The Space Pirates Trope In Sci-fi, Explained

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Science fiction writers have a long and proud history of translating real-world concepts or tropes of other fiction into their theoretical future to see how things change. While some writers update the concepts to fit the new reality, others prefer to keep the aesthetics of old-fashioned ideas while simply firing them into space.

Stock characters are an important part of almost every genre of fiction. Like the commedia dell'arte of the 16th century, there are just certain archetypes that are expected to show up in certain narratives. Sci-fi also has its cast of stock characters, one of which has a fascinating evolution from the 18th century to the modern-day.

The Floating Continent Trope Of Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Explained

Space pirates are exactly what it sounds like they would be. Pirates, but in space. Any future environment in which space travel is common will still feature some criminal elements. Piracy is one of the most visually intriguing crimes. The golden age of piracy is one of the most beloved historical periods to set fictional stories in. Even today, nautical pirates still exist, they just don't dress quite as fun. Car and airplane hijacking isn't as common as it was in the 70s, but any new method of mass travel will undergo a difficult period of crime. There's a logical explanation for why piracy would still exist in the space-traveling society of the future. Interestingly, however, there's a step in-between the sea pirates of history and the space pirates of science fiction.

As early as the late 19th century, sci-fi writers carefully crafted the trope of sky pirates. Distinct from the air pirates who hijack commercial flights to get wherever they need to go, sky pirates are a bit more complex. The first notable