Effects on authorial respect for science and the reader

Various participants described how the scientific realism of a narrative can communicate a sense of respect or disrespect. Two interrelated forms of disrespect were apparent in participant responses: disrespect for the reader and disrespect for science. Disrespect for the reader arises when an author appears to assume that the reader has limited scientific competence. Disrespect for science arises when an author appears to undervalue science and scientists. For readers who are scientists, unrealistic science can evoke both of these types of disrespect simultaneously.

In the first instance, disrespect for the reader stems from the perceived authorial assumption that unrealistic science will escape the reader’s attention. The implication is that readers are not perceptive or knowledgeable enough to identify unrealistic science. As Charlie stated:

I would sometimes use the term disrespectful because the moviemakers obviously assume that you don’t see [the unrealistic science] and that’s a disrespectful way of telling a story, just try to bluff your way through and you hope that your audience doesn’t point at it.

A sense of disrespect can also stem from the perceived authorial assumption that the reader is not interested or competent enough to understand anything more than rudimentary science:

Lucas: In the show The Flash there’s a scene, the first episode of it involves a particle accelerator, and the main character, the Flash guy, is supposed to be pretty intelligent, not like ridiculously intelligent, but pretty intelligent, and he’s got a friend who he’s going to the opening of the, well, the gig with. He just basically explains the general premise of what the thing is, he doesn’t go into any detail, he basically says, “It’s a particle accelerator; it accelerates particles.” And her reaction to that is, “Whoa, whoa, slow down I don’t care.” That enrages me because it is basically treating your audience like drooling infants who can’t understand the most basic [aspects] of what a device does.

Henry: But at the same time I’d say that was, that character, you know, “slow down, egghead,” or whatever, she was more of a portrayal of someone who didn’t give a crap about science, period.

Lucas: Yeah, I’d say that’s a problem in media. [Cross talk]. Nobody cares about science in the media.

Henry: Well that’s just a problem with people.

Lucas: Maybe. Maybe. You could be right. You could be right.

Although a simplistic account of a particle accelerator is not an example of unrealistic science per se, Lucas perceives that the author has disrespectfully assumed that “real” science would exceed readers’ interests or abilities. Henry’s position is somewhat different; he argues that the author is catering for a mass readership that has limited interest in science. For Henry, the author’s approach is not so much disrespectful as it is symptomatic of a society that undervalues science. The sense of marginalisation that Henry seems to feel as a scientist points towards the other type of disrespect that can be evoked by unrealistic science in fiction: disrespect for science itself.

A sense of disrespect for science stems from a perception that the author undervalues scientists and scientific knowledge:

[Unrealistic science] does seem disrespectful to the science and the, it’s like the, you know, you’re not respecting the knowledge that has been discovered or built up. You’re respecting the wonderful visual effects and the power of storytelling but you’re not respecting one of the key devices of your story and yeah, that’s a

If someone was to portray some sort of religious concept inaccurately or in a bad light in movies, people get really up in arms about that, you know. It’s the same if you are from a scientific background I think, like, and yet people don’t get up in arms about that; they don’t understand that the feelings towards it can be similar. If you truly believe in science and science is, you know, what you stake your life in, then when someone comes along and misportrays it, that’s almost insulting I think in a similar parallel. (Logan)

But I find when I’m—going back to the whole portrayal of scientists thing, how they’re usually fairly negative—it’s almost offensive, in a way, because it’s sort of like, “Oh, that’s how you view people like me; that’s nice, thank you” [tone is ironic]. (Aubrey)

The comments above reflect more than just a concern with the coherence of a narrative. These comments reflect a feeling of being insulted, offended, or disappointed by an author’s perceived orientation towards science and scientists. This sense of disrespect arises not necessarily because the narrative is advancing an anti-science thesis, but because the narrative is implicitly informed by a perceived disregard or disrespect for science (i.e., an ideology that is indifferent or opposed to science). For participants who are scientists or who strongly identify with a science identity, unrealistic science in fiction can contribute to a feeling of being undervalued by the author or by the readership for which the author is writing.

If unrealistic science in fiction can represent a form of disrespect towards science in the real world, it follows that realistic science in fiction can represent a form of respect towards science in the real world. Various participants described how realistic science in fiction was accompanied by a sense of acknowledgement or recognition:

I guess when you make your life around science, when someone does a good job putting it into an exciting movie, that’s exciting because well, that’s your life, that’s your career, that’s seeing it appreciated in the way that it should be appreciated, correctly, is really good. (Logan)

I do have like a sense of respect or possibly pride in the movie when it is correct, when it could otherwise not be, like the movie Contagion, which was maybe not 100% perfect, but it was pretty damn good. (Lucas)

Yeah you get excited and it kind of gives you the opportunity for people who aren’t into science to show them what you do, like if you are studying it, astrophysics or something. “This is totally what I’m studying right now; it’s exactly what I’m doing.” And you just get really excited and happy, like, “Yes, they got it right.” It’s a pretty good feeling. (Dominic)

In this way, the realism of science in fiction can be personally important for the sense of personal and collective value that it brings to readers who are scientists or who identify with a science identity.

Feelings of respect and disrespect are connected to other reasons for caring about the realism of science in fiction. Feeling disrespected by the author may detract from the narrative experience, and feeling that a narrative disrespects science may be associated with a concern that the narrative will cause other readers to undervalue science or scientists. However, feelings of respect are also important in their own right and are not reducible to narrative engagement or media effects concerns.