Re: Why Space Empires?

On Jan 30, 7:37 pm, mbotto...@xxxxxxxxxxx (Michelle Bottorff) wrote:
<CharlesRCap...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Why is the "Space Empire" so popular in SF? It seems that the vast
majority of all "far future" SF (which I suppose most of which is
Space Opera) have some sort of Monarchy and/or Feudalistic system of
government. Is it just a literary crutch or is it more a reasoned
response to the problem of ruling a large geographically
(astrographically) separated polity? Is it just some sort of
(misplaced?) nostalgia for the forms and protocols that attach to such
a system?

Galactic Empires are cool.

So true, though I'm unconvinced of the initial assumption that "Space
Empire" is more popular than other variations in SF.

That's why my Cultivator Universe has one that has no particular
positional relationship to any particularly galaxy, and which isn't,
strictly speaking, an empire at all.

I think that this is frequently true... it *looks* like an Empire but
usually something else is going on. And that something probably
has a great deal to do with the practical issues of governing
something
larger than Norway.

But if you *call* it an Empire, then you get to have an Emperor -- and
royalty chasing paparazzi, without whom life cannot truly be considered
complete. >:)

My Secret Keeper universe has an Empress and this fact drives
the plot. The Empress, however, doesn't rule much of anything.
She has a similar function, though even less power, than Asaro's
Skolians.

Seriously, though, I think they pop up for the same reason that
fantasies have so many of them. Political systems that bestow huge
amounts of power on just a few people tend to make for good story stuff.

And people with power, realized or unrealized (at first), make good
characters.

Space Empires are a handy way to raise the stakes, increase the
numinous, accelerate the dangers, and widen the scope. PLUS they come
with really great window-dressing, at no extra charge. What's not to
like?

There are, of course, other ways to get a lot of power into the hands of
just a few people...

... and, I think if you look, you will discover that a great many
popular genre tropes are examples of doing precisely that: Magic, hidden
knowlege, superior technology, military hierarchies, amazing artifacts,
secret weapons, special talents, super powers...

Yes.

-Julie
.

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