{"id":35,"date":"2026-09-01T13:49:21","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T11:49:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=35"},"modified":"2026-09-01T14:11:21","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T12:11:21","slug":"proto-sf","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=35","title":{"rendered":"1. Proto-SF"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The History of Science Fiction up to the 20th Century<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Depending on which scholar you ask, science fiction begins at so many different stages in human history that it is hard to find a common ground for discussion of the&nbsp;pre-20th&nbsp;century sf. Almost all scholars can agree on the fact that the term itself is an invention of the 20th century and that pulp magazines developed the genre into what we commonly understand as classical sf. But that is about all the consensus you will get.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"550\" height=\"740\" src=\"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/0901K4-P207_jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-62\" srcset=\"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/0901K4-P207_jpg.jpg 550w, https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/0901K4-P207_jpg-223x300.jpg 223w, https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/0901K4-P207_jpg-111x150.jpg 111w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">James Gunn, editor of one of the largest and best sf-anthologies on the market, starts his&nbsp;<em>Road to Science Fiction&nbsp;<\/em>with the Summerian epic of Gilgamesh (2000 BC) and in the first volume includes \u201cexamples and works that preceded and led up to the contemporary expression of science fiction in magazines and books\u201d (xi). In its pages Gunn includes not only mythology dating back to ancient Greece and Rome, but also many examples from other genres. Similarly, Mark Bould and Sherryl Vint discuss literary predecessors of science fiction in their&nbsp;<em>Routledge Concise History of Science Fiction<\/em>&nbsp;(20-39): they name examples of Utopian literature, adventure stories, apocalyptic fiction and tales of science and invention, all of which have had influence on the development of sf and intersect with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Most famously though, critic&nbsp;Brian Aldiss&nbsp;argued in his seminal work&nbsp;<em>Billion Year Spree<\/em>&nbsp;from 1973 that sf \u201cwas born in the heart and crucible of the English Romantic movement in exile in Switzerland, when the wife of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote&nbsp;<em>Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus<\/em>\u201d (3). Gothic fiction, rationalized by modern science, thus becomes an important influence to sf which editor Hugo Gernsback picked up on, when he defines what he calls \u201cscientifiction&nbsp;as \u2018the Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, and Edgar Allan Poe type of story \u2013 a charming romance intermingled with scientific fact and prophetic vision&#8217;\u201d (Gernsback quoted in Bould and Vint 6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The following lecture examines traditions of literary expression that have come before this statement and the earliest definition of science fiction as a genre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Lecture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is the lecture&nbsp;\u201cProto-SF (History of SF up to 1900s)\u201d by Dr.&nbsp;Brian Stableford (Independent Scholar):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Videofile \u2013 MP4<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video\"><video height=\"480\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 640 \/ 480;\" width=\"640\" controls poster=\"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Lecture-Poster_Stableford.jpg\" preload=\"auto\" src=\"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/53-536_stableford_2012-04-10_13-43.mp4\" playsinline><\/video><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Essay<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The introductory essay \u201cScience Fiction Before 1900\u201d by Dr. Brian Stableford is available for download here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Stableford.pdf\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Stableford.pdf\">Stableford, Brian \u2013 \u201cScience Fiction Before 1900\u201d<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>The Road to Science Fiction, Vol. 1: From Gilgamesh to Wells<\/em>&nbsp;(Ed. James Gunn):<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bellamy, Edward. Excerpt from&nbsp;<em>Looking Backward<\/em>&nbsp;(1888) \u2013 pages 279-303.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The famous and most influential utopian socialist novel in US literary history. It has spawned many literary copies and rebuttals, none of which could even come close to Bellamy\u2019s vision of a future Boston.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hawthorne, Nathaniel. \u201cRappaccini\u2019s Daughter\u201d (1844) \u2013 pages 162-185.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hawthorne\u2019s mad scientist experiments not in mechanics but in early genetics, creating the most deadly plants in his backyard and keeping his daughter among them \u2013 until she falls in love with a young student.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Shelley, Mary. Excerpt from&nbsp;<em>Frankenstein<\/em>&nbsp;(1818) \u2013 pages 149-158.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mary Shelley\u2019s novel is, according to Brian Aldiss, the first real science fiction novel, in which superstition gave way to rational and scientific explanation. Aside from this excerpt, the complete novel is worth a extended look in regards to its sf origin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Swift, Jonathan. Excerpt of the chapter \u201cA Voyage to Laputa\u201d from&nbsp;<em>Gulliver\u2019s Travels<\/em>&nbsp;(1726) \u2013 pages 90-118.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this excerpt, Swift\u2019s protagonist Lemuel Gulliver visits the floating island of Laputa and is introduced to their achievements in mathematics and the sciences. This biting satire is aimed at the Royal Academy, its experiments and what Swift perceived as a lack of practical use of science.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Verne, Jules. Excerpt from&nbsp;<em>Twenty-Thousand Leagues Under the Sea<\/em>&nbsp;(1870) \u2013 pages 227-244.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As one of the forefathers of Gernsbackian \u2018scientifiction\u2019, Verne provided scientifically sound extrapolations of existing technology in connection with adventure stories. This is his most famous book and well worth while in more than just an excerpt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wells, H.G. \u201cThe Star\u201d (1897) \u2013 pages 339-348.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A short story by another forefather of science fiction, dealing with a comet aimed directly at Earth and the consequences of its imminent destruction. Its commentary is rather social in scope, less scientific, but it shows the interest, scope and reach of one of sf\u2019s most important writers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction<\/em>&nbsp;(ed. Arthur B. Evans et al.):<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hawthorne, Nathaniel. \u201cRappaccini\u2019s Daughter\u201d (1844) \u2013 pages 1-25. &nbsp; \/ &nbsp;&nbsp;Wells, H.G. \u201cThe Star\u201d (1897) \u2013 pages 39-49.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">for both of these stories, see above entry<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Verne, Jules. Excerpt from&nbsp;<em>Journey to the Centre of the Earth<\/em>&nbsp;(1864) \u2013 pages 26-38.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Similar to the excerpt from&nbsp;<em>Twenty-Thousand Leagues<\/em>, these few pages give an introduction to Verne\u2019s expertise at extrapolation, his romance writing and the origin of science fiction in French \u2018voyages fantastique\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Additional Reading (aside from the anthologies):<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hoffmann, E.T.A. \u201cDer Sandmann\u201d (1816) \u2013 German&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/gutenberg.spiegel.de\/buch\/3093\/1\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"http:\/\/gutenberg.spiegel.de\/buch\/3093\/1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">version<\/a>&nbsp;at Projekt Gutenberg \/ English&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.fln.vcu.edu\/hoffmann\/sand_e.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">version<\/a>&nbsp;at Virginia Commonwealth University (translation by John Oxenford)<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hoffmann\u2019s story is one of best examples (written during the Romantic movement) of proto-sf and makes use not only of optics and mechanics but also showcases the rational, mechanist worldview and its problems at grasping the world \u2013 as such it balances between Gothic and sf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Poe, Edgar Allan. \u201cThe Unparalleled Adventure of One Hans Pfaall\u201d (1835) \u2013 free internet&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.eapoe.org\/works\/tales\/unphlle.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">version<\/a>&nbsp;at eapoe.org<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Poe\u2019s short story deals with the scientific invention of an aeronautical device that allows for a journey to the moon. It was probably the origin of the \u201cBallon Hoax\u201d in New York and for Jules Verne\u2019s novel&nbsp;<em>From Earth to Moon<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wells, H.G. \u201cThe Time Machine\u201d (1895) \u2013 free internet&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/etext.lib.virginia.edu\/toc\/modeng\/public\/WelTime.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">version<\/a>&nbsp;at the University of Virginia Library.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wells\u2019 novel is an excellent example of early (proto-)sf and showcases all of Wells later trademarks, his scientific exploration of possible technologies, his social concerns and extravagant scope of vision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Suggested Exercises \/ Classroom Work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Compare the images of the scientists in selected texts from Hoffmann, Shelley, Hawthorne and Verne. Discuss the changes to earlier examples such as Goethe\u2019s or Marlowe\u2019s Faust characters.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Compare the narrative methods employed in selected texts from Swift, Poe, Bellamy and Wells. Notice literary traditions such as the satire or utopian literature.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Compare the social role of technology that texts like Swift, Bellamy or Wells discuss with their respective realities and today.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Interesting Links<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hgwellsusa.50megs.com\/\">H.G. Wells Society<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"http:\/\/jv.gilead.org.il\/sjv.html\">Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Jules Verne<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Works Cited on this page:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Aldiss, Brian W.&nbsp;<em>Billion Year Spree \u2013 the True History of Science Fiction<\/em>. Garden City: Doubleday, 1973. Print.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Bould, Mark and Sherryl Vint.&nbsp;<em>The Routledge Concise History of Science Fiction<\/em>. Milton Park: Routledge, 2011. Print.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Gunn, James, ed.&nbsp;<em>The Road to Science Fiction. Vol. 1: From Gilgamesh to Wells<\/em>. Lanham: Scarecrow, 2002. Print.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">MLA Citation for this page:<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">Video Lecture:<br>Stableford, Brian. \u201cProto-SF (History of SF up to 1900s)\u201d. Video Lecture.\u00a0<em>A Virtual Introduction to Science Fiction<\/em>. Ed. Lars Schmeink.<br>Web. 2012. &lt;http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=35>.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">Essay:<br>Stableford, Brian. \u201cScience Fiction Before 1900\u201d. <em>A Virtual Introduction to Science Fiction<\/em>. Ed. Lars Schmeink. Web. 2012.\u00a0<br>&lt;http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=35>. 1-12.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-preformatted\">Info Page:<br>Schmeink, Lars. \u201cProto-SF\u201d. Web Page. <em>A Virtual Introduction to Science Fiction<\/em>. Ed. Lars Schmeink. Web. 2012.<br>&lt;http:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/?page_id=35>.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The History of Science Fiction up to the 20th Century Depending on which scholar you ask, science fiction begins at so many different stages in human history that it is hard to find a common ground for discussion of the&nbsp;pre-20th&nbsp;century sf. Almost all scholars can agree on the fact that the term itself is an [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-35","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/35","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=35"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/35\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70,"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/35\/revisions\/70"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/virtual-sf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=35"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}