"Is the term "sci-fi" pejorative?" Topic

My heavy science fiction reading was in the 70s.
That was in the era of the New Wave and all that stuff.
Hoity toity critics kind of sneered at "sci-fi", and considered it mindless fluff.
The stuff that the critics read was called "sf". They did not wish that to mean "science fiction". Oh, no. That meant "speculative fiction". (Whatever THAT meant.)

Sci-fi included such low brow stuff as space opera, pulp, and … well, you know.

Later, when the science fiction movie craze kicked off with Star Wars, they were all considered "sci-fi".

So, do you consider "sci-fi" an insult? Is it synonomous with "low brow"?

Nope. But Harlan Ellison does.

What DS said. I've called it "sci-fi" all my life, and I don't intend to stop now, no matter what old Mr. Ellison says. "You dang kids git off'n mah speculative fiction!"

Just don't call it "syfy," unless you're talking about Mega-Gators and Debbie Gibson.

Didn't hardcore science fiction fans in the 80s sneer at "sci-fi" as a term?

Critics still look their noses down at science fiction. I constantly have discussions with members of the English department about the literary merits of sci-fi.

"Didn't hardcore science fiction fans in the 80s sneer at "sci-fi" as a term?"

All the more reason to use it.

I think "sci-fi" is pretty fly.

Only to pedants. And that term is pejorative, by intent.

" I constantly have discussions with members of the English department about the literary merits of sci-fi. "

The same ones who claim "1984", "Brave New World" and "Riddley Walker" are masterpieces? :)

"Didn't hardcore science fiction fans in the 80s sneer at "sci-fi" as a term?

Not so much the hardcore fans, more like the literature-biased fans – the ones who had been around since the 1940s and 50's and seen the genre evolve beyond "Other genre with rockets" into something that was a little more thoughtful, and who rather resented the sudden popularity of the 'Flash Gordon' style of space opera make such a huge comeback with STAR WARS. Ben Bova railed particularly against it, for many valid and a few personal reasons as editor of ANALOG . . .

"All the more reason to use it."

LOL Funnily enough, basically the reason urban and lower socio-economically based African Americans brought back the "N" word – to take on the richer and middle-class African american population who were trying to distance themselves from the term and ( In the first group's opinion) being part of that larger group.
Then again, while I don't like the term ( Preferring SF myself), I jhave no problem with hate speech – after all, how do you have conflict and thus scenarios for wargaming without it? :) – so feel free to use it on me, Plynkes.

SyFy is a joke. The rest is all good.

I believe the term was coined by Forrie Ackerman who was very much a fan of the genre. When I hung around with fans, Sci-Fi was a negative term. Like I should care.

It's all good with me (even SyFy in it's own way).

"skee-fie" LOL

The value of the literature is in the words it contains, not in the words used to describe it.

The use of the term Sci-fi may be patronising but only if the user thinks Sci-fi somehow inferior to other forms of literature.

I don't so, no Sci-fi is OK.

I think Sci-fi has moved more into a realm of credibility, and much more "respected" so to speak. But it will never be so called "mainstream" … But who cares … I like it …

Semantics… most 'sci-fi' has no 'sci' at all, anyway…
A blanket term used to describe many differing genres: this is okay as those who really care about the differences in those genres are not part of the mainstream academic elite of literature.
The taxonomy of fiction can never be a science, and language often falls short of the mark in describing 'new' ideas (hence the creation of new words for percieved genres, such as 'space-opera' and 'cyber-punk' etc…)
I feel that 'science fiction' fails to describe almost everything classed as such, but the term has stuck and is here to stay in all of its sweeping ambiguity.

I remember it being a bigger deal when I was a kid… people using 'sci-fi' being quickly chastised. Not by me though… my dad has always been a science fiction fan and his tastes were spread all over the continuum.
It seems nowadays the people who complained about such picayune travesties have calmed down… or given up.

I used to care, until I remembered that all of Science Fiction is just a subset of Fantasy, which just a subset of Fiction…..

Irrespective of the term used in reference to the
literature, it is, these days, mostly fantasy, with
little to no science involved.

But then, under the broadest of definitions, most
fiction is fantasy, eh ?

Most? :)

I remeber the SciFi geeks sneering at people calling Star Wars SciFi, half of them sneered at Star Trek too, the other half worhsipped at Gene's feet.

So no, SciFi is not pejorative.

All terms are pejorative terms.
-Kle.

Sci-Fi doesn't bother me in the least (and I've been reading Sci-Fi for many decades).

SyFy however makes me want to knaw my own head off.

I have used SF since I was a kid, but I never thought Sci-Fi a negative term, just one that indicated a different form of SF. Everything that SyFy represents offends me deeply, though… 8)=

I had never thought there was a difference between SF and sci-fi. Being conditioned in the 70s, I tend to call it SF.

Heck, "space opera" doesn't even seem to be a pejorative any more.

My 80 years old mother doesn't use these names, she still calls it, with some scorn: "contes de fées futuristes" (= "futuristic fairy tales").

Meh

I use science-fiction when speaking and sci-fi when typing and really don't care about the staff of the English Lit department unless one of them has actually written a book.

So there.

Have to question the motives of the person who'd ask such a question in this forum, especially someone who otherwise rarely/never posts here. Seems like pot stirring to me. "So, what names that people use for your interests do you find insulting?"

The question has little/nothing to do with gaming, after all.

I take scant regard of the opinions of Angry Nerds.

You could instantly raise Asimov's blood pressure by saying Sci-Fi in his presence. Seems he and others were of the opinion that S-F covered all the good and proper stuff, while Sci-Fi was the bad, pulp variety.

I've always thought "sci-fi" was just an abbreviated form of science-fiction. I have heard the term sciffy/skiffy used in a self deprecating manner by sci-fi authors and fans.

I hate pee-bee, so I am going to call my product P.B. instead… Great idea…

Only in the sense that Sci-Fi sounds rather chikldish (which is why the term was adopted I suppose). I prefer Science Fiction, or SF as a second best. The fan distinction was, I thought, more that SF was the proper stuff, and sci-fi was the Space Opera type stuff.

As the poets have it –

"SF's no good
they holler til we're deaf
and if it's good
then it's not SF."

There's probably a physical or linguistic reason, but "sci fi" is easier to say than "sf" – perhaps something to do with the consonants beng at the beginning of the syllables. Thus, I say "sci fi".

> So, what names that people use for your interests do you find insulting

None, my father spent a lifetime calling my hobbies "children's games", I ceased giving a crap what anyone said at that point.

I got him back by pointing out that any kid can play basketball, but very few could play ASL.

I say Sci Fi, though I'm just as likely to say Science Fiction. Most of the snob/anti crowd have seen one low budget movie and that's it, they won't read any books or anything else, mind made up and closed.

Room 101 tonite on BBC is gonna have Fern Britton slagging SF off and saying it belongs in 'room 101'. This silly woman who is famous for being famous is reported as saying that she hates SF coz its not real. That's why its called Fiction!!!!!!!!

Then she goes on about how its all set in the future. Obviously hasn't read any Steampunk, or even a single time travel book. Fern, darling do some basic research if you plan to slag off an entire genre!

No and the first impression I get of those that do are that they are snobs. I'll give someone a chance to prove they are not but the first impression will have to be overcome.

Jason
Stafford, VA

Pejoratives are occasionally adopted as badges of honor by those at whom they are aimed (as was Space Opera).

The SciFi/SF community could make a new one of their very own by adopting Patrice's mother's term

she still calls it, with some scorn: "contes de fées futuristes"

and abbreviating it in the same manner as "SciFi", thus:

ConFu

I always say SF, never "sci-fi", but I have no very great objection to people using the wrong term if they so wish.

Space Aardvark wrote:

Room 101 tonite on BBC is gonna have Fern Britton slagging SF off and saying it belongs in 'room 101'.

Excellent. Did anyone tell her where the reference to "Room 101" comes from?

All the best,

John.

I was a bit young at the term sci-fi was coined, but I always assumed that it tripped out of some marketer's mouth because is sounded like hi-fi -- the timing would be about right.

Anyone remember hi-fi? Interesting which term has lasted longest.

John, exactly! The stupid, unread dimbulb has probably never read 1984, or even seen one of the movies. She like so many think its all Star Trek. BTW Orwell was going to call it 1948 but changed his mind. At least won't have to stand behind her in the queue in Forbidden Planet! She even said that there's no SF set in the present day! What? er… X-files? Was that set in 24 century?

Lentulus, I remember Hi-Fi, but always found woofers and tweeters mistifying.

Is anyone else old enough to remember when *colors* were described as being hi-fi? If it was fluorescdent, neon, or acid, it was called "hi-fi" 5 or 6 decades ago. For that matter, remember when colors were called "acid"?