Literary reviewMy argument is that SF literature offers utopian hope for a future where individual differences are no longer criticized. To conduct this literature review, I used several sources of information to examine issues of gender and sexuality in science fiction literature. None of these sources claim to have produced conclusive work on the interpretation of gender and sexuality in SF. Some of what I read appears to be a general overview while some is more focused, but everything clearly references other theorists, studies, and texts to support the arguments being made. The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction - Edward James This book combines essays by academics and researchers. SF authors, who examine the genre from various angles. It examines the beginnings of SF, from Thomas More to the present, and presents significant critical approaches such as Marxism, feminism, and queer theory. There is an overlap in themes which provides the opportunity to read about interrelated topics from different perspectives written by many authors, which makes the work stronger. In “Gender in Science Fiction,” Helen Merrick explores representations of masculinity and femininity. She illustrates how SF is adept at examining gender issues, noting texts that have contributed to going against standard sociocultural norms. This chapter is only a brief discussion of the pioneering work of feminist SF writers (especially the emergence of female SF writers). However, Veronica Hollinger delves deeper into the topic in “Feminist Theory in Science Fiction.” In Merrick's chapter, his overall argument is that the SF genre is a means of investigating gender and humanity and ridding the mind of the austerity of standard norms. What......middle of the article......discuss both similar and different topics, some of which overlap or deepen the discussion. It is clear that by applying the theories and arguments made above, there is certainly an opportunity to use SF literature as a means of understanding gender, sexuality and utopia in a way relevant to reality.ReferencesAttebery, B (2002). Decoding gender in science fiction. New York: Routledge. Gordon, J, Hollinger, V and Pearson, W, (2008). The sexualities of queer universes in science fiction. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press. Hollinger, V. Merrick, H. Pearson, W. (2003). The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction. London: Cambridge University Press. Jameson, F (2007). Archaeologies of the future: the desire called utopia and other science fictions. London: Verso.Larbalestier, J (2002). Battle of the sexes. Middletown: Wesleyan University Press.