‘Science Fiction is for real, Space Opera is for fun’ – Brian Aldiss. Space Opera is the subdivision of science fiction – set in outer space emphasizing space warfare & melodramatic adventure.
What is Space Opera?
Human fascination with life beyond earth is shown through many movies, series, and books. With movies like Star Wars, Star Trek, Avatar, Interstellar it can be said that space exploration is a popular culture and has always caught attention. Even in the 1930s what was known as the Golden Age for space opera with the release of E.E Smith’s ‘The Skylark Of Space’ is widely considered the first true space opera.
Space Opera’s history goes back to the 19th century, early proto-space opera was written by several French authors. It was not generally popular but nonetheless was written occasionally during the late Victorian and Edwardian Sci-Fi era.
How is it a Part of Science fiction?
In the present scenario with all the Graphics and VFX it’s possible to see our images in front of our eyes on the big screen. It’s all about how realistic the illusion is, the more we will be drawn towards it. Space heroes fighting Aliens bent on destroying humanity, escaping a dystopian era, and starting life on a new planet, alternative timelines, and space travel do fascinate all but what about the reality. We imagine the extraterrestrial beings living in outer space although our Earth where there is the presence of life and nature is yet entirely undiscovered.
The illusion by technologies creates a completely different setting beyond Earth. The fascination with it is so strong that we hardly notice we are already living a real-life Space opera with our habitat a part of the Universe, surrounded by stars and galaxies so beautiful.
It is just for entertainment!
We may exist in a space opera universe without apprehending it! But we should realize one thing that, Space Opera until means of entertainment is good but the obsession with it is not. It is truly incredible to think that somewhere there is life other than the life we know but we should never forget that we live on a planet of truly remarkable extraordinary things loaded with immense and sensational things, with a history of human intelligence and evolution from being apes to what we are today. There is chaos everywhere on Earth. Humans are greedily using the sources of the earth while polluting oceans, global warming, and climate change which are destroying our planet, and instead of saving our planet, we are fascinated with the questionable extra-terrestrials.
By- Habiba Zaidi
