How Great Science Fiction Works

By: Gary K. Wolfe, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Gary K. Wolfe

Robots, spaceships, futuristic megacities, planets orbiting distant stars. These icons of science fiction are now in our daily news. Science fiction, once maligned as mere pulp, has motivated cutting-edge scientific research, inspired new technologies, and changed how we view everyday life - and its themes and questions permeate popular culture. Take an unparalleled look at the influence, history, and greatest works of science fiction with illuminating insights and fascinating facts about this wide-ranging genre. If you think science fiction doesn't have anything to do with you, this course deserves your attention. And if you love science fiction, you can't miss this opportunity to trace the arc of science fiction's evolution, understand the hallmarks of great science fiction, and delve deeply into classics while finding some new favorites.

These 24 captivating lectures reveal the qualities that make science fiction an enduring phenomenon that has been steadily gaining popularity. You'll grasp the context and achievements of authors like Arthur C. Clarke, H.G. Wells, Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. LeGuin, and many more. You'll experience the wonder, horror, and incredible imagination of works like Frankenstein, the Foundation series, Stranger in a Strange Land, and dozens of more recent stories as well. You'll also see this genre's influence in movies like Star Wars and TV shows like The Twilight Zone.

Science fiction can take us places in time and space where no other form of fiction can - outer space, the far future, alternate universes, unfathomable civilizations. The best science fiction expands our imaginations and makes its mark on our reality. And while few writers would ever claim to predict the future, sometimes authors get it almost eerily right: Gernsback describing radar in 1911, Bradbury describing giant flatscreen TVs in 1951, Gibson inventing "cyberspace" in 1984, and so on.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2016 The Great Courses (P)2016 The Teaching Company, LLC

Not Impressed

This was definitely a good, not great course. the topic is huge, I recognize that, but Dr. Wolfe didn't focus enough on limited examples of his themes.

it's ok

made some interesting points but it's less a lecture than a collection of short summaries of a long list of sci fi books the professor had read

Great read

I wanted to start to read science fiction since it’s not a genre I usually gravitate towards. ( unless it’s a Star Wars, Star Trek or Firefly book) Truthfully I didn’t know where to start so when I searched in audible science-fiction this was one of the first pop ups so I thought I’d listen to this and then read a few of the recommended books in the PDF that comes with the course. Being that I don’t know a lot about science fiction this was a really nice introduction for me into the genre. Gary Wolfe is an amazing speaker. I was worried the subject would go over my head but I didn’t feel that way at all. If anything this course made me really excited to start to read science fiction. I also liked learning about the different stories, I ended up finding a lot of them on audible and was able to add them to my library. I ended up reading 15 Stories that he lectures on in one month and I really enjoyed them some of them have even become part of my all-time favorite books.

Here is a list of a few of my new favorites

The Ones Who Walk Away From Omela by Ursula E Le Guin.
The John Carter series (read first three books) by Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Scarlet Plague by Jack London
The Machine Stops by Carey Mulligan

S F an Adventure into the Possibilities

Loved the lectures. Very Informative with insight into the various types of Sci-fi available for review.

A MUST LISTEN

In this truly great Course, world-renowned sci-fi expert Gary K. Wolfe, leads the listener through the world of science fiction. He starts with the history of sci-fi and then leading his way to the important aspects of science-fiction, like Planets, Alien Encounters, Spaceships, Robots or Galactic Wars, each of these themes has its own chapter. If you are an aspiring writer you will learn a lot about world-building and writing, if you are an avid reader, you will probably learn a lot of new titles that you will want to start reading immediately.
How Great Science Fiction Works is a must-listen for every Sci-Fi Fan.

great lessons

The book took an in depth analysis on All science fiction works throughout the century. If you want a history on science fiction and an insight to what defines science fiction along with many examples of science fiction then this is a book for you. As a science fiction enthusiast I was a big fan of this book and I hungry recommend it for anybody who is into science fiction or even fantasy.

If you are looking for SciFi books to read ...

Would you consider the audio edition of How Great Science Fiction Works to be better than the print version?

The lecturer's voice was easy to listen to.

What was one of the most memorable moments of How Great Science Fiction Works?

His recommendation of The Starmaker, Olaf Stapledon was awesome. So was City and the Stars by Sir Arthur C Clark

Any additional comments?

I am an aspiring sci-fi writer I thought this would be a good course to take. The lecturer speaks of many great titles of sci-fi stories. I in turn ordered many of these audio books and enjoyed all but one of them. If you enjoy Science fiction and what a road map to the books to read, then take this course!

Insightful and Well Organized

Deeply enjoyed this series of lectures!

The professor brought a joy and passion to each segment which was truly marvelous. If you're looking to grow as a writer or simply wanting to know more about your favorite genre, I highly recommend this audio book!

Great survey of the Sci Fi universes.

Any thinking reader, writer, or viewer of sci fi will be glad they took advantage of Gary Wolfe’s insights into the depth and breadth of the landscape and world of sci fi.

Informative and fun

A must for any sci fi fan who wants a deep understanding of the genre.