College Seminar (105-7-28)

Topic

Dystopian Stories

Instructors

James O'Laughlin
8474918916
1908 Sheridan Rd., Rm. 206
Office Hours: Wednesday, 4-5 p.m. Thursday, 1-2 p.m.

Meeting Info

Kresge Centennial Hall 2-435: Mon, Wed, Fri 3:00PM - 3:50PM

Overview of class

Imagining worlds gone wrong, dystopian stories plunge us into places that may seem not only unthinkable but also troublingly familiar. We'll explore a number of questions about these worlds: how do the people in them understand why things are the way they are? What stories about the past do these worlds rely on? What exactly is dystopian about these worlds, as imagined? How do the people in these worlds envision the future? What about their ways of thinking or about their practices challenges the dystopian? How do these dystopian worlds compare with worlds we already know, or with the way things were when these stories were written?

Short stories, novels and films may include (among others) some of the following: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, "Friday Black"; Heather Lindsley, "Just Do It"; Sarah Langan, "Independence Day"; Ray Bradbury, "The Pedestrian"; Ted Chiang, "What's Expected of Us" or "Understand"; Kazuo Ishiguro, "Never Let Me Go"; Shirley Jackson, "The Lottery"; Ursula K. Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas"; Ling Ma, "Severance"; Sayaka Murata, "Vanishing World"; Kenan Orhan, "The Beyoglu Municipality Waste Management Orchestra."

Class Attributes

WCAS College Seminar
Freshmen Only

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Weinberg First Year Seminars are only available to first-year students.
Add Consent: Department Consent Required
Drop Consent: Department Consent Required