration and domestication or exploitation of another world. The human forces colonizing most often bring the re to the alien civilizations. Otherness is still the central point of interest, but alien hostility is not a necesssity. However, aliens may often be represented by racial stereotypes of Earth. Think Star Trek.

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These common forms of narrative in science ction give us an unfortunate reading of our future - one in which our colonial past is destined to be played out in a colonial future. If the authors and conusmers of science ction are so enamored with these somewhat barbaric descriptions of colonization of new worlds, what does it say for our progress is moving beyond binary understandings of ourselves in relation to other cultures. If all it takes is a the appearance of a truly genetically dissimilar sentience race to inspire this kind of cross=racial fear of conquer and subsequent desire to conquer, have efforts in the promotion of postcolonialism, in a broad, mass cultural sense, failed?

There are Three outward types of colonial narratives in Science fiction Explorative:
Follows the discovery of an inhospitable alien world (Grewell). The focus is on the trials of the colonizer in a harsh wilderness. Roughly akin to the Puritan fear of the wilderness.

Domesticative:
Focused on cultivating a new home from the alien world. Bradfords Of Plymoth Plantation could be considered a similar model.

Combative:
Tends to follow a cross-cultural conict between the colonizer and the colonized, in which violence in directed at the alien others. The conicts often center around territorial or trade rights, including but not limited to the extraction of resources from the alien world. This is arguably the most popular narrative in the genre.