Edisonade is a genre of fictional stories about a brilliant young inventor and his inventions, many of which would now be classified as science fiction. This subgenre began in the Victorian and Edwardian eras and reached its apex of popularity during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and is also related to the term scientific romance. The term was introduced in 1990 by John Clute and popularized in 1993 in his and Peter Nicholls' The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, formed as an eponym from the inventor Thomas Edison in the same way the term Robinsonade was formed from Robinson Crusoe.
Facts
Place of Origin Notable ExampleThe Steam Man of the Prairies by Edward S. Ellis (1868) 1 Defining TraitA genre of fictional stories about a brilliant young inventor and his inventions 1 In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Edisonade - Wikipedia
History section, John Clute definition paragraph
can be understood to describe any story which features a young US male inventor hero who uses his ingenuity to extricate himself from tight spots and who, by so doing, saves himself from foreign oppressors.
Examples section, Steam Man paragraph
The earliest example of the genre as expressed in young adult fiction is considered to be "The Steam Man of the Prairies" by Edward S. Ellis (1868), featuring fictional inventor Johnny Brainerd.
Lead section, paragraph 1
Edisonade is a genre of fictional stories about a brilliant young inventor and his inventions, many of which would now be classified as science fiction.
View the SourceReader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.