Week 1: Science Fiction Hall of Fame Vol. 1 (Short stories), ed. Robert Silverberg
Check-In Task and Introductions on MyHeritage.
Prior to Week 1: Begin Readings. Read as much of SFHF as possible.
Topics: Introduction to Course. Genre and Genre Criticism. 1920s-1930s--The Pulps and the Origins of Modern Science Fiction ("Scientifiction") and SF ("Speculative Fiction"). 1940s-1950s--From Space Opera to Hard Science, The Golden Age (with an Assist from the Paperback). 1960s--The New Wave Breaks.
Complete Unit I Post-First Forums.
Week 2: Dune, Frank Herbert.
Topics: World-Building. SF Tropes--Soft and Rubber Sciences, FTL Travel, Psychic Powers, The Superman (Transhuman). Thought Experiments--Religion, Ecology.
Complete Unit II Post-First Forums.
Week 3: The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula K. Le Guin
Topics: More World-Building. SF Tropes--Bio-Engineering, The Ansible and STL Travel. Thought Experiments--Gender and Society, Quest of Individuation.
Complete Unit III Post-First Forums.
Weeks 4-5: Kindred, Octavia Butler. (Note that you have three books total in Weeks 4-5).
Topics: SF and Diversity. SF Tropes--Time Travel. Thought Experiments--Power, Intersectionality of Race, Gender, Economic Class, etc.
Complete Unit IV Post-First Forums.
Ideas for Paper #1 (Genre). DUE END OF WEEK 5.
Weeks 4-5: Neuromancer, William Gibson. (Note that you have three books total in Weeks 4-5).
Topics: Cyberpunk, Steampunk, and Just Plain Punk. SF Tropes--Dystopias, Virtual Reality, Human Augmentation, AI. Thought Experiments--Corporations as States, What Augmented Humans/Post-Humans/AIs Want.
Complete Unit V Post-First Forums.
Weeks 4-5: Watchmen, Alan Moore. (Note that you have three books total in Weeks 4-5).
Topics: Graphic Novels and Other New Modes of Delivery. SF Tropes--Superheroes, Alternate History. Thought Experiments--Power, Intertextuality, Post-Modernism.
Paper #1 Due End of Week 5. June 26
Ideas for Paper #2 (Critical Analysis). DUE END OF WEEK 8.
Complete Unit VI Post-First Forums
Week 6: The City and the City, China Miéville
Topics: The New Weird. SF Tropes--Mashups, Multiple Universes, Perception. Thought Experiments--Phenomenology and OUR Perception of the World, Post-Modernism.
Complete Unit VII Post-First Forums
Week 7: The Martian, Andy Weir
Topics: Self-Publishing, Small Publishers, Publish-on-Demand, and So Forth. SF Tropes--Near Future SF, The Engineer as Hero. Thought Experiments--Hard Science Fiction, The Return of Competence "Porn."
Complete Unit VIII Post-First Forums
Week 8: Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel
Topics: Post-Apocalyptic Fiction. SF Tropes--Dystopias. How Do We Die? Thought Experiments--After the Apocalypse, What Then? The Arts and the Human Spirit.
Complete Unit IX Post-First Forums
July 16 or Before (July 9-10 for Presentation with Lit Theory students): Schedule Teaching Demonstrations as Needed.
July 17: All Participation and Post-First Forum Assignments Due.
July 18: Paper #2.