Science Fiction When There's Spaceships Already?

The purpose of science fiction is to put people into situations that are more interesting, or at least more novel, then the normal sort of situations we have. The spaceships are merely ways to get people to those unusual situations.So as long as people can still find ways to make fiction stranger than truth, that'll be science fiction. Even when we can go to other planets, we'll still be able to imagine strange other planets in places we haven't visited yet. We'll just have to stop writing sci-fi about the places we've been to, just like no-one today puts aliens on Mars or writes stories set in the futuristic society of the year 2000.

Very little science fiction has really been about that. Some of Arthur C. Clarke, perhaps. Yes, for example Beyond Lies The Wub is that old classic story of man meets sentient alien, man eats sentient alien, sentient alien becomes man.Good science fiction isn't just cowboys and indians or cops and robbers ... on Mars ... with laser guns ... or what would be the point?Edited by Dr Adequate, : No reason given.