==Assignment 1 - Topic Sign Up Page==
'''Note: Topic sign up has now closed. The final list has been posted on the Moodle website - see Assignment 1 for the list.'''
<s>No more than three people may sign up for one question. Sign up is on a first-come first-served basis. Please put your name in box at the end of the question if you'd like to do that question - unless, of course, three people have already signed up for it! Note that "assigned reading" is one of the major stories from the anthology, and not one of the quick stories I give in class.</s>
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|In “Nightfall” and “The Cold Equations” does the author believe man is superior to nature? Or nature to man?
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|What do “Helen O'Loy” and “Nightfall” say about the role of science in society?
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|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.
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|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.
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|Is science a necessary element of a ''science fiction'' story? Defend your argument using at least two of the assigned readings.
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|What is the author saying about men's expectation of women in “Helen O'Loy” and “His Vegtable Wife”?
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|Is “It's a Good Life” science fiction?
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|Ideas often take precedence over characterization in SF stories. Illustrate this using two of the assigned readings.
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|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.
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|Since SF stories can be set in any place or time, most begin by establishing the setting. Illustrate how this is done in three of the assigned readings.
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|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 Murphy saying about society in “His Vegetable Wife”?
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|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 two of the assigned readings.
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|Is "Helen O'Loy" a sexist story? Be sure to explain any terms you might use, especially the term "sexist".
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|Wiki madness! In lieu of a formal essay, I will allow some people to put together wiki pages on some of the assigned readings. You may '''not''' choose one of the stories that has already been done below. See me for more details. Stories eligible for this include "The Cold Equations" "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" or "Aye, and Gomorrah".
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== Term Test Essay Questions ==