SFE20715 English: Science Fiction: The Future as History (Autumn 2016)

The course is connected to the following study programs

Obligatory subject within the English Extension Course.
May be taken as part of the bachelor programme in Society, Language and Culture.

Lecture Semester

English extension course: 1st semester (autumn)

Bachelor's Programme in Society, Language and Culture: 3d or 5th  semester (autumn)

The student's learning outcomes after completing the course

KNOWLEDGE

The student 

• is familiar with the historical and literary context of Science Fiction (SF). 
• can trace the connections between SF and its contemporary trends and issues.
• understands how SF may provide social and political criticism of the time in which it is written, as well as envisage future developments.

SKILLS

The student

•  understands how SF makes use of the fields of history, literature and science to create its unique visions.

GENERAL COMPETENCE
In an age in which the pace of technological change is increasing, this course provides the student with tools to evaluate and manage the impact such developments have on our societies and our individual perspectives. In all these activities, the student will be encouraged to explore the rich world of SF through the choice of literature and films.

Content

After a brief review of the historical roots of this literary form, the course focuses on the period from the classic 'Golden Age' and up to contemporary American Science Fiction (1945 to the present), also drawing on selected works of British SF authors. The course is interdisciplinary in its approach; that is, lectures and seminars will make use of selected novels, short stories, and films, as well as historical, sociological, scientific and literary texts to provide students with a foundation from which they can form a critical and independent view of the genre.

Forms of teaching and learning

Teaching includes lectures, seminars and advisory sessions.
Students are expected to be well prepared for the lectures and take an active part in them.

Workload

Approx 280 hours.

Coursework requirements - conditions for taking the exam

None.

Examination

A written paper with oral examination
Students will be assessed on the basis of a 3000-4000 word paper on a topic chosen in consultation with the course lecturer. The paper must be analytical and research-based with a bibliography and footnotes.  The written paper has to be approved for a pass result before the oral exam.

Students then will sit for an oral examination (approx. 30 minutes) based upon the submitted paper and the course curriculum. The oral exam may adjust the final result by one step up or down on the A-F grading scale.

If a complaint is filed, the written part will be reassesed. In the case of a changed result a new oral exam will be arranged.

Course evaluation

The course is evaluated each semester.

Literature

Last updated May 18th 2015.

Novels:

The Time Machine, H. G. Wells (1895)

Brave New World, A. Huxley (1932)

Foundation, Isaac Asimov (1951)

The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula Le Guin (1969)

Blood Music, Greg Bear (1985)

Short Stories:

'There Will Come Soft Rains', Ray Bradbury (1951)   

'Flowers For Algernon', Daniel Keyes (1959)

'Eutopia' by Poul Anderson (1967)

'Story of Your Life', Ted Chiang (1998)

"Evil Robot Monkey", Mary Robinette Kowal (2008)

Films:

Required :

2001, A Space Odyssey, 1968

Blade Runner, 1982

The Matrix, 1999

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, 2004

District Nine, 2009

Theoretical and Historical Texts:

Science Fiction, Roger Luckhurst (2005)

Compendium selections from:

Anatomy of Wonder; A Critical Guide to Science Fiction, (2004) Neil Barron

Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory, (2004, 3d) eds. Andrew Bennett & Nicholas Royle

The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, (1993) eds. John Clute & Peter Nicholl

Understanding Contemporary American Science Fiction, The Age of Maturity 1970-2000, Darren Harris-Fain (2005)

The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction, (2003) eds. Edward James & Farah Mendelsohn

The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, (2001) ed. George Mann

The History of Science Fiction, Adam Roberts (2005)

A Companion to Science Fiction, (2005) ed. David Seed