AJL15087 Origins of American Science Fiction

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2024
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
Katie Googe (lecturer)
doc. Mgr. Tomáš Kačer, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Tomáš Kačer, Ph.D.
Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Tomáš Hanzálek
Supplier department: Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Mon 12:00–13:40 G33, except Mon 18. 11. to Sun 24. 11.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 10 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 9/10, only registered: 0/10, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/10
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
This course will explore important works and concepts in nineteenth-century American literature that influenced later science fiction. The texts we read will discuss social and technological changes in the United States through plots involving time travel, unexplored worlds, and fantastic inventions. Covered authors include: Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, Mary Griffith, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Martin Delany, Mark Twain, Mary Bradley Lane, and Charles W. Chesnutt. We will focus on the ways in which these authors address nineteenth-century debates about race, gender, and the growing American empire. This course will teach students to identify key texts in the history of science fiction in the United States, analyze their connections to nineteenth century American social movements, and appreciate the complex sources of later science fiction texts.
Learning outcomes
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
-identify major influences on early American science fiction
-explain the relationship between the themes of science fiction texts and nineteenth-century American culture
-analyze how authors' different backgrounds influenced their writing
Syllabus
  • Science and American identity; Utopianism; Race, Gender, and Science; Speculative Fiction and the Civil War; the Industrial Revolution; American Imperialism
Teaching methods
One 2-hour seminar per week, including a class discussion, interpretative reading, and reflective writing.
Assessment methods
Weekly short responses - 20%; class discussion - 10%; in-class presentation - 20%, final paper - 40%.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
Teacher's information
There will be no class on the second week of the semester, September 23.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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