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- Term Coined by K. W. Jeter in 1987
- Seen in books, comic books, film, and fashion
- Embraced as lifestyle by some
- Also called "retro-futurism"
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Steampunk is a subgenre of Fantasy literature that includes technology powered by archaic methods (often, but not exclusively, steam) and an emphasis on hand-crafted, individually produced mechanical artifacts.
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Common Elements of Steampunk
- Steam-powered economy
- Fictional technologies, often based on archaic principles such as the Aether or Chaos Energy
- Victorian setting or sensibility
- A lack of mass-produced goods and an emphasis on hand-crafting and crafts guilds
- Often presented as an alternate history of the real world
- Sometimes includes magic or fantastic elements
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Steampunk In The Media
The earliest novel featuring Steampunk tropes is usually considered to be the 1968 Keith Roberts novel Pavane. Other early authors include Harry Harrison, Michael Moorcock, and Manly Wade Wellman. The genre took hold in the 1980s with the works of Tim Powers, James Blaylock, and K. W. Jeter. William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, who had done much to establish the Cyberpunk genre, added to Steampunk's popularity with their 1990 novel The Difference Engine.Steampunk elements can be seen in several motion pictures, such as Young Sherlock Holmes (1985), Wild Wild West (1999), Hellboy (both the 2004 film and the comic book on which it was based), Steamboy (2004), and others. On television, programs like The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr., and Tin Man have a Steampunk sensibility.
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Steampunk Questions
I'm looking for various old keys and cogs and an old giant keyring for a steampunk outfit. Anyone have any they can permanently part with??? 1 AnswerSorry, can't help you, but I just had to jump in here because I saw the word steampunk. I didn't know what steampunk was so I asked around and looked online the... read more
How correct were these 1910 predictions about 2000? 3 AnswersMany things we have today were pretty much inconceivable in 1910. To quote the somewhat recently passed Arthur C Clarke, "Any technology sufficiently advanced ... read more
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