Ms. Gokturk
vgokturk@portnet.org
Ms. G’s
Calendar: www.checkthesite.com or www.surfturk.com
EOW DYS
End of the World
and Dystopian Literature
“Thank you. That was really
eye opening,” a student once said at the end of
this course. Yes! That is the
purpose of this entire course! To open our eyes! To reflect on our world, our
role in the world, to open our eyes to the things we accept as normal and to
the truth and possible future.
what this course is
This
course examines an introductory sampling of “end of the world” and
dystopian speculative literature. Narrated
from a post-apocalyptic setting, end of the world “disaster” literature
forces us to examine how humans find meaning and purpose not only in their individual
lives but also as a society, however small that society is. Dystopian literature, on the other hand,
portrays worlds that have failed miserably in achieving the goal of a social
and political order free of cruelty, corruption and misery. Both genres address the
individual’s role in these big situations. These imaginary worlds have connections
with the real world and present important issues for us to consider. We will search for reoccurring themes in
these disaster and dystopian narratives and study the issues the authors
highlight. As the course progresses, students will identify the important
issues in our world and form their own vision of the “end” or
“dystopia” to serve as a warning for future readers.
and
what it’s not…
This course
is not intended to depress, nor is it intended to provide a fatalistic
excuse to give up. Since the
literature portrays frightening and horrifying imaginary worlds, readers are
forced to acknowledge society’s ills – in order to inspire
awareness and change! Many of
the narratives we will examine reveal mankind’s hope – his need –
to survive, to “do the right thing,” to persevere, to rebuild, and
to be remembered. We must find, create,
and preserve what is beautiful. Everything matters!
core questions
ü
Do you think the world will ever
end? Why or why not? How do you define “the end” in this
context?[1][1]
ü
What is beautiful?
ü
What are the important issues of our
time? What is threatened?
ü
What does it mean to be human? What gives our lives meaning?
ü
How is civilization created,
maintained, and/or destroyed? What
role does the individual play in preserving or destroying the world?
ü
What is our relationship with nature
and animals?
ü
How far is too far? Where do we ascribe
accountability?
some course motifs
- Paradise
/
Paradise Lost
- Utopia? Dystopia!
- Evolution / Devolution
- Time Travel
- Entropy
- Ouroboros [see the snake above]
- Earth Abides / Nature / Animals
- The Mad Scientist
- Cozy Catastrophe
- The Last Man or The Last of
motif
- Perils of Technology
- The End by Pandemic
COURSE MATERIALS:
Novels:
Margaret Atwood’s Oryx
and Crake
George Stewart’s Earth
Abides
HG Wells’ The
Time Machine
Short Works:
Alfred Bester’s “Adam
and No Eve”
Hieronymus Bosch’s “The Garden of Earthly
Delights” (painting)
Ray Bradbury’s “The Last
Night of the World” and “And There Will Come Soft Rains”
TP Caravan’s “Random
Sample”
Harlan Ellison’s “I Have
No Mouth, and I Must Scream”
Philip Jose Farmer’s
“King of Beasts”
Lev Grossman’s “2045:
The Year Man Becomes Immortal”
Gaye Lee’s “A Civilising Influence”
Fritz Leiber’s
“A Pail of Air”
Richard Matheson’s “Born
of Man and Woman”
David Olsson’s
“Id” (2010 EOW DYS)
Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Masque
of the Red Death”
James Thurber’s “The
Last Flower”
Andy Weir’s “The
Egg”
Pamela Zoline’s
“The Heat Death of the Universe”
Media:
2001: A Space Odyssey (clips)
Black Mirror’s “White
Christmas” movie
Delicatessen
Happy
Never Let Me Go
Twelve Monkeys
Man (Steve
Cuts)
The World’s Most Typical
Person (Nat Geo)
7 Billion People
(NPR)
It’s Time to Question
Bio-Engineering (Ted Wolpe
TedTalk)
Honors Option: (please ask me for my
packet)
You will read TWO novels that I assign and complete weekly composition literary analysis
responses to your weekly readings. Annotated
books will be collected. The
project culminates into a 1500 word comparative essay,
connecting the two works to the course. Each assignment is graded; anything
receiving less than a B must be revised immediately. This is a challenging
project.
GRADE
STUFF:
Quizzes (daily reading; 5 questions @ 5 points = 25 points;
lowest dropped)
Homework
& Class work (from 10-25 points)
Participation (@ 5 week mark @ 50 x 2)
Fiction
Writing (50 -100)
Journal
(5-10 points per
entry; 1 page min; notes)
FINAL
PROJECT (100)
What will the workload look like?
Reading Quizzes: After every
night’s assigned reading, you will take a five question / passage
identification quiz to demonstrate that you read actively. TAKE NOTES!
Homework: Primarily
active reading. Sometimes writing.
Class work:
Zones, Character & Journey Maps, Movie Posters, Written Responses, Graphic
Organizers, Poems, etc.
Participation: You
are expected not only to participate in discussion, but also to be attentive
and prepared. Cell phones are a big
no-no and use of a cell phone hurts your class participation grade.
Essays / Projects:
You will write two critical essays analyzing the works we
covered. There is a mid-term essay
and an Oryx and Crake essay. Short
story excerpts, final project short story, building a time machine, etc.