Myths and science fiction: the same need

Myths and science fiction share the same goal: to show 'life as we don't know it'. And they share the same need: the human longing for wonder.

The difference is the universe they are set in.

• Myths are set in a universe ruled by gods and demons, controlled by enchantments or prayers.
• Science fiction is set in a universe of impersonal laws of nature, controlled by understanding them.

Strictly, only science fiction fits today's universe. But we still thrill to the stories of Achilles and Hector, though no one fights with spears any more.

So Asimov accepts myth-based adventure as the equivalent of science fiction in a prescientific universe, as long as it is self-consistent, well written and exciting. The same wonder, in a different universe.