Golden Age of Science Fiction

The Golden Age of Science Fiction, often recognized as a period from the early 1940s through the 1950s, was an era during which the science fiction genre gained wide public attention and many classic science fiction stories were published. The term also frequently is used in reference to the period of adolescence when many youths, particularly boys, develop a great passion for science fiction. The saying "The golden age of science fiction is twelve" has been attributed to various persons including Terry Carr, Ray Bradbury, and David Hartwell.

From Gernsback to Campbell

One leading inluence on the creation of the Golden age was John W. Campbell, who became legendary in the genre as an editor and publisher of many science fiction magazines, including Astounding Science Fiction. Under Campbell's editorship, science fiction developed more realism and psychological depth to characterization than it exhibited in the Gernsbackian "super science" era. The focus shifted from the gizmo itself to the characters using the gizmo. The July 1939 issue of Astounding Science Fiction http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/pl.cgi?STNDNJLYB41981 containing the first published stories of both A. E. van Vogt and Isaac Asimov is widely considered to be the start of the Golden Age of science fiction.

Related Topics:
John W. Campbell - Astounding Science Fiction - Gernsbackian - Gizmo - A. E. van Vogt - Isaac Asimov

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