Nuclear Futures and Cold War Fears: Space Opera as a Reflection of Cold War Nuclear Anxieties

Author: Hannah Eig

Field of Study: Undeclared

Program Affiliation: Source Project Research Program

Faculty Mentors: Will Glovinsky

Easel: 36

Timeslot: Morning

Abstract: As nuclear stockpiles grew during the 1950s and 60s, so did the fear of nuclear war and total annihilation. In this climate of fear, the traditionally denigrated genre of space opera––with its conventions of spaceships, adventure, and melodrama––reflected sociopolitical concerns of an unwinnable war resulting in devastation. Though seemingly unrelated, space opera and the Cold War are quite interconnected. Although many scholars have researched them as separate topics, few have examined the two together. In space opera, intergalactic and alternate futures enable authors’ to “estrange” (Darko Suvin) nuclear fears, allowing for anxieties and consequences to be explored in neutral settings. Isaac Asimov’s short story “The Gentle Vultures” and Robert A. Heinlein’s novel Starship Troopers showcase two common responses to nuclear fear – the push for disarmament and the urge to arm up. By examining Cold War space operas written about the future, this paper aims to better understand the anxieties of the past.