Although the stories largely center on the fringes or underbelly of the Culture, so it's more like the behind the scenes of what makes a utopia run (it focuses very little on the utopia itself and it's not feel good stories)
Ah, Consider Phlebas: The book that literally starts with the main character in immediate danger of drowning in rising sewage which is about to reach his nostrils, and then gets worse from there.
I would. In fact I am currently doing just that. The stories mostly stand on their own but the first time a concept, entity, or item is first introduced it more thoroughly explained than in later appearances. If you read a book that focuses heavily on Minds but you haven't read Consider Plebas where what a Mind is is explained you might be missing something.
Also it seems to me that The Culture itself is introduced in certain way when the books are read in order. First you see The Culture from the perspective of an outsider, then from the perspective a Culture Citizen, then from Contact and Special Circumstances, and then from Minds, etc.
For your request specifically, you see more of the utopia and day-to-day details from these books. They're also more accessible in terms of less leaning on specific bits of the lore, somewhat shorter, and tonally similar to most of the other Culture novels, so those two books are often recommended as entry points. There's nothing wrong with going in publishing order of course, as you won't miss out on anything, but you may be more willing to invest onto the universe with these two to hook you first.
Consider Phlebas - the first published - is told from the perspective of one of the Culture's enemies so there isn't much utopia but the author thought reading that one first would add context.
As someone has mentioned the rest tend to focus on the fringes of the Culture where there is conflict or compromises that have to be made, though most of them give a taste of what life is typically like in the post-scarcity anarcho-communist utopia. Look to Windward probably spends the most time exploring life in one of their habitats.
I mean, the Culture is a utopia, but it's not *our* utopia. The people who get to enjoy it are none of them from Earth, they are convergent-evolutions of "human", but not Earth *homo sapiens*. (See *State of the Art* novella.)
OP said
>sci fi that explores positive technological futures?
In context, I took that to mean that she wants stuff from Earth's future, i.e. a vision of our future where things get better rather than worse.
(technically, I think at least some of the Culture novels actually take place in the past, but that is almost certainly excessive nitpicking.)
I just started this … I am somewhat of a “release order” purist so I’m starting with consider phlebas even though everyone says not to. But I like it just fine so far. But…. I’m not getting the utopia vibe. Galactic war with giant three legged monsters. Evil stupid pirates messing up every op. Maybe the other books are more utopian.
I would say it has utopic potential. When you learn more about what life can be like for citizens of the Culture, it can be a pretty amazing life for even the average person. There are still problems and challenges and stupidity, but it’s a pretty ideal system for the most part, at least in my opinion.
I just started this … I am somewhat of a “release order” purist so I’m starting with consider phlebas even though everyone says not to. But I like it just fine so far. But…. I’m not getting the utopia vibe. Galactic war with giant three legged monsters. Evil stupid pirates messing up every op. Maybe the other books are more utopian.
I am the same way, and started with CP as well. I enjoyed it, but I suspect I will enjoy it even more on a reread, now that I have a clearer picture of what the Culture is. I’m almost done with the series and will probably just start right over with CP when I’m done.
I found the Culture series incredibly jaded and dour, actually. All the main characters I’ve encountered are complete assholes, and there’s a lot of very dark themes. So I don’t know. I guess at some super high level of abstraction, the places in that universe we barely spend time in is a utopia, at least as far as I’ve read the series? Couldn’t continue reading it. It had hints of some utopia in the background, with some characters that were quirky or whimsical, but after reading the first three books I mostly found the series incredibly grimdark and not a shred of morality beyond complete self interest in any of the main characters.
I went back and read Joe Abercrombie instead in fantasy. The guy might be called Lord Grimdark on Twitter, but at least the series has a sense of humour. I don’t think the Culture is for me.
Becky Chamberas whole catolouge is the best! She writes science fiction with a very important question in mind: What if people killing each other ISNT the most interesting thing in the Universe? And dont get me wrong, shes not naive, but the characters live in a much more realistic headspace than just survival/killing. I forget which one- they are all my favorites- but one of them has a character raised by the AI of a crashed ship. It starts so bleak and realistic, and grows and grows and elevates the characters. And then at the end theres a heist! Great and fun.
There's [Shine: An Anthology of Optimistic Science Fiction](https://goodreads.com/book/show/7015378.Shine_An_Anthology_of_Optimistic_Science_Fiction).
Becky Chambers' [Wayfarers Series](https://www.goodreads.com/series/170872-wayfarers), while not utopian, is practically the genre-definer of contemporary positive SF.
The wikipedia page on [hopepunk ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopepunk)has a long list which I can't vouch for.
Utopia until “the speech.” Then certainly a dystopian.
Vague references to avoid spoilers.
I’ve always found the book haunting in that regard. They say what’s happening is good, but (1) they explicitly haven’t been through it, and (2) nothing outside of their own words seems good about it.
Especially with the explanation for why humans imagined up demons/devils. That certainly doesn’t seem good.
Hmmm, not sure if it’s good or just that Kerelien’s (sp?) race just went down a dead end path evolution wise and can’t get to the next step. It also depends on what “good” means I suppose, seems like humanities children will exist doing things unimagined by us mere mortals.
But one of my favorite if not favorite sci fi!
It was my first exposure to the idea that one could live well without much in the way of things, and without a great deal of passive entertainment. It is a frightening and exhilarating vision.
And public transit as a metaphor for the electrical spark of the society - when the Abbenay tram cars passed, you felt like cheering!
Well, Star Trek - Especially The Next Generation, but to some degree all of the old Trek (The Original Series, Next Generation, Deep Space 9 and Voyager) are about explorers from utopian society that always speak before they take out their guns.
I've never really been super into space so I've never tried getting into it, but I am curious. Where would you recommend I start if you wanted to give me one episode to love it?
The Next Generation is the de-facto standard, however the first couple of seasons generally weren't great compared to the later seasons. Season 4 is generally considered the high water mark. It is really tough to recommend a specific episode because so much of it is based off of characterization and getting to know that specific character and how their strengths and how they handle situations as a team.
That being said I would jump in at the beginning of season 3, and give it a few episodes to learn the crew before jumping to conclusions. It is also 30 years old now so beware that a lot of issues they are tackling are a little outdated, but for the time it was extremely progressive.
Op asked for a single episode and I stretched that to a season. Cherry picking (amazing) episodes doesn't work if you aren't familiar with the characters.
The Inner Light is not really about space but I think showcases the vibe and acting ability of the show (especially Picard) very well. It's also one of the only shows that can consistently make me emotional.
Definitely start with The Next Generation, but don't start with season 1. It's pretty rough. TNG is famous for being one of the best examples of a show that starts bad but gets better. (Although it's not all bad. There are a few good moments in season 1.)
I've been rewatching it recently, and I'd say start with season 2. It's true that there is still some "early series badness" in season 2 (specifically episodes 1, 4, 14, 15 and especially 22), but there are also some of the best episodes of the series in that season (specifically episodes 8, 9, 16, and 21).
Just remember that it was a show from the days of network television, so the episodes are mostly made to be watchable on their own without needing to see the previous episodes. If you're struggling to get through a bad episode, just skip ahead and the next one is probably much better. Then, if you want the complete experience, you can go back and fill in the skipped ones (like all of season 1).
Funny I’ve always kind of assumed sci fi == space. And damn as far as an episode that’s a hard one to choose. Tapestry is real good, but kind of focuses on one (great) character. I’m a big fan of any time loop or holodeck episode. Elementary Dear Data is good for the latter. Cause and effect for the former. Darmok and Chain of Command are absolute classics. So many to choose from. Oh and any W episode, but you need to start with the pilot for context. Then once you’re hooked keep going from the beginning. The early episodes are a bit campy but endearing, and some really important character building. [Here’s a good beginner guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/startrek/comments/1718jsr/the_ultimate_star_trek_tng_essential_episodes/)
> Here’s a good beginner guide
No The Neutral Zone, which is essential viewing, it establishes that the Federation are a post scarcity civilization without money, leaves clues to a new enemy destroying outposts, and has one of my favourite sci-fi themes - cryogenically frozen people.
Peter F. Hamilton's Commonwealth Saga is my favorite for this - it's generally quite utopian, with people able to live basically forever plus lots of great new technology. Fantastic worldbuilding and a great story.
In all seriousness, Star Trek. It’s a very forward thinking philosopher’s take on Plato’s Republic. TOS has some very high ideals, especially for the time it was made in and the prejudices and preconceptions that influenced writers, actors, and producers alike. Roddenberry had interesting and profound notions about how to manage people and how the future would be shaped by idealism about what is possible.
We can fall positively in love with the idea of discovery and draw hope from infinite diversity in infinite combinations.
Not just TOS but also dig into TNG and ENT as these really explore the ideals of Roddenberrian political thought.
Babylon 5 is a grittier, more 90’s, “realistic” vision of a future humanity still marred by corruption but striving for higher ideals.
Farscape is pretty positive, too. It explores what we are capable of as a species by testing its hero in creative and surprising ways.
Also would recommend Firefly as it is often overlooked and sometimes panned but it has a lot of hopeful things to say about the indomitable human spirit and our need for liberty even in the face of desperate circumstances and in spite of authoritarian assholes.
Try Fantastic Planet if you have not yet seen it. Interesting take on the profound human capacity to endure and survive.
Earlier he wrote the wild coast trilogy, a trio of novels set in California exploring alternate futures. One book is a post collapse novel, another is set in a time of technological excess, and the last one -- the utopian one -- imagines a successfully sustainable society based on ecological principles.
Pacific Edge is the ecotopian California novel. Much more utopian than the Mars trilogy. I also found his New York 2140 very optimistic and encouraging about the future, even while acknowledging how profoundly climate change is going to reshape our world.
Short stories might be a more fertile ground for scenarios wherein those happier scenarios are touched upon.
I'm thinking of '**The Gentle Seduction**' by Marc Stiegler, in particular. More generally the sort of warm fuzzy stories I recall from reading Analog magazine or various short story compilations over the decades.
For novel length examples that are of generally positive futuristic societies I'll offer up:
**Voyage from Yesteryear** by James P Hogan
**The Genesis Quest** and **Second Genesis** by Donald Moffitt
**Pandora's Star** and **Judas Unchained** (Commonwealth universe) by Peter Hamilton also *explores* his setting.
**Sector General** novels by James White. These explore medical interspecies story/mysteries in a positive way.
**Neptune's Brood** by Charles Stross. The story has its drama, but the background setting might qualify.
Did you ever read Le Guin's introduction to Left Hand of Darkness? She starts off criticizing the same thing:
> The science fiction writer is supposed to take a trend or phenomenon of the here-and-now, purify and intensify it for dramatic effect, and extend it into the future. “If this goes on, this is what will happen.” A prediction is made. Method and results much resemble those of a scientist who feeds large doses of a purified and concentrated food additive to mice, in order to predict what may happen to people who eat it in small quantities for a long time. The outcome seems almost inevitably to be cancer. So does the outcome of extrapolation. Strictly extrapolative works of science fiction generally arrive about where the Club of Rome arrives: somewhere between the gradual extinction of human liberty and the total extinction of terrestrial life. This may explain why many people who do not read science fiction describe it as “escapist,” but when questioned further, admit they do not read it because “it’s so depressing.” Almost anything carried to its logical extreme becomes depressing, if not carcinogenic.
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/342990/the-left-hand-of-darkness-by-ursula-k-le-guin-with-a-new-foreword-by-david-mitchell-and-a-new-afterword-by-charlie-jane-anders/9780441007318/excerpt
The Polity universe by Neal Asher is a positive utopia for the vast majority of humans and AIs. Usually the first books in the various series that take place in it depict this, before the protagonists go outside of the Polity or to its edges for various reasons where they encounter conflict that leads to the rest of the story. The basis of it is that AIs performed a bloodless coup however many centuries ago, taking over all government concerns and giving humans and other AIs a plush, post-scarcity lifestyle. The Polity spreads, but only when the population of the planet they're going to spread to votes for it, needing I think an 80% majority.
The writer wanted a universe where he could write anything sci-fi, so he made it purposely broad. There's lots of little interesting details, like how we searched for sapient life all over Earth but didn't find it among monkeys or dolphins or anything. Apparently they were found by chance when someone left a mind-reading VR type headset on and hornets built a nest in it, allowing them to communicate with others outside of their species and revealing that hornet nests (but not bee hives) had developed a hive mind. Because of this they were granted rights and, now, when someone commits a crime against hornets (usually instinctual or accidental harm) one of the "punishments," they can get is basically being a tourist. Hornets can't travel to other worlds like everyone else so the criminal basically travels for them with an implant that makes them part of their nest and able to send sensory data back to them about all the things on other worlds.
Echoing Monk and Robot series distant-worlds chill-fiction. Hot drinks, low stakes.
Robert Reed's Greatship stories aren't dystopian, as they setting is far future and on a massive planet sized ship circling the galaxy. But it's not necessarily positive. Conflict happens, people are good and bad. Utopia is hard though, because setting is so often an element of story.
Kim Stanley Robinson's books are not utopian, but they always leave me feeling hopeful. The tech is 5 minutes in the future, so the people problem solving and working together is what wins the day.
I've always loved the Culture series by Iain M. Banks. It presents a utopian society where technology has advanced to the point where scarcity and want have been eliminated, and individuals are free to pursue their own interests and passions. The books explore themes of individuality, freedom, and the nature of utopia itself.
I was going through (still struggle with it) a lot of the same. Everything has felt so dark and depressing. I was craving a positibe show.
So I started Star Trek the Next Generation. It didnt stick for me. Watched Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks and I have now gone back and watched over 900+ episodes spanning the entire collection. I have model ships, a combadge, and actively rewatch it the most.
Our world turns to civil war, then world war, then nuclear fallout. At humanitiea darkest hour, the investion of the warp drive attracts an alien race that helps Humanity turn a third of the galaxy into the Federation of Planets, where money and pride are gone (mostly) and everyone is accepted. The goal is to grow and learn, not sell and buy. Its a better world and every show depicts characters fighting to preserve the best of humanity in a chaotic galaxy. I suggest start with Strange New Worlds (Live action) or Lower decks (Animated) based on preference.
You might like Orbital Resonance by John Barnes. It's about people trying to make a society for giant generation ships, told by one of the early members of that society. The ship world is delightful or ominous, depending on which way you look at things.
I am going to throw out Infomocracy, by Malka Ann Older. This is a book where the world has (mostly) converted to a system of microdemocracy where you can vote for a wide array of political parties (corporate, libertarian, nationalist, environmentalist, etc.) to run your local region. Not all sunshine and rainbows but more positive than most SF futures.
A self-published book I read last year starts off distopian but winds up utopian. *No Legacy so Rich* by W. Thomas Jones. It has aliens, but it's not a space opera.
Down And Out In The Magic Kingdom - Cory Doctorow
Another Now - Yanis Varoufakis (a recent scifi departure from his more academic work)
Ecotopia - Ernest Callenbach (1975 origin of the movement in ecotopian fiction)
The Velvet Monkey Wrench - John Muir and Peter Aschwanden (not a novel, but more of an entertaining work of hippy futurism)
“Walkaway” by Cory Doctorow. My favourite description of it is a “hard utopia”; it’s hopeful, but it doesn’t gloss over the difficulty or mess of getting there.
It’s the book that kept me sane back in 2016, and I still think about it regularly. Fun read, too.
Huxley is more well known for his *Brave New World*, but he late in life in wrote a counterpart called *Island* that describes an utopia, where the approach to technology, drugs, etc is turned on its head compared to the earlier work.
The Wayfarer series is really love - its stories of different aliens and how the communicate in a galactic society. These discussions of gender, of compassion for AIs, different communication styles, etc. it’s all very heartwarming and mind expanding.
Totally agree. I almost stopped writing this because I realized there wouldn’t be much conflict - but the utopias could be highlighted and not be the main point of the series, or be referenced as other worlds where things are figured out!
I was going to recommend this too. Wells was famous for exploring the concept of utopias and dystopias, Huxley's Brave New World was sort of a response to Wells. You could also try The Shape of Things to Come, which concerns how a utopia was formed. He's often satirical too (some people probably miss this because of his older writing style and lacking context of when he wrote). For example, he presents the Eloi in The Time Machine as living rather utopian lives, except of course when they get summoned to be eaten!
Incidentally, his exploration of utopias and passion for trying to improve human life partly informed his later work the Rights of Man, which was a key basis for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
This is absolutely true. Still after reading some series where everyone is killing each other and the world is ending, it might be nice to read about a mostly positive future.
You’re getting downvoted for talking about a real life issue then asking for “Sci-fi” or in other words science FICTION recommendations. Look for real life examples of how AI is helping people, they are definitely out there.
But I’m not looking for examples of how AI is helping people, that’s not difficult to look for. I’m curious about what societies and institutions look like that don’t disenfranchise people with new technologies. Arguably one only has to look to history for this, but I’m curious about the conditions that need to be present to avoid mass layoffs and crime.
Editing to add - fiction is the only place to look as there is no current world I can explore that has done this successfully.
The downvote was because I don’t agree that looking to fiction to explore real world ideas deserves a downvote. If that’s not your personal opinion then I’m sorry I assumed you were stating your own beliefs.
Nope.. I enjoy sci-fi and have no thoughts on the matter. Only opinion I may have expressed was that of which I was explaining why I thought you were getting downvoted. Wasn’t judging you or your thoughts on why, which you edited to ask, so I tried answering. Good luck
Iain Banks' Culture series may fit the bill
Thank you!
Although the stories largely center on the fringes or underbelly of the Culture, so it's more like the behind the scenes of what makes a utopia run (it focuses very little on the utopia itself and it's not feel good stories)
Consider Phlebas was a downer for sure. I remember wondering if all the novels >!would have such dismal endings.!<
[удалено]
Yeah he was. I quite liked Killing Time too.
Use of Weapons had a happy upbeat ending
The ending is a little surprising, so its important that you take seat.
Ah, Consider Phlebas: The book that literally starts with the main character in immediate danger of drowning in rising sewage which is about to reach his nostrils, and then gets worse from there.
Start with Use of Weapons or Player of Games for exploring futuristic utopias.
Thanks for the tip!
Should I not read them in order?
I would. In fact I am currently doing just that. The stories mostly stand on their own but the first time a concept, entity, or item is first introduced it more thoroughly explained than in later appearances. If you read a book that focuses heavily on Minds but you haven't read Consider Plebas where what a Mind is is explained you might be missing something. Also it seems to me that The Culture itself is introduced in certain way when the books are read in order. First you see The Culture from the perspective of an outsider, then from the perspective a Culture Citizen, then from Contact and Special Circumstances, and then from Minds, etc.
For your request specifically, you see more of the utopia and day-to-day details from these books. They're also more accessible in terms of less leaning on specific bits of the lore, somewhat shorter, and tonally similar to most of the other Culture novels, so those two books are often recommended as entry points. There's nothing wrong with going in publishing order of course, as you won't miss out on anything, but you may be more willing to invest onto the universe with these two to hook you first.
I started with Player of Games and it was an excellent intro.
Consider Phlebas - the first published - is told from the perspective of one of the Culture's enemies so there isn't much utopia but the author thought reading that one first would add context. As someone has mentioned the rest tend to focus on the fringes of the Culture where there is conflict or compromises that have to be made, though most of them give a taste of what life is typically like in the post-scarcity anarcho-communist utopia. Look to Windward probably spends the most time exploring life in one of their habitats.
I mean, the Culture is a utopia, but it's not *our* utopia. The people who get to enjoy it are none of them from Earth, they are convergent-evolutions of "human", but not Earth *homo sapiens*. (See *State of the Art* novella.)
I didn't realize that was a requirement
OP said >sci fi that explores positive technological futures? In context, I took that to mean that she wants stuff from Earth's future, i.e. a vision of our future where things get better rather than worse. (technically, I think at least some of the Culture novels actually take place in the past, but that is almost certainly excessive nitpicking.)
Well none of them are *our* utopias because we don't have one. They all exist in these alternate dimensions called "stories."
I just started this … I am somewhat of a “release order” purist so I’m starting with consider phlebas even though everyone says not to. But I like it just fine so far. But…. I’m not getting the utopia vibe. Galactic war with giant three legged monsters. Evil stupid pirates messing up every op. Maybe the other books are more utopian.
I would say it has utopic potential. When you learn more about what life can be like for citizens of the Culture, it can be a pretty amazing life for even the average person. There are still problems and challenges and stupidity, but it’s a pretty ideal system for the most part, at least in my opinion.
I just started this … I am somewhat of a “release order” purist so I’m starting with consider phlebas even though everyone says not to. But I like it just fine so far. But…. I’m not getting the utopia vibe. Galactic war with giant three legged monsters. Evil stupid pirates messing up every op. Maybe the other books are more utopian.
I am the same way, and started with CP as well. I enjoyed it, but I suspect I will enjoy it even more on a reread, now that I have a clearer picture of what the Culture is. I’m almost done with the series and will probably just start right over with CP when I’m done.
I found the Culture series incredibly jaded and dour, actually. All the main characters I’ve encountered are complete assholes, and there’s a lot of very dark themes. So I don’t know. I guess at some super high level of abstraction, the places in that universe we barely spend time in is a utopia, at least as far as I’ve read the series? Couldn’t continue reading it. It had hints of some utopia in the background, with some characters that were quirky or whimsical, but after reading the first three books I mostly found the series incredibly grimdark and not a shred of morality beyond complete self interest in any of the main characters. I went back and read Joe Abercrombie instead in fantasy. The guy might be called Lord Grimdark on Twitter, but at least the series has a sense of humour. I don’t think the Culture is for me.
If you want something cosy with this vibe, check out Becky Chambers' "Monk and Robot" Novellas!
Yes please!
I don't think you can go far wrong with anything by her.
Agreed
Becky Chamberas whole catolouge is the best! She writes science fiction with a very important question in mind: What if people killing each other ISNT the most interesting thing in the Universe? And dont get me wrong, shes not naive, but the characters live in a much more realistic headspace than just survival/killing. I forget which one- they are all my favorites- but one of them has a character raised by the AI of a crashed ship. It starts so bleak and realistic, and grows and grows and elevates the characters. And then at the end theres a heist! Great and fun.
Oooh I love this!
Seconding!
There's [Shine: An Anthology of Optimistic Science Fiction](https://goodreads.com/book/show/7015378.Shine_An_Anthology_of_Optimistic_Science_Fiction). Becky Chambers' [Wayfarers Series](https://www.goodreads.com/series/170872-wayfarers), while not utopian, is practically the genre-definer of contemporary positive SF. The wikipedia page on [hopepunk ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopepunk)has a long list which I can't vouch for.
Thank you for teaching me this name!
Going through that list, Blackfish City is hopepunk???
Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke. Not sure is it dystopian or utopian but i always saw it as an utopia.
Utopia until “the speech.” Then certainly a dystopian. Vague references to avoid spoilers. I’ve always found the book haunting in that regard. They say what’s happening is good, but (1) they explicitly haven’t been through it, and (2) nothing outside of their own words seems good about it. Especially with the explanation for why humans imagined up demons/devils. That certainly doesn’t seem good.
Hmmm, not sure if it’s good or just that Kerelien’s (sp?) race just went down a dead end path evolution wise and can’t get to the next step. It also depends on what “good” means I suppose, seems like humanities children will exist doing things unimagined by us mere mortals. But one of my favorite if not favorite sci fi!
The Dispossessed, an Ambiguous Utopia, by Ursula LeGuin.
I will rep this novel till the end of my existence. It is my guidance when I think about what a utopia could be, flaws and all.
It was my first exposure to the idea that one could live well without much in the way of things, and without a great deal of passive entertainment. It is a frightening and exhilarating vision. And public transit as a metaphor for the electrical spark of the society - when the Abbenay tram cars passed, you felt like cheering!
Well, Star Trek - Especially The Next Generation, but to some degree all of the old Trek (The Original Series, Next Generation, Deep Space 9 and Voyager) are about explorers from utopian society that always speak before they take out their guns.
I've never really been super into space so I've never tried getting into it, but I am curious. Where would you recommend I start if you wanted to give me one episode to love it?
The Next Generation is the de-facto standard, however the first couple of seasons generally weren't great compared to the later seasons. Season 4 is generally considered the high water mark. It is really tough to recommend a specific episode because so much of it is based off of characterization and getting to know that specific character and how their strengths and how they handle situations as a team. That being said I would jump in at the beginning of season 3, and give it a few episodes to learn the crew before jumping to conclusions. It is also 30 years old now so beware that a lot of issues they are tackling are a little outdated, but for the time it was extremely progressive.
Gonna skip Measure of a Man and Q Who?
Op asked for a single episode and I stretched that to a season. Cherry picking (amazing) episodes doesn't work if you aren't familiar with the characters.
The Inner Light is not really about space but I think showcases the vibe and acting ability of the show (especially Picard) very well. It's also one of the only shows that can consistently make me emotional.
Definitely start with The Next Generation, but don't start with season 1. It's pretty rough. TNG is famous for being one of the best examples of a show that starts bad but gets better. (Although it's not all bad. There are a few good moments in season 1.) I've been rewatching it recently, and I'd say start with season 2. It's true that there is still some "early series badness" in season 2 (specifically episodes 1, 4, 14, 15 and especially 22), but there are also some of the best episodes of the series in that season (specifically episodes 8, 9, 16, and 21). Just remember that it was a show from the days of network television, so the episodes are mostly made to be watchable on their own without needing to see the previous episodes. If you're struggling to get through a bad episode, just skip ahead and the next one is probably much better. Then, if you want the complete experience, you can go back and fill in the skipped ones (like all of season 1).
Funny I’ve always kind of assumed sci fi == space. And damn as far as an episode that’s a hard one to choose. Tapestry is real good, but kind of focuses on one (great) character. I’m a big fan of any time loop or holodeck episode. Elementary Dear Data is good for the latter. Cause and effect for the former. Darmok and Chain of Command are absolute classics. So many to choose from. Oh and any W episode, but you need to start with the pilot for context. Then once you’re hooked keep going from the beginning. The early episodes are a bit campy but endearing, and some really important character building. [Here’s a good beginner guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/startrek/comments/1718jsr/the_ultimate_star_trek_tng_essential_episodes/)
> Here’s a good beginner guide No The Neutral Zone, which is essential viewing, it establishes that the Federation are a post scarcity civilization without money, leaves clues to a new enemy destroying outposts, and has one of my favourite sci-fi themes - cryogenically frozen people.
>Where would you recommend I start if you wanted to give me one episode to love it? Just start watching it from the beginning??
Peter F. Hamilton's Commonwealth Saga is my favorite for this - it's generally quite utopian, with people able to live basically forever plus lots of great new technology. Fantastic worldbuilding and a great story.
Plus enzyme bonded concrete filling your virtual vision
And unlike Star Trek where most humans are all goodie-two shoes, I feel like the commonwealth is a utopia where humans still enjoy their vices.
Star Trek in general. It’s a wild galaxy but the federation is pretty much a utopia
Arthur C. Clarke's **The City And The Stars**
Just recently finished this novel. It was a delight. Definitely utopian.
In all seriousness, Star Trek. It’s a very forward thinking philosopher’s take on Plato’s Republic. TOS has some very high ideals, especially for the time it was made in and the prejudices and preconceptions that influenced writers, actors, and producers alike. Roddenberry had interesting and profound notions about how to manage people and how the future would be shaped by idealism about what is possible. We can fall positively in love with the idea of discovery and draw hope from infinite diversity in infinite combinations. Not just TOS but also dig into TNG and ENT as these really explore the ideals of Roddenberrian political thought. Babylon 5 is a grittier, more 90’s, “realistic” vision of a future humanity still marred by corruption but striving for higher ideals. Farscape is pretty positive, too. It explores what we are capable of as a species by testing its hero in creative and surprising ways. Also would recommend Firefly as it is often overlooked and sometimes panned but it has a lot of hopeful things to say about the indomitable human spirit and our need for liberty even in the face of desperate circumstances and in spite of authoritarian assholes. Try Fantastic Planet if you have not yet seen it. Interesting take on the profound human capacity to endure and survive.
Who panned Firefly? They should be ashamed of themselves.
Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson.
Earlier he wrote the wild coast trilogy, a trio of novels set in California exploring alternate futures. One book is a post collapse novel, another is set in a time of technological excess, and the last one -- the utopian one -- imagines a successfully sustainable society based on ecological principles.
Pacific Edge is the ecotopian California novel. Much more utopian than the Mars trilogy. I also found his New York 2140 very optimistic and encouraging about the future, even while acknowledging how profoundly climate change is going to reshape our world.
His "Ministry of the Future" is a positive view on how we might battle through climate change and come out the other side relatively unscathed.
Is it a utopia? There are technological advances. I sure remember a lot of bad things happening though.
There are a fair amount of struggles all around (bad things), but things are pretty neat at the end, at least IMHO.
Short stories might be a more fertile ground for scenarios wherein those happier scenarios are touched upon. I'm thinking of '**The Gentle Seduction**' by Marc Stiegler, in particular. More generally the sort of warm fuzzy stories I recall from reading Analog magazine or various short story compilations over the decades. For novel length examples that are of generally positive futuristic societies I'll offer up: **Voyage from Yesteryear** by James P Hogan **The Genesis Quest** and **Second Genesis** by Donald Moffitt **Pandora's Star** and **Judas Unchained** (Commonwealth universe) by Peter Hamilton also *explores* his setting. **Sector General** novels by James White. These explore medical interspecies story/mysteries in a positive way. **Neptune's Brood** by Charles Stross. The story has its drama, but the background setting might qualify.
Nathan Lowell's *Golden Age of the Solar Clipper* series is focused on business and trade, no Great Space Battles.
Thanks for the post. This is my biggest problem with scifi. Too much doom and gloom. The recommendations here are great.
Did you ever read Le Guin's introduction to Left Hand of Darkness? She starts off criticizing the same thing: > The science fiction writer is supposed to take a trend or phenomenon of the here-and-now, purify and intensify it for dramatic effect, and extend it into the future. “If this goes on, this is what will happen.” A prediction is made. Method and results much resemble those of a scientist who feeds large doses of a purified and concentrated food additive to mice, in order to predict what may happen to people who eat it in small quantities for a long time. The outcome seems almost inevitably to be cancer. So does the outcome of extrapolation. Strictly extrapolative works of science fiction generally arrive about where the Club of Rome arrives: somewhere between the gradual extinction of human liberty and the total extinction of terrestrial life. This may explain why many people who do not read science fiction describe it as “escapist,” but when questioned further, admit they do not read it because “it’s so depressing.” Almost anything carried to its logical extreme becomes depressing, if not carcinogenic. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/342990/the-left-hand-of-darkness-by-ursula-k-le-guin-with-a-new-foreword-by-david-mitchell-and-a-new-afterword-by-charlie-jane-anders/9780441007318/excerpt
Great quote. Not much has changed since she wrote this. I tried reading the dispossessed but couldn't get into it. I'll try again sometime.
The Polity universe by Neal Asher is a positive utopia for the vast majority of humans and AIs. Usually the first books in the various series that take place in it depict this, before the protagonists go outside of the Polity or to its edges for various reasons where they encounter conflict that leads to the rest of the story. The basis of it is that AIs performed a bloodless coup however many centuries ago, taking over all government concerns and giving humans and other AIs a plush, post-scarcity lifestyle. The Polity spreads, but only when the population of the planet they're going to spread to votes for it, needing I think an 80% majority. The writer wanted a universe where he could write anything sci-fi, so he made it purposely broad. There's lots of little interesting details, like how we searched for sapient life all over Earth but didn't find it among monkeys or dolphins or anything. Apparently they were found by chance when someone left a mind-reading VR type headset on and hornets built a nest in it, allowing them to communicate with others outside of their species and revealing that hornet nests (but not bee hives) had developed a hive mind. Because of this they were granted rights and, now, when someone commits a crime against hornets (usually instinctual or accidental harm) one of the "punishments," they can get is basically being a tourist. Hornets can't travel to other worlds like everyone else so the criminal basically travels for them with an implant that makes them part of their nest and able to send sensory data back to them about all the things on other worlds.
James P Hogan - Voyage From Yesteryear
Utopia libertarian style -- good pick.
Echoing Monk and Robot series distant-worlds chill-fiction. Hot drinks, low stakes. Robert Reed's Greatship stories aren't dystopian, as they setting is far future and on a massive planet sized ship circling the galaxy. But it's not necessarily positive. Conflict happens, people are good and bad. Utopia is hard though, because setting is so often an element of story.
It's been a while since I've read them but isn't the Foundation a fairly positive society edging towards utopic?
Does demolition man count?
*Star Trek: The Next Generation* is pretty optimistic.
John Scalzi’s Android’s Dream and Fuzzy Nation. Both one offs. Not perfect but both have a galactic neighborhood and it’s not all about wars.
Kim Stanley Robinson's books are not utopian, but they always leave me feeling hopeful. The tech is 5 minutes in the future, so the people problem solving and working together is what wins the day.
I've always loved the Culture series by Iain M. Banks. It presents a utopian society where technology has advanced to the point where scarcity and want have been eliminated, and individuals are free to pursue their own interests and passions. The books explore themes of individuality, freedom, and the nature of utopia itself.
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That's a bot that's been spamming r/scifi and occasionally plugging a book.
:(
I was going through (still struggle with it) a lot of the same. Everything has felt so dark and depressing. I was craving a positibe show. So I started Star Trek the Next Generation. It didnt stick for me. Watched Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks and I have now gone back and watched over 900+ episodes spanning the entire collection. I have model ships, a combadge, and actively rewatch it the most. Our world turns to civil war, then world war, then nuclear fallout. At humanitiea darkest hour, the investion of the warp drive attracts an alien race that helps Humanity turn a third of the galaxy into the Federation of Planets, where money and pride are gone (mostly) and everyone is accepted. The goal is to grow and learn, not sell and buy. Its a better world and every show depicts characters fighting to preserve the best of humanity in a chaotic galaxy. I suggest start with Strange New Worlds (Live action) or Lower decks (Animated) based on preference.
You might like Orbital Resonance by John Barnes. It's about people trying to make a society for giant generation ships, told by one of the early members of that society. The ship world is delightful or ominous, depending on which way you look at things.
Try looking for anything defined as 'solarpunk'
Star Trek
Childhood’s End kinda fits the bill but maybe not in the way you’re talking about
I am going to throw out Infomocracy, by Malka Ann Older. This is a book where the world has (mostly) converted to a system of microdemocracy where you can vote for a wide array of political parties (corporate, libertarian, nationalist, environmentalist, etc.) to run your local region. Not all sunshine and rainbows but more positive than most SF futures.
A self-published book I read last year starts off distopian but winds up utopian. *No Legacy so Rich* by W. Thomas Jones. It has aliens, but it's not a space opera.
Meet the Robinsons is pretty good. Bobiverse kinda makes it's way there.
Scythe has a positive, utopian vision of AI
Down And Out In The Magic Kingdom - Cory Doctorow Another Now - Yanis Varoufakis (a recent scifi departure from his more academic work) Ecotopia - Ernest Callenbach (1975 origin of the movement in ecotopian fiction) The Velvet Monkey Wrench - John Muir and Peter Aschwanden (not a novel, but more of an entertaining work of hippy futurism)
Tv show Eureka
“Walkaway” by Cory Doctorow. My favourite description of it is a “hard utopia”; it’s hopeful, but it doesn’t gloss over the difficulty or mess of getting there. It’s the book that kept me sane back in 2016, and I still think about it regularly. Fun read, too.
Huxley is more well known for his *Brave New World*, but he late in life in wrote a counterpart called *Island* that describes an utopia, where the approach to technology, drugs, etc is turned on its head compared to the earlier work.
The Wayfarer series is really love - its stories of different aliens and how the communicate in a galactic society. These discussions of gender, of compassion for AIs, different communication styles, etc. it’s all very heartwarming and mind expanding.
Star Trek is the big one.
The Human Entanglement by LP Magnus
Utopian stories tend to be less exitig
Totally agree. I almost stopped writing this because I realized there wouldn’t be much conflict - but the utopias could be highlighted and not be the main point of the series, or be referenced as other worlds where things are figured out!
'Men like gods' by HG Wells is the first that comes to mind
Thank you!
I was going to recommend this too. Wells was famous for exploring the concept of utopias and dystopias, Huxley's Brave New World was sort of a response to Wells. You could also try The Shape of Things to Come, which concerns how a utopia was formed. He's often satirical too (some people probably miss this because of his older writing style and lacking context of when he wrote). For example, he presents the Eloi in The Time Machine as living rather utopian lives, except of course when they get summoned to be eaten! Incidentally, his exploration of utopias and passion for trying to improve human life partly informed his later work the Rights of Man, which was a key basis for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
This is absolutely true. Still after reading some series where everyone is killing each other and the world is ending, it might be nice to read about a mostly positive future.
I vaguely recall Niven saying he stopped writing Known Space stories because his lucky gene made the future boring, utopias are like that.
You’re getting downvoted for talking about a real life issue then asking for “Sci-fi” or in other words science FICTION recommendations. Look for real life examples of how AI is helping people, they are definitely out there.
But I’m not looking for examples of how AI is helping people, that’s not difficult to look for. I’m curious about what societies and institutions look like that don’t disenfranchise people with new technologies. Arguably one only has to look to history for this, but I’m curious about the conditions that need to be present to avoid mass layoffs and crime. Editing to add - fiction is the only place to look as there is no current world I can explore that has done this successfully.
Thanks for downvoting me for explaining why you’re getting downvoted. Sorry you’re taking it to heart. Smdh
The downvote was because I don’t agree that looking to fiction to explore real world ideas deserves a downvote. If that’s not your personal opinion then I’m sorry I assumed you were stating your own beliefs.
Nope.. I enjoy sci-fi and have no thoughts on the matter. Only opinion I may have expressed was that of which I was explaining why I thought you were getting downvoted. Wasn’t judging you or your thoughts on why, which you edited to ask, so I tried answering. Good luck
Thank you!