You are to write a major paper or essay - thesis or critical argument; critical analysis; details; quotes; etc. -- of 1000-1200 words on one of the topics below.
Your major paper should be written inthe 3rd person, so be sure to avoid any 1st persons objective experiences. Remember: the assignment isn't about how you felt when you read the material nor whether the events could happen in the real world; rather, it is an essay that presents an argument about the fictions and then provides literary analysis, research, quotes, etc. to prove the argument.
Each essay topic requires you to use at least two stories for each essay topic, but be advised of the following conditions:
1. While you can use any of the movies we have studied in the course, they will not count towards the two stories minimum for this assignment.
2. One of the stories must be from the stories we have studied in this course. They include: "The Star" (Wells); "Out of All Them Bright Stars" (Kress); "When It Changed" (Russ); "Desertion" (Simak); "Think Like a Dinosaur" (Kelly); "And I Awoke and Found Me Here on the Cold Hill's Side" (Tiptree, Jr.); "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale" (Dick); "Burning Chrome" (Gibson); "Pretty Boy Crossover" (Cadigan); "Reason" (Asimov); "Super-Toys Last All Summer Long" (Aldiss); "Closer" (Egan); and, "All You Zombies" (Heinlein)
3. The stories you use to answer your essay topic must include at least one of the following supplemental stories (available in your Wesleyan Anthology):
"The Sentinel" (Arthur C. Clarke)
"Rogue Farm" (Charles Stross)
"Fondly Fahrenheit" (Alfred Bester)
"Abominable" (Carol Emshwiller)
"Exhalation" (Ted Chiang)
"The Machine Stops" (E. M. Forster)
"Everywhere" (Geoff Ryman)
Essay Topics:
Choose one of the topics below for your paper. You must use at least two stories for each essay topic and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.
Your completed assignment should meet all the requirements described after the essay topics.
1. Advance an argument about how character change/development is a direct reflection of the social/political issue(s) an author wishes to explore in science fiction (sf). Note: do not simply catalogue the changes of a character; rather, demonstrate how the characters' central struggles are the vehicle for the sf author's specific political point, social commentary, or social questioning.
Make sure you use at least two stories and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.
2. Science fiction (sf) often features encounters with the alien, whether that alien is another lifeform, another planet, or another social environment. Yet, the alien is rarely truly alien; rather, it typically functions as a metaphor for the human. Advance an argument about how sf uses the alien as a metaphor to provide commentaries on issues relevant to humanity and, by extension, readers?
Make sure you use at least two stories and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.
3. In science fiction (sf), characters sometimes have to have their beliefs challenged - even pushed to the limit, even broken - before they come to a broader realization of some truth, a realization that serves to convey a specific theme of the story. Advance an argument regarding the relationship between a character undergoing this type of difficult awakening and broader themes being explored in sf.
Make sure you use at least two stories and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.
4. Science fiction (sf) often depicts a variety of social positions for social classes and a person's social position is an important part of his/her acceptance by society. A character's social position and the challenges that arise (how they and/or others respond to it, react to it, etc.) can also address themes of a story. Advance an argument regarding the relationship between a character's social position and broader themes being addressed in sf.
Make sure you use at least two stories and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.
5. Violence can be emotional and internalized as much as it is physical and externalized; in other words, abuse can take place on the physical body as well as in the mind or psyche of the victim. Advance an argument about the use of violence in science fiction (sf) and how such violence allows authors to explore broader themes in their stories.
Make sure you use at least two stories and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.
6. Science fiction (sf) can often reveal the darker side of what it means to be human as it often addresses the secrets we want to keep hidden - our secret desires; our secret fears; our secret selves. Advance an argument about what is revealed when we explore the darker sides of ourselves (and our selves) and what truths we might learn by taking a walk on the dark side.
Make sure you use at least two stories and one of those two stories must be one of the supplemental stories I've listed above.