Science Fiction Studies

#70 = Volume 23, Part 3 = November 1996


North American College Courses in Science Fiction, Utopian Literature, and Fantasy

Compiled by Arthur B. Evans and R.D. Mullen

Although a few have been slightly edited to save space and facilitate paging ("science fiction" has frequently been reduced to "sf"), the responses to our questionnaire are for the most part printed verbatim, which accounts for the differences in implied reader and tone. Most of the course descriptions were originally printed in the college's general catalogue or in the instructor's syllabus. In some cases the course is a general course in which some sf, utopian, or fantasy texts are used. The listing is alphabetical by state or province, except that entries received too late for proper placement appear at the end of the list.


Alabama. University of South Alabama, Mobile

EH 201. Science Fiction. Analyses of short stories, viewed from the postmodern perspective. TEXTS: Anthologies of short stories, currently The Norton Book of Science Fiction.—Thomas A. Brennan, English Dept., Univ. of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36688.


Alabama. Troy State University, Troy

English 326. Science Fiction. Explores the literary, social, and genre importance of science fiction in the twentieth century. Course objectives: 1. to appeciate the method and artistry of the works studied, 2. to develop an understanding of the nature of speculative fiction, 3. to enable students to analyze theme and method in literature, 4. to develop skills in original research, 5. to develop skill at presenting ideas in class discussions, oral reports, and written papers. Course content: 1. historical overview of the development of science fiction, 2. definitions of key terms and techniques, 3. in each work, primary focus on theme, with attention to narrative structure and characterization, 4. understanding the various trends developing in the genre, 5. discussion of the role of science and technology in modern life, as reflected in the works. TEXTS: Dick, Ubik, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Lem, Solaris, Shippey, ed. The Oxford Book of Science Fiction Stories.—Jim Davis, English Dept., Troy State Univ., Troy, AL 36082.


Alaska. University of Alaska, Fairbanks

English 111. Freshman English. In one segment of the semester, we examined Fredric Brown's "Arena" and compared it to the 1960's Star Trek  version of the story. Not only were visual similarities and differences discussed but also we surmised possible sociopolitical reasons for these changes.—Todd Sformo, c/o ASIC, ABE/GED Dept., PO Box 749, Barrow, AK 99723.

English 692. Seminar on 20th Century Fiction. Sf works used here and there in several courses. Sf TEXT in English 692: Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness.—Eric Heyne, English Dept., Univ. of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK 99775.


Alberta. University of Alberta, Edmonton

English 483. Studies in the Literature of Popular Culture: Sf and Postmodernism. Sf and postmodernism have been linked in various ways in recent years. Postmodern theorists have taken up Sf to show how the traditional boundaries of genre have collapsed in the fluid new culture of postmodernity. Students of the Chaos paradigm have turned to sf texts as touchstones for understanding the transformation of Western culture into a culture of chaos, while other critics of both sf and postmodernism argue that sf has become the preeminent literary form of the postmodern era, since its generic protocols and thematic systems are able to cope with the various and drastic transformations, especially in information/simulation technologies, of the postindustrial West. It has been argued that "sf has an advantage over most other disciplines in that it has had something like a theory of postmodernism ingrained in its futurism for many years," and that "with the catastrophic failure of traditional humanistic thought, sf has rushed in with a treasury of powerful metaphors and icons capturing the reality of insecure borders: the Female Man, xenogenesis, the cyborg, the simulacrum, viral language, cyberspace, Mechs and Shapers, and many others." In this course, we will look at various texts from the past three decades which will allow us to explore the fruitful connections between sf and postmodernism. There will be comparative analyses as well as close individual readings of specific texts. TEXTS: Banks, The Player of Games; Dick, Ubik; Fowler, Sarah Canary; Gibson, Neuromancer; Jones, White Queen; Le Guin, Fisherman of the Inland Sea; Powers, The Anubis Gates; Russ, The Female Man; Ryman, The Child Garden; Stephenson, Snow Crash; Sterling, ed, Mirrorshades; Womack, Random Acts of Senseless Violence.—Douglas Barbour, Department of English, University of Alberta, Edmonton. Canada T6G 2E5.


Alberta. University of Calgary, Calgary

English 393. Science Fiction. This second-year "basic" sf course is taught annually by various English dept. faculty, including Susan Stone-Blackburn, R. Ramraj, Linda Howell, Janis Svilpis, et al. English 393 explores varieties of Otherness in science fiction through the 19th and 20th centuries. It investigates alien creatures, fantastic voyages, strange worlds, weird science, and extraordinary technologies. Questions about the changing social impacts of literature and science help to frame class lectures and discussions, while film viewings explore the visual realm of the science fiction imagination. TEXTS: Benford, Timescape, Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Zamyatin, We, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Clarke, Childhood's End, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Herbert, Dune, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Warrick et al. eds., Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology. FILMS: Metropolis, Blade Runner.—Susan Stone-Blackburn, 3323 Constable Pl. NW, Calgary, AB, CANADA T2L 0K9, (403) 220-3153, "sstonebl@acs.ucalgary.ca".

English 453. Topics in Twentieth Century American Fiction: Contemporary American Science Fiction. In the 1960s, American science fiction entered a new era of critical respectability. Ursula K. Le Guin and Samuel Delany opened the doors of the academy to this popular literature. These and other writers such as Joanna Russ, Suzette Haden Elgin, Greg Bear, and Gregory Benford will be studied for their blend of science fiction conventions with literary sophistication and contemporary thought. TEXTS: Delany, Babel 17, Nova, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed, Russ, The Female Man, Benford, Timescape, Bear, Blood Music, Elgin, Native Tongue.—Stone-Blackburn.

English 453. Topics in Twentieth Century American Fiction: American Women's Speculative Fiction. A study of utopian and dystopian novels that portray a spectrum of alternative societies. Texts range from fantasy to science fiction and present a variety of perspectives on gender and society. TEXTS: Gilman, Herland, Bryant, The Kin of Ata Are Waiting for You, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Russ, The Female Man, Gearhart, The Wanderground, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time, Slonczewski, A Door into Ocean, Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country.—Stone-Blackburn.


Alberta. Mount Royal College, Calgary

English 3393. Seminar in Science Fiction. A course intended to acquaint the student with a selection of major authors of science fiction and their works, with several of the major themes to be found in sf, with the history of sf, and with the interrelationship between sf as an art form and science as a mode of perceiving reality. In particular, the course will strive 1. to acquaint the student with the precursors to modern sf, with the history and evolution of the genre, and with its contemporary manifestations, such as New Wave, Feminist, and Cyberpunk, all of this with special reference to the clash between science and religion and to attempts at their reconciliation; 2. to evolve a definition of sf, including significant enough differentia that this genre can be distinguished from other similar genres, such as fantasy literature and gothic novels; 3. to examine sf as comparative literature since its formulation and influence cut across the national, cultural, and linguistic barriers that frequently circumscribe other genres; 4. to analyze the sf film and to probe its relation to the literature of science fiction; 5. to see in sf a means for bridging the gap between what C.P. Snow has called "the two cultures," science and the humanities, inasmuch as this genre is both scientific and literary; 6. to gain a basic understanding of the sciences that form the backdrop for science fiction, such as astronomy, relativity theory, entropy and thermodynamics, the mathematics of chaos, ecology, computer technology, genetics, and parapsychology; 7. to acquire a particular way of seeing as it is encouraged by sf; that is, to understand the sf story as presenting a critique, often ironic, of present social conditions, and as exploring the nature and limits of our own reality; 8. to discover the connections between sf and utopian/dystopian thought and of these concepts to the problems of free will and determinism; 9. to confront the question of whether technology should be seen as humanity's saviour or destroyer, and to relate this question to the problem of human consciousness, which itself is a way of asking "What does it mean to be human?" 10. to understand how the alien encounter can be viewed as a metaphor for the exploration of the psychological and existential depths of human consciousness and how the alien landscape maps symbolically the human condition; 11. to define a variety of alternative futures, noting the plasticity of human nature and the fragility of civilization. What, in effect, can we become? How can we achieve a desired future and avoid apocalypse? What, therefore, is the relationship in humanity between the power to comprehend and the power to destroy? 12. to write and convey one's ideas on these issues and their intersection with our texts in a clear, literate, and persuasive manner. TEXTS: Asimov, I, Robot, Shelley, Frankenstein, Lem, Solaris, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Pohl & Kornbluth, The Space Merchants, Elgin, Native Tongue, Kapp, The Chaos Weapon, Clarke, Childhood's End, Wells, The Time Machine, Zamyatin, We, Dick, Martian Time-Slip, Sturgeon, Venus Plus X, Brunner, Shockwave Rider, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Binsburg, ed. The Ultimate Threshold, Shippey, ed. The Oxford Book of Science Fiction Stories. FILMS: Blade Runner, Firestarter, Altered States, C.H.U.D., Them, Alien, Aliens, Brazil, Outland, Silent Running, Quest for Fire, Dr. Strangelove, War of the Worlds, The Day the Earth Stood Still, 2001, 2010, Total Recall, Planet of the Apes, Forbidden Planet, The Invasion of the Body Snatchers (among others).—Richard M. Collier, English Dept., Mount Royal College, 4825 Richard Rd. SW, Calgary, AB, CANADA T3E 6K6.


Arizona. Arizona State University, Tempe

ENG 461. Women & Literature. This course is designed as an overview of women's sf and fantasy. TEXTS: Bradley, The Shattered Chain, Norton, Lavender Green Magic, McCaffrey, Dragonsong, Kidd, ed. Millenial Women, Jackson, The Sundial, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Wilhelm, Juniper Time, Russ, The Female Man, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time, Lessing, The Marriages between Zones Three, Four, and Five.—Thelma Shinn Richard, PO Box 870302, Dept. of English, Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ 85287.


Arkansas. Henderson State University, Arkadelphia

English 3623. Science Fiction. In this course, the student will learn about the background of the science-fiction genre, about the major themes in modern sf, and about the types and classifications of sf. He will become acquainted with the major writers of sf and with the major periodical publications in this field. TEXTS: Rabkin, Science Fiction: A Historical Perspective, Huxley, Brave New World, Clarke, Childhood's End, Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants, Gibson, Neuromancer.—Larry Don Frost, Box 7581, Arkadelphia, AR 71999.


Arkansas. University of Arkansas, Little Rock

English 3360.02. Selected Topics: Science Fiction. This course looks at the literary origins of science fiction and traces its growth into the twentieth century. Emphasis is placed on analyzing the literary quality of sf. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Shelley, Frankenstein, Verne, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Ballard, The Drowned World, Lem, Solaris, Orwell, 1984, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Wells, The Time Machine, War of the Worlds.—Steve Anderson, Dept. of English, Univ. of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, AR 72204.


California. Biola University, La Mirada

Seminar/ENGL 470. Topic or theme varies. Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale was used for Canadian Literature and for a course called "Totalitarianism and Guilt." —Brian Ingraffia, English Dept., 138000 Biola Ave., La Mirada, CA 906


California. California Maritime Academy, Vallejo

EGL320. Literature of the Fantastic. This course centers around the reading and analysis of what may be loosely termed "quality supernatural fiction." It attempts to define the literature of the fantastic in terms that the average student may comprehend and thus relate to, within the larger context of a true literary genre. The essential qualities of the novels and short stories that will be dealt with in this course are the search for a satisfying form to the "unanswerable" and a way of dealing with "the experience behind the experience. . .the void beyond the face of order." TEXTS: Shippey, The Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories, Stoker, Dracula, The Jewel of Seven Stars, Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Shelley, Frankenstein, Rice, Interview with the Vampire, Bradbury, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Wilson, Lifeforce.—Kathryn D. Marocchino, 200 Maritime Academy Dr., Vallejo, CA 94590, (707) 648-4272


California. California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo

English 380. Contemporary Literary Ideas. A topics course whose topic in the spring quarter is usually science fiction. It is most often taught by David Kann, but this spring is being taught by the undersigned. The 1996 topic is Hard Science Fiction; some of the course will involve Internet work. TEXTS: Baxter, The Time Ships, Bear, Moving Mars, Butler, Dawn, Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama, Piercy, He, She, and It, Robinson, Red Mars, Sheffield, Proteus in the Underworld, Stephenson, Snow Crash, Sterling, Heavy Weather.—Michael Orth, English Department, California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407, "morth@cymbal.aix.calpoly.edu".


California. Claremont Graduate School, Claremont

English 371. Literature and Technology. Examines literary treatments of technology from the late 19th century to the cyberpunk era. TEXTS: Gibson, Mona Lisa Overdrive, Dick, Martian Time-Slip, Pynchon, V., Gravity's Rainbow. FILMS: Terminator, Blade Runner.—Marc Redfield, Dept. of English, Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, CA 91711-6163.


California. Claremont McKenna College, Claremont

LIT 105. The Alien in Science Fiction. A study of the alien worlds, beings, and themes in science fiction and the ways the alien becomes a commentary on our lives and conditions. Neither a history of science fiction, nor a survey of its varieties, this course concentrates on the phenomenon of the alien and the distinctive capacity of sf to extend our consciousness through the encounter with the ambiguities, possibilities, and participation in the at-first unfamiliar. TEXTS: Stapledon, Star Maker, Wells, The Time Machine, Sturgeon, More Than Human, Clarke, Childhood's End, Russ, The Female Man, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Gibson, Neuromancer, Lem, Solaris.—Langdon Elsbree, Bauer Center, Claremont McKenna College, Claremont, CA 91211, (909) 621-8000 ext. 2765, fax (909) 621-8249.


California. Foothill College, Los Altos Hills

Philosophy 2. Philosophy of Freedom. Central question of this course: Are freedom and justice possible for each person in society? What are freedom and justice in terms of a way of life or a life style? What economic, social, and philosophical changes must be made to achieve freedom for each purpose? In addition to the texts listed below, the course includes readings in or lectures on Aristotle, Plato, Hobbes, Lenin, Pope Leo XIII, Beveridge, and Hitler. TEXTS: Cohen, Four Systems; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Skinner, Walden Two; Huxley, Brave New World; Gore, Earth in the Balance; and The Soviet Constitution, revised 1976.—W.E. Tinsley, Foothill College, Los Altos Hills, CA 95030.


California. Harvey Mudd College, Claremont

Interdisciplinary 26. Introduction to Women's Studies. Gender, culture, and interdisciplinary approaches. Humanities 2. The Creative Imagination. 20th century culture, gender, literature, and film. TEXTS: Le Guin, Russ, Asimov, Lessing.—J'nan Morse Sellery, Dept. of Humanities and Social Sciences, Harvey Mudd College, 301 E. Twelfth St., Claremont, CA 91711-5990, "jsellery@hmcvax.ac.hmc.edu".


California. The Master's College, Santa Clarita

English E299. Popular Fiction: Text and Film. This course seeks to discuss the four subgenres of popular fiction: mystery-detective, romance-adventure, gothic-horror, and science fiction. Students view film adaptations of the texts and explore the works as both literature and film-media. Sf TEXTS: Wells, The War of the Worlds, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451. FILMS: War of the Worlds, Fahrenheit 451.—John Hotchkiss, 21726 Placerita Cyn Rd., Santa Clarita, CA 91321.

California. Pasadena City College, Pasadena

English 25D. Science Fiction & Fantasy. This survey traces sf and fantasy from their roots in myth to modern concepts of technological man. The course will focus on sf and fantasy as they reveal the social and psychological implications of the themes explored. TEXTS: Wells, War of the Worlds, Tolkien, Fellowship of the Ring, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Herbert, Dune, Clarke, Childhood's End, Stapledon, Sirius, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale.—Karen McGuire, 2260 Cooley Pl., Pasadena, CA 91104, (818) 585-7231.


California. Saint Mary's College, Moraga

English 171. 20th-Century Science Fiction. In this course, we will try to get a sense of the development of science fiction from the '30s to the `Golden Age' and from there to the more experimental period that began in the '60s. At the same time, we will sample the various kinds of stories that sf writers typically write. Readings will consist chiefly of short stories and novels, most of them relatively short, by a wide variety of authors. We will also read a few critical essays and some essays on topics such as space travel, conditions on other planets, etc. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology, Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Clarke, Childhood's End, Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Gibson, Burning Chrome.—Robert Gorsch, Dept. of English, St. Mary's College, Moraga, CA 94575.


California. San Diego State University, San Diego

English 525. American Fiction: 1950 to the Present. This course uses science fiction, along with novels in other genres, as a vantage on literary, philosophical, and cultural values and issues. Sf TEXTS: Gibson, Neuromancer, Piercy, He, She, and It, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Hoban, Riddley Walker. Alida Allison, English Dept., San Diego State Univ., 5500 Campanile Dr., San Diego, CA 92182-8140.


California. Southern California College, Costa Mesa

English ??. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Defining and distinguishing sf from other forms of fantasy; analyzing sf and fantasy as part of the literary canon; applying literary critical techniques to these forms of novels and stories. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Clarke, Childhood's End; Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; More, Utopia; Asimov (robot stories), Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Tolkien, Lewis, MacDonald, L'Engle.—S.R. Felt, English Dept., Southern California College, 55 Fair Dr., Costa Mesa, CA 92626.


California. Stanford University, Stanford

English 2C. Fictions of Gender and Science. The program of this class is to help you learn how to write clear and effective prose at the college level. Good writing is not a gift. It is a learned social skill that requires constant practice and revision. Good writing also requires the ability to think critically and read analytically. To develop these skills, you will be required to evaluate the work of your peers and analyze the assigned readings. The assigned readings are organized around the interconnections of gender, science, and science fiction. We will sample many different kinds of science fiction, from the original television series of Star Trek to the short stories of feminist science fiction writers like Joanna Russ. TEXTS: Packer and Timpane, Writing Worth Reading; Russ, "Cliches from Outer Space"; Mathews, "Children of Divers Kind"; Butler, "Bloodchild"; Willis, "Ado"; Cranny-Francis, "Sexuality and Sex-role Stereotyping in Star Trek"; Lamb and Veith, "Romantic Myth, Transcendence, and Star Trek Zines"; McHugh, China Mountain Zhang, Penley, "Spaced Out: Remembering Christa McAuliffe"; Tiptree, "Through a Lass Darkly"; Silverberg, "Who is Tiptree, What is He?"; Le Guin, "Introduction to Star Songs of an Old Primate"; Thomas, Correspondence; Keller, "Introduction to Reflections on Gender and Science."—Karen (Shelly) Cadora, PO Box 8403, Stanford, CA 94309 or Wilbur A-10, Dept. of Modern Thought & Literature, Stanford Univ., Stanford, CA 94305.

Political Science 153. Utopian Political Thought. The course will examine a variety of ways in which utopias function: as thought experiments, as standards of judgments, as blueprints for social change. How effective a device is utopia for bringing about social change? What roles do males have in feminist utopias? Are anti-utopias an attack on utopias or merely a pessimistic forecasting of our own future? TEXTS: Plato, The Republic; More, Utopia; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Gilman, Herland; Gibson, Burning Chrome; Atwood, Handmaid's Tale; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Hossain, Sultan's Dream; Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas"; Marx, The Communist Manifesto, Part III; Forster, "The Machine Stops"; Wright, from 12 Million Black Voices; Borges, "Utopia of a Tired Man"; Barthelme, "I Bought a Little City"; Pangborn, "Harper Conan & Singer David"; Haraway, "A Manifesto for Cyborgs."—Elizabeth Hansot, Political Science Dept., Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305.


California. University of California, Los Angeles

Film/TV 222. Seminar in Film Genres: Science Fiction. This graduate seminar will explore theories, methods, and issues relevant to the concept of "genre" within the context of a comparative study of the American sf film with emphasis on the 1950s and the 1980s. Special concerns will be the relation of formal generic elements and conventions to historical and cultural contexts; the reflexive, iterative, and affective functions of special effects and new technologies as the latter impact both the genre and the cinema, and the organic and technological transformations and reproductions of the human body. TEXTS: Benedikt, Cyberspace: First Steps, Bukatman, Terminal Identity: The Virtual Subject in Postmodern Science Fiction, Kuhn, Alien Zone: Cultural Theory and Contemporary Science Fiction Cinema, Landon, The Aesthetics of Ambivalence: Rethinking Science Fiction Film in the Age of Electronic (Re)Production, Penley, Close Encounters: Film, Feminism, and Science Fiction, Sobchack, Screening Space: The American Science Fiction Film. FILMS: I Married a Monster from Outer Space, Rocketship XM, The Flying Saucer, The Incredible Shrinking Man, When Worlds Collide, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Invaders from Mars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Starman, The Terminator, Them!, Alien, Repo Man, Wild in the Streets, Soylent Green, Night of the Comet, Rollerball, Brainstorm, Blade Runner, Tron, Robocop, The Lawnmower Man.—Vivian Sobchack, School of Theater, Film, and Television, Univ. of California at Los Angeles, 405 Hilgard Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024, (310) 825-0119. "sobchack@emelnitz.ucla.edu".


California. University of California, Riverside.

Honors 32I. The Science in Science Fiction. The purpose of this course is to explore interrelations of the scientific and literary cultures as they occur in science fiction. Isaac Asimov defined science fiction as the form of literature that measured the impact of scientific and technological advancement on human beings. For the sake of argument, we will assume that sf as literary form began with the writings of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells toward the end of the 19th century. Verne's work is informed by then-new technologies of locomotion (balloons, submarines, flying machines, ultimately rocket ships) ; Wells's by Darwinian evolution and new theories of spacetime. We will chart the development of sf, in major technological cultures such as the US, England, France, and the Soviet Bloc, through the 20th century, as that development reflects changing scientific/technological discoveries and interests: from relativity and the paradoxes of space/time travel, to astrophysical mysticism, to biology and genetics, and finally to information and chaos theory. There will be a number of guest speakers in this course, in most cases either scientists who will discuss the works of sf assigned from the perspective of their scientific specialty; or authors of the works, who in many cases are professional scientists themselves (e.g. Benford, Brin, Forward). Most such encounters will be via interactive TV; some will be classroom appearances. TEXTS: Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth; Wells, The Time Machine; Clarke, Childhood's End; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Lem, Solaris; Benford, Timescape; Brin, Startide Rising; Butler, Imago; Gibson, Neuromancer; Forward, Dragon's Egg; Crichton, Jurassic Park; Egan, Quarantine; Zukav, The Dancing Wu-Li Masters; Bernal, The World, the Flesh, and the Devil; Delany, The Einstein Intersection; Class reader with stories by Campbell, Heinlein, and Godwin.—George E. Slusser, "slus@ucrac1.ucr.edu", Eaton Collection, University Library, and Department of Languages and Literatures, University of California-Riverside, Riverside CA 92521.

CL 274. The Literatures and Cultures of Science. This course examines the cultural and literary ramifications of scientific activity in the Western world, down to the encounter of East-West cosmologies in the modern period. It traces "Science" from the moment this word designates a specific and definable human activity, a "method," through the Greeks and various ages of European culture, to the modern emergence of a two-cultures problem. Science, as a mode of knowing, can be seen as challenging the ontological systems of myth, religion, culture, and ultimately literature as narrative expression of these realms. Periods (1) Materialist Science / Metaphysical Idealism; (2) Alchemy and the Birth of Experimental Science; (3) Cogito and Conquest of New Worlds; (4) Enlightenment and its Dark Twin; (5) Disease, Health, and the Sciences of Society; (6) Science, Religion, Romanticism (7) The Two Cultures (8) Masternarratives of Modern Science: Time and Space; (9) The Mind-Body Nexus; (10) Zen and Implicate Order: Science East and West. TEXTS (1) Writings of Heraclitus, Zeno; Plato, Timaeus; Aristotle, Physics, Poetics; (2) Roger Bacon, The Mirror of Alchemy; Marlowe, Doctor Faustus; Francis Bacon, The New Atlantis; (3) Descartes, Discours de la méthode; Pascal, Pensées; Fontenelle, Entretiens sur la pluralité des mondes; (4) Vico, La scienza nuova; Diderot, Le rêve de d'Alembert; E.T.A. Hoffmann, "Der Sandmann"; (5) Galen, "On Hygiene"; Alain Corbin, The Foul and the Fragrant: Odor and the French Social Imagination; Smollett, Humphry Clinker; Blake, "Songs of Experience"; (6) Goethe, Farbenlehre; deQuincey, "The Literature of Knowledge and the Literature of Power"; Darwin, Origin of Species; Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau; (7) Nietzsche, Unzeitgemässe Betrachtungen; C.P. Snow, The Two Cultures; John W. Campbell, "Who Goes There?"; Tom Godwin, "The Cold Equations"; (8) J.D. Bernal, The World, the Flesh, and the Devil; Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions; Olaf Stapladon, Star Maker; Robert A. Heinlein, "By His Bootstraps"; Poul Anderson, Tau Zero; (9) Julian Jaynes, The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind; Carl Sagan, The Dragons of Eden; Michel Jeury, Le temps incertain; Arthur C. Clarke, Childhood's End; Greg Bear, Blood Music; (10) Jacques Monod, Le hasard et la necessité; Gary Zukav, The Dancing Wu-Li Masters; Ilya Prigogine, La nouvelle alliance; William Gibson, Neuromancer.—Slusser.

English 148M. C.S. Lewis. A survey of the fiction and criticism: Paradise Lost, The Faerie Queene, Wordsworth, Herbert, etc. The first paper will focus on Perelandra and its relation to Paradise Lost. The second will concentrate on the meaning of "situation" and "wonder" in Spenser and in Lewis' fiction and non-fiction. John Briggs, Department of English, UC Riverside, Riverside CA 92521.

ENGL 14ONN. Studies in Literary Genres: Feminist Science/Fiction. This course will include readings in feminist science fiction, feminist theory, and the philosophy and history of science. The objective of the course is to investigate the ways in which gender construction, scientific knowledge, and various kinds of speculative fiction are mutually implicated and mutually illuminating. Particular attention will be paid to feminist critiques of science and the work of women scientists, the intersection of popular science fiction and contemporary gender theory, and the implications for subject construction (including race, class, and gender) of new digital technologies. Some time will be spent collaborating with Dance 170 G students in their investigation of the body and interactivity. TEXTS: Butler, Dawn; Shelley. Frankenstein; Wittig, Les Guérillères; Russ, The Female Man; Stephenson, The Diamond Age; selected stories; essays by Donna Haraway, Constance Penley, Evelyn Fox Keller, Ruth Hubbard, Carole-Anne Tyler, Allucquere Rosanne Stone, Sue-Ellen Case, Elizbeth Potter, Sherry Turkle, Elizabeth Grosz; and episodes of Star Trek.—Marguerite Waller, Chair, Women's Studies, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521.


California. University of California, San Diego

Lit/Gen 177. Science Fiction: The Next Generation. The standard popular image of science fiction stems from the post-WWII Golden Age: the fiction of Asimov, Bradbury, and Clarke, the media "space opera" embodied in the 60s by Star Trek and in the 70s by Star Wars. But since the 60s sf proper has undergone a literary revolution, steering away from the old icons of rockets, robots, and ray-guns to take on contemporary themes and concerns: feminism, environmentalism, multiculturalism, computerization, postmodernism, historical/sociological theory, literary tradition, and—of course—the outlook for the future as we stand on the brink of the Millenium. This course will explore the Next Generation through a reading of this generation's writers, several of whom will be visiting the class for guest lectures. TEXTS used in 1990, 1992, or 1994: Ballard, The Crystal World; Bear, Blood Music; Benford, Timescape; Brin, The Postman, The Glory Season; Butler, Parable of the Sower, Adulthood Rites; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Ubik; Gibson, Neuromancer; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Lem, Solaris; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Robinson, Pacific Edge, Red Mars; Turtledove, The Guns of the South; Vinge, A Fire Upon the Deep; FILMS: The Quiet Earth, Blade Runner.—Stephen Potts, University of California, San Diego, Department of Literature, 9500 Gilman Drive Dept 0410, La Jolla, CA 92093-0410.


California. University of La Verne, La Verne

English 280. Science Fiction. A course taught several times (last in Spring 1992) in the University of La Verne Educational Programs in Corrections. "This course is designed to familiarize students with the enormous energy and diversity of the modern genre of science fiction." TEXTS: Adams, A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Gibson, Neuromancer, Heinlein, The Door into Summer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Silverberg, Hawksbill Station, Silverberg, ed., The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. I. FILMS: Project Moonbase, La Jetée, Robinson Crusoe on Mars, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Doin' Time on Planet Earth.—Gary Westfahl, Learning Center, University of California-Riverside, Riverside CA 92521.


California. University of Southern California, Los Angeles

English 375. Science Fiction. This course considers the scope and significance of science fiction, with some attention to its historical development. Its origins are glanced at by reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and H.G. Wells's The Time Machine, but we are more concerned with the later developments from Golden Age sf to Cyberpunk and related postmodern developments. OTHER TEXTS: Asimov, Robot Visions; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Lem, Solaris; Pohl, Gateway; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Butler, Dawn; Benford, Timescape; Rucker, Software and Wetware; Sterling, ed., Mirrorshades; Gibson, Neuromancer. FILMS: Blade Runner, The Terminator, and others.—Paul Alkon, English Department, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0354.


Colorado. Colorado Christian University, Lakewood

HUM 470/C20. Science Fiction in Film and Literature. Film and written classics including Asimov, Heinlein, Wells, Lewis, in the one literary genre that is the "sociology of the future." TEXT: Silverberg, The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Lewis, The Space Trilogy; L'Engle, The Space Trilogy.—Daniel W. Decker, 180 S. Garrison St., Lakewood, CO 80226.


Colorado. Mesa State College, Grand Junction

English 396. Topics: Science Fiction. Students will examine the evolution of science fiction as a distinct literary form. Beginning with Wells, the class will follow the course of science fiction through the Pulp Era of the 20s, the Golden Age of the 40s, the New Wave movement of the 60s, and finally the post-New Wave present, with an emphasis on Cyberpunk. During their readings, students will develop an understanding of science fiction's major themes and its unique literary style and lexicon. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, Merritt, "The People of the Pit," Stapledon, Last and First Men, Asimov, Foundation, Heinlein, Orphans of the Sky, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Ballard, The Drowned World, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Zelazny, Eye of Cat, Delany, "Time Considered as a Helix of Semi-Precious Stones," Gibson, Burning Chrome.—John Nizalowski, Mesa State College, Box 2647, Grand Junction, CO 81502.


Colorado. University of Colorado, Denver

Political Science 402F. Crosslisted in English, Honors, and Master's of Humanities. A senior-level and graduate course in utopian and dystopian fiction and drama, team-taught by a novelist-English professor and a political scientist specializing in practical utopianism. Catalog description: "Political, philosophic, and literary examination of classic and contemporary works of utopian and dystopian fiction. Fictional visions of wonderful and terrible societies we might become." One class per week focuses on utopian themes, the other on literary devices, with both areas viewed critically. Examination of practical experiments based on utopian fiction, philosophical speculation, and political movements. TEXTS: Zamiatin, We; Orwell, Animal Farm and/or Nineteen Eighty-four; Huxley, Brave New World and Island; Havel, Largo Desolato (a play); Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Vonnegut, "Harrison Bergeron." FILMS: Largo Desolato, The Handmaid's Tale, Nineteen Eighty-four.— Mike Cummings, Chair, Political Science Department, University of Colorado-Denver, P.O. Box 173364, Denver, CO 80217.


Colorado. University of North Colorado, Greeley

English 325. Fantasy and Science Fiction. One-half semester on the history and development of sf, study of sf types and formats, the craft of writing sf, and including a talk by at least one sf writer, sometimes by phone. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds., The Norton Book of Science Fiction, Willis, The Doomsday Book, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Hartwell, Age of Wonders.—Lloyd Worley, Dept. of English, U. of N. Colorado, Greeley, CO 80639, "ldworle@bentley.univnorthco.edu".


Colorado. University of Southern Colorado, Pueblo

English 254. The Literature of Science Fiction. English 254 is one of the survey courses in which novel, short story, drama and poetry are included. TEXTS: Students are asked to read one novel from each of eleven categories and to select one of the two short story collections to read. FOUNDATIONS: Wells, The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Shelley, Frankenstein, Stoker, Dracula, Haggard, She, Orwell, 1984; FANTASY: Burroughs, A Princess of Mars, Bradley, Darkover Landfall, Gentle, Golden Witchbreed, McKillip, The Forgotten Beasts of Eld, Willis, Doomsday Book; CLASSICAL MODEL: Niven, Inferno, Bova, The Starcrossed, Farmer, To Your Scattered Bodies Go, DeLint, Jack, the Giant Killer; ALTERNATE HISTORY: Gibson and Sterling, The Difference Engine, DeCamp, Lest Darkness Fall, Hogan, The Proteus Operation, Suskind, Perfume, Piercy, He, She, and It, Huxley, Brave New World; ALTERNATE WORLDS: Clement, Mission of Gravity, Herbert, Dune, Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama, Rama II, Slonczewski, A Door into Ocean, Sykes, Red Genesis; "SOFT" SF SPECULATIVE: Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven, Zelazny, Dream Master, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale, Hambly, Those Who Hunt the Night, Doctorow, The Waterworks; "SOFT" SF EXTRAPOLATIVE: Herbert, The Santaroga Barrier, Streiber, Nature's End, Pohl, The Space Merchants, The Merchant's War, Clarke, Ghost from the Grand Banks; CATASTROPHE: Theroux, O-Zone, Stewart, Earth Abides, Hyde, Jericho Falls, Kilian, Tsunami, McCollum, Thunder Strike!, Cussler, Sahara; ALIEN INVASION: Heinlein, The Puppet Masters, Niven, Footfall, Crichton, The Andromeda Strain; GENETIC CHANGE: Preuss, Human Error, Knight, CV or The Observers, Vinge, The Snow Queen, Koontz, The Watchers, Crichton, Jurassic Park; TIME TRAVEL: Benford, Timescape, May, The Many Colored Land, Wilson, A Bridge of Years, Gypsies, Anderson, The Boat of a Million Years; SF/DETECTIVE: Killough, Dragon's Teeth, Asimov, Naked Gun, Caves of Steel, Deighton, SS-GB, XPD, Hoeg, Similla's Sense of Snow; SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Asimov, ed. 100 Great Science Fiction Short Short Stories.—Margaret Senatore, 180 G. Bonnymede Rd., Pueblo, CO 81001.

English 391. Special Topics in Women Writers of Sf. Harlan Ellison once said that the best science fiction being written today is by women. The purpose of this course is to exemplify the truth of this evaluation. This class may both complement and supplement English 234. Although works by women are included in English 234, when the same authors appear on both reading lists, either the novels differ or the literary form differs. For example, in English 234, the work by Mary Shelley, the mother of science fiction, is Frankenstein; in English 391, it is The Last Man. Rather than reading another novel by Ursula K. Le Guin, either a short story or selected poetry will be read. Part of the Women's Studies minor. TEXTS: Donawerth and Kolmerten, eds. Utopia and Science Fiction by Women: Worlds of Difference, Shelley, The Last Man, Lessing, The Fifth Child, Russ, The Female Man, Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country, Butler, Parable of the Sower, Wilhelm, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang, Cherryh, Downbelow Station, Hoffman, Practical Magic, Sargent, ed. Women of Wonder: The Classic Years, Women of Wonder: The Contemporary Years.—Senatore.


Connecticut. Adult-Ed programs in central Connecticut

The Cultural Relevance of Star Trek. I have for the past 12 years taught a class called "The Cultural Relevance of Star Trek" at community colleges and area adult education forums. I use Star Trek in my class as a springboard for discussing American culture and my students' own experiences, so that we talk about Star Trek (and its influences in science fiction) as a metaphor and a mirror. I do sessions on diversity themes, first contact, "the prime directive of non-interference" and the issues it raises, technology (its perils and promises), religion, sexual equality issues, environmental issues, psychological profiles of the characters, mythological themes, etc. For each of these subjects, Star Trek is a vehicle for discussing larger cultural issues. —Jeffrey H. Mills, 7 Quarry Street, Ellington, CT 06029, (203) 875-6522.


Connecticut. Connecticut College, New London

English 2XX. Arthurian Legend. Despite changes in attitude and culture, the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table has remained potent over a span of eight hundred years. In this course we will survey Arthurian literature from the Middle Ages to the present, examining illustrations, paintings, and film, as well as texts. Emphasis will be placed on establishing each text in its era and understanding the development of the Arthurian legend. TEXTS: Gawain and the Green Knight; Chrétien de Troyes, "The Knight of the Cart"; Morris, "The Defense of Guinevere"; Malory, Le Morte D'Arthur, Vol. 2; Tennyson, Idylls of the King; White, The Once and Future King; Bradley, The Mists of Avalon; Beardsley's illustrations for Malory; pre-Raphaelite paintings of Arthuriana. FILM: First Knight.—K. Fuog, Dept. of Continuing Education, Connecticut College, New London, CT 06320.


Florida. Broward Community College, Davie.

English Lit 2310. Science Fiction and Fantasy. This sophomore-level course serves as an introduction to science fiction and fantasy and to fantasy's related subgenre, horror. Students read a mixture of novels and short stories, from various eras or literary periods, and see several related films so that they are conversant with the basic definitions, themes, and conventions of each area and with the difficulties of establishing them. TEXTS vary but generally include a number of the following: Wells, The Time Machine; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Silverberg, The Science Fiction Hall of Fame; Vol 1; Haldeman, The Forever War; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Le Guin, The Earthsea Trilogy; Beagle, A Fine and Private Place; Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; King, Carrie; and Charnas, The Vampire Tapestry.—W.A. Senior, English Department, Broward Community College-Central, Davie, FL 33314.


Florida. Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton

LIT 3313-7444. Science Fiction. Definitive texts from the 1890s (the scientific romances of H.G. Wells) to the 1980s (the cyberpunk movement). The emphasis is on recurring motifs and intertextual echoes among sf writers. TEXTS: Silverberg ed., Sf Hall of Fame (Vol.1), Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Clarke, Childhood's End, Herbert, Dune, Smith, The Best of Cordwainer Smith, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Lem, Star Diaries, Gibson, Neuromancer.—Carol McGuirk, 51 SW 10th Terrace, Boca Raton, FL 33486.

LIT 3313-0364F. Science Fiction. Objective: To survey representative works in the development of the genre. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, Asimov, I, Robot, The Caves of Steel, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, Sturgeon, More Than Human, Clarke, Childhood's End, 2001, Card, Ender's Game, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Herbert, Dune, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Gibson, Neuromancer, Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country.—Robert A. Collins, English Department, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431.

LIT 3312-0338. Literature of Fantasy. A survey of representative works in fantasy and horror. TEXTS: FANTASY, Walton, The Prince of Annwn, MacDonald, The Golden Key, Lilith, Le Guin, The Wizard of Earthsea, The Tombs of Atuan, The Farthest Shore, Tehanu, Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King; HORROR, Lovecraft, The Lurking Fear & Other Stories, King, Carrie, The Shining, Leiber, Conjure Wife, Our Lady of Darkness, Bradbury, Something Wicked This Way Comes.—Collins.

LIT 6934. Seminar: The Fantastic in Literature. Research paper required. TEXTS: SCIENCE FICTION, Wells, The Time Machine, Asimov, Caves of Steel, Heinlein, The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, Clarke, Childhood's End, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Gibson, Neuromancer; FANTASY, Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings (trilogy), Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country, Lovecraft, The Lurking Fear & Other Stories, King, Different Seasons, Eco, The Name of the Rose, Borges, Labyrinths (collection).—Collins.


Florida. Florida International University, Miami

LIT 4001. Science Fiction in Literature and Film. This introductory course explores the nature and functions of science fiction literature and film from a variety of critical perspectives. TEXTS: Asimov, The Foundation Trilogy, Gibson, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Shelley, Frankenstein, Stapledon, Last and First Men, Starmaker, Vonnegut, Player Piano, Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds. FILMS: Alien, Blade Runner, Forbidden Planet, Frankenstein, Metropolis, Star Man, Them!, The Day the Earth Stood Still, On the Beach, 2001: A Space Odyssey.—Charles Elkins, Dept. of English, Florida International Univ., University Park, DM 453, Miami, FL 33199.


Florida. Rollins College, Winter Park

E/WS 241. Gender Images in Science Fiction. Like speculative fiction itself, this course is a wedding of many ideas: how we define ourselves as women and men; how the genders interact; how we make our decisions and choose and apply our values as individuals, as a nation, as a world; how we learn to celebrate and love the alien, the diverse, the spark of individual fire we see in each other though we seldom comprehend it fully. We will study literature, the finest use of language, to examine the incomprehensible and define the delicate tendrils of connectedness we must all seek out and nurture in our lives. In speculative fiction, we will find new metaphors to help us analyze the complexities of our values, our gender definitions, our treatment of each other, and our proposed solutions to the complex problems which confront us all as individuals and as an earth whose life is imperiled. TEXTS: Asimov, Foundation and Empire, Ellison, ed. Dangerous Visions, Heinlein, Glory Road, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, McCaffrey, The Ship Who Sang, Russ, The Two of Them, Sturgeon, Godbody, Tiptree, Brightness Falls from the Air, Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring, Vonnegut, "Miss Temptation."—Twila Yates Papay, Box 2655, Rollins College, Winter Park, FL 32789.


Florida. University of Central Florida, Orlando

LIT 3313.B01. Science Fiction. Instead of rereading selected favorite works (yours or mine) of science fiction, or instead of taking an introductory approach to science fiction, we are taking a much more limited approach. We will study selected dystopian science fiction. TEXTS: Zamyatin, We, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Gibson, Burning Chrome.—Dan Jones, Dept. of English, Univ. of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816.


Florida. University of Florida, Gainesville

IDH 2931. Undergraduate Honors: American Science-Fiction Literature and Film. Objectives: to survey twentieth-century American science-fiction literature and film, to develop critical skills in thinking about the role of science fiction within contemporary American culture, to develop analytical skills through writing about science-fiction stories and films. TEXTS: Warrick, et al., The SFRA Anthology, Heinlein, Starship Troopers, Herbert, Dune, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse Five, Haldeman, The Forever War, Gibson, Neuromancer, Rose, Alien Encounters, Sobchack, Screening Space: The American Science Fiction Film. —Andrew Gordon, Dept. of English, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.


Florida. University of Miami, Coral Gables

English 383. Science Fiction. This survey of science fiction emphasizes novels that are generally regarded as influential or innovative. Lectures and class discussions will stress the literary, social, political, and imaginative qualities of the works. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Heinlein, Starship Troopers, Roshwald, Level 7, Lem, Solaris, Ballard, The Drowned World, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama, Butler, Dawn.—Patrick A. McCarthy, English Dept., Univ. of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33124, (305) 284-2553, fax (305) 284-2182.


Florida. University of Tampa, Tampa

WRI 230F. Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy. This course explores the special considerations and opportunities in writing science fiction and fantasy. TEXTS: Card, How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy; Dozois, ed., The Year's Best Science Fiction.—Richard Matthews, English Dept., University of Tampa, Tampa, FL 33606.


Georgia. Augusta College, Augusta

ENG 295A/495B. Science Fiction. The class will be required to read most of the short stories in the anthology, focusing on stories by writers such as Heinlein, Asimov, Ellison, etc. Five classic novels will be read also. The course will also examine common sf themes—the encounter of humans with alien intelligence, for example—as treated by popular sf television series in order to pin down whatever differences national, cultural, etc. may exist in the handling of sf themes. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Ballard, Hello America, Wells, The Time Machine, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet. FILMS: Blade Runner, Star Trek, Dr. Who, Blake's 7.—James Smith, Dept. of Lang., Lit., and Communication, Augusta College, Augusta, GA 30904.


Georgia. Columbus College, Columbus

LIT 109. Fantastic Fiction: Science Fiction & Fantasy. A survey of the fantastic in fiction, including high and low fantasy, horror, myth, and folktales, and a brief survey of classic science fiction. TEXTS: Poe, "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar," "MS. Found in a Bottle," "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym," Clarke, "The Sentinel," "The Star," Wells, "The Story," "The Country of the Blind," Hawthorne, "The Birthmark," Heinlein, "All You Zombies," Bradbury, "There Will Come Soft Rains," Weinbaum, "A Martian Odyssey," Bester, "Fondly Fahrenheit," "The Man Who Murdered Mohammed," Zelazny, "A Rose for Ecclesiastes," Dick, "Faith of our Fathers," Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream," Le Guin, "White Lies," Russ, "When It Changed," Vonnegut, "Harrison Bergeron," Gibson, "The Gernsback Continuum."—Joe Francavilla, Dept. of Lang. & Lit., Richards Hall, Columbus College, Columbus, GA 31907-5645.


Georgia. Georgia Tech, Atlanta

English 3308. Survey of Science Fiction. Science fiction is a literature engendered by the strains of the high-change era which has followed the industrial revolution; like all literature, it has roots in ambiguous feelings—in this case, very largely our hopes for a future enhanced by our technology and our fears for our own humanity as the rate of change threatens to swamp traditional mores and values. While certain elements familiar in sf—most notably the utopia, the fantastic voyage, and the wonderful machine—appear in literature from the earliest times, the sense of historical change at the heart of science fiction is missing from those narratives. After a brief survey of earlier literature, we begin with Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and proceed through the last two centuries at the rate of a novel a week. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Wells, The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Zamiatin, We, Pohl, Gateway, Clement, Mission of Gravity, Bova, Death Dream, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness.—Bud Foote, LCC, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA 30332.

English 3161. Senior Seminar in Science Fiction. This course varies in topic; it always concentrates on one author, one period, or one theme related to sf. During the winter term of 1995-96, our topic was the sf works of Ben Bova.—Foote.


Hawaii. University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu

English 363B. Science Fiction. After taking this course, you will be able to discuss (a) what science fiction is, who writes it, who reads it, and why it is written and read; (b) some important sf themes; (c) the literary aspects of an sf text; and (d) the evolution of sf. During the first week, we will read Forster's short story "The Machine Stops" as a paradigmatic sf text. We will find definitions of sf and then apply the definitions to this text, with the goal of beginning to understand what sf is all about. We will then read four groups of authors. All the texts in a group deal with an important sf theme; the themes are arranged "spatially," from the center (an individual) outward: humans as creator, humans in society, humans meeting the alien, humans and the transcendent. As we discuss each text, I will comment on its literary aspects, frequently by playing the first text in each group (a "mainstream" text) off against the others, though one of my points will be that the best science fiction compares favorably with works in the literary mainstream. Also, since three of the four groups of texts contain—besides the mainstream work—a "classic" (= pre-1960) sf work and a more contemporary (= post-1960) science-fiction work, we will be able to consider, partially at least, the evolution in time of the theme and of the genre. THEMES (AND TEXTS): What is Science Fiction? (Forster, "The Machine Stops"); Homo Faber: Promethean Man's Creations (Shelley, Frankenstein, Asimov, I, Robot; Hogan, The Two Faces of Tomorrow); Homo Gregarius: Society's Future (Orwell, 1984; Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar; Le Guin, The Dispossessed); Homo/Alienus: The First Contact Theme (Capek, War with the Newts; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Haldeman, The Forever War; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles); Homo/Deus: The Future of Religion (Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Herbert, Dune). —Todd H. Sammons, Dept. of English, Univ. of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, 96822.

English 393. Junior Honors Tutorial: Critical Approaches to Science Fiction. In this course, we will interrelate two sets of texts: "classical" (= important, canonical) science-fiction short stories/novels and "classical" (same synonyms) sf criticism. Though selective, the syllabus nevertheless spans the history of modern sf, from its nineteenth-century precursors (Mary Shelley, Jules Verne, H. G. Wells), on into the twentieth century, and winding up with the 1980's "cyberpunk" movement. By semester's end, I hope that as a result of taking this course you will feel informed about an important kind of popular literature and more comfortable about your ability to read literary criticism and do literary research. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed., Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. I; Shelley, Frankenstein; Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea; Wells, The Time Machine; Clement, Mission of Gravity; Clarke, The City and the Stars; Heinlein, Citizen of the Galaxy; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Bester, The Demolished Man; Sturgeon, More Than Human; Lem, Solaris; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Ballard, The Drowned World; Delany, The Einstein Intersection; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Russ, The Female Man; McCaffery, ed., Storming the Reality Studio; a selection of critical texts.—Sammons.

Honors 491/492. Honors Colloquium: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Science Fiction. We will begin by reading a paradigmatic sf story, then what many critics consider the first sf novel, then a series of classic sf short stories. After this basic orientation to the genre, we will read a core sequence of sf texts, each one chosen because of an obvious (and sometimes even a multiple) affinity to an academic discipline, including—but certainly not limited to—American Studies, anthropology, astronomy, biology, computer science, English, history, linguistics, physics, psychology, sociology, women's studies. On your own, and for your senior project, you will read and write on an sf work germane to your academic interests and background. TEXTS: Forster, "The Machine Stops"; Shelley, Frankenstein; Silverberg, ed., Science Fiction Hall of Fame (vol. 1); Vonnegut, Player Piano; Clement, Mission of Gravity; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Lem, Solaris; Gibson, Neuromancer.—Sammons.


Idaho. Idaho State University, Pocatello

English 115. Fantastic Literature. This is both an introduction to the study of literature and an examination of a particular literary mode. We will study methods of literary analysis applicable to many sorts of literature, but we will be applying them to fantastic tales, poems, and plays. If you are already a reader of fantasy or science fiction, you should reach a higher level of critical sophistication and become more aware of the traditions behind those contemporary forms. If you are unfamiliar with them, you should gain an appreciation of the varieties and uses of the fantastic. TEXTS: Apuleius, The Golden Ass, Boroff, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Carter, The Bloody Chamber, Dickens, A Christmas Carol, Larsen, Silk Road, Lem, Solaris, Lewis, Till We Have Faces, MacDonald, The Princess and the Goblin, Lilith, Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country, Gibson, Neuromancer, Shakespeare, The Winter's Tale, The Tempest, selected poems and short stories.—Brian Attebery, Dept. of English, Box 8056, Idaho State Univ., Pocatello, ID 83209.


Illinois. Bradley University, Peoria

English 368. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Introduction to sf and fantasy from an historical perspective; extensive study of some classic sf novels and the tradition behind some major post-modern short fiction (1960 to contemporary); study of some classic sf texts and introduction to critical terminology and theory. Intense study of the iconography of selected sf and fantasy films. Careful study and analysis of theme and iconography of two major fantasy novels. TEXTS: Attebery and Le Guin, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Wells, The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds; Forster, The Machine Stops; Huxley, Brave New World; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea; choice of another novel from a selected list. FILMS: Metropolis; The Day of the Triffids (selected scenes); Fahrenheit 451; Star Trek: The City at the Edge of Forever; Blade Runner; The Hobbit. —Edgar L. Chapman, English Department, Bradley University, Peoria, IL 61625.


Illinois. Eureka College, Eureka

IDS 490. Senior Seminar: The Future. Senior Seminar is designed to give Eureka College seniors a taste of what graduate school is like as well as provide a "transition to life-long learning." I have selected science fiction works because the emphasis in sf is the future. All of the books that we will read and discuss in this course will have ideas and concerns that are important for the future. TEXTS: Science Fiction: The Future, Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Huxley, Brave New World, Clarke, Childhood's End, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, Kosinski, Being There.—Loren L. Logsdon, Humanities Div., Eureka College, Eureka, IL 61530.


Illinois. Greenville College, Greenville

English 172. Literary Visions of the Future. A study of several 20th-century extrapolative novels, short stories, poems, and films. Our purpose is to see the sorts of futures these writers have foreseen, to investigate the societal trends that might have inspired them, and to ask how accurate such visions might be. TEXTS: Zamyatin, We, Huxley, Brave New World, Orwell, 1984, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, plus short stories and poems. FILMS: Metropolis, Things to Come, THX 1138, Fahrenheit 451, On the Beach, 1984.—Dale F. Martin, Dept. of English, Box 159, Greenville College, Greenville, IL 62246.


Illinois. Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago

ENGL 532-051. Rhetoric of Technology. This course will provide a forum in which to interrogate the rhetorical underpinnings of technological practices. The thesis of the course is that what we call technology is in fact a socially constructed activity. All technologies obtain their legitimacy within a given culture through specific social and institutional practices. A technical community is defined by the sorts of practices, discursive and otherwise, within which its knowledge claims are made and against which they are either validated or discarded. Two questions that this course will consistently confront: Are other technologies possible? Are they desirable? TEXTS: Bolter, Writing Space, Gibson, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, packet of essays on theory.—Joe Amato, Lewis Dept. of Humanities, Illinois Instit. of Tech., 3101 S. Dearborn St., Chicago IL 60616-3793.


Illinois. John A. Logan College, Carterville

English 102. Composition II. Survey of short stories and poetry. This is an introductory literature course. Sf TEXTS: Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas," Bisson, "The Coon Suit," Robinson, "Zurich."—Edgar V. McKnight, Jr., 708 Emerald Lane, Carbondale, IL 62901, (618) 529-2468.


Illinois. Loyola University, Chicago

English 395. Honors Tutorial: Texts and Hypertexts. Reading and writing texts and hypertexts, using on-line and print resources to produce hypertext assignments on technology, gender, class and history. TEXTS: Gibson, Neuromancer, Shelley, Frankenstein, Butler, Adulthood Rites, Stephenson, The Diamond Age.—Steven Jones, English Dept., Loyola University, 6525 N. Sheridan Rd., Chicago, IL 60626.


Illinois. Milliken University, Decatur

English 171. Creative Writing Round Table: Focus on Science Fiction and Fantasy. This course is for writers and writer wannabes. It exists to give them access to an audience besides themselves plus access to an editor, me. It concentrates on the students as writers. Of course, they are heavy readers of science fiction as well as Trekkers, Whodies, Dwarfers, and so forth. The end result will be the publication of either a chapter or a short story in booklet form for our delight and edification. Caveat: This course was designed especially for me; I am leaving Milliken in June, and have no idea when or if this course will ever be taught again.—Gretchen Grove, English Dept., Milliken Univ., Decatur, IL 62522.


Illinois. North Central College, Naperville

English 247. Readings in Science Fiction. This course looks at a variety of early and contemporary literature of the genre, noting its reflection of developing knowledge and experimentation in technology and the natural and social sciences. Some readings may focus on the envisioning of future societies which explore possible consequences of this new knowledge. Others use the genre to present classic themes of personal and human identity, journey and test, conflicts between good and evil, and other themes that permeate literature. In addition to the selected readings, film examples will also be studied. TEXTS: Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Huxley, Brave New World, Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, a selection of short stories. FILMS: The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Handmaid's Tale, Altered States, 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010.—Jane A. Barnes, 30 N. Brainard St., Naperville, IL 60566-7063.


Illinois. Roosevelt University, Chicago

English 356/456. Science Fiction. I do a course about every two years. Every time I try something different; last time it was a summer course in which we went through the Norton Book of Science Fiction, supplemented by various handouts, and focused on fictional strategies rather than the history of the genre. Before that, I used the Silverberg Hall of Fame together with novels by Farmer, Haldeman, Benford, and Wells. In that class, I set up a speakerphone so that the students could interview all the authors directly (except for Wells, of course, although the thought crossed my mind I probably could have fooled most of them with a good impostor). TEXTS: Farmer, To Your Scattered Bodies Go; Haldeman, The Forever War; Benford, Against Infinity; Wells, The Time Machine; Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream".—Gary K. Wolfe, Department of English, Roosevelt University, 430 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60605.

BGS 379. Science Fiction: An Interdisciplinary Humanities Module. A one-credit correspondence course. Science-fiction movies are some of the most popular films of all time, but science fiction itself remains the province of a relatively limited number of passionate readers. This course will explore both the reasons for science fiction's popularity and the reasons it seems challenging to many readers—and will offer guidelines on how to read this unique form of literature in order to get the most from it. The course includes a discussion of the philosophical views underlying the fiction; a brief history of science fiction in literature, art, film, and theater; and an examination of common themes and techniques. Evaluation is based on two paper assignments and exercises in the module. TEXTS: Gary K. Wolfe, Science Fiction: An Interdisciplinary Humanities Module; Wells, The Time Machine; Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness or Haldeman's The Forever War or Robinson's Red Mars or some other modern sf novel chosen with the consent of the instructor. For further information, write or call External Studies Program, Roosevelt University, 430 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60605-1396; telephone 312-341-3866.—Arny Reichler, Director.


Illinois. Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville

ENG 309. Popular Literature: Science Fiction. An introduction to and survey of sf from Frankenstein to the present; our overview makes use of novels, films, short fiction, and TV shows. TEXTS: Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology, ed. Warrick et al; The Norton Book of Science Fiction, ed. Le Guin & Attebery; William Gibson, Neuromancer; Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Time Machine.—Jack G. Voller, English Dept., Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, IL, 62026-1431. "jvoller@siue.edu".

ENG 309. Popular Literature: Feminist sf. Contrary to popular assumption, sf is not—or is no longer—a genre only for adolescent males. While much of the phallocentric/chest-beating/anal compulsive residue of Western white culture may still be found, it is increasingly the case that sf's fuller possibilities are being realized by female writers who are discovering in sf's extrapolative, imaginative, and narrative freedoms the means of giving voice and life to alternative visions of social and personal being-in-the-world. We begin with Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (published in 1818) and end with contemporary works; most of our reading, of necessity, will be in post-1960 texts. TEXTS: Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology, ed. Warrick, et al; The Norton Book of Science Fiction, ed. Le Guin & Attebery; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Gilman, Herland; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Joanna Russ, Extra(Ordinary) People, Sargent, The Shore of Women; Shelley, Frankenstein.—Voller.


Illinois. University of Illinois, Chicago

English 121. Science Fiction and Modern Culture. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, The First Men in the Moon, Verne, The Mysterious Island, Silverberg ed., The Science Fiction Hall of Fame (Vol.1), Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Le Guin, The Dispossessed.—John Huntington, English Dept. m/c 162, 601 S. Morgan, Univ. of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, (312) 413-2247, fax (312) 413-1005.

English 298. Honors Seminar—Popular Fiction: The Instance of sf. This course combines extensive readings in sf of the 1930s, 40s, and 50s with readings of other popular fiction of the period in The Saturday Evening Post, The Ladies Home Journal, and Collier's. We will also be reading critics and theorists of literature. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Vonnegut, The Sirens of Titan, Shute, On the Beach, Williams, The Sociology of Culture, Astounding Science Fiction, July 1939.—Huntington.


Illinois. University of Illinois, Springfield

English 480. Science Fiction and Film. The course examines recurring science fiction topics or themes as these find expression in paired readings and films. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Zamyatin, We, Delany, Babel-17, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time. FILMS: The Day the Earth Stood Still, 2001: A Space Odyssey.—Judith L Everson, Brookens 485, Univ. of Illinois at Springfield, Springfield, IL 62794.


Illinois. William Rainey Harper College, Palatine

Lit. 216-001. Science Fiction. Surveys sf short stories and novels as popular literature and assesses sf's unique contribution to the history of ideas. TEXTS: Hull & Pohl eds., Tales from the Planet Earth, Silverberg ed., Science Fiction Hall of Fame (Vol.1), Warrick et al. eds., Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology, Asimov, The Gods Themselves, Clarke, Childhood's End, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Pohl, Gateway, Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle.—Elizabeth Anne Hull, 855 S. Harvard Dr., Palatine, IL 60067, 708-925-6323, fax 708-925-6037.


Illinois. Wright College, Chicago

LIT 229. Science Fiction—Psychology and Prophecy. Course objectives: 1. to develop critical thinking, 2. to become acquainted with the various myths that form an integral part of the reading of the course, 3. to become acquainted not only with some of the major writers in the field, but also with various types of science fiction such as scientific romance, the `sword and sorcery' novel, the tale-of-horror science fiction and with various genre and thematic definitions associated with these materials. By the end of the course, the student will be familiar with the elements of science fiction that distinguish general fiction from science fiction and science fantasy. TEXTS: Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Doyle, The Lost World, Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Clarke, Childhood's End, Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, Howard, Conan the Conqueror, Heinlein, The Puppet Masters, Glory Road, Lovecraft, Bloodcurdling Tales of Horror and the Macabre.—Bob Blackwood, English Dept., Wright College, 4300 N. Narragansett, Chicago, IL 60634, fax (312) 202-8082.


Indiana. Ball State University, Muncie

English 104. Composition 2. Higher-level instruction in composition with emphasis on critical thinking and writing in response to literary texts. TEXTS: Bradbury, "October 2026: The Million-Year Picnic," Cheever, "The Enormous Radio," Thurber, "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," Raine, "A Martian Sends a Postcard Home."—Michelle L. Wallace, Dept. of English, RB 281, Ball State Univ., Muncie, IN 47306.


Indiana. DePauw University, Greencastle

French Seminar 420—Science Fiction in France. This course is a survey of science fiction in France from its beginnings to the present. We will explore the origins and evolution of this literary genre from the early imaginary voyages and utopias of the 17th and 18th centuries, to the scientific fictions of Verne's Voyages Extraordinaires, to the modern French sf of the 20th century. The methodological approach will be threefold: thematic (encounters with the alien other, man vs. machine, utopia/dystopia, etc.), narratological (how sf signifies, techniques of reader alienation, "absent paradigms," etc.), and sociological (historical contexts, gender roles, evolution of science, etc.). TEXTS: Cyrano de Bergerac, Voyage dans la Lune, Fontenelle, Entretiens sur la pluralité des mondes, Voltaire, Micromégas, Mercier, L'An 2440, Verne, Voyage au centre de la Terre, Rosny Aîné, Les Navigateurs de l'infini, La Mort de la Terre, Renard, "Les Vacances de M. Dupont," "Le Brouillard du 26 octobre," Barjavel, Ravage, Klein, Les Voiliers du soleil, Boulle, La Planète des singes, Wintrebert, Les Maîtres-feu.—Arthur B. Evans, Dept. of Romance Languages, DePauw University, Greencastle, IN 46135, "aevans@depauw.edu", (317) 658-4758, fax (317) 658-4856.

English 155-W. Science Fiction. In this course we will study some of the most challenging and complex works of science fiction, paying close attention to certain themes dear to the genre: utopia and dystopia, aliens and extraterrestrial contact, visions of the future and varieties of reality. All these themes are simultaneously entertaining fictions and philosophical speculations on reality and society. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Butler, Kindred, Russ, The Female Man, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Dick, A Scanner Darkly, Watson, The Embedding, Gibson, Neuromancer, Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Simmons, Hyperion, Robinson, Red Mars.—Istvan Csicsery-Ronay, English Department, DePauw Univ., Greencastle, IN 46135, "icronay@depauw.edu".


Indiana. Indiana State University, Terre Haute

English 335. Science Fiction. A course is offered each semester in three sections by instructors in the English Dept., Indiana State University, Terre Haute, IN 47809.

Section 1. I use about 35 stories and 2 films per semester, divided among 6 critical/theoretical approaches to sf. I lift a quote from Le Guin's introduction—namely, the course is both for those with little knowledge of sf (improves their reading skills for sf) and for fans to read more deeply. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction.—Elaine Kleiner.

Section 2. Representative sf texts from mainstream to pulp, so that students can enjoy both but tell the difference. TEXTS: Warrick, et al., eds. The SFRA Anthology (I teach every story in it), Shelley, Frankenstein, Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Wells, The Time Machine, Huxley, Brave New World, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness.—Charles Nicol.

Section 3. We approach science fiction as social criticism, stressing conquest and colonization, technology and the myth of progress, utopian/dystopian and feminist issues. While we stress cultural critique, we also examine science fiction in relation to both mainstream literature and other popular genres, particularly war fiction and mystery and detection. TEXTS: Asimov, Caves of Steel, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) or UBIK or The Man in the High Castle, Hogan, Inherit the Stars or Entoverse, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness or The Dispossessed, Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Sterling, ed., Mirrorshades, Gibson, Neuromancer. Selected short fiction from the Hall of Fame volumes. FILMS: Clips from Flash Gordon serials, The Thing (both versions), Metropolis, Things to Come, and Fleischer's Superman cartoons. The complete Blade Runner (Director's Cut) when that novel is assigned.—Jake Jakaitis.


Indiana. Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis

English C392. Science-Fiction Film. An historical survey of sf cinema primarily American and British. In each decade we will be concerned with the problem of defining the limits and boundaries of this complex genre, and of exploring the conventions consisting of visual imagery or iconography, narrative, and sound (music and dialogue) which historically have differentiated the sf film from other genres. We will also consider the complex thematic interrelationship between science, magic, and religion as it is manifested in the main types and categories of sf film since the 1950s, including the monster film, the disaster film, space opera, hard sf, and cyberpunk. TEXT: Phil Hardy, ed., The Overlook Film Encyclopedia: Science Fiction. FILMS: Metropolis, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Forbidden Planet, Planet of the Apes, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Solaris, Zardoz, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blade Runner, Dune, The Abyss, Alien 3, The Lawnmower Man, Johnny Mnemonic.—William Touponce, English Dept. IUPUI, Indianapolis, IN 46202. "wtouponc@indycms.iupui.edu"

English L385 (V656). Science Fiction: Cyberpunk. This course investigates the movement known as "cyberpunk," which came into prominence in the American sf community, but whose ideas, such as "cyberspace," have now spread internationally to the general public and are exerting an influence on film and television as well as comics and other visual media. We will seek to survey major themes and concerns of the movement by reading programmatic statements made by its leaders and spokesmen and by reading major works of fiction by its most prominent members. We will seek to understand how cyberpunk sf departs from and revises the sf of previous decades. Particular attention will also be given to an analysis of the styles of the texts themselves in order to properly appreciate the aesthetics of cyberpunk. Reading journal is required. TEXTS: Sterling, ed., Mirrorshades; Sterling, Crystal Express; Gibson, Neuromancer; Rucker, Living Robots; Kishiro, Battle Angel Alita; Wagner, Wild Palms. FILMS & VIDEOS: TekWar, Nemesis, and others.—Touponce.

English L200. Stephen King. For eight spring semesters now I have offered a course on Stephen King in which I have taught all the fiction (including the Bachman fiction) and most of the films. Normally I use as the centerpiece what has just come out. Since only The Green Mile is certain—there are three others promised in 1996!—I am still at sea. With the Mile, though, I will certainly do Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption and the film. If the fourth Dark Tower comes out I will probably do them. Though if the new "Bachman" novel appears, that may open up a whole new line of inquiry.—Edwin Casebeer, 5649 North College Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46220. "casebee@indyvax.iupui.edu".


Indiana. Purdue University-Calumet, Hammond

English 373. Science Fiction/Fantasy. Representative works of science fiction and fantasy, examined in relation to both mainstream and popular literature. Emphasis is on technique, theme, and form. TEXTS: Huxley, Brave New World, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Wyndham, Chrysalids, Clarke, Childhood's End, Orwell, 1984, McCaffrey, Dragonflight, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, various sf and fantasy short stories.—Sharon Snyder, Lawshe Hall 218E, Dept. of English & Philosophy, Purdue Univ., Calumet, Hammond, IN 46323.


Indiana. Purdue University-North Central, Westville

English 373. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Essentially a masterworks course with the intent of distinguishing among science fiction, fantasy, and horror. The historical background is shared through lectures rather than readings. TEXTS: Asimov, Foundation and Empire, Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Herbert, Dune, Zelazny, Lord of Light, Le Guin, The Wizard of Earthsea, Stoker, The Jewel of Seven Stars, The Mammoth Book of New World Science Fiction: Short Novels of the 1960s, Dozois, ed., The Year's Best Science Fiction.—R. Schlobin, 1915 David Drive, Chesterton, IN 46304, "dragon@niia.net".

English 232,01. The Fantasy and Science-Fiction Short Story. An "open" course: major themes in literature that various faculty adapt to special interests. It has been primarily used in the summer session. The short stories are designed to illuminate the distinctions among science fiction, fantasy, and horror. TEXTS: Selections from Carr, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. IV and Hartwell, ed. Masterpieces of Fantasy and Enchantment.—Schlobin.


Indiana. University of Evansville, Evansville

Writing 212. Advanced Exposition. The course utilizes utopian texts in contrast to "realistic" fiction in order to disclose both the subversive narrative strategies and the insurrectionist epistemologies of utopian authors. Students examine the two basic types of texts and develop extended research projects on utopian themes. Among the issues examined is that of the relation of closural authority, realism, and utopography to the master-narratives of progress and evolution. Dickens's and Conan Doyle's tidy codas are shown to represent evasions or arbitrary finalizations of a type which utopian authors, on the whole, refuse to employ; consequently, utopian fiction, even in its dystopic mode, eschews finitude and compels its readership into open imagining and narrative reciprocity. TEXTS: Dickens, Hard Times; Doyle, Hound of the Baskervilles; More, Utopia; Wells, The Time Machine; Gilman, Herland; Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; supplementary reserve readings in narrative theory and utopian tradition.—Larry W. Caldwell, Department of English, University of Evansville, Evansville, IN 47722.


Indiana. University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame

ENGL 414:01. Realism and the Supernatural. An attempt to develop a theory of the supernatural and the uncanny in "realistic" fiction from Defoe to James. TEXTS: Defoe, Robinson Crusoe (excerpts) and "A True Relation of the Apparition of One Mrs. Veal"; Poe, Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym; Godwin, Caleb Williams; Shelley, Frankenstein; Scott, "The Tapistried Chamber"; Hoffman, Best Tales of Hoffman; LeFanu, Best Ghost Stories of J.S. LeFanu; Brontë, Jane Eyre; James, The Turn of the Screw; Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray; Stoker, Dracula.—INSTRUCTOR: James Walton.

ENGL 433B:01. Arthurian Literature. The stories surrounding Arthur are both the oldest and most enduring fables of the post-classical era. Almost every century since the sixth has contributed at least one major version of the evolving legend. The twentieth century, despite its technological preoccupations, has proved highly receptive to the fantasy and idealism inherent in Arthurian legend. We will examine the origins of the Arthurian story and study in detail the texts listed. TEXTS: Gawain and the Green Knight; Malory, Morte D'Arthur; Chrétien de Troyes, Erec et Enide and Lancelot; Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court; Tennyson, Idylls of the King; White, Once and Future King.—INSTRUCTOR: Les Martin.

ENGL 436Z:01. Sr. Sem: Monsters, Saints, and Heroes. Beowulf, a poem most people consider to be about a hero, shares a manuscript with some rather curious companions: a fragmentary epic on Judith, a story about St. Christopher, and two texts about various kinds of marvels and monsters. This juxtaposition asks us to consider just how neat the categories "monster," "saint," and "hero," really are. This senior seminar will examine a wide range of critical and cultural issues presented by a number of prose and verse texts (in Modern English translation) from Anglo-Saxon England. This class will examine the belief systems underlying these texts and the cultural work the texts performed. The seminar will offer a "hands-on" introduction to work in the field, including some background in the language, in the reading of manuscripts and their illustrations, and in research strategies. INSTRUCTOR: Katherine O'Brien O'Keefe.

ENGL 325:01. Science Fiction. From Lucien to Vonnegut and beyond, the writer of Science Fiction has directed attention not to Character as Fate, but to the Will as wearing different instruments and committing prestidigitation with possibility and prophecy. We will read about this will, and the magicians it creates in its determination to command rather than perceive, through the lenses of fictions based on hypotheses in Aristophanes, Lucian, More, Swift, Vonnegut, Vance, and others such as Williamson, Heinlein, Stewart, and Harrison.—INSTRUCTOR: Lew Soens.

ENGL 300N:01. Fearing Fictions: The Literature of Terror. From Puritan sermons to contemporary "slasher" films, American audiences have been fascinated by the monstrous, the frightening, and the uncanny. Why are we entertained by what ought to distress and repulse us? What is the connection between our fantasy fears and our actual fears? Do encounters with the terrifying, the gruesome, and the strange challenge, even endanger, our values and beliefs—or do they reaffirm them? This course will investigate such questions through close analysis of selected American "classics" in the gothic mode, selected popular horror fiction, and a few films. In some of our texts, various "hauntings"—both supernatural and psychological—will lead us to explore issues of personal identity, perception, and knowledge. In others, we'll examine the horror lurking beneath the surface of the "normal" and the everyday—in our social institutions, cultural assumptions, and national myths. Students will be encouraged to develop their own theories on the nature and function(s) of the art of terror. The only prerequisite is a willingness to read, think, and apply critical intelligence to what is often unsaid, unseen, and threatening. TEXTS: James, The Turn of the Screw; Faulkner, Sanctuary; Capote, Other Voices, Other Rooms; O'Connor, The Violent Bear It Away; Blatty, The Exorcist; Rice, The Vampire Lestat; a course packet to include short stories by Poe, Hawthorne, Gilman, Jackson, Oates, Stephen King. Films: The Haunting, Psycho, The Exorcist, Halloween.—INSTRUCTOR: Brian Riley.

—The department's Spring 1996 catalogue sent us by Donald P. Costello, Associate Chair, English Department, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556.


Indiana. Wabash College, Crawfordsville

English 37. Studies in Literary Genres, Science Fiction. This course is intended as a serious investigation of a broad and widely-defined field of wr

iting known as Science Fiction. While the heart of sf creativity has always resided in the short story or the novella, this course will focus narrowly on the more demanding form of the science fiction novel. Each novel imagines a particular vision of the world in full and literate detail. Each novel represents a significant departure from contemporary literary forms in its style, language, and content. And each novel presents a glimpse of a possible future, extrapolated from the present time. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Clarke, Childhood's End, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Gibson, Neuromancer, Lem, Solaris, Simmons, Hyperion. FILMS: Metropolis, Forbidden Planet, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Man Who Fell to Earth, Blade Runner, The Terminator, Solaris.—Thomas P. Campbell, Box 352, Crawfordsville, IN 47933 "campbelt@wabash.edu".


Iowa. Briar Cliff College, Sioux City

ENGL 71M. Science Fiction. This course seeks to acquaint students with the majors forms and ideas of contemporary science fiction, so that by the end of the term they understand how to read and evaluate this new and exciting form of literature. TEXT: Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Adam J. Frisch, Dept. of English, Briar Cliff College, Sioux City, IA 51104-2324.


Iowa. Iowa State University, Ames

English 330. Science Fiction. This course replaces English 240 in the 1997_99 catalog. It will be an introduction to the study of science fiction as a distinct genre from its origins in the nineteenth_century, with special attention to H. G. Wells; emphasis on reading protocols and the rhetoric of sf with a hasty review of how various schools of literary criticism have defined the genre from our Golden Age into the new millennium. TEXTS: Wells, War of the Worlds and Time Machine; Bradbury, Martian Chronicles; Asimov, Caves of Steel; Pohl, Gateway; Le Guin, Dispossessed; the short fiction of Robert Heinlein, James Tipree, Jr., Joanna Russ, Samuel Delany, Ted Sturgeon, Connie Willis, Joan Vinge, Kim Stanley Robinson, Octavia Butler, John Kessel, Pat Murphy, Nancy Kress, Michael Swanwick, Bruce Sterling, Terry Bisson, Tanith Lee, and many another gifted writer of contemporary sf shows up in the course on a regular basis.—Virginia Allen, Department of English, Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA 50011_1201. 515-294_3510. "vallen@iastate.edu".


Iowa. Luther College, Decorah

Paideia II. Speculative Fiction. Course rotates within Paideia II; it has been taught at least 3 times during the past 6 years. It is a team-taught, interdisciplinary course. We had a physicist, a religion professor, and an English professor team teach, with joint lectures and 3 sections of discussion groups. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Bear, Blood Music, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, and an anthology.—P. Scholl and David Faldet, Dept. of English, Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, IA 52101-1045.


Iowa. St. Ambrose University, Davenport

English 360. Contemporary Science Fiction. An advanced study of speculative fiction from 1960 through the present, focusing especially on the Cyberpunk movement of the 1980s and '90s. TEXTS: Herbert, Dune, Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" and The Dispossessed, Butler, "Bloodchild," Card, "Ender's Game" and Xenocide, Dick, A Scanner Darkly and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Gibson, Neuromancer, Cadigan, Mindplayers, Stephenson, Snowcrash.—Carl Herzig, 518 W. Locust St., Davenport, IA 52803.


Iowa. William Penn College, Oskaloosa

ENGL 199. Science Fiction. This course takes a thematic approach to science fiction, focusing on major issues such as first contact, apocalypse, defining what is human, space exploration, utopia/dystopia. In addition to the sf elements themselves, we will examine how this genre, as with any good literature, provides an opportunity to explore the human condition. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, Blish, A Case of Conscience, Niven and Pournelle, The Mote in God's Eye, Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Joseph Green, Dept. of English, William Penn College, Oskaloosa, IA 52577.


Iowa. University of Iowa, Iowa City

English 182. History and Theory of sf. A famous science fiction writer/ editor, Damon Knight, has defined sf as "that literature which I point to and call sf." He's right, of course, but most of us need a bit more than that, since our fingers aren't that powerful. This course is designed to try to figure out the "rules" that distinguish sf from mainstream and fantasy literature, and then to ask whether those "rules" have any relevance or utility in a contemporary writing scene characterized by postmodern and slipstream approaches. Since sf has clearly evolved through stages, with each stage suggesting a different set of concerns and priorities, the "theory" of sf almost inevitably turns out to be "theories," each theory tied to a particular historical period. So, we'll also look at sf over a range of time, paying particular attention to the formative years starting in 1926, when pulp sf codified the genre. Since diversity is perhaps sf's most salient characteristic, our reading for the course will consist of short stories—lots of them. TEXTS: The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twelfth Annual Edition, ed. Gardner Dozois; The Norton Book of Science Fiction, eds. Ursula K. Le Guin and Brian Attebery; The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol I, ed. Robert Silverberg. Recommended but not required texts are the two new editions of the Women of Wonder series, edited by Pamela Sargent, and Science Fiction in the Twentieth Century, by Edward James.—Brooks Landon, English Dept., Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242.

Guided Correspondence English 182. Differs in content from classroom course so that both may be taken for credit. May be taken by e-mail. Brief historical survey beginning with Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, a Gothic precursor, and following with H.G. Wells, one of the "fathers" of the genre, and moving, then, into a look at the genre as it has existed over the past 60 years. This course is primarily guided by theme, not time, for ideas, not sequence, are at the heart of science fiction. For more information, contact "credit-programs@uiowa.edu" or the GCS office at 800-272-6430. —Landon

POLISCI 138. Current Political Theory—Science Fiction as Political Theory. This is a topics course, new each time in themes and readings. So far the course has explored (1) Sf as Syzygy, (2) Orwell's Political Myths and Ours, (3) Subgenres of Sf, (4) Deconstructing Modernity in Sf, (5) Sf as feminist theory, (6) Dreams as Realities in Sf, and (7) Sf as Green Politics. It analyzes a book each week, mostly novels, and 3-5 films each term. The aim is to appreciate the sf genre as an important form of political theory in fiction and film. The assignments include writing politically oriented stories of alien encounters, alternate histories, micro-macro ties, single changes, fantasy styles, time travels, utopias, and dystopias. Students also write sf poems, myths, and film outlines. TEXTS for (6): Anderson, Orion Shall Rise; Bear, Heads; Delany, the Neveryon series (4 volumes); Dick, The Man in the High Castle, "The Pre-Persons"; Kress, Beggars in Spain; Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven, "The Ones Who Walked Away from Omelas," "The Princess," "She Unnames Them," "The Wife's Story"; Wilhelm, The Dark Door, Death Qualified; Willis, Lincoln's Dreams; Le Guin and Attebery, eds., The Norton Book of Science Fiction. FILMS: Aliens, Batman Returns, Blade Runner, Carrie, The Shining, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Total Recall, 2001: A Space Odyssey, 2010: The Year We Make Contact. ARTICLES: Bettelheim, "The Art of Moving Pictures: Man, Superman, and Myth"; Le Guin, Introduction to Buffalo Gals and Other Animal Presences; Slusser, "The Politically Correct Book of Science Fiction: Le Guin's Norton Collection"; Spinrad, "Political Science Fiction."—John S. Nelson, Dept. of Political Science, Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242; 319/351-0899; john-nelson@uiowa.edu.

POLISCI 30. Introduction to Political Thought and Action. The course acquaints students with political theory, and it usually includes several novels or stories of science fiction: Delany, "The Tale of Old Venn"; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, He, She and It and Woman on the Edge of Time; Robinson, The Gold Coast and Pacific Edge. Films for the course often include Blade Runner and 1984.—Nelson. ENG 8:462. Seminar: Cultural Studies—Cyborg Culture. This seminar examines the theoretical and cultural currency of the cyborg (cybernetic organism) as a symbolic condensation of the promises and perils of postmodernist identity. If, as Michel Foucault argues in The Order of Things, "man"—that psycho-physical paradigm instantiated in the nineteenth-century human sciences (philology, biology, political economy)—is "an invention...nearing its end," then the cyborg marks its point of disappearance and the simultaneous emergence of a new form of corporeality associated with the posthuman sciences—cybernetics, robotics, computer technology. This vast mutative transition finds potent expression throughout the theoretical and aesthetic cultures of postmodernity, and this seminar will, therefore, employ an interdisciplinary focus upon texts derived from diverse media in order to descry the psycho-social horizons of cyborgization. Our purpose will be two-fold: 1. to elicit the immanent logic of cyborg culture in terms of its sexual-economic-cultural normativity (what does it mean to be a cyborg in the bedroom? in the workplace? in the public sphere of civic responsibility?), and 2. to establish critical standards to evaluate these norms without recourse to the waning verities of a moribund humanism (how can one be a feminist and/or queer cyborg? a labor-activist cyborg? a politically committed cyborg?). The materials we will survey include: theoretical texts by Norbert Weiner, Daniel Bell, Jean Baudrillard, Paul Virilio, and Donna Haraway; films by David Cronenberg, Atom Egoyan, and Lizzie Borden; novels and stories by Thomas Pynchon, Pat Cadigan, J.G. Ballard, and William S. Burroughs; art works by Alan Rath, H.R. Giger, and Survival Research Laboratories; music by John Cage, Front 242, and Sonic Youth; comics by Howard Chaikin and Katsuhiro Otomo; as well as advertisements, music videos, CD-Rom games, virtual reality hardware and software, and various artifacts of material culture.—Rob Latham, 308 EPB, English Dept., Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242.


Kansas. Benedictine College, Atchison

EN 398. Science Fiction. A survey of the development of science fiction as a modern genre (approximately 1920-present). Students will read and discuss the novels and short stories assigned from the list of texts. TEXTS: Stapledon, Last and First Men, Silverberg, ed. Science Fiction Hall of Fame, vol. 1, Clarke, Childhood's End, Gibson, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Heinlein, Starship Troopers, Pohl, Gateway.—George E. Nicholas, English Dept., Benedictine College, Atchison, KS 66002.


Kansas. Kansas State University, Manhattan

English 125. Honors Composition 2. Analyses of short stories, mostly from The Norton Book of Science Fiction, organized around broad topics like, "what is sf?" "war and sf," "gender and aliens".—Carol Franko, English Dept., Kansas State Univ., Manhattan KS 66506.

English 635. Readings in 20th-Century British Literature: Science Fiction. Explores the historical contexts, themes, narrative strategies, and shifting generic conventions of 20th-century British science fiction. Texts: Wells, The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds, "Under the Knife," The Island of Doctor Moreau, The Invisible Man; Stapledon, Odd John & Sirius; Huxley, Brave New World; Lewis, Perelandra; Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four; Burdekin, Swastika Night; Wyndham, Consider Her Ways, Clarke, Childhood's End; Ballard, The Drowned World; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Carter, Heroes and Villains; Zoline, "The Heat Death of the Universe" (which was cheating); Banks, Consider Phlebas (which, however was OUP); Ryman, "Omnisexual"; Gywneth Jones, "The Mechanic."—Franko.

English 395. Topics in English: Women Writers of Science Fiction. A proposed, 2-week, intercession course (for this May). Probable texts: Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Perkins Gilman, Herland: A Lost Feminist Utopia; Butler, Dawn; Russ, To Write Like a Woman: Essays in Feminism and Science Fiction; plus short stories and/or essays by Le Guin, Russ, James Tiptree (Alice Sheldon) and others.

—Franko.


Kansas. University of Kansas, Lawrence

English 203. Special Topics: Science Fiction. Goal of this course: In English 203, we will not only learn about science fiction and how to "read" it, we will also learn strategies for reading and writing about literature. I will teach a short story, tentatively slated to be Weinbaum's "A Martian Odyssey." TEXTS: Shippey, ed. Oxford Book of Science Fiction Stories, Capek, R.U.R., Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Gibson, Neuromancer, Russ, The Female Man, Tepper, Sideshow, Wells, War of the Worlds.—Karen Hellekson, 446 Arkansas St., Lawrence KS, 66044, "klh@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu" or Dept. of English, 1089 Wescoe, Univ. of Kansas, Lawrence KS 66045.

English 209. Introduction to Fiction. A genre course using representative texts of different genres, including science-fiction. In the past I taught Gibson's Neuromancer; for next semester I have dropped it (due, alas, to poor student response) in favor of Tepper's Grass. I will also teach a short story, tentatively slated to be Weinbaum's "A Martian Odyssey."—Hellekson.

English 506. Science Fiction; English 790 Studies in a Genre. The 23rd anniversary offering of the Intensive English Institute on the Teaching of Science Fiction will begin July 13 with the Campbell Conference and conclude on July 26. The subjects for discussion in the Institutes alternate each year between the stories in the four volumes of James Gunn's The Road to Science Fiction and a list of some two-dozen novels. In 1996 discussion will focus on the novels. The purpose of the Institute is to provide students with an understanding of contemporary and future science fiction through a study of how sf got to be the way it is. This summer, so as not to compete with other summer English courses, almost all scheduled for the morning hours, Institute sessions will begin at 1:00 p.m. and normally end by 4 p.m. If the size of the class permits, sessions will be held in the English Department conference room in Wescoe Hall; classes will meet on both Saturday, July 20 and Sunday, July 21. The Institute offers three hours of graduate or undergraduate credit. Tuition for Kansas residents will be $243.30 for undergraduates, $330.30 for graduate students; for non-residents, $813.30 for undergraduates, $942.30, for graduate students. Housing and meals, if desired, can be arranged separately. Information on housing and a form to indicate interest in the Institute or the Workshop can be obtained by writing the undersigned. The reading for the course should be completed before the course begins. The grade in the course is based on a paper due four weeks after the course ends. The paper can be an ambitious essay about several novels by an author or on novels by several authors discussing the same theme, a lesson plan, or a science-fiction short story. Permission to enroll in the course may be obtained from the undersigned. He also will have available, before the course begins, a schedule of the order in which the novels will be discussed. TEXTS: Recommended: Gunn, The Road to Science Fiction, 4 volumes. Required: Aldiss, Helliconia Spring; Asimov, The Caves of Steel, The Foundation Trilogy; Benford, Timescape; Bester, The Demolished Man; Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar; Clarke, Childhood's End; Clement, Mission of Gravity; Delany, Babel-17; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Gibson, Neuromancer; Gunn, The Listeners; Heinlein, The Puppet Masters; Herbert, Dune; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants; Pohl, Gateway; Silverberg, Dying Inside; Sturgeon, More Than Human; Vance, The Languages of Pao; Vonnegut, The Sirens of Titan; Van Vogt, The World of Null-A; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds; Wolfe, The Shadow of the Torturer. Because texts often are difficult to find, the Center has arranged with the Oread Book Store, Kansas Union, Lawrence, KS 66045, to supply books by mail; write for a price list. This is the only source for Xerox copies of The Road to Science Fiction.—James Gunn, English Department, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045; "jgunn@falcon.cc.ukans.edu".


Kansas. Washburn University, Topeka

EN 199/377. Science Fiction. Science fiction depicts scientific innovations and discoveries and their impact on individuals, society, and the sentient universe. Students will explore science fiction through reading and discussing selected novels, short stories, and articles. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction, Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Asimov, Foundation, Le Guin, The Dispossessed.—Roy Sheldon, Dept. of English, Washburn Univ., Topeka, KS 66621.


Kentucky. Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights

English 310. Science Fiction and Utopian Literature. This course surveys the literature of science fiction and utopian thought in both historical and contemporary forms, with an emphasis on those texts that have both defined and challenged traditional ways of looking at the genre. We will be especially concerned about the boundaries of science fiction, as we study authors who have 1. always been defined as sf writers, 2. those who have rarely been so defined, 3. those who have crossed the border between what is generally regarded as a popular culture domain and elite or mainstream literary territory. We will used various approaches to the genre, including Darko Suvin's concept of "cognitive estrangement," the "archetypal utopian city" of Jorge Luis Borges, and the experimentalism of the British "new wave." TEXTS: Ballard, The Crystal World; Borges, Ficciones or Labyrinths; Dick, The Man in the High Castle or Dr. Bloodmoney or The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Disch, Camp Concentration; Kafka, Selected Stories; Le Guin, The Word for World is Forest; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Cordwainer Smith, selected stories; Sturgeon, More Than Human; Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet; Wells, The Time Machine or The Island of Dr. Moreau.—Tom Zaniello, Dept. of Literature and Language, Northern Kentucky Univ., Highland Heights, KY 41099.


Kentucky. University of Kentucky, Lexington

English 642 or 740 (graduate) or English 442 (undergraduate). 20th Century Literature: Modern British Utopian Novel. Close readings of novels that argue with each other in the cycle running from Erewhon to Island. Butler, Erewhon; Wells, The Time Machine, The First Men in the Moon, A Modern Utopia; Zamyatin, We; Lawrence, The Plumed Serpent, Lady Chatterley's Lover; Huxley, Brave New World; Orwell, Animal Farm, Nineteen Eighty-Four; Huxley, Ape and Essence; Burgess, The Wanting Seed, A Clockwork Orange; Huxley, Island.—Jerome Meckier, English Department, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506-0027.


Kentucky. University of Louisville, Louisville

Political Science 386. Political Theory and Utopia. The objective of this course is to explore and analyze the elements of political theory through an examination of selected literary and experimental utopian societies. Readings and discussions focus upon the history and character of utopian thought and practice, particularly as it relates to such questions as the nature of politics, the ideal form of government, the proper limits of social authority, the meaning of equality and such problems as alienation, conflict, political participation, political stability and change. TEXTS: More, Utopia; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Morris, News from Nowhere; Zamiatin, We; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Pitzer, America's Communal Utopias.—Susan Matarese, Department of Political Science, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky 40292.


Kentucky. Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green

Eng 340. Speculative Fiction: Parables for our Times. Speculative fiction is a rather wide-ranging genre that includes not only science fiction in the strictest sense of the term, but also a variety of fictional narratives that are not necessarily science-based (e.g., socio-political fantasies). The common denominator in our readings is their speculation about possibilities, which may be political, psychological, ecological, or even mythological. Quite often, these emphases combine and overlap. The best speculative fiction—no matter how "alien"—encourages us to think not only about what we can do but who we are and who we could be. In this course, we will become acquainted with the development of speculative fiction as a distinct literary genre. We will read, discuss, and write about texts that give us the opportunity to explore that development and the genre's prevalent themes. We will approach the readings not merely as entertainment (although they are certainly that) but as literature. Thus, we will discuss the literary conventions and techniques the authors employ to tell their highly imaginative stories. In addition, we will consider speculative fiction's impact on popular visual media, particularly film, and its relation to our cultural consciousness. TEXTS: Warrick et al., eds., Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Clarke, Childhood's End; Huxley, Brave New World; Shelley, Frankenstein; short stories. FILMS: Blade Runner, 2001.—Karen Schneider, English Dept. Cherry Hall, Western Kentucky Univ. Bowling Green, KY 42101, 502-745-5772.

English 200. Introduction to Literature. Introductory study of fiction, poetry, and drama demonstrating techniques by which literature reflects human experience. Sf TEXT: Vonnegut, "Harrison Bergeron."—David LeNoir, Dept. English, Western Kentucky Univ., 1 Big Red Way, Bowling Green, KY 42101.


Louisiana. Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge

English ??. Special Topics in English Literature: Literature of the Fantastic. Experience dragons, gallant knights, lordly ladies, ogres, vampires, sociopaths. Readings from the spectrum of fantasy literature from the epic to science fiction. TEXTS: Gardner, Grendel; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Voltaire, Candide; Twain, A Conneticut Yankee at King Arthur's Court; and others.—Douglas Holt, Dept. of English, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. (Entry obtained with the help of J.R. Madden, 7515 Sheringham Avenue, Baton Rouge, LA 70808-5762.)


Louisiana. Louisiana State University, Shreveport

English 315. Science Fiction and Fantasy. A course in the origin and development of science fiction as a literary and cinematic genre, with a focus on the opportunity for social criticism that sf affords. It includes a survey of the history of science fiction, its distinguishing traits, and its variations from "mainstream" fiction. Students will be provided a set of critical methodologies for reading, interpreting, and evaluating sf and will practice these methodologies through close reading, discussion, and writing on a number of sf stories and novels. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction, Asimov, The Caves of Steel, Clarke, Childhood's End, Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land.—Merrell Knighten, Dept. of English, One University Place, Louisiana State Univ. at Shreveport, Shreveport, LA 71115.


Louisiana. Louisiana Tech University, Ruston

English 475. Science Fiction. The works to be discussed in this course will focus on these four areas: 1. man in control of science and technology—the "wonder" of space, space exploration, and other worlds; 2. the destructive potential of science and technology, the perils of science, of space exploration, and of other worlds; 3. the problem of identity and of the self in society; 4. the nature of "life" and of "intelligence" in society. TEXTS: Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; Aldiss, Trillion Year Spree; Hartwell, Age of Wonders; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Budrys, Rogue Moon, Who?; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Hartwell, ed. The World Treasury of Science Fiction. FILMS: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, Who?, The Terminator.—Dennis Minor, Dept. of English, Louisiana Tech Univ., PO Box 3162, Ruston, LA 71272.


Louisiana. Loyola University of New Orleans.

English V180. Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature. We will survey the major science-fiction/fantasy themes and forms in an effort to assess their relevance to our complex post-modern society. The values discussed and the issues raised by this study—such as individual freedom vs. social determinism—should help the student better grasp the individual's role in our contemporary technological world. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, Time Machine; Stoker, Dracula; Zamiatan, We; Le Guin, Left Hand of Darkness; Tolkien, Return of the King; Gardner, Grendel; Gibson, Neuromancer; packet of essays and stories.—Ronald Foust, English Department, Loyola University, New Orleans, LA 70118.


Louisiana. University of New Orleans, New Orleans

ENGL 4231. Science Fiction and Fantasy. A course in the study of a literary genre divided into two parts. In the first part, we look at a couple of "pure" examples of two distinct narrative genres, science fiction and fantasy. Trying to discover what is unique to each genre, we will examine the nature of their narrative worlds, the codes governing their discursive strategies, and the ways in which readers make sense of them. In the second part we will turn to a narrative form, science fantasy, which combines features from each of the genres. We will try to identify the generic features of this hybridized form and take a look at a number of science-fantasy types. In so doing, perhaps we can account for the growing popularity of this particular narrative form. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Asimov, I, Robot; Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet; Leiber, Conjure Wife; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Lindsay, Voyage to Arcturus; Herbert, Dune.—Carl Malmgren, Department of English, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA 70148.

ENG 2938. Science Fiction. This course approaches science fiction as a genre of literary narrative which explores the shapes of tomorrow through extrapolation from existing technologies or speculation about imaginary technologies. Sf particularly concerns itself with the impact that technological change has upon the human condition and human institutions. The genre will be treated as literature and at the same time discussed in the larger contexts of its scientific, social, and ideational backgrounds and implications. We will read classic, `golden age,' and contemporary sf stressing concern with the human condition in alternative presents and futures. The course is designed to enable students to develop their capacity for reading sf as one of the most authentic forms of literature in a technotronic society and to cultivate thoughtful attitudes toward the emerging realities of the future: the viability of liberal and humanistic values, the direction and dynamics of change, the role of science and technology, the position of humanity in technotronic cultures. By the end of the term, the student will also have developed an overview of the history of sf and its relation to other forms of prose literature. TEXTS: Scholes and Rabkin, Science Fiction: History, Science, Vision; Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Time Machine; Asimov, I, Robot; Clarke, Childhood's End; Heinlein; The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Dick, The Man in the High Castle.—Malmgren.


Maine College of Art, Portland

HU 206B. Issues in Western Culture. In The Dispossessed Le Guin explores dimensions of capitalism and socialism as they relate to the personal experience of a scientist. His questions and concerns about both structures anticipate our own—but by setting the novel on another world Le Guin allows us to study those issues free of the biases that may cloud our relationships to them here on earth. TEXT: Le Guin, The Dispossessed.—Dana Sawyer, Chair, Liberals Arts Dept., 797 Spring St., Maine College of Art, Portland, ME 04101.


Maine. University of Maine, Fort Kent

Eng 341. Studies in Genre: Science Fiction & Fantasy. Introduces the concept of genre through the study of science fiction and fantasy. Among the topics of study are theories of genre, genre markers, the history of the chosen genres, theoretical perspectives on the particular genres, and typical themes, characters, situations. TEXTS: Rabkin, ed. Science Fiction, An Historical Anthology, Aldiss and Lundwall, eds. Penguin World Omnibus of Science Fiction, Beagle, The Last Unicorn, Clarke, Childhood's End, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Herbert, Dune, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Lem, The Cyberiad, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring, Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, Card, Speaker for the Dead. —William R. Willan, 25 Pleasant St., UMFK, Fort Kent, ME 04743.


Maryland. Hood College, Frederick

AFAM 301. African-American Political Autobiography. This course examines the connections between autobiography, political philosophy, utopian thought and politics in African-American autobiographies. Selected African-American autobiographies will be analyzed to determine the criticisms authors launched against their societies, the social and political alternatives suggested, and the agencies they suggested be mobilized to institute change. TEXTS: Lorene Cary, Black Ice; Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave; Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl; David Hilliard and Lewis Cole, This Side of Glory: The Autobiography of David Hilliard and the Story of the Black Panther Party; Pauli Murray, The Autobiography of a Black Activist, Feminist, Lawyer, Priest and Poet; Assata Shakur, Assata.—Hoda M. Zaki, Department of History and Political Science, Hood College, 401 Rosemont Avenue, Frederick, Maryland 21701, 301-696_3697, "hzaki@nimue.hood.edu".


Maryland. Towson State University, Towson

English 417. Topics in Writing—Writing Science Fiction. The purpose of this course is to familiarize students with the different skills and techniques needed for successful writing in the field of science fiction. TEXTS: Card, How to Write Science Fiction, Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction, Silverberg, ed., The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1.—John L. Flynn, English Dept., Towson State Univ., Towson, MD 21204, (410) 830-2871, "flynn@midget.towson.edu".


Maryland. University of Baltimore, Baltimore

ENGL 357. Other Worlds. A critical introduction to recent and classic works of fantasy, science fiction, and other forms of "speculative fabulation." TEXTS: Gibson, Neuromancer, Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades, Cadigan, Synners, Williams, Aristoi, Stephenson, Snow Crash, Diamond Age, Griffith, Ammonite, Piercy, He, She, and It, Sterling, Heavy Weather.—Stuart Moulthrop, School of Communications Design, Univ. of Baltimore, 1420 N. Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21201-5779.


Maryland. University of Maryland, College Park

English 349, Comparative Literature 48BE, and Women's Studies 348. Literature by Women: Science Fiction. This class explores science fiction by women: works by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Joanna Russ, Ursula K. Le Guin, Carol Emshwiller, the Black writer Octavia Butler, the local Maryland writer Severna Park, the Indian writer Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, and the South American writer Angélica Gorodischer. We will watch the film Making Mr. Right in class, and invite Severna Park to read on campus. We will ask if the history of science fiction by women is the same as that for male writers, and if women had (or have) a special tradition within the genre. We will use feminist theory to look at aspects of the science, psychology, and literary strategies of these works. And we will examine how the writers' differing (and changing) standpoints on the political isssues of feminism, sexuality, and colonizing are represented in their fictions. Class will be almost entirely discussion, with student reports on the writers and student panels on the feminist readings. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Gilman, Herland; Russ, We Who Are About To. . . ; Le Guin, Eye of the Heron; Emshwiller, Carmen Dog; Butler, Dawn; Park, Speaking Dreams; Hossain, "The Sultana's Dream"; Gorodischer, "The Perfect Wife."—Jane Donawerth, "jd32@umail.umd.edu"; Department of English, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742.

English 769. Feminist and Popular Culture Approaches to Science Fiction by Women. In the light of feminist theory and popular culture studies, this course examines works by women from the seventeenth century (Margaret Cavendish's Blazing World) to the present (Ursula K. Le Guin's The Dispossessed, and Joanna Russ's Female Man), focusing on contemporary popular science fiction. We will look at some short stories from early sf pulp magazines, and at works by cult writers like Marion Zimmer Bradley. We will read fiction by African-American, lesbian, and international writers, including Octavia Butler, Eleanor Arnason and Severna Park, and Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain and Angélica Gorodischer. These are some of the questions we will ask: Is there a women's tradition of science fiction? What is the relation between feminist utopias and sf by women? What problems do women writers have with the genre, especially with masculinized science, the convention of woman as alien, and the tradition of the male narrator? What debates on women's issues get worked out in science fiction? Why do women writers choose a popular culture form? What is the relation between fan culture and women readers and writers? Focusing on discussion, this course will ask students to participate through frequent reports and panels. Requirements include a one-page book review of a recent novel not read in class (which everyone will send to SFRA Review for possible publication), and a series of 1-page proposal abstract, 8-page oral paper, and 15 to 20-page essay, as well as oral reports, panels, and participation. The last time I taught this course, I worked with Melissa Sites and Carale Breakstone, graduate students in our program, to set up a free symposium on sf by women, featuring talks by Robin Roberts, Carol Kolmerten, Joan Gordon, and me, and readings by Severna Park and Carol Emshwiller; the symposium was incorporated into the course through preparatory readings of the speakers' works, attendance instead of one week's class, and a potluck for the speakers. OTHER TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Le Guin, Always Coming Home; Russ, We Who Are About To...; Jones and Merchant, Unveiling a Parallel; Bradley, The Shattered Chain; Gearhart, The Wanderground; Cherryh, Serpent's Reach; Butler, Dawn; Arnason, Ring of Swords; Park, Speaking Dreams; Emshwiller, Carmen Dog; Hossain, "The Sultana's Dream"; Gorodischer, "The Perfect Wife."—Donawerth.


Massachusetts. Amherst College, Amherst

English 151/WAGS 51. Science Fiction. Surveying a range of classic and contemporary texts in the genre of science fiction, this course will explore the relation between the politics of world making and the technologies of literary representation. Special attention will be accorded to questions of gender, race, class, sexuality, and nation as these affect the construction of fictional worlds. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Hoffmann, "The Sandman," Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Heinlein, The Puppet Masters, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Butler, The Wild Seed, Delany, Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand, Russ, "When It Changed," Tiptree, "The Girl Who Was Plugged In," Gibson, Neuromancer. FILMS: Metropolis, The Island of Lost Souls, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Aliens.—Andrew Parker and Michèle Barale, English Dept. Amherst College, Amherst, MA 01002.


Massachussets. Bentley College, Waltham

EN 350:CO2. Cyberpunk, Cyberspace, Hypertext: Literature in the Age of the Computer. This course explores the impact of new information technology on literature in three crucial areas: 1) Cyberpunk, a relatively new form of science fiction that offers visions of the near future, emphasizing changes in social relations, cultural boundaries, business, and political economy produced by computerization and worldwide network communication; 2) Cyberspace, the ongoing development of virtual environments for education, work, play, and crime; 3) Hypertext, the linked webs of electronic documents that may eventually replace all printed documents, and are already challenging our notions of what reading means. The center of this course is the point of tension between the sense that cyberpunk is a marginal, resistant phenomenon and the sense that cyberpunk articulates something central to what the world now is or is becoming. To that end, it sees cyberpunk less in a tradition of science fiction than at the center of postmodernism, that catch_all term that here refers most specifically to Post_industrialism and late capitalism, Post_nationalism, the end of "progress" and "history," the erosion of the "real" in favor of the hyperreal, and finally, the absence of collective epistemological and ethical meta_narratives that could underpin a stable code of what is true and false or right and wrong. Crucial questions for the course include what it means to "be" postmodern, as opposed to being able to talk about the postmodern, and whether virtual realities are fundamentally different from "reality," and change what "reality" means. Another feature of the course, one which attempts to address in a practical way the difference between being postmodern and merely talking about it, is the creation of a class website as a virtual space for the course work. (At present this website is accessible only through Bentley College's intranet, though it may be open to the general Internet in the coming year.) The class web consists of basic course materials and projects carried out collaboratively by the students. Current projects included a joint cyberpunk fiction experiment, in which various class members contribute stories or fragments to a hypertext that is held together by electronic links and mutually agreed upon "common_world" elements. A second project attempts to provide a loose cognitive map of cyberpunk including a glossary of terms, a timeline, some cultural intertexts, and links to various other cyberpunk_related sites on the World Wide Web. TEXTS: McCaffery, ed., Storming the Reality Studio; Gibson, Neuromancer; Stephenson, Snow Crash; Baird, Crashcourse. FILMS: Blade Runner, Hackers.—Robert Crooks, English Department, Bentley College, Waltham, MA 02154.


Massachusets. Boston Visionary Cell, Boston

Workshop: Building the Time-Machine. In this course we will explore the prospect of building a time-machine from developing a concept to working drawings and a model. This engineering genre begins in 1899 when Alfred Jarry read the French translation of Wells's Time Machine and wrote an essay, "How to Construct a Time-Machine." Over the intervening 97 years there have been a number of attempts in relation to the prevailing speculative theories of physics, such as today's communication hypotheses by means of faster-than-light particles. The results of the course will be proposed as an exhibit to the Science Museum of Boston. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Jarry, Selected Works of Alfred Jarry, ed. Shattuck and Taylor; various books and articles on speculative physics.—Paul Laffoley, Boston Visionary Cell, 36 Bromfield Street, Suite 200, Boston MA 02108. Telephone 617-482-9044.


Massachusetts. Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater

EN 252. Literary Types: Science Fiction. The history and development of science fiction is explored from Frankenstein to the present day. Aside from an introductory phase rich in 19th-century material, the course follows a thematic approach, devoting a week each to lecture, discussion, and readings (ancient, 19th-century, and modern) in speculative fantasy, weird sf, time travel/parallel worlds, speculative hard sf, aliens, robots, speculative soft sf, utopias/dystopias, and social sf. TEXTS: Lawler, Approaches to Science Fiction; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The Science Fiction Research Association Anthology; Hurley, ed., Frankenstein (abridged), Strange Stories (3 vols.), Tales of the (Near?) Future.—Mike Hurley, Dept. of English, Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, MA 02325.


Massachusetts. Emerson College, Belmont

WP 208. Writing sf. An introductory creative writing course. Students begin by reading and discussing published stories and writing short exercises focussed on character, dialogue, setting, point of view, and style. The class jointly creates a "shared world" and each writes a short piece set in that world. All writing is photocopied and workshopped in class. By the end of the semester students have produced either a substantial story or the opening chapters of a projected novel. TEXT: Dozois, ed., The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twelfth Annual Collection. (A more advanced course, WP 308—Writing Genre Fiction, gives interested students an opportunity to continue their work.)—Lynn F. Williams, Div. of Writing and Publishing, Emerson College, 100 Beacon St, Boston, MA 02116.

LI 532A. Utopia and Anti-Utopia. Since the literary utopia was invented by Thomas More in the 16th century, it has been a medium for philosophers, dreamers, political scientists, and satirists. In this course, we will explore both the positive eutopia and the negative dystopia or antiutopia as well as some of the intentional communities based on utopian ideals. TEXTS: More, Utopia, Swift, Gulliver's Travels, Bellamy, Looking Backward, Wells, The Time Machine, Zamiatin, We, Skinner, Walden Two, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time, Read, The Green Child, Shakespeare, The Tempest. —Williams.


Massachusetts. Framingham State University, Framingham

English 21.111 [one section]. Approach to Literature: Fantasy & Science Fiction. An exploring of imagination in tales based on traditional lore and wisdom, and in stories premised upon scientific knowledge. TEXTS: Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound, Marlowe, Dr. Faustus, Coleridge, Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Shelley, Frankenstein, Poe, Stories and Poems, Twain, The Mysterious Stranger. Warrick et al, eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Joseph Jurich, English Dept., Framingham State Univ., Framingham, MA 01701-9101.

English 21.111 [another section]. Approaches to Literature: Science Fiction. Looking at scientific concepts as metaphor, the course explores some central science-fiction issues: definitions of "otherness" and the bounderies of "self." TEXTS: Lewis, Perelandra; Sterling, Schismatrix; Gibson, Burning Chrome; Lem, Solaris; others.—Marianne Messina, English Dept., Framingham State Univ., Framingham, MA 01701-9101 or PO Box 6046, Holliston, MA 01746.


Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge

21.763. Modern Science Fiction. This course tracks the evolution of science fiction from the fifties to the present. Students read stories from two anthologies—The Norton Book of Science Fiction and Dozois's current Year's Best sf—and five novels, one from each decade: Bester's The Stars My Destination; Delany's Babel-17; Silverberg's Dying Inside; Gibson's Neuromancer; and Barnes's Mother of Storms.—Joe Haldeman, Department of Writing and Humanistic Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139.

21.759. Writing Science Fiction. This course begins with a series of lectures about the process of writing fiction and the particular challenges offered by science fiction. In the course of the lectures, students read stories from the Norton anthology and Dozois's current Year's Best sf. Under the instructor's guidance, the students write at least two short science-fiction stories (or one novella or the beginning of a novel, if they seem to have talent in that direction). The last half of the semester is given over to roundtable workshop discussion of the students' work.—Haldeman.


Massachusetts. Northeastern University, Boston

ENG 1276. Science Fiction. This course traces the development of various science fiction themes, conventions, and approaches from early man-versus-machine tales to alien encounters. We will examine how the genre is a time capsule of the relationships of humans and technology, humans and nature, humans and the stars in all their promise and dangers. From Frankenstein through H.G. Wells, through short fiction of the "golden age" (1940s and '50s), to the visions of contemporary writers. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, Kress, Beggars in Spain, Clarke, Childhood's End, Bear, The Forge of God, Robinson, Red Mars.—Gary Goshgarian, 406 Holmes Hall, Dept. of English, Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA 02115.


Massachusetts. Salem State College, Salem

ENG 478. Science Fiction. An introduction to classic works of science fiction. TEXTS: Herbert, Dune, Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Silverberg, ed. Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Gibson, Neuromancer, Simak, City, Wells, The Time Machine, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, among others.—John Steele, Dept. of English, Salem State College, 352 Lafayette St., Salem, MA 01970.


Massachusetts. Stonehill College, North Easton

English 314. Science Fiction: Worlds Made Cunningly. The last two dec-ades have witnessed the acceptance—at times reluctant—of science fiction as a legitimate genre of mainstream literature, akin to medieval allegory and romance. Twentieth-century American sf, in particular, has made an impressive popular as well as academic impact upon culture and its literary establishment. We will attempt to define and explore the history and significance of "scientific romances," "scientifiction," and, more recently, "sf" as reflected in the best representative 20th-century authors: British, European, and American. Our purpose will be to develop a critical and analytical reading and understanding of various works by identifying and evaluating important and often recurrent themes and concerns. These include consideration of the implications of continued research and discoveries in the hard and soft sciences and technology upon religious, social, philosophical, and cultural values as these are extrapolated by sf authors in their fictions. We will consider utopias and dystopias, the idea of interplanetary space/time travel, "close encounters" of several kinds involving alien intelligence and robots, and we will discuss how these are germane to late twentieth century readers and literature. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Asimov, I, Robot, Foundation, Clarke, Childhood's End, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Herbert, Dune, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness.—Maurice H.J. Morin, Dept. of English, Stonehill College, North Easton, MA 02357.


Massachusetts. Suffolk University, Boston

English 378. Fantasy and Folklore. Fantasy is discussed as a genre and mode; various theories of fantasy are explored. While the course deliberately "transforms itself" at each offering, such writers as Adams, „ apek, Carroll, Gardner, Le Guin, Lewis, and Singer have had return appearances. (Watership Down and Till We Have Faces seem to be constants.) Speculative fiction has been represented through the works of Barthelme, Barnes, Crowley, Kafka, and Lightman (Einstein's Dreams). Science fiction, variously emphasized, has included works by Bradbury, Clarke. Dick, Disch, Lem, McIntyre, and Wilhelm. Lem's The Cyberiad and The Futurological Congress are frequent inclusions. Folklore-and more specifically, the folk-tale—is a significant concentration. Investigated are the scholarship, criticism and history relevant to folk narrative study (works by Aarne, Degh, Luthi, Propp, Thompson, Zipes); the application of such study to the investigation of ethnic types; the relationship of folk-tales —and especially motifs—to fantasy, myth and science fiction; the comparison of the oral to the literary tale; the revisionist text. Such topics as "the trickster," "the master-maid" vs. "the female victim," "the peasant and the tyrant" have been important considerations, as well as the larger question of superstition, magic, belief in the supernatural vs. science and technolgy as this forms the basis for a system of values and provides for distinct literatures.—Marilyn Jurich, Department of English, Suffolk University, Beacon Hill, 41 Temple Street, Boston, MA 02114-4280, (617) 573-8271.


Massachusetts. University of Massachusetts, Boston

English 334. Science Fiction. For advanced undergraduates, primarily English majors. TEXTS: Wells, The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine; Stapledon, Odd John, Sirius; Heinlein, The Puppet Masters; Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet; Stewart, Earth Abides; Butler, Kindred; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Slonczewski, A Door into Ocean; and a sampler of short stories. FILMS: Flash Gordon, Things to Come, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, Jurassic Park.—Robert Crossley, 109 Brooks St., Brighton, MA 02135, "crossley@umbsky.cc.umb.edu".

CORE C110-4. Cultural History: Mars, 1877-2019. This course studies the nature, methods, and uses of cultural history by examining in some detail a single example: how scientific and literary images of Mars during the past century have mirrored and expressed cultural ideas and values. TEXTS: Wilford, Mars Beckons, Wells, The War of the Worlds, Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Grossman, ed. The Frontier in American Culture, Burroughs, A Princess of Mars, Robinson, Red Mars, plus a packet of photocopied materials.—Crossley.

English 697B. The End of the World. Graduate program. TEXTS: Friedrich, The End of the World: A History, Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Stapledon, Last and First Men, Shelley, The Last Man, Roshwald, Level Seven, Stewart, Earth Abides, Robbins, Skinny Legs and All, plus a packet of readings. —Crossley.


Massachusetts. Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston

LITR 460. Science Fiction. In this course, we will examine science fiction as a vehicle for philosophic and technical inquiry. TEXTS: Crichton, Jurassic Park; Gibson, Burning Chrome, Neuromancer; Campbell, Grammatical Man.—Michael Greene, Wentworth Institute of Tech., 550 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA 02115.


Michigan. Adrian College, Adrian

Religion 300. Topics: Religion and Fantasy. Our subject is the interrelationships between religious beliefs and values on one hand, and literary/cinematic fantasy (and science fiction) on the other. The study of fantastic literature raises important philosophical problems, such as, what is the reality status of the fantastic? how is the fantasy-world related to reality? what is the literary structure of fantasy? The presence of religious themes in much "secular" fantasy and science fiction, and also of fantastic elements in biblical and other religious literature, raises further questions: Is religion inherently fantastic? Is fantasy inherently "religious"? What are the theological implications of the fantastic? TEXTS: the Bible; Aichele/Pippin (eds.), Fantasy and the Bible; Zipes (ed.), Arabian Nights; Tolkien, The Tolkien Reader; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Crowley, Little, Big; Beagle, The Last Unicorn; Stephenson, Snow Crash. FILMS: Aladdin, Dragonslayer, Time Bandits, Strange Days, 12 Monkeys.— G. Aichele, Department of Religion & Philosophy, Adrian College, Adrian, MI 49221.


 

Michigan. Ferris State University, Grand Rapids

LITR 233. Science Fiction. Course objectives: to introduce you to a diverse range of sf literature, to use sf to analyze evolving concepts of our culture, to teach a critical method of reading popular literature, to increase an imaginative response to technology and society, to demonstrate the place of popular literature in ideology, and to have a little fun. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Ore, Becoming Alien; Gibson, Neuromancer; Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame; Blish, Cities in Flight; Brunner, Shockwave Rider; Butler, Dawn; Card, Ender's Game; Asimov, I, Robot; Clarke, Childhood's End; Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Silverberg, Down to Earth; Herbert, The Dosadi Experiment. ALSO: The radio version of The War of the Worlds and a Star Trek episode.—Robert von der Osten, 1401 Walwood Terrace NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49505. "rvondero@music.ferris.edu".


Michigan. Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant

English 323. Fantasy and Science Fiction. Objectives: 1. to understand the nature, and perhaps the "art," of literature called "fantasy" and literature called "science fiction," 2. to explain fantasy as a non-discursive discourse, universal in history, that, depending upon the age and culture in which it is created or composed, represents the idea of man and the physics of the world proper to that age and culture, 3. to explain science fiction as a species of fantasy that arises in history with the ages of reason, science, industry, technology, electronics, nuclear physics, extra-galactic astronomy, etc. (it is a very discursive or expositional fictional literature which presents the idea of man and the physics of the world as they have developed during the 19th and 20th centuries), 4. to present an overview of the historical and current character of fantasy and science fiction, 5. to see the universal topicality of fantasy and science fiction (it is about everything, from the most speechless of religious mystiques to the most analytical and empirical of scientific disciplines, from aesthetics to pragmatics, from lyric poem to warehouse inventory), 6. to perceive that the "quality" ("beauty"?) of works of fantasy and science fiction is found just as that of all art—in the excellence with which the form (the story-telling) fits the matter (the story), 7. fantasy and science fiction are often vehicles of imaginative escape, 8. to see that fantasy, by the very alienness of its setting and its characters' anatomies, provides a fresh perspective upon spiritual and psychological reality, 9. to see how science fiction, far being a literature than can predict the future, concentrates upon history and the present, maintaining the classical dialectic of "ancients and moderns," 10. to hear specialists from a variety of disciplines, such as religion, sociology, chemistry, and physics, often to try on a "speculative mood," in addressing a particular work of fantasy or science fiction read in the course, 11. to discover that fantasy and science fiction are not trivial—that, in fact, they are some of the most important cultural phenomena of the 20th century." TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Shelley, Frankenstein, Stoker, Dracula, Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Stewart, Earth Abides, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Haldeman, The Forever War, Tolkien, The Hobbit, Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea, Clarke, Childhood's End. —John Pfeiffer, English Dept., Central Michigan Univ., Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859.

BCA 527. Film Directors. This course examines the film output of John Carpenter and RKO producer Val Lewton. Emphasis is on the films' fantasy/horror themes, tropes, and motifs as well as biographical background regarding both personalities that addresses the themes shown in the various titles. TEXTS: Cumbow: Order in the Universe: The Films of John Carpenter; Telotte: Dreams of Darkness: Fantasy and the Films of Val Lewton. One of a series of courses under the same number focusing on directors and producers.—Robert Craig, Broadcast & Cinematic Arts Department, Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859.

BCA 525. Film Genre Study: The Early Horror Film. This course examines the development of the horror film from its beginnings in the silent era to 1969. Critical study is given to cultural trends, analysis of technique, and development of the student viewer's critical skills. One of a series of courses under the same number focusing on various film genres. TEXTS:Carrol, The Philosophy of Horror; Waller, ed., American Horrors: Essays on the Modern American Horror Film.—Craig.

BCA 525. Film Genre Study: The Contemporary Horror Film. Examines the historical development of the horror film since 1969. Texts same as for the preceding course.—Craig

BCA 525. Film Genre Study: The Fantasy Film. A genre study of the themes, techniques, and historical development of fantasy in film. The class views a selection of fantasy-based titles from various genres such as comedy, horror, animation, and action-adventure, as well as studying classic and contemporary techniques in special effects cinematography. Films include titles from Melies to present-day commercial theatricals. One of a series of courses under the same number focusing on various film genres. TEXT: Von Gunden: Flights of Fancy: The Great Fantasy Films. —Craig.

BCA 525. Film Genre Study: Science Fiction. Subtitled "Cautionary Tales of the Industrial Age," this course pairs sf films with required readings of several sf novels. Students discuss how science and scientists are depicted in both media and how the themes and lessons of the respective films and novels apply to the present day. One of a series of courses under the same number focusing on various film genres. TEXTS: Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Kuhn, ed., Alien Zone: Cultural Theory and Contemporary Science Fiction Cinema; Orwell, 1984.—Kenneth Jurkiewicz, Broadcast & Cinematic Arts Department, Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859.

BCA 525. Film Genre Studies: Science Fiction. With the concurrent rise of industrialism and mass culture, modern audiences have been both fearful of and fascinated with the impact of science and technology on the individual and community. As the most popular and influential of the mass media—due to its unparalleled ability to visually depict what previously could only be described in print or imagined in the mind's eye—film even from its infancy has helped shape our perceptions about the role of the scientist and technocrat in forming our society. This course will examine how these perceptions were created and sustained in literature and the cinema by examining various key works of popular fiction and film which have been of particular historical, cultural, and esthetic importance in terms of perpetuating certain stereotypical images of scientists and their works. These stereotypes of scientists can be broken down into four basic categories: 1) The Scientist as Romantic/Idealistic Overreacher (as in The Bride of Frankenstein and The Thing); 2) The Scientist as Rationalist/Humanist (as in Things to Come, which depicts the triumph of humanistic empiricism); 3) The Scientist as Corporate Capitalist (as in Metropolis, Blade Runner, Robocop, and They Live); and 4) The Scientist as Totalitarian Collectivist (as in 1984, A Clockwork Orange, Brazil, and The Handmaid's Tale. Films which illustrate the development of these stereotypes will be shown and discussed in class, along with an exploration of some of the original novels on which these films were based, including: Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Orwell, 1984; and Shelley, Frankenstein.—Jurkiewicz.


Michigan. Lansing Community College, Lansing

English 220. Science Fiction. English 220 acquaints students with popular, modern literature of science fiction. History and definitions of science fiction are given, but the emphasis is on short stories, novels, and films—their questions and criticisms of society, the world, and human existence. TEXTS: Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Gibson, Burning Chrome; Huxley, Brave New World; Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven; Orwell, 1984; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants.—Rafeeq O. McGiveron, Department of Humanities and the Performing Arts, Lansing Community College, Box 40010, Lansing, MI 48901. 517-483-1018.


Michigan. Michigan State University, Lansing

LBS 490E. Science and Utopia. By examining utopian fiction and nonfiction drawn from the past three and a half centuries, this course will study science's influence upon the utopian imagination and, vice versa, the utopian imagination's influence upon the development of science and technology. Spanning from the English Renaissance to the American Bicentennial, these writers raise political, philosophical, moral, literary, economic, and scientific questions that, variously, support and challenge their societies' and their scientists' images of themselves. That is, in this course we will look at writers who love science, those who hate it, and those who bring to their works a more complex mixture of attitudes towards science. Some of the specific questions we will study include: What is a utopia? Or, more usefully, what issues and ideas does the utopian imagination explore and how are they explored? How has the utopian imagination responded to the challengings of traditional beliefs by modern science's new questions and answers? What conflicts have developed between the utopian imagination and the scientific worldview? On the other hand, what opportunities for the utopian imagination has that worldview opened up? What deep fears about science has the utopian imagination exposed?. What hopes about science has it launched? TEXTS: More, Utopia; Bacon, New Atlantis; short pieces by several French utopists, and excerpts drawn from the writings of Marx and Engels; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Wells, Modern Utopia; Huxley, Brave New World; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time.—Robert Shelton, Lyman Briggs School, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48825-1107.


Michigan. Michigan Technological University, Houghton

HU 303. The Literature of J.R.R. Tolkien. This course re-examines the major works of J.R.R. Tolkien in light of his own theories of fantasy (faerie) and in view of the works which most influenced him in his writing so as to provide students with a clear idea of his process of sub-creation and a greater appreciation for the magnitude of his accomplishment. TEXTS: Tolkien, The Tolkien Reader; Wright (trans.), Beowulf; Green (ed.), King Arthur and His Knights; Tolkien, The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King, RESERVE TEXTS: Kocher, Master of Middle Earth; Foster, A Guide to Middle Earth; Tyler, The New Tolkien Companion.—Charles W. Nelson, Department of Humanities, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931.


Michigan. Oakland University, Rochester

English 566. The Mode of the Fantastic. A graduate course which will explore the theoretical and textual basis of the fantastic. TEXTS: Abbott, Flatland; Apuleius, The Golden Ass of Apuleius, trans. Robert Graves; Bierce, Civil War Stories; Carter, Nights at the Circus; Giraudoux, Four Plays; Hume, Fantasy and Mimesis; Le Guin, The Wizard of Earthsea; O'Brien, The Third Policeman; O'Faolain, And Again?; Simmons, Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion; Stephens, Crock of Gold; Stoppard, Arcadia; Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions; Jackson, Fantasy: the Literature of Subversion.—Donald E. Morse, English Department, Oakland University, Rochester, MI 48309.

English 306. The Mode of the Fantastic. An undergraduate course exploring the range, variety, and depth of the fantastic from classical to contemporary literature and film. TEXTS: Abbott, Flatland; Aldiss, Dracula Unbound; Amis, Time's Arrow; Anon., "Lludd and Llefelys" from the Mabinogion; Aristophanes, The Birds; Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Kafka, "A Common Confusion"; Landow, "And the World Became Strange: Realms of Literary Fantasy," Laszlóffy, The Heretic; Morse, "Uses of the Fantastic in Modern Irish Literature"; O'Brien, The Third Policeman; Rabe, The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel; Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince; Shelley, Frankenstein; Shepard, Buried Child; Simmons, Children of the Night; Stoker, Dracula; Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle. FILMS: Anna's Film and Dracula (Coppola).—Morse.


Michigan. Saginaw Valley State University, University Center

History 305. Utopian Communities in Nineteenth-Century America. This course examined the European genesis and implementation in the United States of two major community movements, the Fourierists and the Icarians, which were derived from utopian writings. It also included the intersection of Robert Owen, the Owenites, and the evolution of end-of-century membership into Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward clubs. The course began with an investigation of the cultural settings that advanced these systems during this era. It reviewed the leaders' backgrounds, the underlying rationale for promoting these social alternatives, the publications and means used to circulate communitarian ideology, and the membership. An Audio Visual on "Utopia" helped to introduce the topic. Early lectures presented a survey of American Communities utilizing time line charts. The two required texts were Carl J. Guarneri, The Utopian Alternative: Fourierism in Nineteenth-Century America, and Robert P. Sutton, Les Icariens: The Utopian Dream in Europe and America.—Diana M. Garno, PhD History candidate at Wayne State University, Detroit MI 48202. Adjunct faculty, Saginaw Valley State University, University Center, MI 48710. diadonphil@AOL.


Michigan. St. Mary's College, Orchard Lake

ENG 324. Special Topics: Science Fiction. This course is designed to give students an overview of major themes in science fiction and of the genre's historical development in the 20th century with emphasis particularly on US science fiction. The course is meant as an introduction to the genre, encouraging students through a project /presentation toward the end of the semester to pursue other manifestations of science fiction outside of literature, such as film and television, advertising, computer and video games, music, counterculture, etc. TEXTS: Shakespeare, The Tempest, Lang, Metropolis, Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Burroughs, A Princess of Mars, Lem, Solaris, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Hoban, Riddley Walker, Heinlein, Starship Troopers, Haldeman, The Forever War, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale. —Steffen Hantke, 2344 Ellsworth, Apt. 102, Ypsilanti, MI 48197.


Michigan. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

English 313 sec. 001 Literary Studies: Science Fiction. An elective course for upperclasspersons. There are no prerequisites. We will examine both the history and the diversity of science fiction prose by reading some of the best examples written since the beginning of the nineteenth century. Generally, we will approach each primary text in three ways: through a consideration of its backgrounds (scientific, mythic, and so forth), through specific questions the text raises (moral questions, questions of plausibility, and so forth), and through the traditional discipline of criticism (what is science fiction? what is the relationship of character to theme? and so forth). TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Poe, The Portable Poe; Hawthorne, Selected Short Stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne; Wells, The Time Machine & The War of the Worlds; Zamiatin, We; „ apek, War with the Newts; Stapledon, Star Maker; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Clarke, Childhood's End; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Dick, Ubik; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Lem, The Futurological Congress; Gibson, Neuromancer.—Eric Rabkin, English Department, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1045.


Michigan. University of Michigan, Flint

ENG 228. Women and Literature. Study of writing by women in order to explore the concerns of women writers, recurrent themes in their works, and feminist approaches to literature. TEXTS: Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale, Le Guin, "Sur".—Lois M. Rosen, Dept. of English, Univ. of Michigan, Flint, MI 48502-2186.


Minnesota. Hamline University, St. Paul

English 398. Writing with Technology. This class is computer-intensive, training students to publish on the World Wide Web and to build text-based virtual reality spaces. Gibson's texts will serve as models for their project, which concerns the creation of a 3D information space which stores information based on some metaphorical/allegorical principles. The course looks ahead to a time when information will be stored in virtual space, as Gibson's novels foresee. TEXTS: Gibson, Burning Chrome, Neuromancer.—Richard Smyth, "rsmyth@piper.hamline.edu", English Dept., Hamline Univ., St. Paul, MN 55104.


Minnesota. Southwest State University, Marshall

English 100. Literature and Humanity. A course in science fiction with environmental theses. It was developed in conjunction with a series of courses on Humanity and the Environment, which included courses in ecology, biodiversity, and the economics of the environment, science fiction on environmental issues, and a group tour to Florida for nine days to study ecosystems there. TEXTS: Huxley, Brave New World, Herbert, Dune, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time.—Susan McLean, English Dept., Southwest State Univ., 1501 State St., Marshall, MN 56258.

Lit 1208-308. Author: Short Course: Le Guin. This five-week course will study science fiction, fantasy, and essays by Ursula K. Le Guin. TEXTS: The Left Hand of Darkness, A Wizard of Earthsea, Tehanu, and assorted essays from The Language of the Night and Dancing at the Edge of the World.—McLean.


Missouri. Cottey College, Nevada

English 201. English Literature 1 (Survey). I plan to teach More's Utopia as a male-gendered Renaissance utopia, as compared to Margaret Cavendish's The Description of a New World, Called The Blazing World (1666) as a female-gendered utopia.—Michael J. Emery, English Department, Cottey College, Nevada, MO 64772.

English 202. English Literature 2 (Survey). I teach Wells's The Time Machine as an example of the loss of faith in Victorian values.—Emery.

English 106. Women and Literature. I teach Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness as an example of gender fantasy, along with Woolf's Orlando.—Emery.


Missouri. DeVry Institute of Technology, Kansas City

Humn 420. Contemporary Literature. Upper-division humanities course; covers mostly 20th century, mostly American literature, all genres. TEXTS: Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas"—James K. Norman, 11224 Holmes Rd., DeVry Inst. of Tech., Kansas City, MO 64131.


Missouri. Stephens College, Columbia

Eng 255L. Literary Studies: Science Fiction. Offered on a rotating basis; the topic for 255L was at least once utopias. I have taught the sf course at least 12 times since 1976. My course attempts to do two things: to offer some sense of the history of the genre (I always begin with Frankenstein and The Time Machine) and to feature as many of the women writers as possible, if only because we are a women's college. I have also given a lot of attention to the situation of sf in popular culture, with videos and other media. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Dick, Ubik, Russ, The Female Man, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Charnas, Walk to the End of the World, Lem, Solaris, Warrick, ed. The SFRA Anthology. VIDEOS: Frankenstein, Blade Runner, and clips from other films.—Tom Dillingham, English Department, Stephens College, Columbia, MO 65215.


Missouri. Truman State University, Kirksville

English 206. Science Fiction. Rotates with Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Mystery. Instructor and syllabus vary. The following is from the last time I taught the course. Theme: Creating tomorrow; this course will focus on sf as extrapolative fiction; the ideas that become familiar to us through reading are less apt to surprise or shock us if they become part of our cultural reality; and we take for granted both the technologies and any problems they create. Course Objectives: to read both for enjoyment and for analysis of ideas and their presentation; to connect literary style and subject with current sociocultural concerns; to become more familiar with the scientific ideas that have created our technological society. TEXTS: Benford, Timescape, Brin, The Postman, Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar, Bujold, Falling Free, Card, Ender's Game, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, The Lathe of Heaven, Lem, Solaris, Pohl, Gateway, Bova, ed, The Best of the Nebulas, Silverberg, ed, The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol I. —Martha Bartter, Division of Language and Literature, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO 63501.


Missouri. University of Missouri, Columbia

English 189. Modern Literature in the Age of Science. An investigation of the way scientific and technological advances have affected both the content and the form of modern literature. TEXTS: Poe, The Fall of the House of Usher, Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Wells, The Time Machine, War of the Worlds, Huxley, Brave New World, DeLillo, White Noise, Gibson, Neuromancer, Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49, Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven, Vonnegut, Galapagos, M. Joyce, Afternoon: A Story (hypertext), J. Joyce, Finnegans Wake.—Timothy Materer, English Dept., 107 Tate, Univ. of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65203.


Missouri. University of Missouri, Rolla

English 225. Science Fiction. This course focuses on science fiction since 1959 but provides students with a historical background via three early novels and several short stories. The short stories are read at the beginning in order to review the principles of reading and writing about literature; the ten novels are divided into pairs that both illustrate some of Gary K. Wolfe's icons of science fiction and reflect different historical periods. TEXTS: Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology, Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The War of the Worlds, Zamiatin, We, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Lem, Solaris, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, McCaffrey, The Ship Who Sang, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Gibson, Neuromancer, Slonczewski, A Door into Ocean.—Elizabeth Cummins, Department of English, Univ. of Missouri, Rolla, MO 65573, (314) 341-4622, "cummins@umr.edu".

English 226. Utopian Literature. This course currently concentrates on British fiction of the 19th and 20th centuries, although both More's Utopia and Swift's Gulliver's Travels are examined for relevant background issues. Plato, Campanella, Bacon, Voltaire, and Johnson are introduced through lecture overviews. The speculative nature of utopian/dystopian alternatives is the main focus of the course. TEXTS: including More and Swift: Wells, A Modern Utopia; Orwell, 1984; Huxley, Brave New World and Brave New World Revisited; Butler, Erewhon; Morris, News from Nowhere; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Golding, The Lord of the Flies; James, The Children of Men.—James N. Wise, Department of English, University of Missouri, Rolla, MO 65401-0294.

English 227. Fantasy Literature. In this course, we will read a variety of fantastic literature, focusing on definitions of fantasy and methods of creating fantastic worlds. Students will interact both critically and creatively with the texts studied. TEXTS: Shippey, The Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories; Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea; Hoban, The Medusa Frequency.—Gene Doty, Dept. of English, 1870 Niner Circle, Rolla, MO 65409-0560.


Missouri. Washington University, St. Louis

L14 E Lit 380. Race, Class, and Gender in American Science Fiction. This course is designed to explore how race, class and gender have been represented within science fiction as a function of the genre's presentation of "desirable" social and political futures. We will raise the following issues: the effect of an author's political position and social background on his/her characters and their technocultural surroundings; the role that dominant racial/ethnic stereotypes play in the construction of futuristic social orders; the challenges that racial "others" have posed as producers of science fiction; the connection between literary style and politicial thought in popular literature; and the place of science and technology in the valorization of popular images of race, gender, and class. TEXTS: Heinlein, Farnham's Freehold; Delany, Stars in My Pockets Like Grains of Sand; Clark, Imperial Earth; Wu, Hong on the Range; Bear, Queen of Angels; Pournelle and Stirling, Go Tell the Spartans; Barnes, Gorgon Child; McIntyre, Starfarers.—DeWitt Kilgore, English Dept., Washington Univ., Campus Box 1122, One Brooklyn Dr., St. Louis, MO 63130.


Mississippi. Delta State University, Cleveland

English 492. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Course goals: 1. to have fun reading and discussing the ideas and themes in science fiction and fantasy, 2. to broaden our knowledge of what's in sf and fantasy, 3. to deepen our appreciation of what's in sf and fantasy, 4. to practice critical reading and critical thinking (what are the patterns, the "hidden agendas," and the assumptions in this kind of fiction?). TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, War of the Worlds; Lewis, Perelandra; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Card, Ender's Game; Gibson, Neuromancer; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Smith, Children of the Lens; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five; Bear, Blood Music; Lessing, Shikasta. FILMS: Close Encounters, Starman, Blade Runner, Brazil.—Carolyn J. Elkins, 218A Kethley, Div. of Langs. & Lit., Delta State Univ., Cleveland, MS 38733.


Montana. Montana State University, Billings

English 380. Science Fiction. This course examines the major themes of science fiction and traces its historical development as one of the most popular genres of modern speculative fiction. Significant sf short stories, novels, and films will be studied. TEXTS: Benford, Timescape; Niven, Ringworld; Butler, Parable of the Sower; Lethem, Gun, With Occasional Music; Kessel, Good News from Outer Space; Simmons, Hyperion; Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology. FILMS: Metropolis, Things to Come.—Gary Acton, Dept. of English & Philosophy, Montana State Univ., 1500 N. 30th St., Billings, MT 59101.


Nebraska. College of Saint Mary, Omaha

ENG 263. Science Fiction. This 3-credit course is designed to familiarize the student with the specialized genre of literature known as science fiction. Although sf is only one area of fiction, the study of sf can be used to understand and appreciate all areas of literature. Through the study of this genre, the student should not only gain a better understanding of literature but be given the impetus to examine and strengthen her understanding of self, life, and God. TEXTS: Asimov, I, Robot, Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Herbert, Dune, Huxley, Brave New World, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants, Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds.—Polly Nimmer, College of Saint Mary, 1901 South 72nd St., Omaha, NE 68124-2377.


Nebraska. Dana College, Blair

88135-I. Religion and Science Fiction. In this course, we will use works of science fiction as a medium for consideration of religious themes. Science Fiction often deals with religious ideas in imaginative and unusual ways, either explicitly or implicitly suggesting views of good and evil, creation and sin, God and the supernatural, the afterlife, and the goals of human history. As sf authors speculate about other times and worlds, they are also asking questions about the values of our time and world. As feminist theologian Sallie McFague puts it, "One of the most powerful ways to question a tradition is to imagine new worlds that challenge it. Speculative fiction, with more tenuous ties to everyday life than realistic fiction, creates a world in sharp contrast to our conventional one and, hence, simply by juxtaposition questions and criticizes it." By questioning basic assumptions about reality, science fiction encourages thought about our views of ultimate meaning, salvation, the divine, and other religious topics. Through the study of religious themes in science fiction, students can be led to reflect on religion in a new way which encourages consideration of their own beliefs and values. TEXTS: L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time, Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet, Shelley, Frankenstein, Clarke, Childhood's End, Huxley, Brave New World. FILMS: E.T., Terminator 2, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Return of the Jedi.—John Lyden, Dept. of Religion, Dana College, Blair, NE 68008.


Nebraska. Peru State College, Peru

English 275. Film Criticism. A course recently keyed to the PBS series American Cinema/American Culture; students study some sf films in the context of American (and world) culture, history, literature, and politics. FILMS: The Handmaid's Tale, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Solaris, 1984, Stalker, On the Beach, Alphaville, La Jetée, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Man Who Fell to Earth.—Bill Clemente, Dept. of English, Peru State College, Peru, NE 68421, "clemente@pscosf.peru.edu".

HP 101. Twentieth Century Issues (Honors). Taught by a colleague. Through literature such as fiction, drama, poetry, biography, this course will focus on selcted issues such as education, the environment, racism, behaviorism, nuclear war, political leadership and the psychology of leadership, mass political movements, and the use of propaganda. FILMS: 1984, On the Beach, Threads. TEXTS: Shute, On the Beach; Huxley, Brave New World; Frank, Alas, Babylon.—Clemente.

English 202. Appreciation of Literature. Introductory literature course designed to increase the student's appreciation of literature with an emphasis on modern literary forms. TEXTS: I used various short stories from a number of authors, from "Nightfall" to "The Girl who was Plugged In."—Clemente.

English 201. Advanced Composition. Training in writing a variety of types of papers with emphasis on writing across the curriculum. Areas of focus include Genetic Engineering, Genetic Roles, and Obedience and Authority. TEXTS: selections from Z, 1984, The Handmaid's Tale, Brave New World, and a variety of short stories. FILMS: The Murderer, The Stepford Wives, The Handmaid's Tale, 1984.—Clemente.


Nevada. University of Nevada, Reno

English 223 or Sociology 497 or Library Science 490. Science Fiction and Information Control. The future is all that we can change. This course will examine the role that libraries (information resources) have played in science fiction and the importance of the transmission of knowledge, whether it be conveyed orally (Fahrenheit 451), statically stored (The Foundation Trilogy), or mechanically/electrically disseminated (Clarke's 2001). The storage, retrieval, and dissemination of knowledge has been a constant concern of sf writers and one that has seldom been appreciated or understood. And, with the ever-increasing application of computer technology and robotics to information systems, the likelihood of knowledge-control by a single person (Asimov's Foundation Trilogy), by a government (Orwell's 1984), or by a machine (Clarke's 2001) becomes ever more possible. By means of science fiction one can imagine and examine alternatives to the present course of events. Technological change has a way of creating sociological change. OTHER TEXTS: SFRA Anthology, Visions of the Future; Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Huxley, Brave New World; and various other germane novels and stories.—Milton T. Wolf, Director of Collection Department, University of Nevada Library, Reno, NV 89557-4577.


Nevada. Western Nevada Community College, Carson City

English 223 CO1. Utopia & Dystopia in Fiction and Film. [Apparently a nonce course; the following is verbatim from a handbill sent us by Mr Wallman.] Is this the best of all possible worlds? What could be better? How could it be worse? Explore the possibilities with Ray Bradbury, Stephen King, Ursula Le Guin, and through works of fiction and film like Handmaid's Tale, Clockwork Orange, Fahrenheit 451, and The Running Man. Jeffrey Wallman, M.A., is an instructor in the English Department at UNR. He has more than two hundred novels to his twenty-two pseudonyms in all genres—mystery, science fiction, western and historical romance. He also has sales of more than one hundred short stories, novelettes, and articles with work represented in numerous anthologies in six languages, as well as television adaption, movie and television scripts.—Jeff Wallman, 2324 Loki Court, Reno NV 89512.


New Brunswick. University of New Brunswick, St. John

English 3130. Science Fiction. A study of the history of the genre with a concentration on the various subject areas of speculative fiction: utopian/dystopian, robots, mad scientists, BEM'S, fantastic worlds, and travels in space and time. TEXTS: Dunstand and Gorlan, Worlds in the Making; Freedman, 2000 Years of Space Travel; Aldiss, Billion Year Spree; Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, Island of Dr Moreau; Zamiatin, We; Huxley, Brave New World, Island; Orwell, 1984; Le Guin, Left Hand of Darkness; Brunner, Shockwave Rider; Ballard, Drowned World; Lem, Cyberiad; Do Andoids Dream of Electric Sheep?.—William Prouty, Dept. of Humanities and Languages, Univ. of New Brunswick, Box 5050, Saint John, N.B. CANADA E2L 4L5.

English 3143. Utopian Fiction. A study of major literary utopias from Plato's Republic to contemporary dystopian fiction. TEXTS: Utopian Literature, A Selection, ed J.W. Johnson; More, Utopia; Shakespeare, The Tempest; Marvell, "The Garden"; Milton, Paradise Lost Books IV & XI; William Morris, News from Nowhere; Zamiatin, We; Thoreau, Walden, B.F. Skinner, Walden Two; Huxley, Island.—Prouty.

English 3154. Themes in Contemporary Science Fiction. Examines contemporary speculative fiction with regard to scientific theory, technological and social change, political alternatives, and human destiny. TEXTS: Dunstan and Garlan, Worlds in the Making; Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Wyndham, The Chrysalids; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Le Guin, Left Hand of Darkness; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Ballard, The Drowned World; Brunner, The Shockwave Rider; Clarke, Childhood's End; Bradley, a Tower novel.—Prouty.


New Hampshire. Plymouth State College, Plymouth

English 171. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Science fiction and fantasy are two related literary forms, or genres, which have achieved wide popularity in the 20th century. In this course, we will study the history of two genres, read a selection of major works, both short stories and novels, and examine the influence of sf and fantasy on modern culture, including cinema, the graphic arts, and political discourse. TEXTS: Shippey, ed. The Oxford Book of Science Fiction Stories, Shippey, ed. The Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories, Stewart, Earth Abides, Heinlein, Red Planet.—Arthur M. Fried, English Dept., Plymouth State College, Plymouth, NH 03264-1600.


New Jersey. Rowan College of New Jersey, Glassboro

Honors Humanities Seminar. The appeal of science fiction is undeniable, and its forms innumerable, for sf writers place themselves at the intersection of what is real and what is possible, exploring scientific, utopian, and galactic frontiers. The course begins by looking briefly at the history of sf and particularly at sf's American heritage. Stopping points along the way might include the pseudo-scientific fantasy of Hawthorne and Poe. We might consider the social criticisms implicit in Twain's Connecticut Yankee and Gilman's Herland (a wonderfully ironic single-sex utopia). The instructor will provide the necessary background on selected "classics" of science fiction so that students can see the development of the genre across time and traditions: we will touch upon More's Utopia, Butler's Erewhon, Bellamy's Looking Backward, Orwell's 1984, and Huxley's Brave New World. The focus of the course, however, will be on students' experience of 20th-century writers (mostly, but not exclusively American) including Heinlein, Bradbury, Pohl, Le Guin, Russ, Atwood, Lem, Blish, Ellison, Pynchon, and Piercy. TEXTS: Gilman, Herland, Abbott, Flatland, Haldeman, The Forever War, Butler, Kindred, and assorted stories by Dick, Vonnegut, and Pohl, followed by presentations by students of other writers of the students' choosing.—Dr. Barbara Patrick, English Dept., Rowan College of New Jersey, Glassboro, NJ 08028.


New Jersey. Ramapo College, Ramsey

SINT 346. Survey of Science Fiction. From Shelley to Wells to Le Guin and Dick, the course will examine sf writers' world views and critiques of human nature and society and their use of such scientific and pseudoscientific concepts as entropy and social Darwinism. TEXTS: Sargent, ed. Women of Wonder; Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Time Machine; Clarke, The City and the Stars; Asimov, The Naked Sun; Delany, Stars in my Pocket like Grains of Sand; Butler, Dawn; Piercy, He, She, and It; and assorted short stories from Science Fiction: A Historical Anthology and The Oxford Book of Science Fiction, etc. FILM: Blade Runner.—Kathleen L. Fowler, 40 W. Oak St., Ramsey, NJ 07446.


New Jersey. Rutgers University, Newark

English 350:377. Science Fiction, Technology, and Society. An interdisciplinary course designed for students with serious interest in the subject matter. Although no previous knowledge is required, the readings may challenge your intelligence and imagination in unfamiliar ways and will certainly demand considerable time and thought. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Franklin, Future Perfect; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Gibson, Burning Chrome; Wells, The Time Machine; Dick, The Penultimate Truth; Lem, Solaris; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants; Butler, Parable of the Sower.—H. Bruce Franklin, English Dept., Rutgers Univ., Newark, NJ 07102.


New Jersey. Rutgers University, New Brunswick

English 350:365. Science Fiction. Covers both the genesis of genre from earlier subgenres and historical changes in genre against larger political/economic/ideological events like industrialization, imperialism, immigration, nationalism, modernism, socialism, feminism, consumerism, and postmodernism. Emphasizes magazine origin of sf; looks at values implicit in sf conventions (technophobia/technophilia, libertarianism/communalism, etc.) and relates them to cultural imagination at large. Attempts to refute typical selection of thoroughly canonized literary texts and, however poorly, Americanization of sf studies. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Lem, Solaris; Robinson, Red Mars; Dick, Ubik; Ballard, The Atrocity Exhibition; Moore & Gibbons, Watchmen; short stories and excerpts by Poe, Verne, Gernsback, E.R. Burroughs, „ apek, A. Merritt, Weinbaum, Leinster, Heinlein, Pohl, Sheckley, Le Guin, Russ, Disch, Delany, Tiptree, Varley, Bryant, Sterling, Gibson, Butler, selected criticism.—Donald Fallon, Rutgers Univ., Busch Campus, BPO 23881, PO Box 1119, Piscataway, NJ 08855, (908) 445-5135.


New Jersey. Stevens Institute, Hoboken

HU 316. Science Fiction. A study of the fiction of science and the science of fiction through the reading of authors from Mary Shelley to William Gibson. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, The Last Man; Wells, War of the Worlds; Russ, The Female Man; Lessing, Briefing for a Descent into Hell; Herbert, Dune; Gibson, Neuromancer; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Piercy, He, She, and It. FILMS: Metropolis, Dune.—Susan Levin, Humanities, Stevens Institute, Hoboken, NJ 07030.


New Jersey. William Paterson College, Wayne

ENG 216. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Objectives: to study representative texts and films of classical and recent science fiction and fantasy for adults and children, to determine literary techniques that play a major role in the sf/fantasy genre, to understand ways sci fi/fantasy express human needs and concerns about the nature of the individual, the society, and the impact of technological development. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Shippey, ed. Fantasy Stories; Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Gibson, Neuromancer; Tolkien, The Hobbit. FILMS: The Day the Earth Stood Still; The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.—Marjorie Ginsberg, English Dept., William Paterson College, 300 Pompton Rd., Wayne, NJ 07470, "bginsber@ix.netcom.com".


New Mexico. Eastern New Mexico University, Portales

English 375/593. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Offered every other spring. Course objectives include understanding of the history of sf/fantasy and its major themes and exploration of how to determine literary excellence in the genre. Graduate students are expected to prepare two long research papers using ENMU's Golden Library Science Fiction Collection of early pulp and contemporary fiction and criticism. Undergraduates and graduates prepare weekly reaction papers addressing course readings. Undergraduates write two 5-7 page critical essays on a theme of sf. Each year, ENMU hosts the Williamson Lectureships. In 1994 the guests were Frederik Pohl, Roger Zelazny, and Connie Willis, as well as Dr. Williamson. TEXTS: Homer, The Odyssey; Le Guin, Left Hand of Darkness; Pohl, Gateway; Warrick et al., The SFRA Anthology; Willis, Doomsday Book; Zelazny, Nine Princes in Amber; the Winter 1993 issue of Amazing Stories.—Jack Williamson and Patrice Caldwell, English Department, Eastern New Mexico University, Portales, NM 88130.


New York. Binghamton University, Binghamton

English 200A. Science Fiction. Science fiction accurately reflects longings, fears, projections, stereotypes, and other such concerns. Sf philosophizes on what it is to be human (though sometimes clothed in strange flesh). In short, sf, a vigorous subgenre, is literature, and can be read and analyzed profitably. This course will investigate sf, broadly defined, as it has appeared from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein till near the present. The approach will be eclectic, with the intent of investigating, among others, such topics as the history of sf, its styles and categories, its female and male components. There are, of course, more. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Stoker, Dracula; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds; Gilman, Herland; Burroughs, A Princess of Mars; Orwell, 1984; Huxley, Brave New World; Clarke, Childhood's End; Asimov, The Caves of Steel; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), The Man in the High Castle; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Warrick et al, eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Delany, Stars in my Pocket like Grains of Sand; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Gibson, Neuromancer; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed; Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five; Hoban, Riddley Walker; Ballard, Best Short Stories; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Tepper, Grass.—Allan L. Eller, Office of the Provost, Binghamton Univ., PO Box 6000, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000, (607) 777-2141, fax (607) 777-4831.

HIST 230. History of the Future. Analysis of recent research by social and natural scientists on the shape of things to come, fortified by scenarios drawn from sf and sf films. TEXTS: Callenbach, Ecotopia; Carlson and Goldman, Fast Forward; Huxley, Brave New World; Kennedy, Preparing for the 21st Century; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Wagar, A Short History of the Future. FILMS: Metropolis, Planet of the Apes, Soylent Green, Medicine Man, Blade Runner, The Day After, The Handmaid's Tale, A Clockwork Orange, Fahrenheit 451.—W. Warren Wagar, Department of History, Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000.

HIST 231. War: Past and Future. An overview of the history and causes of warfare, followed by an exploration of the kinds of wars most likely to occur in the next century and the prospects for world peace. TEXTS: Frank, Alas, Babylon; Haldeman, The Forever War; McNeill, A World History; Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four; Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front; Toffler and Toffler, War and Anti-War; Vadney, The World Since 1945. FILMS: Control, Henry V, The Last of the Mohicans, Glory, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Dr. Strangelove, Platoon, Crimson Tide, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Red Dawn.—Wagar.

HIST 330. Modern European Thought. The history of the European mind since the Renaissance, with special attention to its visions of the best and worst society. TEXTS: Bacon, New Atlantis; Ballard, The Unlimited Dream Company; Burdekin, The End of This Day's Business; Engels, Socialism: Utopian and Scientific; Huxley, Brave New World; More, Utopia; Morris, News From Nowhere; Stromberg, European Intellectual History Since 1789; Voltaire, Candide and Zadig; Wells, A Modern Utopia; Zamyatin, We.—Wagar.


New York. City University of New York, New York

English ??. Alternative Worlds and the Technological Horizon: Information/Noise, Order/Chaos. The opening weeks of the seminar will consider such emergent phenomena as systems theory, virtual reality, chaos theory, and hypertext through the reading of theoretical works by Deleuze and Guattari (A Thousand Plateaus), Lyotard (The Postmodern Condition), Baudrillard (Selected Works), Penley and Ross (Technoculture), Hayles (Chaos Bound), Bukatman (Terminal Identity), Landon (Hypertext), Haraway (Simians, Cyborgs, and Women), Dery (Flame Wars: The Discourse of Cyberculture), and Ronell (The Telephone Book). We will then move on to such fictional and science-fictional works as Wells' The Time Machine, Burroughs' Soft Machine, DeLillo's White Noise or Mao II, Pynchon's Vineland and "Entropy," Gibson's Neuromancer, Stephenson's Snow Crash, McElroy's Men and Women, Sterling's Schismatrix, Seidel's My Tokyo, Marshall's Roadshow, and Butler's Dawn. It would also be useful for participants to have a nodding acquaintance with such films as Blade Runner, the Alien trilogy, the two Terminator movies, Videodrome, Robocop, Natural Born Killers, Until the End of the World, and Paris, Texas.—Gerhard Joseph, Ph.D. Program in English, The Graduate School, CUNY, 33 W. 42nd St., New York, NY 10036-8099. 212-642-2206.


New York. Dowling College, Oakdale

Senior Seminar 111C. Brave New Worlds. This course is intended to stimulate thinking about ways to restructure and improve the social order. We will investigate the history of utopian thought/literature through the reading of selected utopian works, through the analysis of doomsday forecasts of frightening future worlds, and through the study of actual historical attempts to create alternative societies. Readings will be from Plato's Republic, More's Utopia, Bellamy's Looking Backward, Morris' News from Nowhere, and a twentieth century-utopia such as Huxley's Brave New World. Using the above material, this course will ask students to apply to the contemporary world the lessons learned from mankind's attempts to create a state free from social, political, and economic injustice.—Andrew Karp, Humanities Department, Dowling College, Oakdale, NY 11769.


New York. Hofstra University, Hempstead

HLG 19 (New College)/Eng 191 (Main Campus). Science Fiction. This course surveys the history of science fiction with special emphasis on the post-1938 period. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. Science Fiction Hall of Fame, I; Le Guin, Left Hand of Darkness; Clarke, Childhood's End; Heinlein, Puppet Masters; Asimov, I, Robot; Wells, Time Machine and War of the Worlds; „ apek, R.U.R.; Rabkin & Scholes, eds. Science Fiction: An Historical Approach.—Barbara Bengals, English Department, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11550.


New York. Long Island University, Long Island

English 47. Science Fiction. An exploration of science fiction as a genre of the popular novel. Works are treated in the context of stylistic development (and/or degeneration) of the genre. TEXTS: "Works change every semester, but include classics: Wells, Asimov, Clarke, Herbert, Le Guin, Delany, Aldiss, Ellison, Gibson, etc. Some semesters it is structured by theme, others historically. Short stories are used to fill out a range of authors, but the focus is on the classic novels."—Joan Digby, 311 Humanities Hall, C.W. Post Campus, Long Island Univ., Brookville, LI, NY 11548.


New York. Manhattan College, Bronx

English 287. Fantasy and Science Fiction. An introduction to speculative literature: fantasy, gothic, and science fiction; their relation to each other; the relation of the fantastic to fiction. TEXTS: Authors covered: MacDonald, Stockton, Dunsany, Morris, Eddison, Tolkien, Vance, Sturgeon, Beagle, Lovecraft, Bradbury, Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein, Herbert, Keyes, Ellison, Delany, Le Guin, Russ, Wolfe, Varley, Dick, Benford, Bryant, Gibson, Cadigan, Card, Murphy, Kelly, Bear.—Deogre F. Freije, English Dept., Manhattan College, Bronx, NY 10471.


New York. Marist College, Poughkeepsie

Eng 205. Modern Speculative Fiction. Readings in a wide range of 20th century science fiction and fantasy writers. The course investigates the rise and development of modern speculative fiction, with concern for the social, cultural, and historical forces that influence conventions, subjects, themes. It has been some years since the course was taught; I am resurrecting it but have not decided which texts I will use.—Richard Grinnell, Dept. of English, Marist College, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601.


New York. Marymount College, Tarrytown

COMP 216. Science Fiction and the Horror Tale. To examine critically works of science fiction and the horror tale that explore worlds of our inner doubts, wishes, and fears, that speak to our whole culture or to whole aspects of the human condition. TEXTS: Rabkin, ed. Science Fiction: An Historical Anthology, Jones and Campbell, eds. The Best New Horror.—Emilie Taha, Dept. of English, Marymount College, 100 Marymount Ave., Tarrytown, NY 10591.


New York. Monroe Community College, Rochester

English 223. Science Fiction. Reading, discussion, and written analysis of speculative fiction—novels and stories about humans experiencing the changes resulting from science and technology. Representative authors from Shelley to Wells, through Clarke and Heinlein, to Le Guin and Delany. TEXTS: Pohl, Gateway; Scarborough, The Healer's War; Shelley, Frankenstein; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country; Warrick et al., eds., Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds. FILM: Frankenstein.—Carolyn Wendell, English Dept., Monroe Community College, Rochester, NY 14623, (716) 292-3388.


New York. Nassau Community College, Garden City

Eng 233. Studies in Science Fiction. An examination of the genre from its beginnings to the present. Thematic considerations may included man as cosmic puppet, man as minor god, man as nature's destroyer. Selections from representative authors such as Wells, Verne, Orwell, Huxley, Vonnegut, Bradbury, Clarke, Heinlein, Asimov, and Le Guin. Preceding is catalogue description; I tend to use contemporary novels and short stories as well as works from the '40s and '50s, regularly the first three of the following list, sometimes one or more of the others. TEXTS: Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol 1; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Herbert, Dune; Clarke, Childhood's End; Shelley, Frankenstein; Vonnegut, Sirens of Titan.—Helen F. Collins, English Dept., Nassau Community College, Garden City, NY 11530-6793.


New York. Nazareth College of Rochester, Rochester

English 234W01 Special Topics: Science Fiction. This course looks at a specific literary genre, science fiction, to explore the relationships between literature and technology. We will explore two major sets of concerns: 1. issues relating to the relationship between literature and technology, 2. the place of sf within the larger discipline of literary studies. This first concern will lead us to ask questions about the role technology plays in the texts we read, listen to, and see. The second will lead us to ask questions about how these roles affect literary concerns such as characterization, plot, setting, and so on. TEXTS: Asimov, Caves of Steel; Cadigan, Mindplayers; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Huxley, Brave New World; Gilman, Herland; Russ, And Chaos Died; Shelley, Frankenstein; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country; Tiptree, "The Girl Who Was Plugged In"; Wells, War of the Worlds (recording). FILM: Blade Runner.—Nancy C. DeJoy, 4245 East Ave., Rochester, NY 14618-3790.


New York. Roberts Wesleyan College, Rochester

GED 300m. Humanities: A Wholistic Approach. This course is a required part of our degree completion program in Organizational Management, a time-shortened program for full-time working adults that culminates in a B.S. degree. When I teach this course, I place an emphasis on contemporary literature from many different genres. When I teach this course in 96 spring, I'll be also including an Asimov short story. It will be one of the robot stories, but I haven't decided which one yet. TEXTS: Cadigan, "Rock On" (from Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology).—Elizabeth Newhall, 2301 Westside Dr., Rochester, NY 14624.


New York. University of Rochester, Rochester

English 334. Alien Sex: Gender and Difference in Old and New Fantasy. An upper level course which borrows its title from Ellen Datlow's famous anthology of short stories (Alien Sex: Nineteen Tales by the Masters of Science Fiction and Dark Fantasy) and it explores human preoccupation with making sexuality "other"—from the ancients on up. Whether they be divine or demonic, angelic, bestial, mechanical, or extra_terrestrial, the panoply of fantastic lovers throughout the ages reveals long_standing obsessions about desire and identification. When sex seems to offer the same old same_old, how do our myths and fictions make it new? Constance Penley has argued that sf encounters with aliens and androids reflect a growing twentieth_century concern that sexual difference is collapsing under the weight of sexual equality; mating with vampires, aliens and androids reintroduces that difference. The course is concerned as well with the obvious issues of race, class, normalcy and monstrosity, and it looks at fictions about homosexuality as well. TEXTS include selections from Genesis, Midrash commentaries about Lilith (Adam's first wife), Ovid's Metamorphoses, Augustine's City of God, selections from the Welsh Mabinogion, from the Norse Elder Edda (and the transformations of Loki), materials about the Loathly Lady, the Hammer of Witches, Stoker's Dracula, Russ's The Female Man, Rice's Interview with the Vampire, Strieber's Communion, Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness, Carter's The Passion of New Eve, and a number of critical texts: Claudia Springer (Electronic Eros), Judith Butler, and others. We also view about six films. This course will be taught for the second time in the Spring of 1997.—Sarah L. Higley, English Dept. River Campus, Univ. of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, "slhi@troi.cc.rochester.edu".

English 334. From Homer to Asimov and Beyond: The Myth of the Android. A related upper_level undergraduate course that I've taught three times over the past six years. This course is equally concerned with allegories of race, class, gender, normalcy, and monstrosity in its exploration not only of what it means to be human, but what it also means to exclude from the category of human: in this respect it is almost the polar opposite of "Alien Sex" in its examination of the machine that is vehemently excluded from the ranks of humanity, at the same time that humanity over the ages is grappling with its troubled physical and emotional relationship to its technology. A very useful book for this course is Bruce Mazlish's The Fourth Discontinuity, which seeks to show how in the development of science we have had to shed our myths that we are NOT separate or "discontinuous" from the universe (Copernicus), the animals (Darwin), the subconscious (Freud), and our machinery (everyone else). We go back as far as the Iliad in looking at moving statues come to life, exploring the myths surrounding Albert the Great and Roger Bacon, the legend of Talus, Spenser's False Florimel, Rabbi Loew and the Golem of Prague, Descartes's "automaton," Vaucanson's mechanical duck, Shelley's Frankenstein, Hoffman's "The Sandman," Villiers' L'Eve future, Asimov's I, Robot, Roddenberry's Data of the Next Generation (based on his "Questor" of The Questor Tapes), Lee's The Silver Metal Lover (also used in "Alien Sex"), Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Gibson's Neuromancer, and a number of films.—Higley.

English 557. Robots and Representation. A graduate course taught Fall 1995. TEXTS: Baudrillard's Simulations, Penley's "Time Travel and the Critical Dystopia," Haraway's "A Manifesto for Cyborgs," Telotte's Replications, Ken Gross's The Myth of the Moving Statue, and so forth. It's one I hope to teach again.—Higley.

English 116. Speculative Writing. Being a fiction writer as well as a professor, I've also taught the writing of science fiction and fantasy in a lower level undergraduate course. I offered this one this semester (for the second time) and hope to be able to offer it again.—Higley.


New York. Siena College, Londonville

EN39. Arthurian Literature. An investigation of Arthurian literature, reading examples from all eras: Mabinogion, Chrétien de Troyes, Malory, Tennyson, etc. to 20th century sf and fantasy versions. We compare each era's politics and attitudes within the material. TEXTS: Cherryh, Port Eternity, Bradley, The Mists of Avalon, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz.—Pamela Clements, English Dept., Siena College, 515 Loudon Rd., Londonville, NY 12211-1462.


New York. Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs

LSIII/01. Aesthetics of Science Fiction. This course explores the ramifications of Darko Suvin's dictum: "Once the elastic criteria of literary structuring have been met, a cognitive—in most cases, strictly scientific—element becomes a measure of aesthetic quality, of the specific pleasure to be sought in sf." Readings chosen are designed to reflect an aesthetic based on the political, psychological, and anthropological use and effect of knowledge. The films chosen invite discussion on a mass-market product's ability to convey, via sub texts and sub agendas, serious socio-political criticism. TEXTS: Clarke, Childhood's End, Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Gibson, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Lem, Solaris, Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Zamyatin, We. FILMS: The Day the Earth Stood Still, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Forbidden Planet.—Alan S. Wheelock, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.


New York. St. John's University, Metropolitan College, NY

Magical Realism; What Is It? The term "magical realism" is most often associated with contemporary Latin American literature. Actually, it can be argued that it originated in connection with art. As a genre, however, it has flourished in the literature of Latin America. This course will, first of all, attempt to define magical realism. Then, after a brief treatment of the origins of the term, the remainder of the course will be devoted to the study of several literary works. The authors involved will be Borges, Cortazar Garcia Marquez, Aquilera Malta, Isabel Allende, Cabrera Infante, Fuentes, Nervo, Paz, Vargas Llosa, and perhaps one or two others.—Michael F. Capobianco, Metropolitan College, St. John's University, Staten Island, NY 10301.


New York. SUNY at Albany, Albany

ENG 242. Introduction to Science Fiction. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, War of the Worlds; Herbert, Dune; Gibson, Neuromancer; Robinson, Red Mars; Benford, Timescape; Willis, The Doomsday Book; Lem, Solaris; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Butler, Dawn; Tepper, Grass; Brin, Startide Rising.—Jill Hanifan, English Dept., University at Albany, SUNY, HU 334, 1400 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12222.

ENG 242L 1032 Science Fiction (summer session). TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Asimov, I, Robot; Card, Ender's Game; Butler, Dawn; Scott, Trouble and Her Friends.—Hanifan.


New York. SUNY Binghamton, Binghamton.

Comparative Literature 280A. Popular Culture. The primary goal of this course is to provide students with the tools and abilities to analyze contemporary American popular culture, particularly the teen and pre_teen aspects of that culture. We focus on film, professional sports, science fiction, fantasy, and cult literature. Because of the subject matter, very few of the reading assignments will be traditional, but there will be a component to the class that will act as a basic introduction to contemporary literary theory. TEXTS: Freud, Civilization and its Discontents; Foucault, History of Sexuality Vol 1; Adorno, The Stars Came Down To Earth; R.L. Stine, Say Cheese and Die; Clover, Men, Women and Chain Saws; Baughman, Women on Ice; Heinlein, Friday. FILMS: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers the Movie; Forrest Gump; Blade Runner; Star Wars.—S.J. Zani, Department of Comparative Literature, SUNY Binghamton, Binghamton, NY 13960_6000.


New York. SUNY at Buffalo, Buffalo

English 201. Advanced Reading and Writing. The second semester in the required composition sequence, English 201 develops two sets of skills: those needed for interpretation of literary texts, and those for presenting written arguments. The sf texts in this section (instructor's choice) helped achieve both goals; sf stories often highlight a single "element of fiction" (setting, theme, plot conflicts), while posing and supporting arguments and conclusions. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume 1; Clarke, Childhood's End; Selected on_reserve readings of stories from Gunn, ed., The Road to Science Fiction #3; Silverberg, ed., Worlds of Wonder; Dozois, ed., The Year's Best Science Fiction 1986. FILM: Blade Runner (voice_over version).—Shelley Reid, now at English Department, Austin College, Sherman, TX 75090, "SREID@austinc.edu".


New York, SUNY Farmingdale, Farmingdale

EGL 240. Themes in Science Fiction. An exploration of how writers of science fiction have used science and technology to examine moral questions, social issues, and the boundaries of technology. Reading of selected authors will focus on the ways creative writers have explored various aspects of the genre, including scientific experimentation, alternate time/space continuua, weaponry, psychic phenomena, cyberspace, bionics, alien life, and the future.—Dr. P.P. Malhotra, Chair, Dept. of English, SUNY Farmingdale, Rte. 110, Farmingdale, NY 11735.


New York. SUNY, the College at Paltz, New Paltz.

English 41305. Science Fiction. Study of the genre from Verne and Wells to the present. Selected works from each period of sf. The pioneers, Verne and Wells; the space operas of the 1920s and 1930s; the technological interests of the 1940s and 1950s; the sociological interests of the 1950s and 1960s; the stylistic interests of the New Wave; and later developments such as cyberpunk. Such authors are treated as Verne, Wells, Stapledon, Burroughs, Hamilton, Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, Blish, Bester, Dick, Leiber, Delany, Le Guin, Ellison, Aldiss, Ballard, Varley, Tiptree, Tepper, Wolfe, Gibson. The purpose of the course is to acquire a familiarity with the history, conventions, and modes of science fiction.—Robert Waugh, English Dept., CH-105, The College at New Paltz SUNY, 75 South Mannheim Dr., New Paltz, NY 12561.


New York. SUNY at Plattsburg, Plattsburg

Anthrop 362. This course examines historic and contemporary utopian communities as anti-capitalist or anti-systemic movements. We will review 18th, 19th, and 20th century attempts to construct egalitarian societies, from the Shakers to the Nation of Islam, and attempt to identify those features of the societies that contributed to either their success or their failure. We will then try to apply what we learn to the design of a social movement to alleviate poverty. TEXTS: Erasmus, In Search of the Common Good; Skinner, Walden Two; Fogarty, The Righteous Remnant: The House of David; Priestly, Shalam: Utopia on the Rio Grande.—Richard Robbins, Anthropology Dept, SUNY at Plattsburg, Plattsburg, NY 12901, "robbinrh@splava.cc.plattsburg.edu".


New York. Suffolk Community College, Selden

EG 58. Science Fiction. Objectives of the course: 1. to understand the history of science fiction literature, its techniques and conventions, and the main trends and themes explored by science fiction writers, 2. to read science fiction, 3. to analyze and explicate science fiction texts, 4. to recognize, distinguish, and evaluate the essential characteristics of science fiction through intelligent discussion of plot, theme, characterization, point of view, style, setting, scientific content, and verisimilitude, 5. to write essays of literary analysis which demonstrate the following qualities: controlling purpose, clear focus, adequate development, logical organization, and use of textual details to support purpose. TEXTS: Crichton, Jurassic Park, Gibson, Neuromancer, Haldeman, The Forever War, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Lem, Solaris, Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Donald Gilzinger, 4 Yale Court, Setauket, NY 11733, (516) 451-4147, "demerit@aol.com".


New York. Vassar College, Poughkeepsie

Pol Sci 276. Utopian Political Thought. Utopias are frequently regarded as perfect societies and/or as impractical dreams. But they can also be serious political philosophy: they raise questions, suggest answers, and propose alternative possibilities or dilemmas about ideals (their value for political life, how to analyze them, how to put them into practice), specific institutions (such as the law, the state, and the economy), and the life of the individual in society (what is freedom and where is it valuable, how do individuals best develop). At the same time, they should be fun to read. In this course, we begin by reading typical utopias from 1516 to the present. Then we will try to write our own utopia, or rather a small portion of a utopia, and use the exercise to reflect on the promises and problems of utopianizing. After break, we will analyze the anti-utopia or dystopia: the image of a terrible world. We shall ask of them what we ask of utopias, and in addition ask how dystopias suggest readers should respond (and act). Then we will use our knowledge of utopias (and dystopias) to examine one central aspect of contemporary American life, the suburb (along with its representative institutions, the mall and the theme park). TEXTS: Thomas More, Utopia; Edward Bellamy, Looking Backward; William Morris, News from Nowhere; and Marge Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time. Yevgeny Zamyatin, We; Aldous Huxley, Brave New World; and Margaret Atwood, Handmaid's Tale. Robert Fishman, Bourgeois Utopias and The Disney Project, Inside the Mouse.—Peter G. Stillman, Political Science Department, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY, 12601-6198. (914) 437-5566; "stillman@vassar.edu".


North Carolina. Appalachian State University, Boone

English 2515. Post-Modern American Narrative. Cultures circulate stories important to their maintenance and change; humans circulate stories out of a basic need. Long prose narratives have been the preeminent form of story-telling in America, particularly in the post-modern period. The more recent the narrative, the more difficult it is to be certain of its enduring value—since value turns on convention and tradition as defined through the matrix of class, gender, and race. While tradition and convention set the agenda for interpreting texts, readers also have the freedom (responsibility?) to interpret a text's important concerns. Interpretation of a text's meanings and values often stems from an interrogation of the interrelationships between tale, teller, and artist—and by extension of a culture's influence on all three. TEXTS: Faulkner, As I Lay Dying, Morrison, Beloved, Erdrich, Tracks, Shaara, Killer Angels, McCarthy, All the Pretty Horses, Rice, Vampire Lestat, Card, Speaker for the Dead, Gibson, Neuromancer, Virtual Light, Robbins, Jitterbug Perfume.—Emory Maiden, English Dept., Appalachian State Univ., Boone, NC 28608.


North Carolina. Duke University, Durham

Eng 179 / Lit 153. Utopian Writings. The readings represent an odd mix—some more dystopian than utopian. The aim is to juxtapose themes: nature and technology, theory and popular culture, experience and analysis, science fiction and autobiography, in the hope of generating a variety of perspectives from which to grasp the utopian. I've chosen readings where the utopian aspect is more ephemeral than concrete. Among the areas for study are (1) the particular relationship between nature and utopia, (2) the place for collectivity in utopia, (3) the function of imagination in utopia, (4) the critical dimension of utopia (i.e. utopia as negative dialectic), (5) the possibility for utopia in daily life, (6) the revolutionary or transformational impulse of utopia. TEXTS: Le Guin's The Word for World Is Forest and City of Illusions; Merchant's The Death of Nature and Baudrillard's America; Sahlins' Stone Age Economics and Russ's The Female Man; Thoreau's Walden and Ballard's The Drowned World; Shakespeare's The Tempest and Robinson's Pacific Edge; Papnik's Design for a Real World and Marcuse's Eros and Civilization; Muir's My First Summer in the Sierra together with essays by Alexander Wilson and Fredric Jameson; Adorno's Minima Monalia and Benjamin's "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction"; Gould's Wonderful Life and Benjamin's Moscow Diaries; Le Guin's The Dispossessed, Barucello's How to Imagine, and Calvino's Cosmicomics.—Susan Willis, English Department, Duke University, Durham, NC 27706.


North Carolina. East Carolina University, Greenville

ENGL 3480. Science Fiction. A study of the development of the genre, including speculative fiction, from the turn of the century. Often taught with screenings of films based on the novels covered. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, Keyes, Flowers for Algernon, Niven, Ringworld, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Crichton, Jurassic Park, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Gibson, Neuromancer, Herbert, Dune, and selected short stories.—Donald Lawler and Donald Palumbo, English Dept., East Carolina Univ., Greenville, NC 27858.

ENGL 3470. Modern Fantasy. A study of the history and development of fantasy and fantasy criticism in the twentieth century. Course goals: to make the student aware of (1) the nature of fantasy as a distinct type of literature, (2) the various types of fantasy literature, and (3) the critical methodology for approaching fantasy literature. TEXTS: Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea, Tolkien, The Hobbit, Bradley, The Mists of Avalon, Helprin, Winter's Tale, Hambly, Dragonsbane, Beagle, The Last Unicorn, Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Burroughs, Tarzan, Datlow and Windling, The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror, and others.—C.W. Sullivan III, English Dept., East Carolina Univ., Greenville, NC 27858-4353.


North Carolina. North Carolina State University, Raleigh NC

MALS 601K (076). Postmodern Science Fiction. Over the last thirty years, at the same time science fiction has become popular with vast audiences through films and TV, the literature has divided into a spectrum of sub-genres, at one end of which new forms of literate sf have emerged. In the 1960s, through the New Wave, science fiction incorporated a new political sensibility and the methods of modernism; in the 1970s, the work of Le Guin, Russ, Tiptree and others used sf as a tool of a revivified feminism; and the 1980s have seen the collision of sf with literary movements from metafiction to magical realism, the growth of Cyberpunk sf, and a generation of writers who self-consciously revisit the traditional materials of sf with a postmodern perspective. During the same period, writers not commonly associated with science fiction, like Vonnegut, Pynchon, and DeLillo, have moved in parallel directions, reacting to changes in technology, information theory, and social disruptions of the late 20th century, using the devices and icons of science fiction. This cultural and literary cross fertilization is the subject of this course. TEXTS: James, Science Fiction in the 20th Century, Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Wolfe, The Fifth Head of Cerberus, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Sterling, Crystal Express, Gibson, Neuromancer, Shepard, "R & R," De Lillo, White Noise, Robinson, Pacific Edge, Jones, White Queen, Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction. FILMS: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, The Brother from Another Planet, Videodrome, Brazil.—John Kessel, English Dept., 274 Tompkins, North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, NC 27695-8105.

Eng 376, 001. Science Fiction. The purpose of this course is to increase your understanding and enjoyment of science fiction by tracing its history from its beginnings in the Romantic movement and the Industrial Revolution to its current status as mass-market genre fiction. We'll examine how its development has been influenced by economic factors and by advances in technology, and discuss today's prominent writers and popular forms. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Wells, The Time Machine, Burroughs, A Princess of Mars, Asimov, I, Robot, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Gibson, Neuromancer, Brin, The Postman, Willis, Lincoln's Dreams.—Walter E. Meyers, Dept. of English, 256 Tompkins, North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, NC 27695-8105.


North Carolina. Pembroke State University, Pembroke

CA ??. Introduction to Science Fiction. A brief introduction to science fiction as contemporary myth. TEXTS: Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Clarke, Childhood's End, Asimov, Foundation, Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Thomas Leach, Dept. of Communicative Arts, Pembroke State Univ., Pembroke, NC 28372.


North Carolina. Roanoke Bible College, Elizabeth City

WC 332. Contemporary Literature. TEXTS: Adams, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse Five.—Connie Wineland, English Dept., Roanoke Bible College, 714 First St., Elizabeth City, NC 27909.


North Dakota. Dickinson State University, Dickinson

English 350. Studies in American Literature: Science Fiction. This course introduces students to the history and literature of science fiction by concentrating on American writers. The student reads sf novels and short stories by American writers. TEXTS: Stewart, Earth Abides, Sturgeon, More Than Human, Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants, Tevis, The Man Who Fell to Earth, Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Gibson, Neuromancer, Slonczewski, A Door into Ocean, Robinson, Red Mars. —Stephen Robbins, 215 Stickney Hall, Dickinson State Univ., Dickinson, ND 58601.


North Dakota. Jamestown College, Jamestown

English 291. Science Fiction. An overview of twentieth-century English and American science fiction which concentrates in the first part of the course on major authors and longer texts. The second part of the course deals with shorter works and the major themes of science fiction in the last third of the twentieth century. TEXTS: Wells, The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, Asimov, The Foundation Trilogy, Clarke, Childhood's End, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Heinlein, Starship Troopers, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction.—Bill Laskowski, Dept. of English, Jamestown College, 6046 College Lane, Jamestown, ND 58405.

Eng 370. Images of Woman in Literature. An exploration of the images of woman in literature and film. TEXTS: Huxley, Brave New World, Gilman, Herland, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale.—Dorothy L. Holley, 6016 College La., Jamestown, ND 58405.


North Dakota State University, Fargo

English 333. Fantasy and Science Fiction. Study of the social and psychological implications of fantasy literature and works of fiction concerned with the impact of science and technology on the human imagination. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Wells, The Time Machine, Zamyatin, We, Huxley, Brave New World, „ apek, R.U.R. and The Insect Play, Tolkien, The Hobbit, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Herbert, Dune.—Robert O'Connor, English Dept., North Dakota State Univ., Fargo, ND 58105-5075.


Nova Scotia. Acadia University, Wolfville

English 3713. Science Fiction. A study of the genre of science fiction, from its antecedents to the present, with readings from selected short stories and novels. Apart from some background lectures, the class will be conducted in discussion groups to which all students are expected to contribute. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Huxley, Brave New World; Dickson, Dorsai!; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Cherryh, Port Eternity; Willis, Doomsday Book, Wells, "The Star"; Simak, "Desertion"; Clarke, "History Lesson"; Sheckley, "Specialist"; Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream"; Russ, "When It Changed"; Hughes, "The Price of Land."—Raymond H. Thompson, Department of English, Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, CANADA B0P 1X0.

English 3723. Fantasy. A study of the genre of fantasy, from its antecedents to the present, with readings from selected short stories and novels. The predominant focus will be upon the category known as high fantasy. Apart from some background lectures and videos, the class will be conducted as a discussion group to which all students are expected to contribute. TEXTS: The Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories, ed. Shippey; Tolkien, Lord of the Rings; White, The Sword in the Stone; Beagle, The Last Unicorn; Le Guin, Tehanu; Katz, The Third Magic.—Thompson.


Nova Scotia. Dalhousie University, Halifax.

English 2233. Science Fiction. "The future is a country to which we are all willy_nilly being deported," says John Brunner. Science fiction is our passport to that country—what to read now the deportation orders have been served. The class will consider at least some of the major themes of science fiction (robots, computers, aliens, social change, future crime, future war, and human destiny). Some illustrative videos will be shown. TEXTS: Asimov, The Caves of Steel; Bear, Blood Music; Brin, Startide Rising; Brunner, The Shockwave Rider; Cherryh, Rimrunners; Clarke, Childhood's End; Delany, Nova; Dickson, None But Man; Elgin, Native Tongue; Gibson, Neuromancer; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Niven and Pournelle, The Mote in God's Eye; Ore, Becoming Alien; Preuss, Human Error; Robinson, Mindkiller; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country.—Patricia Monk, Department of English, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 2S3. Phone

902-494_3384; Fax: 902-494_2176, "patricia.monk@dal.ca".


Nova Scotia. Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax

English 2262. Fantasy & Science Fiction. Focuses, at present, specifically on science fiction, which is examined in relation to a number of issues and questions: (1) The emergence of sf as a distinct genre in relation to the fears and anxieties aroused by social and technological change. Does sf offer a critique, or a celebration of the notion of progress? (2) The implications of new technologies—genetic engineering, biotechnology, artificial intelligence—for our understanding of what constitutes the human. How is our concept of "humanity" in fact constructed? (3) Issues of gender and its representation, in a genre which has historically been dominated by male authors. In what ways does sf either challenge, or reinscribe conventional gender stereotypes? (4) The ideological implications of narrative. What sorts of stories do writers choose to tell about the worlds they imagine? What ideological assumptions do those stories imply? TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds; Huxley, Brave New World; Lem, Solaris; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Gibson, Neuromancer; Crichton, Jurassic Park; Piercy, He, She and It.—Chris Ferns, Dept. of English, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3M 2J6. 902-457-6223. "Chris.Ferns@MSVU.Ca"


Ohio. Baldwin-Wallace College, Berea

Eng 263. Science Fiction. TEXTS: Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology, Clarke, Childhood's End, Sturgeon, More Than Human, Le Guin, The Dispossessed, Gibson, Neuromancer, Robinson, Pacific Edge, Brin, Earth.— Michael Dolzani, English Dept., Baldwin-Wallace College, Berea, OH 44017.


Ohio. Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland

LITR 291. Utopias and Utopianism. Situated in a different place (utopia) and/or a different time (uchronia), ideal, experimental, and radically alternative societies also exist in incipient, fragmented, or virtual states right beneath our noses. Utopianism is, moreover, the thought-mode through which we imagine, examine, and grasp the future by retrieving the the potentialities of the present as put into play by the visionary arts. TEXTS: More, Utopia; Zamyatin, We; Wells, The Time Machine; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Calvino, Invisible Cities; Butler, Parable of the Sower; a selection of descriptive texts by Sade, Fourier, Newton, Marx and Engels, Victor Turner, and Saint-Simon; a selection of critical texts by Judith Williamson, Darko Suvin, Fredric Jameson, Vladislav Todorov, and Mark Poster.—John R. Barberet, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, Case Western Reserve University, 10900 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, OH 44106-7118.


Ohio. Central State University, Wilberforce

English 243. Special Topics in Literature. A mini-term slot for experimental courses may be offered but not on a regular basis. It satisfies the humanities requirement. TEXTS: Butler, Adulthood Rites; Gibson, Virtual Light; Delany, Dhalgren. I have taught Butler's Dawn as part of the freshman English composition sequence.—McGregor Coleman, Wesley 227, Central State Univ., Wilberforce, OH 45384.


Ohio. College of Wooster, Wooster

English 240. Science Fiction. See above, page 419.—Darren Harris-Fain, Dept. of Arts & Humanities, Shawnee State Univ., Portsmouth, OH 45662.


Ohio. Heidelberg College, Tiffin

CTA ???. Science Fiction and Fantasy in the Visual Arts. This course explores how artists from various periods in history have combined science with myth, and reality with fantasy, to create strange new realms and images. Students will examine various theories concerning the influence of magic and religion on fantastic art, the role of technology as a source of imagery, the relationship between dream and imagination, the question of symbolism, and the value of applying fantastic solutions to real problems. TEXTS: (not yet selected; course is to be offered in the fall of 1996 and is currently in the process of being developed).—Linda Chudzinski


Ohio. Hocking College, Nelsonville

COMM 123/4. Science Fiction. An introduction to the genre of science fiction and an opportunity to express what you learn in writing and research. The first necessity is understanding exactly what sf is and is not. You will read and discuss stories by major sf writers and view two films in class. Major emphasis will be placed on the ideas presented and the issues raised. TEXTS: Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology. FILMS: Frankenstein, Blade Runner.—Applewhite Minyard, General Studies, Hocking College, Nelsonville, OH 45764.


Ohio. Kent State University, Kent

English 61091. Seminar: Modern Science Fiction. This is intended to be a true seminar in which we will work together to pose and to answer a question that is central to us all. The question that I would like to deal with all semester is the simple question: "Why should people in English studies write about science fiction, and how should they do so?" We will begin by reading and discussing an early work of popular fiction by a mainstream writer who usually did not write science fiction. Then we will continue by reading some of my work and work that I have edited about modern sf as it has evolved. Then you will report on topics of your choice as ways of approaching the question. TEXTS: Trollope, The Fixed Period, Hassler, Hal Clement, Isaac Asimov, Patterns of the Fantastic, Patterns of the Fantastic II.—Donald M. Hassler, Dept. of English, Kent State University, PO Box 5190, Kent, OH 44242. (216) 672-2676, "dhassler@kentvm.kent.edu".


Ohio. Kenyon College, Gambier

Biol 3. Biology in Science Fiction. This course explores principles of biology through their extrapolation in science-fiction literature. Relationships between biology and society will be considered, as well as the literary context of science-fiction stories. We will explore the function of ecosystems through "world-building" novels and films such as Dune, A Door into Ocean, and Red Mars. The potential of molecular biology, and its implications for our future, will be considered in Jurassic Park, Mirabile, and Daughter of Elysium. The relationship between genetics and evolution will be considered in science-fiction stories dealing with symbiotic relationships between biological organisms. Students will work together to design a multimedia interactive science- fiction story which illustrates principles of biology, No prerequisites.—Joan Slonczewski, Department of Biology, Kenyon College, Gambier, OH 43022.


Ohio. Lakeland Community College, Mentor

English 245. Science Fiction. A study of science fiction, emphasizing its literary development, its changing treatment of basic themes, and its relation to social and technological trends. TEXTS: Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; SFRA Anthology.—Joe Sanders, English Department, Lakeland Community College, Mentor, OH 44060.

English 246. The Science Fiction Novel. A study of the science-fiction novel, examining its changing treatment of and also its literary evolution. TEXTS used, seven or eight each term: Wells, The War of the Worlds or The Time Machine; Huxley, Brave New World; Heinlein, Double Star or The Door into Summer; Sturgeon, More Than Human; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Pohl, Gateway; Sterling, Islands in the Net; Herbert, Dune; Gibson, Neuromancer; Denton, Buddy Holly is Alive and Well on Ganymede; Bester, The Stars My Destination; Bishop, Brittle Innings; McDonald, Terminal Cafe;—Sanders.

English 296. Fantasy. A survey of different branches of fantasy, stressing major writers, important themes, and the relation of fantasy to social trends. TEXTS: Hartwell, ed. Color of Evil and Worlds of Fear; Shippey, ed., Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories.—Sanders.

English 297. The Fantasy Novel. An exploration of selected novels to show how fantasy has developed into a varied and vital way to explore the human condition. TEXTS used, five to eight each term: Shelley, Frankenstein; King, The Shining or Salem's Lot; Amis, The Green Man; Crowley, Little, Big; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Weis & Hickman, Dragons of Autumn Twilight; Kinsella, Shoeless Joe; Williams, Descent into Hell; Stoker, Dracula; Rice, Interview with the Vampire; Brite, Lost Souls; Shepard, The Golden; Gaiman, The Sandman: The Doll's House; Beagle, The Last Unicorn; Powers, The Anubus Gate; Pratchett, Witches Abroad.—Sanders.

English A291. Science Fiction Films and Novels of the 1950s. This course will examine selected science fiction films and novels of the 1950s in order to analyze the political, social, and cultural forces that both shaped and are reflected in these films and novels. The course will also examine science fiction films in the context of the Hollywood studio system that produced them. In addition the course will attempt to define science fiction as a film and literary genre. Team taught with Dr. Skerry. TEXTS: Bester, The Demolished Man; Clement, Mission of Gravity; Heinlein, The Puppet Masters; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz. FILMS: The Thing, The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Them, The Incredible Shrinking Man, Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, War of the Worlds, Day the Earth Stood Still, It Conquered the World, Forbidden Planet, The Fly.—Sanders.

English 235. Contemporary Fiction. Some of texts used in this course are sf or fantasy: Bishop, Brittle Innings; Fowler, Sarah Canary; Okri, Famished Road; Cadi, Inagehi; Morrison, Beloved; Rushdie, Haroun and the Sea of Stories.—Sanders.


Ohio. Miami University, Oxford

English 210. Studies in Popular Literature. "Study of individual works or types of literature outside traditional academic areas of interest that have demonstrated popular appeal, with emphasis on what such literature reveals about the culture that consumes it. Does not count toward the English major" (Department catalogue). Often taught as science fiction; when I teach it I encourage group work in TV, radio, film sound, graphic arts, etc. and use such TEXTS as Dick Allen, ed., Science Fiction: The Future; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Haldeman, The Forever War; Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven and The Left Hand of Darkness; Russ, The Female Man; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants and Gladiator at Law; Gibson, Neuromancer; Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four; Huxley, Brave New World; Clarke, 2001; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange.—Richard D. Erlich, "RDErlich@MiamiU.acs.muohio.edu", Department of English, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056.

English 350 / Film Studies 350. Topics in Film. In depth and concentrated studies in film; the topic is sometimes science-fiction films. When I teach it I supplement the films with such TEXTS as Clarke, 2001; Burgess, A Clockwork Orange; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Finney, Invasion of the Body Snatchers; a maybe a novelization like Foster's Aliens.—Erlich.


Ohio. Ohio State University, Columbus

English 272. Introduction to Science Fiction. An introduction to science fiction, especially the 20th-century varieties, with equal emphasis on the literature, its origins, and its social ramifications.—Catalogue description provided by Charles E. Gribble, c/o Slavica, P.O. Box 14309, Columbus OH 43214-0309.


Ohio. Raymond Walters College, University of Cincinnati

English 321. Topics in Literature III: Introduction to Science Fiction. This course explores the relationship between human beings and their technologies through the genre of science fiction. The purpose of the course is to introduce students unfamiliar with the genre to some of the influential authors in Science Fiction. For students who are already familiar with the genre or these authors, this course will provide a forum for the critical discussion of these works. In addition, we will compare the futuristic visions of society of certain authors with the present-day situation. We will look at our own relationships with technology via the different perspectives offered by these authors. TEXTS: Orwell, 1984, Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451, Asimov, I, Robot, Card, Enders Game, Gibson, Burning Chrome.—Ruth Benander, English Dept., Raymond Walters College, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45236.

English 112. Freshman English II. Since I teach mostly composition, I managed to work sf into the course. I use The Space Merchants and have my students write a researched paper on how accurate a forecast of the future it was/is/could be. This seems to work and most students find the ideas interesting and the book easy to read. I tried using Neuromancer for a similar assignment, but it didn't work nearly as well. The jargon, length, and style made it difficult for non-sf readers to understand.— Andrew Miller, English Dept., Raymond Walters College, Univ. of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45236.


Ohio. University of Akron, Akron

English 489/589. Science Fiction. Themes and major authors from Wells through the present, with a concentration on such sub-genres as the time-travel story and the alien-invasion story. Sf is treated as popular literature and its relationship to fantasy is examined. TEXTS: Wells, "The Strange Orchid," "The Sea Raiders," "The Crystal Egg," "The Star," "The Man Who Could Work Miracles," The Island of Dr. Moreau, The War of the Worlds, Asimov, Robot Visions, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale, Gibson and Sterling, The Difference Engine. FILMS: Alien, Them!—James Egan, Dept. of English, Olin 353, Univ. of Akron, Akron, OH 44325-1906.


Ohio. University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati

ENG 15-000-201-002 Topics in Literature: Science Fiction. This courses uses contemporary American science fiction, both short stories and novels, to explore the way writers posit alternative realities. Throughout the course, we will work on an increasingly profound definition of "science fiction." Consider the following questions as you read: Why do writers choose to write in this mode? Is the future the place where writers can best project plans to change the present? When we release writers from the restrictions of "realism," what other requirements do we place on them? How do science fiction writers incorporate the world of technology into their fiction? How does this affect the body of science fiction writing in a time of such rapidly evolving technological change? TEXTS: Sargent, ed. Nebula Awards 29, Gibson, Neuromancer, Butler, Parable of the Sower.—Sheila Raeschild, 497 Howell Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45220, (513) 751-7789 (home), (513) 556-1092 (office).


Ohio. University of Dayton, Dayton

Eng 325. Science Fiction. I tend to do chronologically-arranged surveys of mostly American sf from Wells and Burroughs to the present. TEXTS: Herbert, Dune, Gibson, Neuromancer, Wells, The Time Machine, War of the Worlds, Silverberg, The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Dick, Eye in the Sky. Varies from semester to semester.—Joseph Patrouch, Dept. of English, Univ. of Dayton, 300 College Park, Dayton, OH 45469-1520.


Oklahoma. University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond

English 3993. Science Fiction. This course examines the ways in which Science Fiction literature has evolved throughout the past century and a half as a commentary on contemporary social trends, as well as a remarkably accurate predictor of social problems to come. By reading selected short stories and novels, we can get a feel for a society's preoccupations, anxieties, and hopes for the future. TEXTS: Hartwell, Age of Wonders; Shelley, Frankenstein; Orwell, 1984; Asimov, I, Robot; Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Harrison, The Stainless Steel Rat Wants You!; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale. Books on reserve, from which we will read selections: Weinbaum, The Best of Stanley G. Weinbaum; Apostolou and Greenberg, eds., The Best Japanese Science Fiction Stories; Lee, Red as Blood; Gibson, Burning Chrome. We will also read a selection of critical essays by Susan Sontag, Isaac Asimov, Lloyd Biggle, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Charles Platt, Robert Silverberg, and others.—Susan Spencer, English Department, University of Central Oklahoma, 100 N. University Drive, Edmond, OK 73034-0184.

Philosophy 4911. Visions of Dystopia. The Oxford English Dictionary defines "dystopia" as "an imaginary place or condition in which everything is as bad as possible," the opposite of "utopia." Huxley's Brave New World, Orwell's 1984, and Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale are famous (some would say notorious) exemplars of dystopic fiction. Another feature which the three share is their consideration of socio-political trends current at the time of the writing, and their use of these as premises in arguments whose conclusions comprise dystopic scenarios. That is, given policies or practices can be seen as precursors of more oppressive or otherwise objectionable ones, as the initiators of sequences of events that will eventually result in the dystopic scenario. We will consider the three worlds described by Huxley, Orwell, and Atwood not only in terms of the events that occur within them, but in terms of the similarities they bear to our world and as prognostications argued from premises based on facts about the actual world. TEXTS: Huxley, Brave New World and Brave New World Revisited; Orwell, 1984; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale.—Eva Dadlez, Dept. of Humanities and Philosophy, University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond, OK 73034.

Philosophy 4921. The Philosophy of Horror. This course focuses on one of the few extensive theories of horror fiction in existence: that of Noel Carroll. While we can feel free to object to various aspects of Carroll's work, it is, in fact, the only thorough philosophical analysis of the subject. Using Carroll's text as an organizing device, we will explore various definitions of "art horror" and attempt to establish necessary and sufficient conditions for a work's falling under that concept. In particular, we will consider whether all instances of art horror involve implicit categorical contradictions. TEXTS: Carroll, The Philosophy of Horror or Paradoxes of the Heart; Stoker, Dracula (excerpts); Shelley, Frankenstein (excerpts); Beagle, "Lila the Werewolf"; Wilde, Picture of Dorian Gray; Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; Rice, Interview with the Vampire (excerpts); Lovecraft, "The Dunwich Horror." We will also read a selection of philosophical analyses other than that of Carroll, including: Kendall Walton, "Fearing Fictions"; Susan Feagin, "Imagining Emotions and Appreciating Fiction"; Aristotle, Poetics; David Hume, "Of Tragedy"; R. Morreall, "Enjoying Negative Emotions"; Leon Golden, "The Purgation Theory of Catharsis."—Dadlez.


Ontario. Algoma University College, Sault Ste. Marie

English 2126. Science Fiction. Science fiction posits realities other than the one with which we are familiar. It transforms reality speculatively, exploring alternate possibilities and thus commenting on human limitations and aspirations. Such fiction explores more freely, and fully, the world in which we live than does realistic fiction, because it creates alternatives we can compare with our world. Science fiction offers visions of worlds we might wish for, or fear; in doing so, it offers unique and invaluable insights into the nature of the world we have. In this course, we will explore sf's development as a genre addressing the implications of human creation, transformation, and apocalypse. TEXTS: Ballard, The Drowned World, Benford, Timescape, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Gibson, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Wells, War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, Zamyatin, We, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale, Brunner, The Sheep Look Up, More, Utopia, Rabkin ed., Fantastic Worlds, Shippey ed., The Oxford Book of Science Fiction.—Dominick Grace, Algoma University College, 1520 Queen St. E., Sault Ste. Marie, ONT, CANADA P6A 2G4, (705) 949-2301, ext. 382.


Ontario. Ryerson Polytechnic University, Toronto

ENG 503-Science Fiction Every civilization has its favourite mythology. Ours is the story of things to come as told to us by writers from Wells to Gibson. Some of their visions have been prophetic, others not, and many are still to be determined. The works in the course touch on a number of present issues and concerns: feminism, the relationship between humans and computers, and space colonization. We will discover that science fiction writers create their own idiom with wit, flair and imagination. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Aldiss,ed. The Science Fiction Omnibus, Niven, Ringworld, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Gibson, Neuromancer, and Lem, Solaris.—William Owen, English Department, Ryerson Polytechnic University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5B 2K3, Canada.

ENG 507. Science and the Literary Imagination. This course investigates the impact of innovation in scientific theory on the themes and forms of literature. It focuses on pivotal moments in the history of science, associated in the main with radical redescriptions of the human environment provided by such prominent figures as Copernicus, Newton, Darwin and Einstein. In conjunction with a discussion of the shifts in understandings, a text, usually contemporaneous, will be studied to examine how the writer envisages the implications of the ideas for human identity and society. In this way, students should acquire some comprehension both of the changing scientific paradigms for understanding our world, and of parallel changes in authors' conceptions of what it means to be human and in the forms of writing conveying that meaning. TEXTS: Ferris, Coming of Age in the Milky Way; Brecht, Galileo; Hawthorne, Young Goodman Brown and Other Tales; Shelley, Frankenstein; Butler, Erewhon; Lightman, Einstein's Dreams; Ernest Callenbach, Ecotopia.—Owen.


Ontario. Trent University, Peterborough

Cultural Studies/English 229. Science Fiction. Introduction to the history, theory, and representative works and authors of science fiction. From Mary Shelley and H.G. Wells to contemporary feminism (Tepper) and postmodern cyberpunk (Gibson), the course will examine such types of science fiction as human destiny stories (Lessing), stories of alien encounter (Clarke), and non-contemporary earth life (Moorcock), new technology stories (Asimov), and some of the best British and American New Wave and avant garde writings (Acker, Carter, Le Guin). In method, the approach aims both at a grasp of the selected works and their implications and at a conceptual view of the genre. TEXTS: Acker, Empire of the Senseless, Asimov, I, Robot, Carter, Heroes and Villains, Clarke, Childhood's End, Dick, Ubik, Gibson, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Lem, Solaris, Lessing, Memoirs of a Survivor, Moorcock, Behold the Man, Shelley, Frankenstein, Tepper, Gate to Women's Country, Varley, The Ophiuchi Hotline, Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Wells, The Time Machine.—John Fekete, Cultural Studies Program, Trent University, Peterborough, ONT, CANADA K9J 6C4, (705) 748-1771, "jfekete@trentu.ca".

Cultural Studies/English 229. Science Fiction. This course is intended to introduce students to the study of science fiction (sf) both as a genre of literature and as the history of a particular kind of cultural production. Students will look at several themes important to the development of sf and will endeavour to place those themes within the context of the literary, scientific, technological, and social developments which have taken place since the appearance of the genre in the nineteenth century. The study of sf allows a unique perspective on the interactions between science and technology and the society in which we live and provides glimpses of new and sometimes critical ways of thinking about the world. Sf themes fall into a number of broad categories, including time travel, post-apocalypse, alternate worlds/history, computers and artificial intelligences, space adventure, alien encounter, and so on. All of these variations on sf tell us something about ourselves and the world in which we live in ways that are often quite different from "mainstream" literature. The aim of this course is to introduce students to some of the possibilities inherent in sf and to provide them with a sense of the range of interests and techniques available to writers from Mary Shelley and H.G. Wells to William Gibson and Octavia Butler. This course is team-taught with Wendy Pearson. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Gibson, Neuromancer, Heinlein, Starship Troopers, Blish, A Case of Conscience, Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Carter, Heroes and Villains, Lessing, Memoirs of a Survivor, McIntyre, Dreamsnake, Butler, Parable of the Sower, Vonarburg, Reluctant Voyagers, Womack, Random Acts of Senseless Violence, Weinbaum, "A Martian Odyssey," Moore, "No Woman Born," Asimov, "Nightfall," Clarke, "The Nine Billion Names of God" and "The Sentinel," Heinlein, "All You Zombies," Smith, "Alpha Ralpha Boulevard," Zoline, "The Heat Death of the Universe," Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream," Delany, "Aye, and Gomorrah," Tiptree, "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" and "The Women Men Don't See," Varley, "The Phantom of Kansas," Cadigan, "Pretty Boy Crossover," Dorsey, "(Learning About) Machine Sex," Butler, "Bloodchild."— Veronica Hollinger, Cultural Studies Program, Trent University, Peterborough, ONT, CANADA K9J 2Y5, (705) 748-1771, "vhollinger@trentu.ca".

Cultural Studies/English 329. Utopian Fiction. This course will study the speculative social imagination in utopian, dystopian, and anti-utopian literature from Plato to contemporary science fiction. Such topics as sexual politics, technology, communication, education, and narrative form will be examined. TEXTS: Plato, The Republic, More, Utopia, Bacon, The New Atlantis, Swift, Gulliver's Travels, Frye, "Varieties of Literary Utopias," Bellamy, Looking Backward, Dostoyevsky, "The Grand Inquisitor," Huxley, Brave New World, Gibson, "The Gernsback Continuum," Mumford, "Utopia, the City, and the Machine," Orwell, 1984, Forster, "The Machine Stops," Vonnegut, "Harrison Bergeron," Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" and The Dispossessed, Moylan, Demand the Impossible, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time, Tiptree, "Your Faces, O My Sisters!...," Russ, "When It Changed" and "Recent Feminist Utopias," Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale.—Hollinger.


Ontario. University of Guelph, Guelph

English 370-286. Science Fiction. This course will make a survey of the relatively new genre of sf writing. It will study writers of the 1960-1994 era in order to describe the current directions of the form. It will deal briefly with the historical roots of the form, the various topics covered by the genre, and the nature of its innovations. TEXTS: Lem, Solaris, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Watson, The Embedding, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time, Dick, A Scanner Darkly, Gibson, Neuromancer, Tepper, The Gate to Woman's Country, Nagata, The Bohr Maker. —Peter Brigg, English Department, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ont., NlG 2Wl, Canada.


Ontario. University of Toronto, Toronto.

NEW 207Y. The Science Fiction Novel. A New College course, not attached to a named program. Through an analysis of the thematic configurations of concepts like utopia and dystopia, this course will examine the ways in which science fiction reflects and rejects contemporary reality; how science fiction participates in the conditioning and manipulative processes of contemporary capitalism (ideology); and how science fiction expresses the (repressed) desire for some other world of disalienation and freedom (utopian longing). TEXTS: Aldiss, Hothouse; Ballard, Drowned World, Crystal World; Bester, The Stars My Destination; Blish, A Case of Conscience; Brown, Martians Go Home; Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar; Clarke, Childhood's End; Delany, The Einstein Intersection; Dick, Ubik, Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Man in High Castle, Dr. Bloodmoney; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Herbert, Dune; Huxley, Brave New World; Lafferty, Past Master; Le Guin, Left Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed; Lem, Solaris; Miller, Canticle for Leibowitz; Pohl and Kornbluth, Space Merchants; Russ, The Female Man; Sheckley, Mind Swap; Silverberg, Tower of Glass, Science Fiction Hall of Fame-1; Simak, City; Stapledon, Star Maker; Sturgeon, More than Human; van Vogt, World of Null-A; Vonnegut, Sirens of Titan; Watson, Embedding; Wells, War of the Worlds; Wyndham, Chrysalids; Zelazny, Lord of Light.—Peter Fitting, Department of French, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada M5S 1A1.

HUM 199Y Seminar. Brave New Worlds and Things to Come: Utopias, Dystopias and Ecotopias from Plato to Atwood. From earliest times, men and women have had the tendency to fantasize and daydream about better, happier worlds. Some looked back to a "Garden of Eden," or a "Golden Age," others forward to a "Brave New World." A surprisingly large number of writers have described, often in great detail, the ingredients necessary to make such an ideal world—thereby establishing a major and enduring tradition of utopian thought in Western Civilization. Much can be learned from the study of this tradition. Utopias react to contemporary conditions; they are, among other things, concerned with religion, politics, morals, science, culture and economics. While most early utopias express faith in progress (some relying heavily on science), in the twentieth century a strong anti-utopian or dystopian, pessimistic tradition has sprung up. And where earlier utopias struggled to maintain a balance between freedom and order, later utopias show a more sinister tendency towards control and manipulation. Concerns with the environment have recently led to "ecotopias," while a fusion of utopias with science fiction can also be noticed. TEXTS: After looking at a few famous examples of early utopias in varying detail (Plato's Republic, Thomas More's Utopia, Francis Bacon's New Atlantis), we will move on to the modern utopian/dystopian novel: Bellamy's Looking Backward; Morris' News from Nowhere; Zamyatin's We; Orwell's 1984; Skinner's Walden Two; Huxley's Brave New World; Ursula Le Guin's The Dispossessed; Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, and Ernest Callenbach's Ecotopia.—A.P. Dierick, Department of German, University of Toronto, Toronto, ONT M5S 1A1, Canada.


Oregon. University of Oregon, Eugene

English 199. Science Fiction: A New Mythology? Science fiction has been called a modern mythology. Both sf and mythology use stories to express the ways humans perceive and understand the world and the ways humans explain the unknowable (origins, death, the experience of the Other, etc.). Both can make the familiar seem alien and the unknown seem known by giving us a different perspective. Myth has looked at humans from the top of Mount Olympus, the walls of Troy, and the eyes of the Trickster. Sf views our world from the indifference of space and the future. The comparison of myth and sf is especially pertinent in stories about human to super-human encounters, humans in relationship to things we create, human to alien meetings (including the otherness of gender, race, and culture), the quest of a hero/heroine, and the beginning or end of a culture/world. The narration serves a purpose in both science fiction and myth. Not only is the story important, but the way it is told matters. In this class, we look at how science fiction uses older stories and why. We will look at the changes a science fiction story postulates and how the differences are conveyed. We will ask questions about the ways science fiction might meet our "myth" needs of today. Sf is a literature that demands a questioning of assumptions. We will see how the literary, mythic, scientific, and cultural assumptions interact in a number of sf stories. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream," Varley, "Press Enter," Pohl & Kornbluth, Space Merchants, McIntyre, Dreamsnake, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country, Tuttle, "Husbands," and a packet including: Silverberg, "After the Myths Went Home," Watson, "The World Science Fiction Convention of 2080," and Le Guin, "She Un-Names Them"—Margaret McBride, "mcbride@uoregon.edu", Dept. of English, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, (503) 346-3910.

English 399. The Alien. The narrator in Ursula Le Guin's "Nine Lives" says: "It is hard to meet a stranger. Even the greatest extrovert meeting even the meekest stranger knows a certain dread.... Will he make a fool of me, wreck my image of my self, invade me, destroy me, change me? Will he be different from me? Yes, that he will. That's the terrible thing: the strangeness of the stranger." Along with the dread for the stranger comes a fascination: How are others different? What can I learn about myself from looking at others? The quest to examine otherness and one's own alienation when faced with otherness is a search for values and self-understanding in the works of authors of many fields (existentialism, religion, linguistics, Marxism, psychology, anthropology, fiction, feminism, etc.). Science fiction is a particularly valuable genre for the study of Self and the Other. Frankenstein, generally accepted as the first sf novel, shows us the alien both as a monster and as a reflection of our selves. Science fiction has continued to dramatize alien cultures as a way to question assumptions about our own culture. Sf has one eye on the universe and one eye on the human self. This class will examine the question of Self and the Other by looking at five categories of aliens (the Linguistic Other, the Gender/Biological/ Cultural Other, the Mechanical/Technical Other, the Human as Alien, and the Totally Alien). Sf can extrapolate from our known world into unknown worlds to give us a unique perspective to examine what it means to be human. TEXTS: Delany, Babel-17; Elgin, Native Tongue; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Butler, Dawn; Gibson, Neuromancer; Varley, "Persistence of Vision"; Le Guin, "Mazes"; Bishop, "Death and Designation Among the Asadi."—McBride. See also ¶403.


Oregon. Western Oregon State College, Monmouth

Hum 399. Science Fiction: The Responsibility of Humanity. A nonce course. The focus of this course is on technology and man's use/misuse, of it, etc. TEXTS: Rabkin, ed. Science Fiction: A Historical Anthology, Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama, Wilhelm, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang.—Carol Harding, Humanities Div., Western Oregon State College, Monmouth, OR 97361.


Pennsylvania. Alvernia College, Kutztown

English 121. Special Topics: Science Fiction. Internal analysis using generic criticism and formalism. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Bova, ed. The Best of the Nebulas, a short story anthology, one or two novels.— Richard Law, 712 Highland Ave., Kutztown, PA 19530.


Pennsylvania. Bucknell University, Lewisburg

Environmental Studies 205. Green Utopias. The course is designed to bring attention to existing alternatives to a gray future caused by overpopulation, air, soil, and water pollution, clear-cut forests, defective atomic-power stations, etc. Students will be introduced to literary utopias, as well as to the cultural writings of various ecological movements since 1750 expressing a general criticism of industrialization and urbanization. The concentration is on those works which problematize the increasing destruction of nature and confront this process with alternative concepts. Examples from art and music will also be included. TEXTS: Rousseau, Julie ou la nouvelle Héloise (excerpts); Thoreau, Walden or Life in the Woods (excerpts); Morris, News from Nowhere; Gilman, Herland; Leopold, A Sand County Almanac; Callenbach, Ecotopia and Ecotopia Emerging; Pausewang, The Last Children; Mendes, Fight for the Forest; Kelly, Fighting for Hope; Wolf, Accident: A Day's News. FILMS: Acid Rain, The Cost of Combustion (PBS); Rachel Carson's Silent Spring (PBS); PBS Nuclear Debate: Three Mile Island, Chernobyl; Chronicle of Difficult Weeks, Earth First! The Struggle to Save Australia's Rainforest.—Peter Morris-Keitel, Dept. of Modern Languages, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA 17837.


Pennsylvania. Cabrini College, Radnor

English 214. Science Fiction. This is a course for people who think they don't like literature, and it includes some sf history and some short story writing. It is usually thematically organized: some themes include alien encounters, hard sf, biology & sf, technology (general), computers & cyberspace, utopias & dystopias, feminism & sf, comic sf. Its hidden agenda is to develop the intellectual qualities of a liberally-educated person. Sometimes we get bogged down on reading ability! TEXTS: Warrick et al, eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Gibson, Neuromancer; Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.—Maurice Bezdek, English/Communication, Cabrini College, 610 King of Prussia Rd., Radnor, PA 19087-3699.


Pennsylvania. Duquesne University, Pittsburgh

English 370-01. Science Fiction, and Science Fiction on Film. The purposes of a course in film versions of science-fiction stories are many: the study of the effects of science and technology on man and his varied cultures is of primary concern, but the study of sf as a modern continuation of the traditions of romance and allegory is an equally important concern. Thus a course in sf must investigate both the matter and the forms of the genre, both as works of literature and, in this case, as works of the motion picture form. Hence, this course will consider both some of the better-quality sf films of the 20th century and some of the classic stories and novels of the genre in order to give the student some understanding of the themes of the genre as presented in print and visually. This course is intended to introduce the student to a kind of imaginative literature and to a kind of visual presentation uniquely suited to treat the problems of the scientific-technological culture in which he lives and, consequently, to give the student new and valuable discussions of the concepts important to present and future cultures. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Clarke, Childhood's End, Wells, The Time Machine, Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey. FILMS: Frankenstein, Metropolis, Forbidden Planet, Terminator, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Creeping Unknown, Soylent Green, The Magnetic Monster, X, the Unknown, The Thing from Another World, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Things to Come, The Time Machine, 2001: A Space Odyssey.—Jerome L Niedermeier, English Dept., Duquesne Univ., Pittsburgh, PA 15282.


Pensylvania. Holy Family College, Philadelphia

English 251. Readings in Science Fiction Literature. An introduction to the major authors of science fiction through reading selected short stories and novels. Themes running through these works will be examined and discussed, as will the various forms that sf has taken through the years in an attempt to arrive at a consistent definition of science fiction. TEXTS: Wells, The War of the Worlds, Herbert, Dune, Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1. FILM and radio play: The War of the Worlds.—Robert Clothier, 6137 Mulberry St., Philadelphia, PA 19135.


Pennsylvania. Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana

LS 499. Science and Science Fiction. This senior synthesis section explores how society's image of science is reflected in current sf, focusing on five topics: spaceflight, aliens, computers, biotechnology, and earth's changing environment. Students read and review books, scientific articles, and short stories; critique sf movies and Star Trek episodes. TEXTS: Godwin, "The Cold Equations," Clarke, "Into the Comet," Knight, "To Serve Man," Fast, "The Large Ant," Thompson, "VRM-947," Brin, "NatuLife" and "The Giving Plague," Sheffield, "Dies Irae," Gribbon, "The Carbon Papers," Gunn, "Fault." FILMS: 2010, Lawnmower Man, Blade Runner.—Karen Rose Cercone, Geoscience Dept., Indiana Univ. of Pennsylvania, Indiana PA 15705-1087.


Pennsylvania. Juniata College, Huntingdon

English 163. Science Fiction. The course breaks into three parts: Scope (definitions of sf, comparison of sf to fantasy and mainstream fiction), History (20th-century movements, from Wells through the Golden Age of Campbellian sf and the 1950s with Bester and Sturgeon, into the New Wave, then to Cyberpunk), and Issues (various recurring issues in sf: aliens, time travel, technology, gender). TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Gibson, Neuromancer; Disch, Camp Concentration; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants; McHugh, China Mountain Zhang; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Bester, The Stars My Destination; miscellaneous short stories.—Peter Goldstein, Dept. of English, Juniata College, Huntingdon, PA 16652.


Pennsylvania. Kutztown University, Kutztown

ENG 121-0110. Science Fiction. TEXTS: Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), The Man in the High Castle; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five.—John L. Cobbs, Dept. of English, Kutztown Univ., PO Box 730, Kutztown, PA 19530.


Pennsylvania. La Roche College, Pittsburgh

EN/NS 326. Science and Science Fiction. A study of the scientific concepts found in sf literature, drama, and film. Assessment will be made of how accurate these concepts are and their interrelationship to scientific discovery will be addressed. Objectives: A. to acquaint students with the provocative concepts suggested by the literature of science fiction, B. to demonstrate the evolution of these concepts from universally held myths and legends as well as from ancient satires and utopias, C. to show the relationship of these concepts and this evolution to the development of science and technology and to the modern disciplines of knowledge, D. to examine the issues created by science and technology that we all face today and that have been dramatized by science fiction, E. to enlarge students' imaginations through exposure to the disciplined imaginations of the most important writers in the field, F. to study the texts of sf stories and novels and determine their position along the scale of accepted literary values, G. to sensitize students to the nature of their own society and its possible mutations as totally new problems emerge, H. to consider how best to prepare for the future in terms of the various scenarios generated by sf, I. to guide students and offer them encouragement in critical thinking and writing. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Huxley, Brave New World; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds; Butler, Erewhon; Shelley, Frankenstein.—Philip Klass, La Roche College, 9000 Babcock Blvd., Pittsburgh, PA 15237.


Pennsylvania. Lafayette College, Easton

English 215. Science Fiction: The Frankenstein Myth. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley exploits our deepest fear of science: the scientist will create a monster, and his monster will destroy us. This course will explore the scientific fantasy that man can play God by creating life in the laboratory, and that the products of science take on a "life of their own," a life we can neither predict nor control. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Piercy, He, She and It; DeLillo, White Noise; Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau; Huxley, Brave New World; short stories by Poe and Hawthorne.—Laura Dassow Walls, Dept. of English, Lafayette College, Easton, PA 18042, "wallsl@lafayette.edu".


Pennsylvania. Lehigh University, Bethlehem

English 122. Speculative Fiction. Sf doesn't portray reality as we know it. Instead, it uses high-tech and sword-and-sorcery scenarios to portray what could be, if.... Sf lets us explore the objective universe and what it can or might do to human (and other) beings. Fantasy affords us experience of worlds peopled by mages, dragons, and other phenomena that hauntingly resemble our dreams. Or, if you'd rather leave that kind of analytic stuff behind, sf is the rather unliterary fiction we read because the mundane alternatives are just a bit too academic. TEXTS: Crichton, Jurassic Park; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Lindholm, Cloven Hooves; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea, Tombs of Atuan, Farthest Shore, Tehanu; Niven, Integral Trees; Slonczewski, Door into Ocean; Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Card, ed. Future on Fire; Dickson, Dragon and the George.—Rosemarie Arbur, 35 Sayre Drive, Drown Hall, English Dept., Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA 18055-3076.


Pennsylvania. Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania, Lock Haven

Lang 210. The Dark Side of Fiction. This courses begins with the study of Gothic fiction and then explores the evolution of the genre up to the present day. TEXTS: The Oxford Book of Gothic Tales; Stoker, Dracula; tales from Hawthorne and Poe; Lovecraft, H.P. Lovecraft's Book of Horror; King, Salem's Lot.—Allienne Becker "abecker@sunlink.net", P.O. Box 152, Lock Haven, PA 17745.

Lang 215. Speculative Fiction. A survey of speculative fiction from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to the present. OTHER TEXTS: Rabkin, ed., Science Fiction: A Historical Anthology; Wells, The Time Machine, Kafka, The Metamorphosis; Golding, The Lord of the Flies; Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey.—Becker.

Lang 220. Fantastic Fiction. This course explores the various kinds of fantastic fiction including myth, legend, the folk tale, the ghost story, horror fiction, science fiction, and postmodern fantasy. TEXTS: Rabkin, ed. Fantastic Worlds; Shippey, ed., The Oxford Book of Fantasy Stories.—Becker.


Pennsylvania. Lycoming College, Williamsport

English 257. Utopian Literature; Utopian Film. English 257 involves close reading of selected works of Utopian fiction, and critical viewing of a wide range of eutopian and dystopian films. Utopia is a slippery term; its definition varies from writer to writer—and from reader to reader. We will examine the human yearning for radically improved, imaginary elsewheres—a motif which extends from ancient tales of the Golden Age to 20th-century nightmare visions of the future—and examine elements of commonality and difference. The student's reading of the assigned utopian texts, and viewing of selected films, will be the subjects of discussion, brief lectures, quizzes, a final exam, a journal, and a 3-5 page essay. TEXTS: Plato, Republic; Huxley, Brave New World; Zamyatin, We; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time. FILMS: Things to Come, Sleeper, 1984, Brazil, THX 1138, Lost Horizon, The Time Machine, The Handmaid's Tale, Blade Runner, A Clockwork Orange.—Barry Lewes, English Dept, Lycoming College, Williamsport, PA 17701. "lewes@lycoming.edu".

English 257: Utopian Literature; Utopian Film. Same as above but with somewhat different list of texts. TEXTS: Plato, The Republic; Huxley, Brave New World; Zamyatin, We; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; More, Utopia; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Bryant, The Kin of Ata Are Waiting For You. FILMS: Things to Come, Sleeper, 1984, The Time Machine, Time After Time, Blade Runner, Clockwork Orange, THX 1138, Brazil.—Darby Lewes, English Department, Lycoming College, Williamsport, PA 17701-5192, "lewes@lycoming.edu".

English 330: Feminist Utopian Novels. This course involves close reading of selected works of feminist Utopian fiction. The student's reading of the assigned utopian texts will be the subjects of discussion, brief lectures, quizzes, and three 3-5 page essays. Students will also research, read, and report on an additional text, either "literary" or theoretical. TEXTS: Jones and Merchant, Unveiling a Parallel; Scott, Millenium Hall; Gilman, Herland; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Gearhart, The Wanderground; Brantenberg, Egalia's Daughters; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness.—Darby Lewes,


Pennsylvania. Messiah College, Grantham

RET 209. Theology and Oxford Christian Writers. Exploration of theological themes in the writings and the more general issues of literature—plot, development, characters, setting. Sf&F TEXTS: Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, That Hideous Strength, Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Lindsay, A Voyage to Arcturus, Chesterton, The Man Who Was Thursday.—Robert B. Ives, Messiah College, Grantham, PA 17027.


Pennsylvania. Millersville University, Millersville

English 292. Science Fiction. English 292 is an introduction to the nature and development of science fiction from Jules Verne and H.G. Wells to the present. It consists in careful examination of representative works, with special emphasis on their generic features, and employs conventional methods of literary analysis and evaluation.

TEXTS: Verne, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Wells, The Time Machine, Heinlein, New Collected Works, Asimov, Robot Dreams, Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Pohl, Man Plus, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama, Gibson, Burning Chrome.—Timothy C. Miller, Dept. of English, Millersville Univ., PO Box 1002, Millersville, PA. 17551-0302.


Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State University, McKeesport

English 191. Science Fiction. Provides an introductory overview of science fiction with specialized emphasis that changes from offering to offering. For spring 1996, the class emphasizes varying depictions of gender. TEXTS: Warrick, ed., The SFRA Anthology, Sargent, ed., Women of Wonder: the Contemporary Years, Butler, Wild Seed, Springer, Larque on the Wing, Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country, Bear, Moving Mars.—Joe Marchesani, Penn State at McKeesport, Univ. Drive, McKeesport, PA 15132, (412) 675-9466, "jjm9@psuvm.psu.edu".


Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State University, University Park

English 30. Honors Freshman Rhetoric and Composition. ln my section of this general education course, we trace the element of "social dreaming" in a wide variety of forums for public discourse, including utopian and dystopian novels, plays, and movies; newspaper editorials and columns; poetical speeches, and even solicitation letters from charitable organizations. From studying clashing value systems, conflicting belief systems, different notions of human nature, and various ideals of right conduct, students are given a deeper understanding of the eutopian dreams and dystopian nightmares that lie behind "real world" wrangling over the evolving social contract. TEXTS used: Callenbach's Ecotopia, Huxley's Brave New World, Nagata's The Bohr Maker, Wertenbaker's Our Country's Good, Shaw's Major Barbara, Piercy's Woman on the Edge of Time. Other texts for future sections: Wells's Men Like Gods, Baum's The Emerald City of Oz, Corbett's A Better Place to Live, Morrow's This Is the Way the World Ends, Bulwer-Lytton's The Coming Race, Vonnegut's Player Piano.—Julie Sparks, Department of English, 146 South Burrowes J, Penn State, University Park, PA 16802-6200.

Engl 191. Science Fiction. Science fiction as the literature of scientific, technological innovation, and social change—its development, themes, and problems. TEXTS: Ballard, Crash, The Atrocity Exhibition, Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, A Scanner Darkly, Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, Butler, Dawn, Lem, The Cyberiad, Gibson, Burning Chrome, Neuromancer, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness.—Paul Youngquist, English Dept., 117 Burrowes, Penn State Univ., University Park, PA 16802.

Engl 191.401. Science Fiction. Course description the same as above. TEXTS: Asimov, The Gods Themselves, Benford, Timescape, Butler, Dawn, Dick, The Man in the High Castle, Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Hoban, Riddley Walker, Lem, The Futurological Congress, McCaffrey, Crystal Singer, Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz, Russ, We Who Are About to Die..,, Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1, Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 4, Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades.—Kathryn Hume, English Dept., 117 Burrowes, Penn State Univ., University Park, PA 16802.

American Studies 420W. Cyberspace Aesthetics and the American Novel. In this class we will attempt to map out the relations between the American literary discourse of cyberpunk fiction and the technoscientific discourses of virtual reality, cyberspace, and molecular biology. We will analyze the ways in which metaphors from fiction, such as the notion of "cyberspace," get borrowed, transformed, and actualized in scientific and technical research. At the same time, we will investigate the ways in which the new technologies of information and genetic engineering impact the very form of the American novel, as new modes of narration become possible and necessary in cyberpunk worlds where many of the grounding distinctions of humanist culture— such as sex/gender, nature/culture, self/other, real/simulated, public/private, America/ world—become problematic. Finally, we will investigate the ways in which science fiction functions to reinvent and reorient American culture in an era of massive technological and political transformation that critics such as Fredric Jameson have dubbed "post-modern." The gendered nature of "post-modernity" and cyberpunk fiction will be the focus of much of our inquiry. FILMS: Blade Runner, Videodrome. TEXTS: Bear, Blood Music, Dick, The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Ubik, A Scanner Darkly, Gibson, Count Zero, Neuro-mancer, Mona Lisa Overdrive, Cadigan, Synners, Sterling, Islands in the Net, Murakami, Hard-Boiled Wonderland, Stephenson, Snow Crash.—Richard Doyle, Dept. of American Studies, S-136 Burrowes, Penn State Univ., University Park, PA 16802.

French 565. Revolution and Utopia in the 19th_century Novel. This seminar will focus on representations of revolution and civil unrest—and their counterparts in utopian thought—in the novel from 1818 to 1885. We will look at 1789, of course, but also at the Terror, the slave uprising in Santo Domingo in 1793, the aftermath of the Revolution of 1848, and the workers' revolts during the Second Empire (1852_70). From monarchism to republicanism to socialism, we will trace the evolution of political ideals through a variety of romantic and realist works. TEXTS: Hugo, Bug_Jargal (The Slave_King) and Quatrevingt_treize (Ninety_three); Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities; Sand, Nanon and La Petite Fadette (Fanchon the Cricket); Balzac, Les Chouans; Zola, Germinal.—Kathryn M. Grossman, Department of French, 316 Burrowes Building, Penn State University, University Park PA 16802_6203.


Pennsylvania. Seton Hill College, Greensburg

EL 250. Science Fiction. This course is a survey of 20th-century science fiction. Most of the works we will read and study are American novels (so far, the bulk of sf today is published in that format), but we will also read a number of short stories and continental works, as well as view three sf films. The ordering of the texts will be chronological so that we can see how sf changes as society and history change. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Pohl and Kornbluth, The Space Merchants; Lem, Solaris; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Bear, Blood Music; Sagan, Contact; Gibson, Neuromancer; Kessel, Good News from Outer Space. FILMS: Things to Come, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, Aliens, Brazil.—Albert Wendland, Dept. of English, Seton Hill College, Greensburg, PA 15601.

EL 231. Topics in Creative Writing—Science Fiction and Fantasy. In this course we will study, discuss, and write science-fiction and fantasy short stories. The specific goals for the class are: to distinguish the two genres of sf and fantasy, to understand the sub-types of each genre, such as "hard" sf, imaginary-world fantasy, magic realism, and urban fantasy, to define the techniques and narrative styles of contemporary sf and fantasy stories, to discuss the narrative aspects of all short stories to see how they differ—if they do—from those in sf and fantasy, to write three short stories: one of science fiction, one of fantasy, and one of your choice from either genre (or possibly horror). TEXTS: Dozois, ed. The Year's Best Science Fiction; Datlow and Windling, eds. The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror.—Wendland.


Pennsylvania. Swarthmore College, Swarthmore

English 78. Science Fiction. An exploration of origins, genres, themes, and contexts in a dozen or so works of science-based speculative fiction from several ages. We will be concerned not only with the workings of the literary imagination in these novels (and a few plays), but also with the shifting ideas about what science is, of the relation of science to human affairs (religious, political, economic, and even psycho-sexual), and of the perceptible shape of the universe itself. TEXTS: Swift, Gulliver's Travels; Verne, From the Earth to the Moon; Wells, First Men in the Moon; Stapledon, Last and First Men; Shelley, Frankenstein; „ apek, R.U.R.; Asimov, I, Robot; Rucker, Live Robots; Piercy, He, She, and It; Herbert, Dune; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar, Shockwave Rider; Gibson, Neuromancer, Cyberfictions.—Thomas H. Blackburn, Dept. of English, Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, PA 19081-1397.


Pennsylvania. Temple University, Philadelphia

English 163. Science Fiction. This course will discuss new movements in science fiction and fantasy in the context of a literary community. We will study literary works produced in the 1980s and 1990s, and discuss the changes in the social matrix of the fan/artist culture that have generated some of these changes. We will also discuss issues in the contemporary culture at large addressed in the fiction. TEXTS: Gibson, Neuromancer; Scott, Trouble and her Friends; Gould, Jumper; Card, Ender's Game; Crowley, Little, Big; Bull, War for the Oaks; Marian Zimmer Bradley, The Mists of Avalon; Cherryh, Foreigner; Butler, The Parable of the Sower; Gaiman, Sandman: Season of Mists.—Camille Bacon-Smith, English Department, Anderson Hall, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19139.

English 163. Folklore and Science Fiction. Science fiction as a literary genre and as a community with a distinctive and long_standing culture of appreciation. Using videotape, slides, audio tape, informational articles and fiction we will grow to understand the discourse of the community carried out in face to face interaction and in published works. TEXTS: McCrumb, Bimbos of the Death Sun; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Haldeman, The Forever War; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Pohl, The Space Merchants; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Gibson, Neuromancer; Gaiman; Sandman; Barnes, The Gorgon Child; Butler, Wild Seed.—Bacon-Smith.

Folk 255. Folklore and Science Fiction. This course will examine science fiction as a literary genre that makes use of folklore in the text, and as a community with a distinctive folklore of its own. By the use of videotape, slides, audio tape, informational articles and fiction, we will uncover the discourse of the commmunity carried out in face to face interaction and in published works of fiction. TEXTS: McCrumb, Bimbos of the Death Sun; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Haldeman, The Forever War; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Pohl, The Space Merchants; Scarborough, The Healer's War; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Sterling, Islands in the Net. FILM: Metropolis.—Bacon-Smith.

Physics 251. Science and Science Fiction. Science fiction as a genre; its purpose and styles. The existence of intelligent life in the universe. Communication with other civilizations; problems and probabilities. Interplanetary and interstellar travel. Time travel. Analysis of devices and themes common in science fiction, such as faster-than-light travel. The parallel development of science and science fiction and recent changes and new directions. [Catalogue description]

Physics 21. Science, Science Fiction and Film. This introductory physics course for non-science majors covers mechanics, astronomy, electricity and magnetism and nuclear physics. It screens twelve films which illustrate the physical principles discussed in the lecture portions of the course. TEXT: Dubeck, Moshier, and Boss, Fantastic Voyages: Learning Science Through Science Fiction Films. FILMS: Forbidden Planet, Terminator, Terminator 2, 2010, Total Recall, Stargate, Blade Runner, Colossus, Them!, Adventures of Buckaroo Bonzai, Star Trek IV, Jurassic Park.—Leroy W. Dubeck, Physics Department, Temple University, Philadelphia PA 19122.

Women's Studies W128. Theme/Genres in Women's Literature. A variable-content course. The topic has sometimes been "Women's Worlds in Science Fiction and Utopian Literature." (These reports obtained with the assistance of Thomas N. Whitehead, Special Collections, Temple University Library, Philadelphia, PA 19122)


Pennsylvania. University of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia

H&SS110. Science and Literature. This course will study the emergence of modern science fiction. By examining the ways influential writers, scientists, and intellectuals have envisioned the human future, we will attempt to assess the evolving perceptions of science and technology and their implications for the human condition. Major themes include science-based utopias; bioengineering; "superman"; robots; alien life; and other worlds. We will also discuss the differences between European and American traditions in treating these themes, the emergence of sf as a genre, and sf as popular culture. Each three-hour session will consist of two parts: a lecture with questions, which will provide historical and scientific context; and a seminar discussion, which will focus on analyzing and comparing two novels. There will be roughly 500 pages of required reading per week. Carla Keirns will assist with the course. (1) INTRODUCTION. (2) OVERVIEW: SCIENCE, LITERATURE, AND CULTURE. James, Science Fiction in the 20th Century. Crichton, Jurassic Park (1992). (3) THE `MAD SCIENTIST.' Shelley, Frankenstein (1818). Wells, Island of Dr. Moreau (1896). (4) EXTRAORDINARY VOYAGES. Verne, From the Earth To the Moon (1863). Wells, First Men in the Moon (1901). (5) SCIENCE AND UTOPIA. Wells, The Time Machine (1895). Huxley, Brave New World (1932). (6) DYSTOPIAS. Zamiatin, We (1924). Orwell, 1984 (1948). (7) COSMOLOGY. Stapledon, Last and First Men (1930). Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet (1938). (8) AMERICAN sf HEROES AND VALUES. Burroughs, Princess Of Mars (1912). Nowlan, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1930). (9) THE "GOLDEN AGE": ROBOTS & TECHNOLOGY. Asimov, Caves of Steel (1954), Heinlein, The Door into Summer (1956). (10) ROBERT HEINLEIN. Red Planet (1949), The Star Beast (1954), Have Space Suit, Will Travel (1958). (11) SCIENCE AND HISTORY. Asimov, Foundation (1942/1951). Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz (1959). (12) POSTWAR ALIENATION. Clarke, Childhood's End (1953). Vonnegut, Sirens of Titan. MODERN sf: THE 1960s. Herbert, Dune (1965).—Mark B. Adams, Department of History and Sociology of Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104. "madams@sas.upenn.edu",

Freshman English 6.302. Other Worlds: Revisionary Science Fiction. Science fiction has the power to revision and critique the world by presenting alternate societies, encounters with aliens, different pasts and futures, and speculative uses of technology (robots, interstellar travel, and biological engineering). In this course, we will focus specifically on sf works which explore the underpinnings of real world notions of gender, race, and war. TEXTS: Bisson, "Partial People," Bradbury "June 2003—Way in the Middle of the Air," Butler, "Bloodchild" and Kindred, Card, "Ender's Game" and Ender's Game, Duchamp's "Motherhood, Etc.," Freireich's "The Fade," Friesner's "White! Said Fred," Lee's "Zelle's Thursday," Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness, Morlan's "The Best Years of Our Lives," Murphy's "His Vegetable Wife," Russ's "A Few Things I Know about Whileaway" and "When It Changed," Tiptree's "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" and "The Women Men Don't See," Varley's "Options," and critical essays by James Baldwin, Judith Butler, Ursula Le Guin, Ashis Nandy, Michael Omi and Howard Winant, and Adrienne Rich.—Cati Coe, Department of Folklore & Folklife, University of Pennsylvania,

3440 Market Street, #370, Philadelphia PA 19104.


Pennsylvania. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh

English Lit 1661. Science Fiction. We will read and discuss, for the most part, short stories and a few novels illustrative of prevailing trends and on-going controversies in the development of science fiction from Wells to the near-present with particular emphasis on North American and experimental sf written after 1960. Cross-listed with Women's Studies Program. TEXTS: Asimov, ed., The New Hugo Winners; Wills, ed., The New Hugo Winners III; Dozois, ed., Modern Classics of Science Fiction and The Year's Best Science Fiction; and (on reserve in Library) Asimov, ed., The Super Hugos; Bova, ed. The Best of the Nebulas; Le Guin and Attebery, eds., The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Hartwell and Cramer, eds., The Ascent of Wonder; Sargent, ed., Women of Wonder: The Classic Years; Shippey, ed., The Oxford Book of Science Fiction.—Cynthia Sutherland-O'Nan, English Department, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.

English Lit 1699. Science Fiction Film. Cross-listed with 8699. This course will examine the fictions of science in science-fiction cinema. We will do extensive reading on the genre and screen a range of European and American films from the 1930s to the present. The course will entail an exploration of the history of the genre, its conventions and codes, its immutable and mutable characteristics, its relationship to changing cultural, social, political contexts, and its varying responses to technology. Most particularly we will be concerned to explore the ways in which sf cinema encodes different attitudes toward science and the figure of the scientist, especially the persistence of the "Frankenstein paradigm" and its various permutations.—Marcia Landy, English Department, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.

English Lit 1587. Utopian Literature. We read widely in utopian literature, concentrating on the later decades of the nineteenth century and the twentieth century. Utopian literature has always been a controversial form of writing, some readers valuing it highly, others deploring its qualities. We will consider such questions as: What is the intention of the writers of utopian literature? Do they mean to suggest practical reforms or merely intend to provide criticism of social abuses they encounter? TEXTS: Plato, Republic; More, Utopia; Swift, Gulliver's Travels IV; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Wells, A Modern Utopia; Gilman, Herland; Forster, "The Machine Stops"; Zamyatin, We; Orwell, 1984; Huxley, Brave New World; Vonnegut, Player Piano; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Morris, News from Nowhere; Dostoevsky, Notes from Underground; Skinner, Walden Two; Butler, Erewhon; Lenin, The State and Revolution. —W.A. Flanders, English Department, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.

PHYS 0089. Physics and Science Fiction. Explores the physics used in science fiction, with in-class demonstrations. No previous experience in physics is assumed. COURSE OBJECTIVES: 1. to gain a basic understanding of physics principles from Newton's laws up to modern Relativity and Quantum Mechanics, including the meaning of scientific terms used (and misused) in science fiction; 2. to gain a basic understanding of the scientific method and how scientists work; in particular, why scientists embrace some theories that seem far out and crazy, but reject others; 3. to understand some of the ethical dilemmas and ultimate issues raised by physics, that recur in science fiction. COURSE CONTENT: a broad survey of Newton's laws, the laws of thermodynamics and electrodynamics, Special and General Relativity, Quantum Mechanics and Particle Physics. TEXTS: Forward, Indistinguishable from Magic; March, Physics for Poets (supplementary); Verne, From the Earth to the Moon and Back Again; Hoyle, The Black Cloud; Anderson, Tao Zero; Abbott, Flatland; plus a short story anthology produced for this course. FILMS: 2001: A Space Odyssey, plus clips from Star Wars.—D. Snoke, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, Univ. of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.

English Literature 1479. Tolkien and Lewis. This course could have been called "Outer Space and Middle Earth" because its purpose is to explore and evaluate the fantasy worlds of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. The first eight weeks of the term will be devoted to a close reading of the three novels of Lewis's so-called "space trilogy" and the four finished works that make up Tolkien's saga of Middle Earth. The final half of the term will be given over to a rapid reading of Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia and Tolkien's shorter fantasies as well as parts of The Silmarillion.—Mary Elizabeth David, English Department, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA 15260.

-Coordinator for the Pittsburgh reports: Philip E. Smith, Dept. of English, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260. "psmith+@pitt.edu".


Pennsylvania. West Chester University, West Chester

LIT 162. Literature of the Apocalypse. LIT 162 is an interdisciplinary course that investigates the premise, held by many American fundamental Christians, that we are living at the end of time when the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will initiate Armageddon. Aspects of John's Revelation are examined in works of fiction and non-fiction: the Jewish holocaust, AIDS plague, environmental destruction, etc. TEXTS: Erickson, Arc d'X, Ballard, The Drowned World, Wyndham, The Day of the Triffids.—Charles R. Bauerlein, Dept. of English, 534 Main Hall, West Chester Univ., West Chester, PA 19383.


Pennsylvania. York College, York

P381. Computers and Modern Thought. In this course we seek to analyze the impact of computers on our culture, our self-identity, and our community. We will begin with an analysis of cultural representations of computers in film and literature. Following that, we will turn to an analysis of the impact of the computer on our sense of identity and on what it means to be human. In the third section of the course, we will consider the impact of computers, especially computer-mediated communication, on how we relate to one another and on our communities. TEXTS: Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Turkle, The Second Self; Rheingold, The Virtual Community; Dick (short stories); Gibson, Burning Chrome, Neuromancer; Asimov, I, Robot. FILMS: Collossus: The Forbin Project, Demon Seed, War Games, Tron, Total Recall, Blade Runner, Lawnmower Man.—Dennis M. Weiss, English and Humanities Dept.,


York College, York, PA 17405.

Québec. Concordia University, Montréal

English 395. Science Fiction. An exploration of the varieties and nature of science fiction from H.G. Wells to Ursula Le Guin. Readings will include examples of English and American sf and translations of foreign works. Among the authors to be studied (subject to availability of titles) will be Zamiatin, „ apek, Vonnegut, Dick, and Lem. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds; Zamiatin, We; Stapledon, Sirius; Vonnegut, The Sirens of Titan; Dick, Ubik; Lem, The Futurological Congress; Calvino, T-Zero; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Gibson, Neuromancer.—Robert M. Philmus, Dept. of English, Concordia Univ., 7141 Sherbrooke St. W, Montréal, PQ, Canada H4B 1R6, 514-848-2332, fax 514-848-3492.

English 298J/2. Landmarks in Science Fiction. In this historical survey of the development of sf in its many forms, we shall begin by exploring various theoretical accounts of the genre and then turn to the detailed analysis of works selected. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, Huxley, Brave New World; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Blish, A Case of Conscience; Vonnegut, The Sirens of Titan; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Gibson, Neuromancer; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—David Ketterer, 4231 Wilson Ave., Montréal, PQ, CANADA H4A 2V1, (514) 848-2340.

English 395/3. Science Fiction. Same as above but a 6-credit rather than a 3-credit course. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Poe; Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea; Wells, The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds; Stapledon, Star Maker; Huxley, Brave New World; Clarke, The City and the Stars; Blish, A Case of Conscience; Vonnegut, The Sirens of Titan; Budrys, Rogue Moon; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Lem, Solaris; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Gibson, Neuromancer; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Ketterer.


Québec. McGill University, Montréal

ENG110-344B. Literature and Science: Science Fiction. A course investigating interactions between narrative theory (spacetime, agents, etc.) and genre theory (readers' expectations) on the example of science fiction. The provisional syllabus may be changed according to availability of titles. TEXTS: Morris, News from Nowhere; Wells, The Time Machine; Zamiatin, We; Lem, Mortal Engines; Disch, 334; Delany, Dhalgren; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Dispossessed; Cherryh, The Pride of Chanur; Gibson, Neuromancer; Spinrad, Little Heroes; Sargent ed., Women of Wonder.—Darko Suvin, Dept. of English, McGill Univ., Montréal, PQ, CANADA H3A 2T6, fax (514) 398-8146, "indn@musicb.mcgill.ca".

ENG110-505B. The Twentieth Century: The Genres of Science Fiction and Fantasy. A first approach to the twin literary genres of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Historically, these genres have some roots in common but also differing, indeed often diametrically opposed, devices and horizons. These will be discussed, beginning with the 19th century (Morris, Wells) and then jumping by way of Kafka to the middle of the 20th century (Calvino, Lem, Dick) and ending with a recent Russian novel. TEXTS: Morris, The House of the Wolfings, News from Nowhere; Wells, Selected Short Stories; Kafka, The Metamorphosis, the Penal Colony, and Other Stories; Calvino, T-Zero; Dick, The Penultimate Truth; Lem, Futurological Congress; Strugatskys, The Time Wanderers.—Suvin.


Rhode Island. Johnson and Wales University, Providence

Literature 4010. Science Fiction. Analysis of science fiction as a literary genre from its origins to the present. Some 16 short stories, one novel, and two films are studied. TEXTS: Shippey, ed., The Oxford Book of Science Fiction Stories; Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.—James Anderson, Asst. Dean, John Hazen White School of Arts and Sciences, Johnson and Wales University, 8 Abbot Park Place, Providence, RI 02903.


Saskatchewan. University of Regina, Regina.

English 479/870. The Fantastic in Literature. We will begin by examining the historical sources of the fantastic: myth, fable, parable, folktale, and fairy tale. Then, using realistic literature as a touchstone, we will examine from a generic perspective the nature and diversity of modern fantastic fiction: fantasy, horror, ghost story, heroic fantasy, and science fiction. We will then read some works of contemporary fantastic fiction in the light of our historical and generic deliberations. Simultaneously, we will be examining and evaluating the most important contemporary theories of the fantastic. TEXTS: Rabkin, ed. Fantastic Worlds: Myths, Tales, Stories, Poe, The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Stories, Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Wells, Selected Short Stories, Kafka, The Metamorphosis, The Penal Colony, and Other Stories, Borges, Labyrinths, Carter, The Passion of New Eve, Ballard, The Unlimited Dream Company, Priest, The Affirmation.—Nicholas Ruddick, English Dept. Univ. of Regina, Regina, SK, CANADA S4S OA2, "ruddick@max.cc.uregina.ca".

Humanities 260. Utopian Literature, Thought and Experiment. Study of utopian texts from ancient golden ages to modern science fiction. Questions to be asked include whether a much improved human society is possible, what might bring it about, and what are the obstacles. In addition to utopian theory, the "ideal city," the "intentional community," and other applications will be considered. TEXTS selected from: More, Utopia; Morris, News from Nowhere; Gilman, Herland; Huxley, Island; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Goodman, Communitas; plus handouts on Saskatchewan utopianism.—Alex MacDonald, Campion College, University of Regina, Regina, Sk. Canada S4S OA2.


South Carolina. Charleston Southern University, Charleston

English Composition and Rhetoric I & II. Composition course, sometimes taught on the theme of "science and humanity." TEXTS: Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas"; Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream"; Gibson, Neuromancer; Shelley, Frankenstein; Toffler, Future Shock; Gould, The Panda's Thumb. FILMS: The Day the Earth Stood Still, Blade Runner, Robocop.—Jim Brown, English Dept., 9200 Univ. Blvd., Charleston Southern Univ., Charleston, SC 29423.

English 392. Introduction to Gothic Literature. An introduction to the genre of Gothic literature through the study of its most prominent authors in order to understand the significant literary contributions these authors have made to literature in general during the last two centuries. We may also try to answer The Shadow's question: "Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?" TEXTS: Walpole, The Castle of Otranto; Shelley, Frankenstein; Stoker, Dracula; Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; Hawthorne, Edgar Allen Poe, Selected Writings, King, Night Shift, assorted short stories.—Dawn Leonard, Dept. of English, PO Box 118087, Charleston Southern Univ., Charleston, SC 29423-8087.


South Carolina. College of Charleston, Charleston

English 240. Science Fiction. English 240 will introduce you to the main themes and issues of science fiction and will attempt to stimulate your interest in the interrelationship between twentieth century science and technology, on the one hand, and twentieth century fiction, on the other. No previous knowledge of science fiction or background in English or American literature is expected. At the end of the term, you can expect to be familiar with two kinds of science fiction: 1. `hard' or technologically oriented sf is based on mathematics and physics, sometimes on biology and chemistry; topics include time problems, robots, alien life forms, and clones; 2. `soft' or socially oriented sf is based on sociology, economic theory, and psychology; topics include clones (again), new forms of family and governmental structures, and questions of gender and sexuality. (Note that we will not be reading any Fantasy or `Sword and Sorcery' titles in this course.) After a brief examination of some early pioneers (particularly H.G. Wells), we will concentrate on major trends in sf published in the United States between 1940 and 1990. Sf is an immense field, and some focus is necessary in an introduction. This means that we will not be looking at parallel developments in European sf, for instance; it also means that we will skip over the early decades of the twentieth century. I will be happy to suggest readings for you in either of these areas if you are interested. There is also a flourishing sf field in Latin America, and if necessary I will refer you to others on campus who are knowledgeable in that area. TEXTS: Asimov, Caves of Steel; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Niven, Ringworld; Pohl, Gateway;, Wells, he Time Machine; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.—Caroline Hunt, English Dept., College of Charleston, Charleston, SC 29424.


South Carolina. Lander University, Greenwood

ENGL 214. Literature and Utopia. A chronological survey of utopian and dystopian writing from a variety of cultures ranging from the ancient Greeks through the present day. We read both fictional and theoretical work. The format of the course is lecture and discussion. In both the readings and the discussions, we will focus on ideological questions: who gets to decide the rules for society? who benefits from having the rules that are decided upon? what happens to those who break the rules? TEXTS: Plato, The Republic; More, Utopia; Morris, News from Nowhere; Marx and Engels, The Communist Manifesto; Jefferson et al., The Declaration of Independence; Zamyatin, We; Gilman, Herland; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Orwell, 1984; Huxley, Brave New World; Theroux, O-Zone; Schuyler, Black Empire; Bowtie, Beirut.— D.S. Lawson, Division of Humanities, Lander University, Greenwood, SC 29649.


South Carolina. University of South Carolina at Spartanburg

English 398. Studies: Science Fiction. A slot course; I have taught it as Science Fiction about ten times in the last 25 years. Goals: To survey by reading, lecture, viewing, testing, writing, and oral presentation a representative selection of science fiction primarily throughout the twentieth century, to determine from example the nature of these contributions to this genre of literature. Some of this literature requires a mature audience; students be advised. TEXTS (1993): Le Guin and Attebery, eds., Norton Anthology of Science Fiction; Asimov, Caves of Steel; Willis, Doomsday Book; The SFRA Anthology.—Elizabeth S. Davidson, Department of English, University of South Carolina at Spartanburg, Spartanburg, SC 29303.


South Dakota. National College, Rapid City

EN 320. Science Fiction. Science Fiction is a humanities course designed to examine this literary genre. The student is exposed to works of a large range of sf writers. TEXTS: Allen, ed. Science Fiction: The Future; Kelley, ed. Themes in Science Fiction.—Sandra Christianson, 321 Kansas City St., Rapid City, SD 51101.


South Dakota. South Dakota State University, Brookings

English 350. Science Fiction. I have taught this course since 1980; now we offer it every fall semester. The course used to carry Humanities Core Curriculum credit, but it no longer does. This has reduced its enrollment from 30 to 20. Very few English majors take it because, ironically, they complain about the "heavy" reading. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Time Machine; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Pohl & Kornbluth, The Space Merchants; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Gibson, Neuromancer; McCrumb, Zombies of the Gene Pool; Bova, ed. The Best of the Nebulas.—John W. Taylor, Dept. of English & Linguistics, South Dakota State Univ., Brookings, SD 57007.


Tennessee. Maryville College, Maryville

English 208. Modern Fantasy and Science Fiction. Fantasy and science fiction share a number of common traits; at the same time, there are important distinctions to be made when speaking of the two genres. By the end of the course, students will be able to recognize the commonalities and distinctions involved. They will be familiar with the narrative structure, common themes, stylistic devices, including narrative point of view, employed by the authors studied. The art of close analytical reading will also be reinforced. Finally, students should leave the course able to distinguish the enduring from the ephemeral in fantasy and science fiction. TEXTS: Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Out of the Silent Planet; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea; L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time; Wells, The Time Machine; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Asimov and Silverberg, Nightfall.—Susan Schneibel, Div. of Humanities, Maryville College, Maryville, TN 37804.


Tennessee. East Tennessee State University, Johnson City

English 2280. Female Heroes in Speculative Fiction. Using the works as springboards, we will consider these questions: What is a hero? How does one become a hero? What differences (if any) exist in the definitions of hero, heroine, and protagonist? What are the "stages" of the hero's "journey," and how are these included/ omitted/combined/transmuted in the novels we read? How (if at all) do the experiences of a female hero differ from those of a male hero? How do heroes define themselves? Throughout the semester, we will consider the novels as literature: figurative language, tone, setting, character development, imagery, etc. TEXTS: Pearson, The Hero Within; Lackey, Vows and Honor; Roberson, Daughter of the Lion; Bradley, The Shattered Chain; McCaffrey, The Rowan; McIntyre, Dreamsnake; Moon, The Deed of Paksenarrion; Woolf, Orlando.—Sonya H. Cashelan, English Dept., East Tennessee State Univ., Box 70683, Johnson City, TN 37601, (423) 929-6674.


Tennessee. Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville

POPC 405/505. Sf and Fantasy. We also view 6-10 movies which vary with availabilty. We read several short stories. Students do presentations and projects, which vary—sometimes with movie scripts, short stories, TV scripts (which we produce). I cover the history of sf and f. We take up various units as I/they choose, unique to the class. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Card, Ender's Game; Huxley, Brave New World; Herbert, Dune; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea; Tolkien, The Hobbit; etc.—Connie K. Hood, Box 5053, English Dept., Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, TN 38505.


Texas. Austin College, Sherman

Communication/Inquiry II. Freshman Seminar "Issues in Science Fiction." This course focuses on sf as social critique, linking stories that touch on each of four general issues (relationships with aliens/Others, definitions of humanity, technology/progress, social trends) with "real" problems and questions at the time the stories were written and in contemporary contexts. TEXTS: Silverberg, ed., The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1; Wilson, ed. Paragons: Twelve Science Fiction Writers Ply Their Craft; FILMS (attendance optional): The Day the Earth Stood Still; Alien; Forbidden Planet; Blade Runner (director's cut); Total Recall; Star Wars.—Shelley Reid, "SREID@austinc.edu", English Dept., Austin College, Sherman, TX 75090.


Texas. Baylor University, Waco

English 4374. Special Topics in Literature: Fantasy and Science Fiction in Literary History. The course will survey the major movements in 19th- and 20th-cemtury literature through a selection of short stories, novels, and films from the categories of fantasy and science fiction. We will consider the works read in relation to the significant concerns of each major period in literary history (the Romantic quest, the Victorian concern with the relationship between art and ethics). But in general, we will take our cue from the chief interest of contemporary sf and concentrate in each period on the creation of utopian and dystopian visions. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Hoffmann (selected stories); Stoker, Dracula; Chesterton, The Man Who Was Thursday; Wells, The Time Machine; Zamiatin, We; Borges (selected stories); Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Clarke, Childhood's End; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Lem, Solaris; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale. FILMS: Frankenstein, The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Blade Runner.—James Foster, PO Box 97406, Baylor Univ., Waco, TX 76798-7406.


Texas. Hardin-Simmons University, Abilene

ENGL 5399. Special Studies: Modern Fantasy. Surveys great works of fantasy from approximately 1860-1960; emphasizes psychological, philosophical, and religious themes. Features much discussion. TEXTS: MacDonald, Phantastes, Lilith; Lindsay, A Voyage to Arcturus; Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea.— Larry E. Fink, Hardin-Simmons University, Box 16035, Abilene, TX 79698.


Texas. McMurry University, Abilene

English 3399. Science Fiction. The course has two purposes: to introduce students to the serious examination of science fiction as a legitimate literary genre, and to survey various kinds of fiction within the genre. Along the way, we'll examine significant sf films, some made from the fiction we're discussing and some which stand as significant sf in their own right. Two comments before we move on: First, sf is a multi-national literature, so we're examining the work of American, British, and Canadian writers. Second, this is a course in science fiction, so if you notice the absence of writers you're fond of—such as Ursula K. Le Guin or Marion Zimmer Bradley, who are fantasy writers, or Dean Koontz or Steven King, who are considered horror writers—don't worry. Their work is considered as belonging to a different genre, so I'm not making some sort of comment against them by not including them. TEXTS: Aronica and McCarthy, eds. Full Spectrum; Asimov, The Caves of Steel; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Niven, Ringworld; Orwell, 1984; Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades; Williams, Hardwired.—Chuck Etheridge, Dept. of English, Box 608, McMurry Univ., Abilene, TX 79697.


Texas. St. Mary's University, San Antonio

EN 5360w. Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature. Course objectives: Students will be introduced to sf literature, a genre one critic has called the "future of fiction." They will be given the opportunity to refine their skills of critical analysis and literary interpretation and evaluation. They will be encouraged to assess their own value system and the values operative in society by examining possible longterm consequences of such values. They will explore alternative futures through the projections of internal and external realities so crucial to the sf genre. They will be given the opportunity to refine and expand their verbal and written commuication skills. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein, Wells, The Time Machine, Herbert, Dune, Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land, Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, Donaldson, Lord Foul's Bane, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale.—Sister Christine Catron, English and Communication Studies, St. Mary's University, One Camino Santa Maria, Box #14, San Antonio, TX 78228.


Texas. Southwest Texas State University, San Marcos

Honors 3391A. Science Fiction and Society. This course will examine a variety of works which focus on a single major theme and pattern of science fiction: possible futures. Emphasis will be on the manner in which the selected writers have envisioned future government, social organization, male/female relationships, human evolution, and humankind's understanding of its own past. We will consider both the literary and the philosophical value of the fiction. TEXTS: Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Brin, The Postman; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Huxley, Brave New World; Kellogg, Harmony; Lessing, Memoirs of a Survivor; Starhawk, The Fifth Sacred Thing; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country.—Patricia Deduck, Dept. of English, Southwest Texas State Univ., 601 University Dr., San Marcos, TX 78666-4616.

English 3340. Science Fiction and Fantasy. Analysis of short stories and novels in an American and British literary context. TEXTS: Sargent, ed., Women of Wonder; Blish, A Case of Conscience; Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Herbert, Dune; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; McCaffrey, Dragonflight; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring.—Diane Parkin-Speer, English Dept., Southwest Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666.

English 5395. Science Fiction, the Bridge between Realism and Fantasy. This graduate seminar focuses on 20th-century sf novels and short stories. The genre will be viewed as a popular Anglo-American phenomenon which addresses social issues and the effects of science and technology on modern society. TEXTS: Aldiss, Helliconia Winter; Brackett, The Long Tomorrow; Brin, The Postman; Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar; Clarke, Childhood's End; Delany, Babel-17; Heinlein, Friday; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Vonnegut, The Sirens of Titan; Wells, The Time Machine; Wolfe, The Shadow of the Torturer; Warrick, et al, eds., The SFRA Anthology.—Parkin-Speer.


Texas. Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches

English 330. Science Fiction. A survey of science-fiction stories and novels published between 1960 and the present. Works are analyzed from the perspectives of both form and content, and students are encouraged to examine each work in terms of how and why it may entertain readers and provoke their thought. The basic premise of the course is that sf legitimately may be viewed simultaneously as popular fiction, as satire, and as philosophical speculation and/or extrapolation. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds., The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Benford, Timescape; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Gibson, Virtual Light; Stephenson, The Diamond Age.—L.A. Cheever, English Dept., Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TX 75962.


Texas. Tarleton State University, Stephenville

English 5403. Studies in Modern Fiction. A historical survey, going from the turn of the century to the modern period. The approach is critical. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Burroughs, A Princess of Mars; Stapledon, Odd John; Huxley, Brave New World; Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; and several others.—Joe R. Christopher, English Department, Tarleton State University, Stephenville, TX 76402.

English 2203. Introduction to Literature. A thematic (and genre) course, with emphasis on student writing. It is an honors course on science and literature for sophomores. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine; Huxley, Brave New World; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; „ apek, R.U.R.; Shaw, Back to Methuselah; Frazier, ed., Burning with a Vision: Poetry of Science and the Fantastic, etc.—Christopher.


Texas. Texas A & M University, College Station

English 334. Science Fiction, Present and Past. English 334 presents an opportunity to study science fiction as a literary genre—with side excursions into human psychology, sociology, politics, and culture. Lectures and discussions consider a wide range of texts, beginning in the 19th century and continuing down to the present. This semester we will focus on novels. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, War of the Worlds; Huxley, Brave New World; Clarke, Childhood's End; Lem, Solaris; Le Guin, The Lathe of Heaven, The Left Hand of Darkness; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Butler, Dawn; Gibson, Neuromancer. —Jimmie Killingsworth, Dept. of English, Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX 77843.


Texas. Texas A & M University, Corpus Christi

English 454. Science Fiction. The aim of this course is to develop a clear understanding of the nature and purposes of science fiction. We will be concerned not only with the major themes of (mainly) American science fiction but also with its qualities as fiction, and we will try to develop a sound definition of the genre and a set of critical principles for evaluating its literary worth. TEXTS: Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Gibson, Neuromancer; Bear, Blood Music; Herbert, Dune; Warrick et al, eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Silverberg, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1. FILMS: Destination Moon, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, Dune.—David Mead, Arts and Humanities, Texas A & M Univ. at Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Dr., Corpus Christi, TX 78412.


Texas. Texas Christian University, Fort Worth

ENGL 2733. Science Fiction. Significant themes in science fiction (e.g., alien contact, the impact of technology, tampering with nature, the battle of the sexes), examined in the context of the history and development of the larger genre. Themes and books change somewhat with each offering. TEXTS: Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau; Huxley, Brave New World; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Niven and Pournelle, The Mote in God's Eye; Crichton, Jurassic Park; Card, Ender's Game; McCrumb, Zombies of the Gene Pool.—Fred Erisman, Dept. of English, Box 297270, Texas Christian Univ., Fort Worth, TX 76129.

English 2733. Science Fiction. Goals for the course: Most of the students who end up in my sf classes seem to enroll for one of two reasons: 1. they are particularly fond of sf as a genre, or 2. they need to meet the university's core requirement for a course in literature, and they believe that sf will be easier or more fun than reading what they generally call "real literature." Since many of the students are familiar only with sf on TV or film, most think sf is primarily plot-driven, and they have the savvy to realize that attention to character or theme in popular sf is largely a way for producers to hold down special effects budgets.... So my goal is to deprogram two preconceptions: that sf isn't "real literature" and that sf doesn't present the same hermeneutic difficulties or intellectual rewards as Shakespeare, Dostoevsky, or Faulkner. The deprogramming happens in the reading I assign and the kinds of questions I ask (both in class and for the various tests and papers). For example, few students miss the point that sf is a very didactic, idea-driven genre when, in the midst of a chase scene in The Dispossessed, the characters suddenly sit down to discuss politics for twenty pages.... The shape of the course and the reading generally moves across a few historical examples—gothic precursors, antitechnological nostalgia, scientific romances, futurism, hard sf, new wave, cyberpunk—then ends with what I think of as particularly "literary" texts. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Zamyatin, We; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle; Gibson, Neuromancer; Lem, Solaris; Amis, ime's Arrow; Hoban, Riddley Walker; Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; Calvino, Cosmicomics; Lightman, Einstein's Dream. —Neil Easterbrook, Dept. of English, TCU, Box 32872, Fort Worth, TX, 76129.


Texas. Texas Tech University, Lubbock

English 3381-01. Literature of the Fantastic—Entropy versus Immortality. Purpose: to explore the varieties of sf, to study major examples of each subgenre, and to develop your critical skills by articulating informed judgments verbally and in writing. TEXTS: Crichton, Jurassic Park; Shelley, Frankenstein; Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Rice, The Tale of the Body Thief; Card, Speaker for the Dead.—James Whitlark, Dept. of English, Box 43091, Texas Tech Univ., Lubbock, TX 79409-3091.


Texas. Trinity College, San Antonio

English 317C. Science Fiction and Fantasy. A study of the literature of science-fiction and/or fantasy genres with special emphasis on historical development and contemporary expression. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Clarke, Childhood's End; Gibson, Virtual Light.—C.W. Spinks, Dept. of English, Trinity College, 715 Stadium Dr., San Antonio, TX 78212, "cspinks@trinity.edu".


Texas. University of Houston at Clear Lake, Houston

LITR 4632. Literature of the Future. Textual modes for literature and human society of the future in a variety of genres, including science fiction, magic realism, prophecy, postmodern literature, and the history of science. TEXTS: Borges, "The Garden of Forking Paths"; The Bible (Book of Revelation); Wells, The Time Machine; Dick, The Man in the High Castle; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Sterling, ed. Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology, Islands in the Net; Leyner, My Cousin, My Gastroenterologist; Butler, Parable of the Sower.—Craig Howard White, Literature & Humanities, 2700 Bay Area Blvd., Univ. of Houston at Clear Lake, Houston, TX 77058-1098, "white2@cl4.cl.uh.edu".

LITR 5733. Seminar in American Culture: American Utopias, Dystopias, and Parallel Worlds. In a historic and continuing effort "to form a more perfect union" or at least imagine one, North American writers have developed the genre known as "utopia" which envisions a world of better possibilities. Or when a more dismal society emerges instead, they criticize it by writing a "dystopia." Or they escape into a "parallel world" of alienation and fantasy. In their depictions of American society and its antisocial individuals, this seminar's classic and recent texts combine such themes or genres. Discussions will identify characteristic elements and configurations (as well as anomalies). Instruction will emphasize the historical backgrounds of these visions. TEXTS: Hawthorne, The Blithedale Romance; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Gilman, Herland; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Silko, Almanac of the Dead; Stephenson, Snow Crash.—White.


Texas. University of North Texas, Denton

English 3910. Special Topics in Literature. Cross-listed as English 5800— Genre Studies. Science Fiction was offered in the Spring of 1989 and will be offered again in Fall 1996. Reading and analysis of recent novels, with emphasis on literary qualities, especially rhetoric. TEXTS: Marion Zimmer Bradley, The Heritage of Hastur; Octavia Butler, Adulthood Rites; Orson Scott Card, Ender's Game; Suzy McKee Charnas, The Furies; Arthur C. Clarke, 2001: A Space Odyssey; Bradley Denton, Buddy Holly is Alive and Well on Ganymede; Ursula K. Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Walter M. Miller, Jr., A Canticle for Leibowitz; Kim Stanley Robinson, Red Mars; Joan Slonczewski, A Door into Ocean; Connie Willis, The Doomsday Book; Gene Wolfe, Soldier of the Mist.—Edra Bogle, 201 Peach Street, Denton, TX 76201.


Texas. University of Texas at Arlington

English 3300. American Utopian Expressions. The primary goal of the course is to offer a chronological introduction to American utopian literature. The works selected indicate the great diversity of American utopian fiction, a diversity I have emphasized by consciously including works by authors of different genders, races, classes, and regions. Nonetheless, to understand more fully the contexts and meanings of the fictions, indeed to begin to grasp the crucial importance of utopianism in America, we must move beyond literary utopias to examine expressions of utopianism found in travel accounts, autobiographies, manifestos and declarations, sacred texts, visions, intentional communities, world fairs, and entertainment parks. Including these types of utopian expressions helps to raise essential questions about American utopianism. How does the "form" of a utopia effect the conception and communication of its message? Why do certain forms of utopian expression become popular during specific historical eras? To what degree do gender, race, class, and geography shape utopian projections and responses to those projections? TEXTS: Brown, Wieland; Hawthorne, Blithedale Romance; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Twain, A Connecticut Yankee; Gilman, Herland; Skinner, Walden Two; Callenbach, Ecotopia; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; plus many short readings (e.g., Bible excerpts, Native American creation and vision narratives, Columbus, Jefferson, Douglass, descriptions of and literature from world fairs and Disney World).—Kenneth M. Roemer, Dept. of English, UT Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019.

English 4336. Build Your Own Utopia. See Appendix A to Professor's Roemer's article in this issue.

English 6329. Shapes of Utopia. The course examines relationships between concepts of imaginary better worlds and forms of expression. I make no pretense of offering an overview of utopian literature. Our study is limited (1) by the focus of the course (i.e., I selected texts that represented various forms of utopian expression rather than texts considered "representative" of their era, though many of the ones I selected are that too); and (2) by my interest in American utopianism. We study British, Continental, Middle Eastern, and Classical texts, but approximately half of the texts are American. On the other hand, we will go beyond what is traditionally called utopian "literature" in our attempts to understand relationships between form and content (e.g., Plains Indian visions, the Declaration of Independence, Frederick Douglass's autobiography, Disney World, comic strips), though we do not venture far into discussions of utopian communities. Form of expression dictates the course organizations: sacred myth and vision, philosophical dialogue, public discourse, poetry, satire, drama, personal narrative, communal documents, world fair/theme park descriptions, fiction (unambigious, ambivalent, ambiguous), and mixed genre. TEXTS: Many short readings in the various genres (e.g., Gilgamesh, Black Elk's vision, Plutarch, Black Petitions, Dante, Swift, Franklin, Douglass, Thoreau), plus Shakespeare, The Tempest; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Gilman, Herland, Skinner, Walden Two, Twain, Connecticut Yankee, More, Utopia, Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Le Guin, Always Coming Home.—Roemer.


 

Utah. Weber State University, Ogden

Engish 275. Science Fiction, A Literature for Our Times—and Beyond. This class is intended as a discussion of 21st century social and scientific philosophy through science fiction. Through short stories, essays, and novels, the course examines the basic themes and ideas of our time. TEXTS: Shippey, ed., The Oxford Book of Science Fiction Stories; Warrick et al., eds. Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology.— Donna R. Cheney, "dcheney@ssnet.weber.edu", Dept. of English, Weber State University, Ogden, UT 84408-1201.


Vermont, Community College of Vermont, Waterbury

English 232. Science Fiction Literature. The course examines the characteristics, history, and significance of science-fiction literature; surveys a literary genre's exploration of important twentieth century ideas and developments, including the impact of science and technology on human consciousness; and includes the political, cultural, and social circumstances to which science fiction responds and/or anticipates. Essential Objectives: Identify important science fiction authors and their works; describe the distinctive literary characteristics of science fiction and fantasy; investigate the evolution and development of science-fiction literature, examine the political, cultural, and social circumstances that stimulate the creation of science fiction literature; compare and contrast science fiction literature's important themes and ideas; and examine the impact of utopian, dystopian, science fiction, and speculative literature on politics, society, and culture. TEXTS: Bester, The Stars My Destination; Simak, Time and Again; Heinlein, Double Star; Moore, Bring the Jubilee; Vance, The Last Castle; Leiber, A Specter Is Haunting Texas; Silverberg, Thorns; Delaney, Nova; Piercy, Dance the Eagle to Sleep; Bisson, Fire on the Mountain.—John David Christenson, Community College of Vermont, St. Johnsbury, 38 Main St., St. Johnsbury VT 05819, 802-748-6673, "christensj@am.ccv.vsc.edu".


Vermont. University of Vermont, Burlington

English 40. Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature. The course will deal with classic and contemporary science fiction and a classic of fantasy. It inquires into the blurry boundaries between the two genres and explores the relation of both to contemporary life and the life of the imagination. TEXTS: Dozois, ed. Year's Best Science Fiction (1994); Asimov, The End of Eternity; Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama; Herbert, Dune; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Niven and Pournelle, The Mote in God's Eye; Turner, Brain Child; Turtledove, The Guns of the South. The sole work of fantasy is Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.—Michael N. Stanton, Department of English, University of Vermont, Burlington VT 05405. (802) 656-3056.


Virginia. Bridgewater College, Bridgewater

English 215. Science Fiction and Contemporary Issues. Through reading, viewing, hearing, and discussing science-fictional concepts as they relate to our nature, we will provide defining characteristics for the human race, with occasional forays into gender differences. Our discussion will range over biological, physiological, psychological, sociological, and technological parameters to provide us with a holistic body of evidence. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, The Island of Dr. Moreau; Burroughs, The Land That Time Forgot; Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet; Farmer, The Lovers; Sturgeon, More Than Human; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Heinlein, Friday; Gibson, Neuromancer. FILMS: Frankenstein Unbound, The Time Machine, Star Wars, Logan's Run, Charly, Enemy Mine, Blade Runner, Lawnmower Man.—Stan Galloway, Dept. of English, Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, VA 22812.


Virginia. Emory and Henry College, Emory

Value Inquiry 312. Utopia. A survey of ancient and modern utopian writings; ethical questionings of the nature of the "good life," "pleasure," "happiness," "fulfillment." Study of the three diverse modern visions of Skinner, Heinlein, and Le Guin. Designing of personal (and collaborative) utopian dwellings and communities, and reports on modern experimental communities and alternate lifestyles of the 19th and 20th centuries. TEXTS: Skinner, Walden Two; Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Johnson, ed. Utopian Literature: A Selection; Pojman, Ethics: Discovering Right and Wrong.—Robert L. Reid, English Dept., PO Box 947, Emory and Henry College, Emory VA 24327-0947.


Virginia. George Mason University, Fairfax

NCLC 310. Learning Community on Utopia (6 credits). As a class, in small groups, and individually we will study utopian and dystopian texts, theories, and practices. We will use examples of utopian writing ranging from Plato to the present to examine some of the ways eutopian dreams (and dystopian nightmares) have changed over time. We will explore the relationships between utopian speculations and historical events. We will also study the history of several "utopian" experiments, and visit two local "utopian" communities. We will try to become aware of how much utopian expression there is, to discover something of its variety, to consider how these texts differ from other forms of written discourse. We will ask how utopian novels differ from utopian political pamphlets, or essays in philosophy or psychology. We will ask about the different ways utopian texts are designed to jostle readers' ideas about their society and themselves. What have the relationships been between utopian texts and "various experiments" in utopian living? How do we go about assessing utopian texts, figuring out their meaning, significance, and value? Reflecting on utopian writing and experience invites us to draw on everything we know: what we've learned about human life and society from courses on philosophy, economics, history, psychology, anthropology and political theory, for instance, and what we've learned from our experiences about work and play, education and aging, love, envy and jealousy, desire and fear, grief and joy, loss and satisfaction—and anything else that matters. In various ways these texts are designed to force us to reflect more carefully on our own basic values, our ideas about how the world has been and is and what it might become, our images of who we are and what we might be. They also lead us to think about how human societies work, what their stated and unstated goals are, how they meet needs and desires (and how and why they don't), how and in whose interest they can be changed. The writing assignments encourage you to draw on your expertise and to clarify your values. In small-group and in whole-class discussions you should be able to risk saying what you really mean, while you also listen carefully to what others say, and offer honest, supportive challenges. Guest professors: Kevin Avruch (Anthropology), Debra Bergoffen (Philosophy), Joseph Wood (Geography), Dulce Cruz (English), Bill Lankford (Physics), Roger Wilkins (Robinson Professor, History), and from other colleges, Carol Kolmerten (English, Hood College), Jeanne Pfaelzer (English, U. of Delaware), Hoda Zaki (African American Studies, Hood College). TEXTS: Plato, The Republic; More, Utopia; Mill, On Liberty; Jones & Merchant, Unveiling a Parallel; Zamyatin, We; Spiro, Kibbutz: Venture in Utopia; Marcuse, An Essay on Liberation; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Bowes, Kibbutz Goshen.—Tom Moylan and John Radner, Department of English, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030.

English 791. Seminar: Religion, Utopian Narrative, and Political Theory. In this course, we will address the relationship of religion, utopian narrative, and political theory as it has developed from the Book of Exodus to the present. Drawing on the literary/social theory of Raymond Williams and on the extensive work on utopian discourse by Ernst Bloch (often described as a "marxist theologian"), we will examine utopian narrative in Exodus and in the writings of the medieval theologian Joachim of Fiore (often seen as a mystical predecessor of Hegel and Marx). We will then turn to the twentieth century and examine the interconnection of religion, utopia, and politics in two key works: Ignazio Silone's novel and Rigoberta Menchú's testimonio. To put these works in perspective, we will read one of the most important works of theology in recent times—one which joins marxist and religious praxis in the context of Latin America: Gutiérrez' Theology of Liberation. (The history by Penny Lernoux will provide a very valuable background for this; read as much of it as you can.) We will conclude with a discussion of the "synergy" of religion, utopia, and politics in the postmodern era. TEXTS: The Bible (RSV); Williams, Marxism and Literature; McGinn, ed. Apocalyptic Spirituality; Gutiérrez, A Theology of Liberation; Silone, Bread and Wine; Menchú, I, Rigoberta Menchú; Lernoux, Cry of the People: The Struggle for Human Rights in Latin America—The Catholic Church in Conflict with U.S. Policy; a collection of essays in a course reader.—Moylan.

English 685. Science Fiction and Postmodernity. In "Cultural Studies and the Centre," Stuart Hall describes the project of the Centre for Cultural Studies at the University of Birmingham as one that is informed by "concepts of social formation, cultural power, domination and regulation, resistance and struggle." He characterizes the goal of the project as an examination of the relationship between literary (and other) texts (as historically constituted cultural practices) and the economic, political, and ideological dimensions of society. Using a similar approach, we will address the relationships between science fiction (sf) of the 1970's and 1980's and the global context of "postmodernity." Teresa de Lauretis argues that the "sign work" of sf is "potentially creative of new forms of social imagination, creative in the sense of mapping out areas where cultural change could take place, of envisioning a different order of relationships between people and between people and things, a different conceptualization of social existence, inclusive of physical and material existence." How this "sign work" plays out in a world which is rapidly moving beyond the historical boundaries of modernity will be our primary question. We will address four issues: first, the formal properties of the sf text; second, the characteristics of the emerging postmodern political economy and culture; third, the potential for political agency in this new social terrain; and fourth, the "place" of contemporary sf in this larger historical context. TEXTS: Sterling, ed., Mirrorshades; Pohl and Kornbluth, Space Merchants; Russ, The Female Man; Gibson, Neuromancer; Russo, Subterranean Gallery; Laclau and Mouffe, Hegemony and Socialist Strategy; a collection of essays in a course reader.—Moylan.

English 492. Introduction to Science Fiction. Drawing (primarily but not exclusively) on feminist, marxist, and post-structuralist theories of history, society, and culture—we will study the history and criticism of the science-fiction genre from its beginnings in the early 19th century (Frankenstein, 1818) to very recent work in the 1990's (Synners, 1992). We will pursue two major projects. We will study the formal properties of the sf literary text: in this light, we will look at sf as a specific form of cultural production (evolving with its own intertextual tradition, but unique to the modern and postmodern eras), and we will consider the "reading protocols" associated with this literary form. At the same time, we will study the relationships between the sf texts and their historical contexts—including the economic, political, and ideological aspects of the historical periods of modernity and now postmodernity. Readings, lectures, discussion, and writing will circulate around both the fictional works and theoretical/critical works—always taking into account the specificities of the historical contexts of the sf texts' production and our reception as readers/critics. In addition, students wishing to get a better grasp of theoretical work are advised to read the recommended assignments in a timely fashion, and to incorporate them in their work. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Wells, War of the Worlds; Pohl and Kornbluth, Space Merchants; Russ, The Female Man; Gibson, Neuromancer; Cadigan, Synners; Brantlinger, Crusoe's Footprints: Cultural Studies in Britain and America; a collection of essays in a course reader.—Moylan.

English 415. Utopian Thinking, Utopian Writing. Working within a feminist and marxist problematic, we will study the interrelationships of culture and politics as they are manifested in utopian discourse. On one hand, we will study the history of utopian writing as it has developed within Western European and North American cultures. We will study the form of the utopian novel and the changes it went through as the historical and literary context changed. We will begin with the book that started it all—Thomas More's Utopia; we will then turn to the period of the late 19th/early 20th century when utopian writing flourished—looking at texts by Morris and Gilman; we will then examine two important utopian novels of the 1970's—by Le Guin and Piercy. On the other hand, we will study the nature of utopian thinking and examine the relationship between utopian discourse and the social-political process. We will consider the impact of each of the above books on their times, and then we will conclude with the work of one who is not usually considered in a utopian context, Malcolm X, approaching his life, his political work, and his speeches from a utopian perspective. TEXTS: More, Utopia; Morris, News From Nowhere; Gilman, Herland; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Haley, The Autobiography of Malcolm X; Malcolm X, Malcolm X Speaks; Malcolm X, Malcolm X Speaks to Young People; Moylan, Demand the Impossible; a collection of essays in a course reader.—Moylan.

English 360. Marge Piercy's Science Fiction. Stuart Hall describes cultural studies as a project informed by "concepts of social formation, cultural power, domination and regulation, resistance and struggle." As he describes it, cultural studies involves an examination of the relationship between literary (and other) texts (as historically constituted cultural practices) and the economic, political, and ideological dimensions of society. Edward Said argues against the dominant mode of criticism that validates and reproduces the present order of things and for an oppositional criticism that adopts a broader view of the world and its occupants and that challenges present systems of meaning and power in the name of a "noncoercive knowledge produced in the interests of human freedom." With these perspectives in mind and drawing (primarily) on feminist, marxist, and poststructuralist theories of history, society, and culture—and on critical writing about the science-fiction genre (sf)—we will read the three sf novels written by contemporary author, Marge Piercy. In focussing on these works (by an author who has also written "realist" fiction, poetry, and drama), we will trace the changes that have occurred over three decades in her social and political imagination and in her formal strategies. Doing this will give us a sense of her development as a writer, a sense of science fiction itself, and a sense of the historical shifts that have occurred in these years. For those unfamiliar with sf, be assured that we will discuss its formal properties and its historical evolution. For those rusty on recent history, we will trace some of the major social and political developments that Piercy negotiates in her novels. For those unfamiliar with Piercy's work, we will review its range and its reception in popular and academic circles. However, our primary focus will be on the novels themselves. TEXTS: Piercy, Dance the Eagle to Sleep (1970); Woman on the Edge of Time (1976); He, She, and It (1991); Russ, To Write Like a Woman: Essays in Feminism and Science Fiction; Delany, Silent Interviews: On Language, Race, Sex, Science Fiction, and Some Comics.—Moylan.

English 459. Studies in Fiction, Dystopias. Drawing (primarily but not exclusively) on Marxist, feminist, and post-structuralist theories of history, society, and popular culture and on the literary criticism of utopian and dystopian fiction, we will study a selection of the classic dystopian novels of the twentieth century. The reading for each week will include both theoretical and fictional work; lecture and discussion will move between theoretical considerations and close readings of the dystopias. TEXTS: Morris, News From Nowhere; Zamyatin, We; Huxley, Brave New World; Orwell, 1984; Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Vonnegut, Player Piano; Atwood, Handmaid's Tale; Moylan, Demand the Impossible: Science Fiction and the Utopian Imagination; a collection of essays in a course reader.—Moylan

English 791. Seminar: The Persistence of Utopia. Despite the present horrors of the social and despite certain caveats in some versions of post-1968 (and post-1989) "theories" about the viability of utopian discourse, texts and social practices that critique and challenge what is in terms of what is not yet seem to be alive and well. This "persistence of the utopian" is what I want to explore in this seminar. To situate the question, we'll begin with some of the influential theoretical essays on the "literary utopia" (as well as some of the fictive works in the "utopian canon"). We will do so in the context of the discursive, theoretical, political "field" of what, since around 1975, has come to be known as "utopian studies." (So you might want to read Thomas More's Utopia, William Morris' News From Nowhere, Ursula Le Guin's The Dispossessed, and Marge Piercy's Woman on the Edge of Time to develop your knowledge of the fictive base of this work—and check out the journal Utopian Studies to visit the "field.") We'll then move on to a more theoretically inflected encounter with the "utopian debate." We'll review earlier arguments for utopianism (Marx and Engels, and especially Bloch). We'll then look at the work of Fredric Jameson and others who have helped to explore the ways in which the "utopian impulse" or "proclivity" has survived, mutated, in our time. Here, the work in hermeneutics and Bakhtinian dialogics will be important to locate the key double move of negativity and (a self-reflexive and provisional) positivity that Michael Gardiner and others find to be the basic strategy of "critical utopianism." After break, we'll start with a review of theories on the mode of production and reproduction of the social (via Althusser, Gramsci, and Laclau and Mouffe) as a way to locate the social potential for the utopian impulse. We'll then look at arguments that question or raise concerns about the critical viability of utopianism in the emerging global order. We'll then take time to remind ourselves of the economic and political conditions of that global order (Bloch would talk here about "latency" and "tendency"). From this moment of the "negation of the negation," we will consider a range of present possibilities for utopianism: first, in theoretical accounts of the spatial potential for utopianism; then, in "case studies" (first, new works of fiction by Robinson and Piercy; then, the political manifestoes of the Zapatista Liberation Front in Chiapas). We will conclude with a discussion of material drawn from your own projects. TEXTS: Levitas, The Concept of Utopia; Tucker, ed. The Marx-Engels Reader; Geoghegan, Utopianism and Marxism; Brenkman, Culture and Domination; Davis, Prisoners of the American Dream; Ross and Trachte, Global Capitalism: The New Leviathan; Robinson, Pacific Edge, Green Mars, Piercy, He, She, and It; Cooper et al., Zapatistas; Minnesota Review 6 (spring 1976); Zapatista Documents; a collection of essays in a course reader.—Moylan.

English 363:003. Utopian Literature. As a class, in small groups, and individually we'll study a few of the many works of literature that explore the nature of "utopia," starting with Thomas More's Utopia (1516) and ending with several recent texts. Here, as in any 300-level literature course, I would like us to learn to read more carefully, and to explain clearly in writing and in class discussions what we feel and think, and what features of the books we've read and what aspects of our own experience produce these reactions. I also want us to improve our skills in constructing arguments, and to grow more confident about our ability to understand and assess literature.

Since this is a course on "Utopian Literature," we should try to become aware of how much such literature there is, to discover something of its variety, to consider how this literature differs from other literature we've read. What's the difference between a utopian novel and other novels, or between a utopian novel and a political pamphlet or an essay about human psychology? What have the relationships been between utopian texts and various "experiments" in utopian living? How have utopian dreams (or nightmares) changed over time? How are these books designed to affect their readers? What specific strategies have different writers used to challenge and engage, dislocate and attract us? What is relevant in assessing utopian texts, in figuring out their meaning and significance? Reading utopian literature invites us to draw on everything we know: what we've learned about human life from courses on philosophy, economics, history, psychology, political theory, for instance, and what we've learned from all our experiences about work and play, education and aging, love, envy and jealousy, desire and fear, grief and joy, loss and satisfaction—and anything else that matters. In various ways these texts are designed to force us to reflect more carefully on our own basic values, our ideas about how the world has been and is and what it might become, our images of who we are and what we might be. I've designed writing assignments to encourage you to draw on your expertise and to clarify your values. I hope in small-groups and in whole-class discussions we can all risk saying what we really mean, listen carefully to what others say, and offer honest, supportive challenges. TEXTS: More, Utopia; Johnson, Rasselas; Voltaire, Candide; Thoreau, Walden; Morris, News from Nowhere; Zamyatin, We; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Russ, The Female Man.—Radner.


Virginia. Hollins College, Roanoke

FP_6. The Search for Values in Speculative Fiction. Science fiction and fantasy allow authors to explore questions of values. We'll investigate imagined realities that enable us to consider the moral dimensions of war, social justice, sexuality, gender roles and what it means to be human. Requirements include a long and stimulating reading list, brief analytical papers, student discussion leading, group "utopia" projects, and the creation of one's own sf or fantasy text—a short story, video, series of drawings, fictional guidebook or history, or the like. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Dick, Do Androids Dream...?; Lewis, That Hideous Strength; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Wells, The War of the Worlds; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Haldeman, The Forever War.—Jeanne Larsen, English Dept., Hollins College, Roanoke, VA 24020.


Virginia. Mary Washington College, Fredericksburg

English 241. Fantasy Literature. This course includes both science fiction and fantasy; also involves writing fiction. TEXTS: Le Guin, Lathe of Heaven, The Left Hand of Darkness; Hoban, Riddley Walker; and selected short stories.—D.E. Glover, Dept. of English, Linguistics, and Speech, Mary Washington College, 1301 College Ave., Fredericksburg, VA 22401.


Virginia. Northern Virginia Community College, Sterling

English 256. Literature of Science Fiction. Examines the literary and social aspects of science fiction, emphasizing development of ideas and techniques through the history of the genre. Involves critical reading and writing. TEXTS: Shelley, Frankenstein; Silverberg, ed., The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. I; Le Guin and Attebery, eds., The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Herbert, Dune.—Agatha Taormina, Professor of English, Northern Virginia Community College, Loudoun Campus, Communication and Human Studies Division, 1000 Harry Flood Byrd Highway, Sterling, VA 20164.


Virginia. University of Richmond, Richmond

Eng 215. Reading Science Fiction. Different methods of reading sf (formal, sociocultural, myth, etc.). TEXTS: selected short stories.—Alan S. Loxterman, English Dept., R.C. Box 115, Univ. of Richmond, Richmond, VA 23173.


Washington. Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma

English 101. Making the Future. Reading utopian literature, fiction and non-fiction, will show the dangers of trying to "fix" the world. We will examine historical and contemporary intentional communities. Students will gain an appreciation of the complexities of the problems facing the present (nuclear waste, environmental devastation, genetic engineering, racial and sexual inequalities, to name a few), and develop strategies for positive future-forming activity. TEXTS: Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Bellamy, Looking Backward; Bellah, Habits of the Heart; Gilman, Herland; Johnson, ed., Utopian Literature; Kumar, Utopianism; Jones and Merchant, Unveiling a Parallel; Nordhoff, American Utopias; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country.—Erin McKenna, Philosophy Department, Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA 98447.


Washington. Washington State University, Pullman

English 333. Science Fiction as Literature. This course concentrates on literary devices, themes—and plays down generic sf studies. Pace Delany, these works are simply treated as good fiction which happens to be sf. TEXTS: Wells, The War of the Worlds; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Lem, Solaris; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Gibson, Neuromancer; Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction.—Paul Brians, Dept. of English, Washington State Univ., Pullman, WA 99164-5020.


West Virginia. Marshall University, Huntington

English 311. Science Fiction. Literary analysis and appreciation of science fiction, its themes and types. TEXTS: Card, ed. Future on Fire; Asimov, ed. The New Hugo Winners; Shelley, Frankenstein; McIntyre, Dreamsnake; McHugh, China Mountain Zhang; Tepper, Gate to Women's Country; Card, Wyrms.—James Riemer, 400 Hal Greer Blvd, Huntington, WV 25755-2646.


West Virginia. West Virginia University, Morgantown

English 175/1. Science Fiction and Fantasy. An introductory course. Students will be exposed to patterns, themes, and ideas encountered in selected novels and short stories representative of different periods of science fiction and fantasy writing. TEXTS: Clarke, The Hammer of God; Ende, The Neverending Story; Gibson, Burning Chrome; Rabkin, ed. Science Fiction: A Historical Anthology; Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings; Wells, The Time Machine.—Michael V. Mackert, Dept. of English, West Virginia Univ., PO Box 6296, Morgantown, WV 26506-6296.


Wisconsin. Lakeland College, Sheboygan

WI 117. Science Fiction for the Fun of It. Offered only during the Winter term. I vary the works from older to newer, dependent upon wishes of students. My intent is not so much a literature course, but a course in which one can discuss science in a less formal setting than one would get in a typical science or mathematics class. I use a reader which includes themes from many varied sciences, social and political. The author of Healer, Kris Jensen, is a Lakeland College alum who is very often a guest for a day. She helps students understand how to balance the creative process and still stay in the realm of plausible science. I allow the students to pick much of the content while sneaking in themes which lead to moral dilemmas and heavier discussion. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction, and several novels including Healer by Kris Jensen.—Ronald Kirk Haas, Box 359, Sheboygan, WI 53081.


Wisconsin. Northland College, Ashland

English 234. Science Fiction. The course is taught during the spring session on alternate years. Each course is different, with different themes: environmental, international, women, post-holocaust, etc. TEXTS: Le Guin and Attebery, eds. The Norton Book of Science Fiction; Piercy, He, She, and It; Warrick et al., eds., Science Fiction: The SFRA Anthology; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Tepper, The Gate to Women's Country, World Omnibus of Science Fiction.—Michele Geslin Small, Dept. of English, Northland College, Ashland, WI 54806.


Wisconsin. St. Norbert College, De Pere

En 303. Science Fiction and Fantasy. We use a genre approach, defining and critiquing the two major types of speculative fiction by comparison and contrast. TYPICAL TEXTS: Huxley, Brave New World; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451; Slonczewski, Daughter of Elysium; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Beagle, The Last Unicorn; McKinley, The Blue Sword; Boyer and Zahorsky, eds., Visions and Imaginings.—Robert H. Boyer and Kenneth J. Zahorsky, St. Norbert College, De Pere, WI 54115.


Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh

English 38-366. Science Fiction. An examination of major 20th-century works in science fiction. TEXTS: Wells, The Time Machine, War of the Worlds; Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles; Asimov, Robot Visions; Clarke, Childhood's End; Dick, Blade Runner (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?); Gibson, Neuromancer; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale; Heinlein, The Puppet Masters; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz.—Marvin E. Mengeling, Dept. of English, Radford Hall, Univ. of Wisconsin at Oshkosh, Oshkosh, WI 54901.


Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin, Parkside, Kenosha

English 237. Modern and Contemporary Literature. A survey of literature from 1950 to the present. Sf TEXTS: Herbert, Dune, Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale. —Walter Graffin, English Dept., Univ. of Wisconsin at Parkside, Kenosha, WI 53141.


Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin, Platteville

English 143. Speculative Fiction. Speculative Fiction is essentially fiction about alternative futures. It embraces both science fiction and fantasy. There is no attempt in this course to be either gender specific or race specific. The purpose of the course is to discuss specific experiences in terms of their uniqueness and their "universal" applications. TEXTS: Allen, ed. Science Fiction: The Future; Hartwell, ed. The World Treasury of Science Fiction; Orwell, 1984; Hawking, A Brief History of Time: From Big Bangs to Black Holes.—George R. Mahoney, Humanities/English Dept., 340 Gardner Hall, Univ. of Wisconsin at Platteville, Platteville, WI 53818.


Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin at Stout, Menomonie

English 326-385. Science Fiction. A critical survey of popular and classic science fiction. We'll discuss such topics as the future of humanity, the possibility of life on other planets, changing sex roles, and the dangers and benefits of technology. TEXTS: The Arbor House Treasury of Modern Science Fiction; Hodgell, Godstalk; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz; Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Connolly, The Rising of the Moon.—Michael Levy, Dept. of English, Univ. of Wisconsin at Stout, Menomonie, WI 54751, "levy@uwstout.edu".

English 450. Science Fiction and Gender. Since the late 1960s and the rise of the women's movement many writers, both female and male, have seen science fiction as a valuable tool for examining gender issues. Students will read and discuss a number of science fiction novels which suggest answers to a variety of gender-related questions, most importantly the following: to what extent are the roles played by men and women in today's world genetically determined and to what extent are they a matter of social conditioning? TEXTS: Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness; Piercy, Woman on the Edge of Time; Slonczewski, Daughter of Elysium; Bujold, Ethan of Athos; Russ, The Female Man; Griffith, Ammonite; Heinlein, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress; Sargent, ed. Women of Wonder: The Classic Years.—Levy.


ENTRIES RECEIVED TOO LATE FOR PROPER PLACEMENT

Oregon. University of Oregon

English 399. Science Fiction Winners. Examination of recent science fiction to ask questions about what separates science fiction from other genres, what criteria can be used to judge science fiction as a genre and as literature, what tactics can be used to help in the reading of science fiction, etc. TEXTS: Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and the film Blade Runner; Sterling, ed., Mirrorshades; Le Guin, The Dispossessed; Robinson, Red Mars; Thompson, The Color of Distance; Sargent, ed., Women of Wonder: The Comtemporary Years.—McBride; see ¶¶286-87.


Indiana. Indiana University Collins Living Learning Center, Bloomington

L210-9016. Creating Fictional Worlds. How do authors of fantasy and science fiction combine elements of our world, or of worlds in other fictional works, to create worlds that do not exist, that have no historically recorded existence? These worlds are outside the realm of actual experience, but are often created so as to seem actual and believable within the context of the narrative. Rather than being satisfied with the pat explanation of "willing suspension of disbelief," we will examine some of the elements that go into the creation of fictional worlds. Topics of consideration will include contextualization, genre, rewriting, the role of ideology, the use of folkloric motifs, the use of language, the use of scientific theories, and language-thought relationships. TEXTS: Bradley, Thendara House, Renunciates of Darkover, Hawkmistress; Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama; Fairy Tales, "The Frog King," "Tale of a Boy who Set out to Learn Fear," "East ofthe Sun and West of the Moon"; Gibson, Neuromancer; Herbert, Dune; Hesse, "Flute Dream," Le Guin, Language of the Night, The Dispossessed; Piercy, He, She and It; Toelken, "The `Pretty Languages' of Yellowman"; Tolkien, The Hobbit; Wells, The Time Machine. FILM: Lawrence of Arabia.—Peter Bixby, Department of Comparative Literature, Indiana University, Bloomington IN 47405.

Seminars. The major part of the teaching for the course will be two two_hour seminars per week. These will commence under the guidance of a tutor or with a student's presentation and will explore a given topic with reference to specified works of fiction and any additional required material. The module topics will be as follows:

1. Utopias and Dystopias

2. Robots, Mind and Intelligence

3. Science Fiction and the Cold war

4. Genre Definitions

5. Time Travel and Alternative Histories

6. Science Fiction and Gender

7. Alien Zones: Science Fiction and the Horror Genre

8. Special Author (Philip K. Dick)


Research Resources. The University of Liverpool possesses the main Olaf Stapledon archive. It has now taken over the Science Fiction Foundation Collection, which is the largest of its kind in Europe, including many rare novels (mostly British, American, and Eastern European), and runs of critical journals and science fiction magazines. This archive is a growing one, and is supplemented by further deposits of science fiction and fantasy. Students taking the M.A. course will be encouraged to make use of these materials, especially when working on their dissertations.

Applications should be addressed to: Director of Graduate Studies, English Department, P.O. Box 147, Liverpool L69 3BX, UK. For other information about the MA course or the Science Fiction Foundation Collection, contact the above address or asawyer@liverpool.ac.uk or dseed@liverpool.ac.uk.

—Andy Sawyer, Science Fiction Foundation Collection, Sydney Jones Library, University of Liverpool, PO Box 123, LIVERPOOL L69 3DA, UK. Phone 0151 794 2696. http://www.liv.ac.uk/~asawyer/sffchome.html

 


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