Nostalgic Futures

"In Nostalgic Futures: The Reactionary Fantasies of Speculative Fiction Fandoms, Max Dosser explores the politics of fans and fandoms of speculative fiction, a genre characterized by creative and fantastical approaches to reimagining reality. Dosser argues that while works of speculative fiction may seem to be completely detached from reality, the controversies among fans of the genre are reflective of broader social and political issues. Fans of speculative fiction often protest the inclusion of diverse voices into franchises, citing the sacrifice of canonical fidelity for the sake of "wokeness." Reactions that imagine what an author would want or that criticize media for violating that canonical fidelity, Dosser argues, reveal a complex relationship between fans, the speculative fiction media to which they are affectively attached, and reactionary ideologies. Reactionism in speculative fiction fandoms and in modern politics are both characterized by nostalgia, which Dosser claims is a speculative fiction itself. Fans and reactionaries alike rely on imagined pasts to speculate how things should be in the present and future, leading to a drive to construct nostalgic futures. This book explores how these nostalgic fantasies contribute to broader reactionary discourses, shaping not only the past these fans long for but also the future they fear. Through analyzing the affective economies of fan controversies, Nostalgic Futures demonstrates the ways that affective attachments to an imagined past of speculative fiction media and fandom mirror the revanchist nostalgia that undergirds reactionary logics. The nostalgia motivating these fans and wider reactionary groups is not just a longing for an imagined past but a desire to punish those who have made the reclamation of that past a necessity"-- Provided by publisher.