--- In
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, DJ-Anonyme@... wrote:
>
> Richard wrote:
>
> ". . . sorry but the term "Sci-fi" is considered by
some to be a
> pejorative . . ."
>
> I've heard this, but not being much of an SF reader,
I've never
> understood why. I do understand why some might
prefer the label
> Speculative Fiction because Sci Fi is too confining
a term, leaving
out
> many of the subgenres, in much the same way Crime
Fiction is preferred
> by many over Mysteries (which seem from the inside
to describe
> whodunnits, but not so much whydunnits). However, I
don't understand
> why it's seen as insulting. Is it thought of as
dismissive?
Richard, in his posts, gets at the original history of it,
and Mike Resnick is one of the most vociferous
objectors.
The reasons it's seen as pejorative run along the lines
of
--it's cutesy. Do you call the fiction usually under
discussion here Cri Fi or My Fi?
--it's usually been picked up most enthusiastically, since it
is cutesy, by those who wish to dismiss or otherwise belittle
the field, so it's often been used dismissively. Those who
take their sf seriously, like those who take their CF
seriously, are probably not going to use cute pet names to
describe it. Someone who wants to pretend that all science
fiction is at the level of STAR WARS or US re- edits of
GAMERA films is more than happy to use the neologism.
--and, arguably out of arbuably not-undeserved snobbery,
those most serious about the fiction are often not too
impressed with the usual run of film and other a/v
representations of sf, the fans of which are often also
happier with the rhyme with "hi-fi"...itself a pretty
antiquated term. Wonder how long the term "wi-fi" will have
currency...
Todd Mason
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 26 Oct 2007 EDT