| Course Title: Another World Is Possible: Writing Utopias |
| Start Date: 09/04/2019 End Date: 12/17/2019 |
| Term: Fall Semester 2019 |
| Description: How and why do narrative artists envision whole new worlds? What is the role of fantasy in social change? How can we make art about social change in the middle of a global crisis? In this course we will investigate contemporary utopian fictions and their historical antecedents as models for our own utopian writing. We will encounter novels and films from various lineages, including Afrofuturist, anarchist, critical utopian, ecotopian, and feminist. Authors we may read include Sir Thomas More, Ursula K. Le Guin, Samuel R. Delany, Ernest Callenbach, Octavia E. Butler, Walidah Imarisha, Carolina De Robertis, and Margaret Kiljoy. Interdisciplinary research and collaboration will make up a substantial portion of the work of the course. |
| Distribution(s): I - Humanities , WI - Writing-Intensive |
| Academic Level Of Course: Undergraduate | Credits:4.00 |
| Faculty | Phone | Email address |
| Andrea Lawlor | alawlor@mtholyoke.edu |
| Meeting Dates | Method | Meeting days | Meeting times | Building name | Room | Frequency |
| 09/04/2019 - 12/17/2019 | Seminar | Wednesday | 01:30PM - 04:20PM | SHTK - Shattuck Hall | 217 | Weekly |
| Requisite Courses | ||
| Prereq: 4 credits in creative writing and either 4 additional credits in English or 4 credits in Gender Studies, Critical Race and Political Economy, Africana Studies, Critical Social Thought, Latina/o Studies, or Environmental Studies. | Take previously | Required |
| Comments |
| Additional Comments |
| This course is in conversation with ENGL-366 Love, Sex, and Death in the Anthropocene, or Living Through the Age of Climate Change and Other Disasters. |
| Course Tags |
| Cross-listed Sections |
| None |
| Course Availability | ||||
| Section status: Closed | Capacity: 15 | Enrollment: 16 | Available: 0 | Waitlist: 0 |
BOOK INFORMATION
| Book List | Required | Publisher Full Price |
| Title: The Dispossessed Author: Le Guin, Ursula K. Copyright: 1975 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 9780061054884 Publisher: Harper |
Required | 7.99 |
| Title: parable of the sower Author: butler, octavia Copyright: 2000 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 0446675504 Publisher: grand central |
Required | 10.00 |
| Title: Wonderbook Author: VanderMeer, Jeff Copyright: 2013 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 9781419704420 Publisher: Harry N. Abrams |
Required | 24.95 |
| Title: Utopia Author: More, Thomas Copyright: Edition: Volume: ISBN: 0486295834 Publisher: Dover |
Optional | 2.50 |
| Title: The Just City Author: Walton, Jo Copyright: 2015 Edition: Volume: ISBN: 9780765332660 Publisher: Tor |
Required | 26.99 |
| Additional Book Comments |
| This is NOT the complete book list for this class. |
| Copies are on order at Odyssey Bookshop in South Hadley |
| Instructor's comments about the book list: I encourage you to purchase these (and all) required course texts from the Odyssey (a locally-owned independent bookstore) when possible. Writers need to be aware of the economic ramifications of ordering books from Amazon. See this article for more information and resources: http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119769/amazons-monopoly-must-be-bro ken-radical-plan-tech-giant But of course we writers also have our own economic contingencies. All required texts for the course are on 3 hour reserve at the library. If you need additional help, contact me privately about alternate arrangements--I sometimes have a spare copy. Please note: I may add one or two more titles once I have more information about visitors and the needs of this particular course. |