Star Wars: Science Fiction...Fantasy....both?

[Darien]

Looking at it, I'm more inclined to say it's both.

My prof, however, argued on day one that star wars is a fantasy primarily based on "may the force be with you" since "force" is something quite spiritual. ...

however, science fiction is essentially a work that deals with a work of science and its implications

your thoughts?

 

[Swag1138]

Its a space opera. Its straight Sci-Fi, your prof is just a guy who thinks about things too much.
Its not HARDCORE sci-fi, but its sci-fi.

Ask him if Star Trek is fantasy, as it also has spiritual things throughout (specially with the vulcans and klingons)

 

[ohtwell]

I've always considered Star Wars a sci-fi movie.



<< My prof, however, argued on day one that star wars is a fantasy primarily based on "may the force be with you" since "force" is something quite spiritual. ... >>



It has it's spiritual aspects but I wouldn't use that to classify it as a fantasy.

 

[Supermercado]

I've always classified it as sci-fi. But if you actually look at it, it has a lot of things that could point to fantasy. An interesting thing to check out if you're interested in Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey. We talked about it in my English course this semester and we used Star Wars as an example since it follows the Hero's Journey perfectly. Pretty interesting. But yeah, I would still classify Star Wars as being science fiction.

 

[Noriaki]

<< Ask him if Star Trek is fantasy, as it also has spiritual things throughout (specially with the vulcans and klingons) >>

That's fairly different. Religion != Magic. The vulcans mental powers have a slightly fantasyish bend to them...but Klingons certainly don't. They are just a religious people. We have people as spirtual as the Klingons now on earth.

And vulcan's mental power comes no where near "the force" in magical/fantasyishness.

I grant you, Star Wars is mostly Sci-Fi. But it has some fantasy elements to it. The Force == Magic.

And Magic isn't a Sci Fi concept it's a Fantasy concept.

Plus what's the deal with the whole sword fighting thing? That's also a fantasyish concept. It's cool, and make for fun fight scenes. But I don't think we'll see a resurgance of sword fighting on earth.

Plus Star Wars has the whole "A long time ago in a galaxy far far away" setting. Which immediately puts it in a fantasy frame of reference. Sci Fi usually deals with Earth, often in the Future. But rarely do you see Sci Fi "long ago" in a "far away" place. That's a pretty fantasyish setting.

Star Trek has far fewer Fantasy elements than Star Wars.

I grant you Star Wars is primarily Sci-Fi...but it has very clear fantasy elements.


However...to the point? Why do you care?

Do you enjoy Star Wars?
If yes, then good it's fun, why care how to categorize it?
If no, then oh well it's not fun, don't watch it, and don't waste time thinking about it.

 

[Siddhartha]

Star Wars is not classic 1950's science fiction. But Heinlein broaden the genre during the 60's which I think allows Star Wars to be described as sci-fi.

 

[b0mbrman]

I've even seen people list it as one of their favorite Action-Adventure movies :Q

 

[Swag1138]

<<
I grant you Star Wars is primarily Sci-Fi...but it has very clear fantasy elements.


However...to the point? Why do you care?

Do you enjoy Star Wars?
If yes, then good it's fun, why care how to categorize it?
If no, then oh well it's not fun, don't watch it, and don't waste time thinking about it. >>



Kinda my point, but I always hide my points underneath many layers of....whatever it is I hide them under (I dont even know that myself....)

Star Wars has fantasy elements, very true, but what is fantasy? Fantasy is just a branch of Sci-Fi, the fantasy stories of yester-year were called science-fiction. I consider Science-Fiction anything fantastical really. I may be alone in that, and I probably didnt make it very clear what I meant, but anyway, yeah, your right. If you enjoy it, why ruin it by thinking too much.

 

[ShadowDJ]

I think it's both. But who really cares? Make fun of your professor for being a gauy with no life making points by arguing the genre of Star Wars. Man...

 

[Darien]

an english prof who directs the undergrad honors program here that teaches a course on the works of science and science-fiction.

need i say more?

 

[Noriaki]

<< Star Wars has fantasy elements, very true, but what is fantasy? Fantasy is just a branch of Sci-Fi, the fantasy stories of yester-year were called science-fiction. I consider Science-Fiction anything fantastical really. >>



I wouldn't say Fantasy is a branch of Sci-Fi...they are both types of Fiction...but I wouldn't really put Fantasy as a branch of Sci-Fi.

Sci-Fi = Science Fiction (I'm sure you knew that, it wasn't suppose to be a revelation lol)

It's a Science based fiction. Things tend to built up from what we know as fact right now. Alter some details for the story, or possibly some extension of what science will be like in 100 or 500 years.

Fantasy Fiction kind of throws all fact to the wind. We have wizards weilding magic, Clerics who call down divine favours from their gods to resurect the dead, head severe injuries etc. Vampires, LichLords, and other fantastical constructs that are unlikely to have any possible basis in reality.

Of course there is some cross over, they are both Fiction and that means neither is very real.

I guess really what it comes down to is that Fantasy Fiction is an extension usually into the past, and Sci-Fi tends to be a projections into the future.

That's why I say Sci-Fi deals with possiblities or near-realities...since we know that wizards didn't exsist in medival europe, obviously the concept of D&D for example is a fantastic one. But what's to say that in 500 years humans won't fly around in starships? So Star Trek could possibly happen, we have know way of knowing that it won't.

But then you are right, in the year 2200 what's Sci-Fi now could easily be Fantasy.

It's certainly not black and white.

Course now I'm overanalyzing...and I like it all
Tolkein - Martin - Lucas - Roddenberry.

It's all fantastic stuff (pun intended).

So I don't really care about how it's categorized 😉