Respectfully, this just shows your unawareness. I have been to science fiction conventions with steampunk themes. I can state I have encountered fans discussing the philosophy of the movement, the underlying ethos of the excitement and hope of the future, the thrill of discovery and exploration. They talk about the aesthetic and the roots of it in Victorian culture, the nature of how things of the time were still largely hand made, custom to each item, and thus there was extensive and intricate filigree and ornamentation on even common, everyday items. Certainly to the extent that most of steampunk idealizes the upper class society of Victorianism. And these groups discuss the merits of the technology, the role of airships on steampunk and how they might function, and how they get treated as if you could take, say, a wooden sailing vessel, attach a balloon or two, and have it fly. They talk about the role of mechanization, the impact of steam technology and coal.
The reason why you don’t see this is that steampunk has not broken out to widespread cultural awareness the way high fantasy (LoTR) and Space Adventure (Star Wars, Star Trek) has. But the subculture that is interested in the material is also interested in the ideas and the meanings, not just the appearance.
The Victorian Era lasted from approximately 1840 until 1900 and by 1850 we had entered an industrial world. Farming implements, tools, guns, shoes and clothes, trains and other complex machines were made in factories for the most part. Not by hand. This made technology accessible to a large number of people for a relatively inexpensive price.
If you’re using machines to make it then it isn’t handmade. Under your definition, the Ford Model-T was handmade. Hell, the 1965 Ford Mustang Coup was handmade.
I am aware that industrialization was around. However, interchangeability of parts was not really understood, things were largely manufactured as single items. There were no assembly lines. And things like furniture had extensive hand-worked filigree and decoration. Brassworks on items with intricate designs. Contrast this with the modern aesthetic, where if you go buy a flatscreen TV, it doesn’t matter the manufacturer, they all look pretty much alike - a black box with hidden or nonexistent buttons. Rectangular, flat, smooth, black, no ornamentation.
Beyond Victoriana explores the genre in other cultural settings. Just further proof that steampunk is more than “affectation.”
Various films & TV shows have used a bit of the steampunk “look.” But, for it to “take off”–it needs stories. Which means, in current Hollywood terms, a Boffo Steampunk Bestseller. Or a deep-pocketed filmmaker who adapts one of the existing works or commissions something original; don’t hold your breath.
Until then, the steampunkers can continue to do their interesting thing & a few details will creep into the larger consciousness…
By the late 18th century the advantages of interchangeable parts was understood by many manufacturers even if they couldn’t quite make it. By the early 19th century interchangeable parts became a reality. Remove the hammer mechanism from any Colt .45 Peacemaker (1873) and it will fit seamlessly into any other Colt .45 Pacemaker.
Yes, they began to see the necessity, but not understand how to achieve that. The whole concept of tolerancing was not understood. There were elements of interchangeability achieved where they could, in a piecemeal fashion, but nothing like modern concepts of tolerances and quality control. That’s what I mean by “not really understood”.
That time frame was a transition period. “Victorian” covers such a long period of adaptation and change, it’s difficult to make any assertion about technology of the time and have it be accurate for the whole period.
The importance of my comments is not any specific characterization of description that I have stated in this thread. The importance is that these aspects are being discussed by Steampunkers in Steampunk communities and discussion groups and conventions. To say that Steampunkers are not discussing the details of the technology and social factors the way Star Wars and Star Trek fans do is just false. My understanding of Victorian technology is irrelevant to that fact.
