Taken to extremes, social organization--however necessary in itself--leads to the creation of what editors Erlich and Dunn label Clockwork Worlds. This anthology has been organized to define and expand that concept for the reader. Arthur O. Lewis provides a comprehensive overview of clockwork worlds and sets them in their political and literary contexts. Following Lewis' introduction are two series of essays which show how the theme of mechanized environments has been developed in classic works of dystopian fiction, and how it has been treated by some of the major contemporary science fiction writers. The Special Topics section studies mechanized environments from a variety of viewpoints. The editors have included an extensive list of stories, novels, films, background readings, and other works useful for the study of mechanized environments.

This volume provides an annotated list of works related to the interaction of humans and machines in SF, a field which includes science fiction, some fantasy and horror, and related types of speculative works. Though the book focuses on works produced in English between 1895 and 1990, foreign language material and works produced before 1895 and after 1990 are included as well. The reference contains works in a range of media, with entries grouped in chapters on literature, literary criticism, drama and dramatic criticism, graphic and plastic arts, music, and background. Each entry includes an annotation that overviews the significance of the human/machine interface in the work cited. The usefulness of the work is increased by the thorough author, title, and keyword and theme indexes.