Paul Alkon analyzes several key works that mark the most significant phases in the early evolution of science fiction, including Frankenstein, Twenty Thousand LeaguesUnder the Sea, A Connecticut Yankee in King arthur'sCourtand The Time Machine. He places the work in context and discusses the genre and its relation to other kinds of literature.Paul K. Alkonis Leo S. Bing Professor of English at the University of Southern California. His work Origins ofFuturistic Fictionwas the recipient of the Eaton Award for the year's best critical work on science fiction.