Steampunk began as an undercurrent in fantasy literature. Soon, a subculture grouped around its varied visions of an alternate Victorian-Edwardian world. Eventually it rivaled Star Wars and Lord of the Rings for fans at fantasy cons and found its way into film and video games. The essays in Like Clockwork examine the phenomenon from several angles. In literature, steampunk often describes alternative histories drawing from such 19th-century antecedents as Jules Verne and even John Ruskin. Steampunk has often been associated with left, even anarchist politics, but the essays show that some authors have other intentions. While looking toward the past, steampunk also suggests a future of hybridity, culturally and even biologically. As Oscar Wilde, a steampunk favorite, wrote: “Our one duty to the past is to rewrite it.”
