Your essay must be at 750-1500 words, You must support your argument by citing passages from the assigned readings. These are the readings listed on the web site, not the shorter stories I pass out in class. Papers must be word-processed, appropriately formatted (pages numbered, etc) and contain appropriate citations (footnotes or endnotes) and a bibliography. You may also cite additional works including other stories or criticism, as long as the criticism comes from a scholarly journal – I'm willing to accept factual information from Wikipedia (though not someone's opinion stuck in Wikipedia!). I'm also happy to talk to you about your papers beforehand if you want to see if you're on the right track....
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- In “Nightfall” and “The Cold Equations” does the author believe man is superior to nature? Or nature to man?
- What do “Flowers for Algernon” and “Nightfall” say about the role of science in society?
- Several of the assigned readings we looked at were considered to be “ground-breaking”. Pick two stories and explain how they broke new ground in SF.
- How has SF grown and matured as a literary genre? Use two of the assigned readings to illustrate the growth – you may also refer to works that preceded the ones you are talking about to illustrate the growth.
- Is science a necessary element of a science fiction story? Defend your argument using at least two of the assigned readings.
- What is the author saying about men's expectation of women in “Helen O'Loy” and “The Perfect Woman”?
- Why did the author choose the narrator he did in “Helen O'Loy” and “Flowers for Algernon”?
- Ideas often take precedence over characterization in SF stories. Illustrate this using two of the assigned readings.
- SF stories often turn things around so that we see them in a new way. Describe how this technique is used in two of the assigned readings.
- Since SF stories can be set in any place or time, most begin by establishing the setting. Illustrate how this is done in four of the assigned readings.
- By setting stories on other planets or using other races, the author is often holding a mirror up to our society or to human psychology. What is Asimov saying about us in “Nightfall”?
- Science fiction stories often have to deliver a lot of information to the reader, but don't want to deliver it in a tedious way (i.e. as a dry lecture). Describe and illustrate the techniques used to do this in four of the assigned readings.