Before we begin, I’ve made some changes to our course plan. Here’s the revised course plan. Below I note when and what you need to prepare ahead of class. (Additionally, you can check out the discussion handouts for each week: I’ll make the week folder available ahead of time so you can do that.)
Week 3/4: We’ll discuss Ursula K. Le Guin’s story “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” from several perspectives.
- English and Korean translation texts are available in the Week 3 lesson.
- We will also watch the Twilight Zone adaptation of Tom Godwin’s famous short story “The Cold Equations.” There’s an embedded video in the Week 4 lesson page.
- You don’t need to read “The Cold Equations”, but if you want, here’s a copy.
Week 5: We’ll watch and discuss the original series Star Trek episode “The Trouble with Tribbles”. It’s available on Netflix but you don’t need to watch it ahed of time, as we’ll view it in class.
Week 7: We’ll discuss H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Colour Out of Space” (and more).
- English and Korean translations are linked in the Week 7 lesson.
- Note: There is a recent Nicholas Cage film of the same title. It’s a modernized adaptation, but it’s missing a lot of what makes the story interesting. You can watch it as an extra, but don’t watch it instead of reading the story, or you’ll miss a lot.
Week 9: We’ll be workshopping ideas and topics for your final papers one of our class days this week (so prepare your ideas and be ready to talk about them!) and on the other day we’ll be discussing a short “flash” story by Terry Bisson titled “They’re Made Out of Meat”:
- I’m not aware of a translation of “They’re Made Out of Meat” but here is the original English text. You should read the story before we meet. (It’s very short.)
- Week 9 also contains materials for the story/TV episode “To Serve Man” by Damon Knight, but due to the holiday this week, we’re skipping it. Feel free to check it out on your own.
Week 10: We’ll be discussing the 2020 film Palm Springs. You need to watch it before we meet.
Week 11: We’ll discuss Joanna Russ’s short story “When It Changed.” You need to read it before we meet.
- The English text and Korean translation are available in the Week 11 lesson.
Week 12: We will have a workshop to discuss your ideas for your Final Assessment Task in this class. We’ll also discuss the short film “The Cage,” available on the Week 12 page for this class.
- There is no reading for this class, but preparation is expected for the workshop discussion.
Week 13: We’ll watch and discuss the pilot episode of the 90s TV series The X-Files.
- The entire series is streaming on Disney+, but we’ll watch it in class, so you don’t need to watch it ahead of time.
Week 14: We’ll discuss Ted Chiang’s novella “Story of Your Life” and the film adaptation of it, Arrival (2016). You should read the story and see the movie before we meet.
- The English and Korean translation texts are linked in the Week 14 folder.
- Here’s a link to a listing of some places where you can pay to view the movie.
Week 15: On Day 1, we’ll close out the semester with a brief session of Ben Robbins’ brainstorming game “In This World.” On Day 2, we’ll hold meetings for your final Participation Self-Assessments. Your Final Writing Assessment is due in Week 15, too. (See the LMS for details.)
Week 16: I will be grading your Final Writing Assessment task. We won’t be meeting, but your assessment task being completed by the end of Week 15 will earn you the attendance points for Week 16. .