I HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS ABOUT THIS TOPIC. TO MANY TO ARTICULATE EVEN. THIS IS GOING TO BE MESSY.
For one, I have to agree with matthewbowers that sci-fi and fantasy can be separate genres and that there are things that are exclusively sci-fi and exclusively fantasy. Though I have to disagree about them rarely being crossed because there are a lot of examples in which the two genres blend.
Genres, on the whole, exist within continuums. There's the easy to define traits, the THINGS that make up a genre (like aliens, emphasis on how technology works, magic, vampires) and there's the more difficult to define traits, the THEMES of a genre (for example, steampunk focuses on "can-do," a lot of sci-fi focuses on philosophy or existentialism, some fantasy focuses on the importance of the individual (magic from within)). Some stories are easily defined by the THINGS of the genre, but the THEMES can throw a kink in. I think the thing that is most important is to find what feels correct for the story or blend the damn genres (or to learn to not fuss too much about labels).
AND NOW I'M THINKING TOO MUCH AND HAVE CONFUSED MYSELF AND AM ARGUING INTERNALLY ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT FMA IS BOTH SCI-FI AND FANTASY OR JUST FANTASY. I NEED TO GO THINK.
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Date: 2011-10-19 02:47 pm (UTC)For one, I have to agree with
Genres, on the whole, exist within continuums. There's the easy to define traits, the THINGS that make up a genre (like aliens, emphasis on how technology works, magic, vampires) and there's the more difficult to define traits, the THEMES of a genre (for example, steampunk focuses on "can-do," a lot of sci-fi focuses on philosophy or existentialism, some fantasy focuses on the importance of the individual (magic from within)). Some stories are easily defined by the THINGS of the genre, but the THEMES can throw a kink in. I think the thing that is most important is to find what feels correct for the story or blend the damn genres (or to learn to not fuss too much about labels).
AND NOW I'M THINKING TOO MUCH AND HAVE CONFUSED MYSELF AND AM ARGUING INTERNALLY ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT FMA IS BOTH SCI-FI AND FANTASY OR JUST FANTASY. I NEED TO GO THINK.