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t	6	Speculative fiction as a category ranges from [[ancient]] works to both [[State of the art\|cutting edge]], [[paradigm]]-changing and neotraditional works of the 21st century.<ref>Barry Baldwin, Emeritus Professor of Classics, University of Calgary, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, "Ancient Science Fiction", Shattercolors Literary Review</ref><ref>[http://www.paradoxmag.com/ Paradox:The Magazine of Historical and Speculative Fiction]</ref> Speculative fiction can be recognized in works whose [[author]]s' [[Authorial intent\|intentions]] or the [[social context]]s of the versions of stories they portrayed is now known, since ancient [[Ancient Greece\|Greek]] [[dramatist]]s such as [[Euripides]] (ca. 480–406 BCE) whose play ''[[Medea]]'' seems to have offended [[Athenian]] audiences when he fictionally speculated that shamaness [[Medea]] killed her own children instead of their being killed by other [[Ancient Corinth\|Corinthians]] after her departure,<ref>This theory of [[Euripides]]' invention has gained wide acceptance. See (e.g.) McDermott 1989, 12; Powell 1990, 35; Sommerstein 2002, 16; Griffiths, 2006 81; Ewans 2007, 55.</ref> and whose [[Hippolytus (play)\|Hippolytus]], narratively introduced by [[Aphrodite]], Goddess of Love in person, is suspected to have displeased his contemporary audiences because he portrayed [[Phaedra (mythology)\|Phaedra]] as too lusty.<ref>See, e.g., Barrett 1964; McDermott 2000.</ref> In [[historiography]], what is now called speculative fiction has previously been termed "historical invention",<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.re-public.gr/en/?p=126 \|title=Mark Wagstaff – Historical invention and political purpose \| Re-public: re-imagining democracy – english version \|publisher=Re-public.gr \|date=2005-01-17 \|accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> "[[historical fiction]]", and similar names and is extensively noted in [[literary criticism]] of the works of [[William Shakespeare]]<ref>Martha Tuck Rozett, "Creating a Context for Shakespeare with Historical Fiction", Shakespeare Quarterly	t	6	Speculative fiction as a category ranges from [[ancient]] works to both [[State of the art\|cutting edge]], [[paradigm]]-changing and neotraditional works of the 21st century.<ref>Barry Baldwin, Emeritus Professor of Classics, University of Calgary, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, "Ancient Science Fiction", Shattercolors Literary Review</ref><ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.paradoxmag.com/ \|title=Paradox:The Magazine of Historical and Speculative Fiction \|publisher=Paradoxmag.com \|date= \|accessdate=2013-06-19}}</ref> Speculative fiction can be recognized in works whose [[author]]s' [[Authorial intent\|intentions]] or the [[social context]]s of the versions of stories they portrayed is now known, since ancient [[Ancient Greece\|Greek]] [[dramatist]]s such as [[Euripides]] (ca. 480–406 BCE) whose play ''[[Medea]]'' seems to have offended [[Athenian]] audiences when he fictionally speculated that shamaness [[Medea]] killed her own children instead of their being killed by other [[Ancient Corinth\|Corinthians]] after her departure,<ref>This theory of [[Euripides]]' invention has gained wide acceptance. See (e.g.) McDermott 1989, 12; Powell 1990, 35; Sommerstein 2002, 16; Griffiths, 2006 81; Ewans 2007, 55.</ref> and whose [[Hippolytus (play)\|Hippolytus]], narratively introduced by [[Aphrodite]], Goddess of Love in person, is suspected to have displeased his contemporary audiences because he portrayed [[Phaedra (mythology)\|Phaedra]] as too lusty.<ref>See, e.g., Barrett 1964; McDermott 2000.</ref> In [[historiography]], what is now called speculative fiction has previously been termed "historical invention",<ref>{{cite web\|url=http://www.re-public.gr/en/?p=126 \|title=Mark Wagstaff – Historical invention and political purpose \| Re-public: re-imagining democracy – english version \|publisher=Re-public.gr \|date=2005-01-17 \|accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> "[[historical fiction]]", and similar names and is extensively noted in [[literary criticism]] of the works of [[William Shakespeare]]<ref>Martha Tuck Rozett, "Creating a Context for Shakespeare with Historical Fiction", Shakespeare Quarterly
	7	Vol. 46, No. 2 (Summer, 1995), pp. 220-227</ref> as when he co-locates [[Athenian]] Duke [[Theseus]] and [[Amazons\|Amazonian]] Queen [[Hippolyta]], [[England\|English]] fairy [[Puck (mythology)\|Puck]], and [[Roman mythology\|Roman]] god [[Cupid]] across time and space in the [[Fairy]]land of its [[Merovingian]] [[Germanic peoples\|Germanic]] sovereign [[Oberon]] in ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'';<ref>Dorothea Kehler, A midsummer night's dream: critical essays, 2001</ref> in [[mythography]] it has been termed "mythopoesis" or [[mythopoeia]], "fictional speculation", the creative design and generation of lore, regarding such works as [[J.R.R. Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.<ref>Adcox, John, "Can Fantasy be Myth? Mythopoeia and The Lord of the Rings" in "The Newsletter of the Mythic Imagination Institute, September/October, 2003"</ref> Such [[supernatural]], [[alternate history]] and [[Human sexuality\|sexuality]] themes continue in works produced within the modern speculative fiction genre.<ref>Eric Garber, Lyn Paleo Uranian Worlds: A Guide to Alternative Sexuality in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, 2nd Edition, G K Hall: 1990 ISBN 978-0-8161-1832-8</ref>		7	Vol. 46, No. 2 (Summer, 1995), pp. 220-227</ref> as when he co-locates [[Athenian]] Duke [[Theseus]] and [[Amazons\|Amazonian]] Queen [[Hippolyta]], [[England\|English]] fairy [[Puck (mythology)\|Puck]], and [[Roman mythology\|Roman]] god [[Cupid]] across time and space in the [[Fairy]]land of its [[Merovingian]] [[Germanic peoples\|Germanic]] sovereign [[Oberon]] in ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'';<ref>Dorothea Kehler, A midsummer night's dream: critical essays, 2001</ref> in [[mythography]] it has been termed "mythopoesis" or [[mythopoeia]], "fictional speculation", the creative design and generation of lore, regarding such works as [[J.R.R. Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.<ref>Adcox, John, "Can Fantasy be Myth? Mythopoeia and The Lord of the Rings" in "The Newsletter of the Mythic Imagination Institute, September/October, 2003"</ref> Such [[supernatural]], [[alternate history]] and [[Human sexuality\|sexuality]] themes continue in works produced within the modern speculative fiction genre.<ref>Eric Garber, Lyn Paleo Uranian Worlds: A Guide to Alternative Sexuality in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, 2nd Edition, G K Hall: 1990 ISBN 978-0-8161-1832-8</ref>

{{Speculative fiction}}
'''Speculative fiction''' is an [[umbrella term]] encompassing the more fantastical [[fiction]] [[literary genre|genre]]s, specifically [[science fiction]], [[fantasy]], [[horror fiction|horror]], [[weird fiction]], [[supernatural fiction]], [[superhero fiction]], [[utopian and dystopian fiction]], [[apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction]], and [[alternate history (fiction)|alternate history]] in [[literature]] as well as related static, motion, and virtual arts.<ref name="atwood">{{cite web|url=http://www.gradesaver.com/the-handmaids-tale/study-guide/section9/|title=The Handmaid's Tale Study Guide: About Speculative Fiction|first=Margaret|last=Atwood|authorlink=Margaret Atwood|accessdate=April 18, 2010|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5p62J8qGz|archivedate=April 18, 2010}}</ref>

==History==

Speculative fiction as a category ranges from [[ancient]] works to both [[State of the art|cutting edge]], [[paradigm]]-changing and neotraditional works of the 21st century.<ref>Barry Baldwin, Emeritus Professor of Classics, University of Calgary, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, "Ancient Science Fiction", Shattercolors Literary Review</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paradoxmag.com/ |title=Paradox:The Magazine of Historical and Speculative Fiction |publisher=Paradoxmag.com |date= |accessdate=2013-06-19}}</ref> Speculative fiction can be recognized in works whose [[author]]s' [[Authorial intent|intentions]] or the [[social context]]s of the versions of stories they portrayed is now known, since ancient [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] [[dramatist]]s such as [[Euripides]] (ca. 480–406 BCE) whose play ''[[Medea]]'' seems to have offended [[Athenian]] audiences when he fictionally speculated that shamaness [[Medea]] killed her own children instead of their being killed by other [[Ancient Corinth|Corinthians]] after her departure,<ref>This theory of [[Euripides]]' invention has gained wide acceptance. See (e.g.) McDermott 1989, 12; Powell 1990, 35; Sommerstein 2002, 16; Griffiths, 2006 81; Ewans 2007, 55.</ref> and whose [[Hippolytus (play)|Hippolytus]], narratively introduced by [[Aphrodite]], Goddess of Love in person, is suspected to have displeased his contemporary audiences because he portrayed [[Phaedra (mythology)|Phaedra]] as too lusty.<ref>See, e.g., Barrett 1964; McDermott 2000.</ref> In [[historiography]], what is now called speculative fiction has previously been termed "historical invention",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.re-public.gr/en/?p=126 |title=Mark Wagstaff – Historical invention and political purpose &#124; Re-public: re-imagining democracy – english version |publisher=Re-public.gr |date=2005-01-17 |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> "[[historical fiction]]", and similar names and is extensively noted in [[literary criticism]] of the works of [[William Shakespeare]]<ref>Martha Tuck Rozett, "Creating a Context for Shakespeare with Historical Fiction", Shakespeare Quarterly
Vol. 46, No. 2 (Summer, 1995), pp. 220-227</ref> as when he co-locates [[Athenian]] Duke [[Theseus]] and [[Amazons|Amazonian]] Queen [[Hippolyta]], [[England|English]] fairy [[Puck (mythology)|Puck]], and [[Roman mythology|Roman]] god [[Cupid]] across time and space in the [[Fairy]]land of its [[Merovingian]] [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] sovereign [[Oberon]] in ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'';<ref>Dorothea Kehler, A midsummer night's dream: critical essays, 2001</ref> in [[mythography]] it has been termed "mythopoesis" or [[mythopoeia]], "fictional speculation", the creative design and generation of lore, regarding such works as [[J.R.R. Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.<ref>Adcox, John, "Can Fantasy be Myth? Mythopoeia and The Lord of the Rings" in "The Newsletter of the Mythic Imagination Institute, September/October, 2003"</ref> Such [[supernatural]], [[alternate history]] and [[Human sexuality|sexuality]] themes continue in works produced within the modern speculative fiction genre.<ref>Eric Garber, Lyn Paleo Uranian Worlds: A Guide to Alternative Sexuality in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, 2nd Edition, G K Hall: 1990 ISBN 978-0-8161-1832-8</ref>

The creation of speculative fiction in its general sense of hypothetical [[history]], [[explanation]], or [[ahistorical]] [[storytelling]] has also been attributed to authors in ostensibly [[non-fiction]] mode since as early as [[Herodotus]] of [[Halicarnassus]], (fl. 5th century BCE) in his Histories,<ref>Herodotus and Myth Conference, Christ Church, Oxford, 2003</ref><ref>John M. Marincola, Introduction and Notes, The Histories by Herodotus, tr. Aubrey De Sélincourt, 2007</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Jona Lendering |url=http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodotus/herodotus02.html |title=Herodotus of Halicarnassus|publisher=Livius.org |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> and was already both practiced and edited out by early encyclopaedic writers like [[Sima Qian]] (ca. 145 or 135 BCE–86 BCE), author of [[Shiji]],<ref>Stephen W. Durrant, The cloudy mirror: tension and conflict in the writings of Sima Qian, 1995</ref><ref>Craig A. Lockard, Societies, Networks, and Transitions: A Global History: To 1500, 2007, p 133</ref> which suggests the [[:wikt:caveat|caveat]] that while many works now considered intentional or unintentional speculative fiction existed before the coining of the [[genre]] term, its concept in its broadest sense captures both a [[conscious]] and [[unconscious mind|unconscious]] aspect of human [[psychology]] in making sense of the [[world]], reacting to it, and creating [[Imagination|imaginary]], [[inventive]], and [[artistic]] expressions, some of which underlie practical progress through [[interpersonal]] influences, [[social]] and [[cultural]] movements, [[scientific]] research and advances, and [[philosophy of science]].<ref>Heather Urbanski, Plagues, apocalypses and bug-eyed monsters: how speculative fiction shows us us our nightmares, 2007, pp 127</ref><ref>Sonu Shamdasani, Cult Fictions: C.G. Jung and the Founding of Analytical Psychology, 1998</ref><ref>Relativity, The Special and the General Theory by Albert Einstein (1920), with an introduction by Niger Calder, 2006</ref>

In its [[English language]] usage in [[arts]] and [[literature]] since 20th century, "speculative fiction" as a [[genre]] term is often attributed to [[Robert A. Heinlein]]. In his first known use of the term, in editorial material at the front of the 2/8/1947 issue of ''[[The Saturday Evening Post]]'', [[Robert A. Heinlein|Heinlein]] used it specifically as a synonym for "[[science fiction]]"; in a later piece, he explicitly stated that his use of the term did not include [[fantasy]].  Heinlein may have come up with the term himself, but there are earlier citations: a piece in ''[[Lippincott's Monthly Magazine]]'' in 1889, used the term in reference to [[Edward Bellamy]]'s ''[[Looking Backward|Looking Backward: 2000–1887]]'' and other works; and one in the May, 1900 issue of ''[[The Bookman]]{{dn|date=February 2013}}'' said that [[John Uri Lloyd]]'s ''[[Etidorhpa|Etidorhpa, The End of the Earth]]'' had "created a great deal of discussion among people interested in speculative fiction".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jessesword.com/sf/view/438 |title=Dictionary citations for the term "speculative fiction" |publisher=Jessesword.com |date=2009-04-28 |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> A variation on this term is "speculative literature".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.speculativeliterature.org/ |title=The Speculative Literature Foundation |publisher=Speculativeliterature.org |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref>

The use of "speculative fiction" in the sense of expressing dissatisfaction with traditional or [[The Establishment|establishment]] science fiction was popularized in the 1960s and early 1970s by [[Judith Merril]] and other writers and editors, in connection with the [[New Wave (science fiction)|New Wave]] movement.  It fell into disuse around the mid-1970s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://virtual.clemson.edu/groups/dial/sfclass/newave.html |title=New Wave |publisher=Virtual.clemson.edu |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> The [[Internet Speculative Fiction Database]] contains a broad list of different subtypes. In the 2000s, the term has come into wider use as a convenient collective term for a set of genres. [[Academic journals]] which publish [[essay]]s on speculative fiction include ''[[Extrapolation (journal)|Extrapolation]]'', and ''[[Foundation - The International Review of Science Fiction|Foundation]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sf-foundation.org/publications/foundation/ |title=PLACEHOLDER - foundation &#124; The Science Fiction Foundation |publisher=Sf-foundation.org |date=2010-12-31 |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref>

==Distinguishing speculative fiction from science fiction==
"Speculative fiction" is sometimes abbreviated "spec-fic", "specfic",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.specficworld.com/ |title=SpecFicWorld |publisher=SpecFicWorld |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> "S-F", "SF", or "sf"<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfsignal.com/ |title=A Speculative Fiction Blog |publisher=SFSignal |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> but these last three abbreviations are ambiguous as they have long been used to refer to [[science fiction]], which lies within this general range of literature,<ref>{{cite web|author=Rodger Turner, Webmaster |url=http://www.sfsite.com/ |title=The Best in Science Fiction and Fantasy |publisher=The SF Site |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> and in [[SF (disambiguation)|several other abbreviations]].

The term has been used to express dissatisfaction with what some people consider the limitations of science fiction, or otherwise to designate fiction that falls under readily stereotypical genres so that it can be pigeonholed within such categorical limits as "fantasy" or "mystery".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.greententacles.com/articles/5/26 |title=Citations and definitions for the term "speculative fiction" by speculative fiction reviewers |publisher=Greententacles.com |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref> For example, in [[Harlan Ellison]]'s writing, the term may signal a wish not to be [[pigeonholing|pigeonholed]] as a science fiction writer, and a desire to break out of science fiction's genre conventions in a [[literary fiction|literary]] and [[modernist literature|modernist]] direction; or to escape the prejudice with which science fiction is often met by mainstream critics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts/PeterWatts_Atwood.pdf |title=Watts, Peter. "Margaret Atwood and the Hierarchy of Contempt", '&#39;On Spec'&#39; 15(2) (Summer 2003)| pages= 3-5 |format=PDF |date= |accessdate=2013-02-10}}</ref><ref>Davies, Philip. "Review [untitled; reviewed work(s): ''Science Fiction: Its Criticism and Teaching'' by Patrick Parrinder; ''Fantastic Lives: Autobiographical Essays by Notable Science Fiction Writers'' by Martin Greenberg; ''Robert A. Heinlein: America as Science Fiction'' by H. Bruce Franklin; ''Bridges to Science Fiction'' by George E. Slusser, George R. Guffey, Mark Rose]. ''Journal of American Studies'' Vol. 16, No. 1 (Apr., 1982). pp. 157-159.</ref>

The term "suppositional fiction" is sometimes used as a sub-category designating fiction in which characters and stories are constrained by an internally consistent world, but not necessarily one defined by any particular genre.<ref>Izenberg, Orin. ''Being Numerous: Poetry and the Ground of Social Life. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2011; p. 210</ref><ref>Leitch, Thomas M. ''What Stories Are: Narrative Theory and Interpretation'' University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1986; p. 127</ref><ref>Domańska, Ewa. ''Encounters: Philosophy of History After Postmodernism'' Charlottesville, Virginia: University Press of Virginia, 1998; p. 10 </ref>

==See also==
{{portal|Speculative fiction}}
;History
*[[History of science fiction]]
;Genres
*[[Future history]]
;Themes
*[[Gender in speculative fiction]]
*[[LGBT themes in speculative fiction]]
*[[Reproduction and pregnancy in speculative fiction]]
*[[Sex and sexuality in speculative fiction]]
*[[Women in speculative fiction]]
;Other
*[[Genre fiction]]
*[[List of genres]]
*[[Speculative fiction by writers of color]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.jessesword.com/sf/view/438 Dictionary citations for the term "speculative fiction"]
* [http://www.greententacles.com/articles/5/26 Citations and definitions for the term "speculative fiction" by speculative fiction reviewers]
* [http://www.speculativeliterature.org/ The Speculative Literature Foundation]
* [http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/index.cgi Internet Speculative Fiction Database]
* [http://speculativevision.com/gallery/ Speculative Vision Fantasy and Science Fiction Art Gallery]
* [http://speculativevision.com/fiction.html Speculative Vision, speculative fiction by youth]
* The [http://gutenberg.net.au/sfproject.html SF Page] at [[Project Gutenberg|Project Gutenberg of Australia]]
* [http://www.strangehorizons.com/ Strange Horizons, a weekly speculative fiction magazine]

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