OK you guys are aware that steampunk is a literary sub genre of alternative history, science fiction, and fantasy right? It is essentially the opposite of the Cyberpunk literary genre. The "punk" aspect comes from the protagonist being an individual set on bringing down a totalitarian Government or Mega Corporation. That kind of subordination is kind of the essence of the punk ideology.
The steam aspect comes from the Victorian age setting with steam based technology. Rather than looking into the future with Cyberpunk, Steampunk looks at a "what could have..." so the inclusion of some modern version technology is added for aesthetic purposes. Steampunk focuses on social misfits or people who think outside the general consensus, much like punk ideology, fashion, etc.
Good place to start with the genre is The Difference Engine written by William Gibson (famous Cyberpunk author) and Bruce Sterling.
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