Trends in the Development of Science Fiction Literature in Taiwan

Science fiction literature is commonly disregarded by main stream literature. Gratuitously: e.g. H. G. Wells, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, Ray Bradbury and Arthur C. Clarke can hardly be insignificant scribblers … In late 1960s, in 1968 to be precise, Zhongguo Shibao《中國時報》China Times published Zhang Xiaofeng’s張曉風novel Panduna《潘渡娜》Pandora. It is regarded as the first example of Taiwanese science fiction prose ever written. In the 1970s and 1980s science fiction literature experienced the turbulent progress in Taiwan: sci-fi literature was published by newspapers, periodicals and publishing houses, sci-fi magazines were established, the first competitions for authors of science fiction literature were announced, the first prizes were awarded. In addition, the first critical works were written and sci-fi stars such as Huang Hai黃海and Zhang Xiguo張系國appeared. The twenty years of development of Taiwanese sci-fi came to a halt in the early 1990s with the boom of science fiction cinema. The beginning, development and decline of science fiction literature in Taiwan as a definite phenomenon can therefore be analysed and described. Its history is almost completed, thus we can not only elevate, but also compare her development with the most influential science fiction literature in the world: American science fiction. A description of the development and a comparison are the main purpose of this paper.