Religion and Science Fiction: An Introduction

Religion and Science Fiction: An Introduction guides students into deeper understanding of how religion and science fiction engage often overlapping questions.

This textbook introduces key ideas of religious studies through critical consideration of print and visual media that fall within the general category of science fiction. The goal throughout is to help students move beyond simply identifying points of interrelation between religious studies and forms of what is often called, more broadly, speculative fiction, to considering how the studied texts open new ways of thinking about human (and nonhuman) experience taken to be religious.

With discussion questions, lists of key terms, extensive additional resources, and suggestions for projects and essay questions, this book is a foundational text for students and instructors of religion and science fiction.

James H. Thrall directs the religious studies program at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, where he is the Knight Distinguished Professor for the Study of Religion and Culture.