Time travel stories without paradoxes

In summary, the conversation discussed time travel stories without paradoxes, specifically ones that do not involve alternate timelines or changing the present. Some examples mentioned were the Terminator series, 12 Monkeys, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Primer, The Time Traveller's Wife, and Star Trek: First Contact. The concept of the Novikov self-consistency principle was also mentioned, which explains the lack of paradoxes in certain time travel narratives.
  • #1
greypilgrim
506
36
Hi,

I'm looking for time travel stories (preferably movies) without paradoxes (grandfather paradox and similar). Also, I'm not looking for stories that try to explain changes in the past with the creation of alternate timelines. I'm talking about stories where people travel into the past and do things which in the end don't change the present from which they departed. Coming to my mind:

- Terminator series
- 12 Monkeys
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

And maybe Primer, but I'm too confused to tell.

Any more?
 
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  • #2
Travel into the future at one second per second is free of paradoxes. So is relativistic time compression.

Movies which did not exploit time travel paradoxes? That is simply how they told a fictional story.
 
  • #3
The Time Traveller's Wife
Whichever one of the Harry Potter stories has the Time Turner.

Star Trek: First Contact. Star Trek in general plays it both ways - City On The Edge of Forever destroys all of history; Time's Arrow is completely pre-destined.

There's a rather odd Robert Heinlein short story called All You Zombies... that relies on pre-destination.

I'm sure there are loads more.
 
  • #4
Thanks, I found that this conjecture is called the "en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novikov_self-consistency_principle" [Broken]. On the Wiki page there are also all the examples we found and a lot more.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

1. How is it possible to have a time travel story without paradoxes?

Time travel stories without paradoxes often involve a plot that follows a predetermined timeline or a multiverse theory, where actions in the past create alternate realities rather than changing the present timeline.

2. Can time travel truly exist without causing paradoxes?

The concept of time travel without paradoxes is a theoretical one and is not currently possible with our current understanding of physics. However, in science fiction, writers can use creative solutions to avoid paradoxes.

3. What are some common techniques used to avoid paradoxes in time travel stories?

Some common techniques used to avoid paradoxes in time travel stories include the "fixed timeline" approach, where events in the past cannot be changed, and the "multiverse" approach, where alternate realities are created with each time travel action.

4. Are there any real-life examples of time travel without paradoxes?

Currently, there are no known examples of time travel without paradoxes in real life. However, some theories, such as the Novikov self-consistency principle, propose that paradoxes are impossible and all actions in the past are predetermined.

5. How do time travel stories without paradoxes impact our understanding of time and causality?

Time travel stories without paradoxes can challenge our traditional understanding of time and causality, as they often involve nonlinear timelines and the idea of alternate realities. They can also spark philosophical discussions about the possibility of changing the past and the consequences of doing so.

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