The "New Man" on the Moon: Science Fiction Under Socialism

Undergraduate

Cyborgs, intergalactic vistas, and overextended futurities ostensibly characterize western science fiction. Yet space age put cosmic agendas on writing and film-editing desks all over the former Socialist bloc as well. We will explore the East/West differences in generic conventions and investigate the uneasy fit between Socialist Realism—the state-sponsored style for picturing the real life of the “New Socialist Man”—and the questionable political orders and subversive desires unleashed by fictions of deregulated space travel.