Philosophy & Science Fiction Resource Page

Relevant Philosophical Texts

General

• Philosophy and Science Fiction by Michael Philips (Prometheus Books).
• The Philosopher at the End of the Universe: Philosophy Explained Through Science Fiction Films by Mark Rowlands (Thomas Dunne Books).
• Philosophy Through Film by Mary M. Litch (Routledge).  Many of the films discussed are SF, e.g. Total Recall, The Matrix, AI: Artificial Intelligence and Gattaca.

On The Matrix

• The Matrix and Philosophy: Welcome to the Desert of the Real edited by William Irwin (Open Court Publishing Company).
• Like a Splinter in Your Mind: The Philosophy Behind the Matrix Trilogy by Matt Lawrence (Blackwell).

On Star Trek:

• Is Data Human? The Metaphysics of Star Trek by Richard Hanley (Basic Books).
• The Ethics of Star Trek by Judith Barad and Ed Robertson (Harper Collins).
• "The Ice Man Cometh: Lt. Cmdr. Data and the Turing Test" by James Sennett.
• The Nature of Persons  An analysis of Data's personhood by The Mind Project at Illinois State University.

On other SF literature:

• Hal's Legacy: 2001's Computer as Dream and Reality edited by David G. Stork

Philosophical Papers on SF

• Philosophy & The Matrix  From the Offical Warner Brothers website - 16 specially commissioned papers, most by academic philosophers, on philosophical themes relating to The Matrix trilogy.
• An Issue of PhilosophyNow magazine devoted to Philosophy & SF

Philosophy and SF Syllabi

• by David Shier at WSU-Pullman
• by Michael Huemer at CU-Boulder
• by Roberta Millstein at California State University, Hayward
• by Michael Baumer at Cleveland State University
• by Jeffrey Koperski at Saginaw Valley State University
• by Susan Schneider at Moravian College
  

Other Philosophy and SF Resources

• The Possible World Machine.  Eight SF stories exploring philosophical themes by Geoffrey Klempner at Sheffield University.
• Philosophical Films.  Brief reviews of films containing philosophical themes.  Also contains discussion questions.  (Only some of the films are SF.)

Academic Resources on SF

• Course Materials for the Study of Science Fiction by Paul Brians at WSU-Pullman

SF Writers and Philosophy

• Interview with Philip K. Dick

What is Science Fiction?

• Definitions of Science Fiction
• SciFi Guide by Agatha Taormina
• Wikipedia entry on Science Fiction
• The SF/Sci-Fi Debate by Melisa Michaels (on the SFWA page)