ofut@gatech.UUCP (10/06/83)
Believe it or there is a real reason why people object to Sci-Fi, though at this point it is rather historical. In the olden days before I was around, most of the people in this country (and elsewhere) enjoyed maligning Sci-Fi (pronounced sciffy) as escapist literature suitable only for children or childish adults. These people pronounced the venerable letters Sf as sciffy with a discernably upturned nose. The small, very close-knit collection of writers and SF fans who were the originators of what we now call fandom and SF-conventions were understandably annoyed. And if you pronounced or spelled SF as Sci-Fi then you were one of "the others" and an enemy. Now that the mainstream has excepted Sf with a passion, the mainstream still uses Sci-Fi and pragmatists don't really mind. Especially the authors who like the new converts money. -- Jeff Offutt CSNet: Ofut @ GaTech ARPA: Ofut.GaTech @ UDel-Relay uucp: ...!{sb1,allegra,ut-ngp}!gatech!Ofut ...!duke!mcnc!msdc!gatech!Ofut