In this work, the author contends that we should create a comparative
framework for the study of imaginary worlds in the social sciences.
Making use of extended examples from both science fiction and fantasy
fiction, as well as the living movement of steampunk, the reader is
invited to an argument about how best to define imaginary worlds and
approach them as social locations for qualitative research. It is
suggested in this volume that increasing economic and existential forms
of alienation fuel the contemporary surge of participation in imaginary
worlds (from gaming worlds to young adult novels) and impel a search for
more humane forms of social and cultural organization. Suggestions are
made about the usefulness of imaginary worlds to social scientists as
places for both testing out theoretical formulations and as tools for
teaching in our classrooms.