this post was submitted on 05 Jul 2026
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Cyberpunk generally has a high focus on the punk aspect. I.E, anti-authoritarian, personal freedom, anti-hierarchy.
Steampunk has punk at the end purely because it's a riff on the word Cyberpunk, not because it retains any inherent anti-authoritarian punk-ness. It's more so just a label shorthand for an aesthetic and rough technological level. Dieselpunk does the same thing, using punk not to signify actual punk ideals, but instead uses it as shorthand for 'aesthetic'.
Solarpunk retains the punk aspect of Cyberpunk, but instead of dystopia, imagines a more utopic vision of punks succeeding against the corporations/governments/hierarchies, which is achieved through community building, a DIY ethos, prefiguration, and an appropriate use of technology.
I don't know, a lot of steampunk seems to have that dystopian aspect where the bad guys are oppressive rulers and the good guys are the rabble. I don't see how that isn't punk.
It's certainly possible to write a punk story in a steampunk setting, but from all the steampunk media I've encountered (and I was very much a fan of it years ago, and still enjoy it today), most of the time it's chosen as an aesthetic choice or as a backdrop for alternate history.
I'd be interested to hear any recommendations you have of steampunk works that focus on the punk angle, though, if you had some in mind.