#csharp #java #covariance

This post is a continuation of Is array of Dogs an array of Animals? Covariance, contravariance and invariance explained - part 1.

Method overriding

Type variance is not just relevant to generics but also to ineritance of regular, not generic, classes. When overriding a method in a class you usually make sure that it has the same argument types and return type. Note that it is not always necessary. For example, it makes sense for the overriding method to return a subtype of the return type of the original method.

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class AnimalList {
    Animal getAnimal() { return null; }
}

class DogList extends AnimalList {
    Dog getAnimal() { return null; }
}

The caller of getAnimal will expect an instance of Animal. Returning something more derived (a Dog) will be perfectly type safe. Therefore, we can say that return type of overriden method is covariant. Let’s now look at argument types.

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class Animal {}
class Dog extends Animal {}

class DogComparator {
    bool isLarger(Dog x, Dog y);
}

class AdvancedDogComparator extends Comparator {
    boor isLarger(Dog x, Animal y);
}

AdvancedDogComparator is a specialized version od DogComparator. Just as DogComparator, it can compare two Dogs but it can do more than that. So, AdvancedDogComparator.isLarger must take at least a Dog, but it can also take the supertype of Dog - an Animal. We can say that parameter types of the overriden method are contravariant. You may see an analogy here to how we deduced in the first post that it should be possible to make MyList<T> covariant as long as it does not have the add method. Return type covariance is supported both Java and C#. Argument type contravariance is not supported neither in Java nor C#. One more interesting case - if you create a covariant generic interface of type T, C# will not allow you to create a method that takes T in it.

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interface IMyList<out T> {
    void add(T el);
}

class MyList<t> : IMyList<t> {
    void add(T el) {
        Console.write(el);
    }
}

Compiler output:

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error CS1961: The covariant type parameter \`T' must be contravariantly valid on \`IMyList.add(T)'

This is actually related to the contravariance of argument types when overriding methods. Any subtype of IMyList would have to override add. Therefore, the T would have to be contravariant but it is declared as covariant (the out) keyword which makes a contradiction.

#csharp #java #covariance