Science Fiction is the Greatest Realism nowadays
Chen Qiufan is a Chinese science fiction writer, screenwriter, translator, and curator. He graduated from the Department of Chinese Language and Art Academy of Peking University. He is the Vice president of the Chinese Writers Association Science Fiction Committee, honorary president of the Chinese Science Fiction Writers Association, and a member of the Jiusan Society. His works have been widely translated into more than 20 languages. At the opening of the 7th China-EU Literary Festival, Chen Qiufan expressed his views on topics such as sci-fi realism, sci-fi, and environmental issues.
Sci-fi Realism
Past and future, vernacular and globalization. Under the wave of technology, the crisis of individual identity is becoming more and more acute. Facing big data, the question “Who am I” seems to be more difficult to answer. Co-authored with Kai-Fu Lee, Chen Qiufan’s new book AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future (《AI未来进行式》), brought bold innovations based on the technique of sci-fi realism, adopted the writing method of “technology + science fiction”, to predict the future of science and technology that is infinitely close to reality. “Sci-fi is the greatest realism nowadays. Science-fiction realism responds to this one topic, that technology has become an inseparable part of our current society, you can’t imagine how to discuss our daily life experience without the elements of technology,” Chen Qiufan said. “Sci-fi realism needs us to think deeply about the role of science and technology in people’s lives, and how does it interact with people? How does it affect everyone’s perception of ourselves, others, and the world from different levels? What kind of imagination do we have for technology? I think this is the most important stand of sci-fi realism. From this point of view, all themes have the spaces and possibilities to be rediscovered, explained, and imagined through the form of science fiction.”
“In the process of writing AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future (《AI未来进行式》), I found that the minority groups with disadvantages would become even less in favor in the future AI-led society. Because AI learns to solve the problems by machine reinforcement learning with existing collected data. For the so-called minority groups with disadvantages, such as those who weren’t able to use smartphones during the pandemic, those who did not have access to the Internet, or the elderly and the disabled, their data was missing.” Chen Qiufan said. “How to build a more fair and friendly AI technology in the future that treats everyone with kindness will become the key factor. Because in my opinion, AI is there for everyone, not just for some specific groups, such as the elite to design. We need to convey a very important concept of ‘AI sustainable development’.”
Science Fiction and Environmental Issues
Waste Tide (《荒潮》) discussed the environmental problems that current society is facing and imagined future solutions through science fiction. Zero Carbon China （《零碳中国》）(2022) is a sci-fi novel written for children. Using the writing method of “Science Science + Science Fiction”, it outlines a panorama of our transition to a zero-carbon society. Chen Qiufan said, “for citizens, many perceptions of environmental issues come from science fiction, not from political declarations or survey reports. The power of science fiction is more intuitive and contagious. The pandemic in recent years is a particularly good example. It tells us that fundamentally, it is the unrestricted over-expansion of human beings, including the destruction of the natural environment, damage to wild animals, greenhouse gas emissions, etc., which have caused problems. The deep-seated reasons behind these various problems are ‘ Accelerationism’, which is wanting to solve problems as quickly as possible, only considering development and economic benefits, but not thinking about damage to the overall environment at all.”
“Now is the time for us to take a pause and rethink the model of economic development and how to develop it sustainably. The US is the country with the largest carbon emission in the world. With their withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, some countries might follow its steps, which would have a devastating effect for the world. Science fiction could play a very good role in conveying information in this regard, which is why I chose to create related themes.” Chen Qiufan said.
Future Science Fiction China
“‘Creating the future starts with imagining the future.’ Compared to reality, science fiction can break the inherent mental paradigm with the help of open, defamiliar, and timeless narrative strategies, which can release flexible, diverse, and reflective awareness. Only in this way can we break through the constraints of languages, cultures, geopolitics, and ideology, and pursue a transcendental community with a shared future for mankind.” Chen Qiufan said.
When talking about the future of Chinese science fiction, Chen Qiufan said, “The “Heng” hexagram in the Book of Changes (易经》) says, ‘Tough up and soft down, thunder and wind are in harmony, the wind moves, only with rigidity and softness can one last constantly.’ Science and technology’s development and literature creation are just like a strong thunderbolt and a gentle wind, which echo, influence, transform, and inspire each other. We need a new holistic view that transcends binary oppositions and treats the relationship between technology and humanity from a holographic, multi-dimensional, complex, and symbiotic perspective. The relationship between them can make its nourishment for human civilization endless. Therefore, fundamentally speaking, the development of Chinese science fiction is inseparable from the progress of science and technology and the construction of civilization. They are both indispensables.”
At the upcoming 7th China-EU International Literature Festival, Chen Qiufan will join German author Frank Schätzin, in discussion with literary translator Li Shuangzhi, to discuss their works and the topic: “Visions for our Future: What if we Just Save the World?