The third volume of essays Vorgriff auf das Lichte Morgen is focussed on the early years of East-German science fiction, the 1950ies and 1960ies. All the books of this period are characterized by a rather uniform optimistic image of a bright future. This image corresponded well to the official cultural policy and was completely in line with the assumptions of the Marxist-Leninist doctrine about the future. But these assumptions about a communist future society were nearly never put into specific details – with the exception of these early sf works. Of course, writers did not restrain themselves from adding their private – sometimes strange – ideas.

The new edition differs in some points from the older, 1995 version. All parts have been completely revised and strongly expanded. Comments on academic research have been largely skipped. One of the original essays – the one about censorship in East German SF – will be published only in the next volume of essays.

Memoranda Berlin, 2023