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During the last decades, scholars within the Humanities and social sciences have shown a growing interest in science fiction literature. Unlike most overview studies concerning science fiction literature, in this course we will treat science-fiction not only as an object of investigation (is it possible to embrace the huge diversity of stories published under the label ‘science fiction’ as a whole? Is it possible to grasp it as just a ‘literature’ or should it be considered as a ‘culture,’ a ‘social movement?’ What is its relation to science?) but also as a field to work with, as a tool to produce new concepts which would help us to better understand our reality.
Throughout the semester, and through the lens of science fiction literature, we will explore a vast range of current and urgent themes on which much research in Humanities and social sciences is focused on, such as the Anthropocene, Feminism, Posthumanism, Postcolonialism, Science, and Technology. For each session, two kinds of readings will be assigned: 1) a text by a scholar (or two) who uses science fiction narratives in her/his theoretical research, and 2) some science-fiction novels that allow to reflect upon a particular theme (animals, gender roles, climate change, etc.) We will observe how this scholar reads the stories, and which place (or function) s/he gives to these stories in her/his work. This method of investigation will enable us to think in two directions: (i) what can we learn about science fiction literature through its usage by scholars coming from different fields of study? (ii) what can we learn about academic research through these practices of reading science fiction stories? What does it mean to read science fiction as a scholar working on the Anthropocene, feminism, postcolonialism? Since one of the aims of this course is also to introduce science fiction to those students who are not familiar with this literary field, we will mostly focus on the classics and the most renowned authors (Karel Čapek, Philip K. Dick, William Gibson, Ursula K. Le Guin, Olaf Stapledon, H. G. Wells), chosen from among different genres of science fiction (Hard Science, Cyberpunk, Space Opera, Climate Fiction), from the 19th century to today. The course also aims to give students the basic tools to undertake their own research on science fiction, be it in Humanities or social sciences. Poslední úprava: Vostruhová Anna, Mgr. (11.02.2020)
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II – Requirements
· Class participation. Students are strongly encouraged to attend all classes. (20 % of the final grade) · One short presentation of the assigned readings (10 minutes) for each student. The presentation should provide a summary of the texts, backed up by a critical analysis. (35 % of the final grade) · Final paper. (50 % of the final grade) Poslední úprava: Vostruhová Anna, Mgr. (11.02.2020)
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III – Proposed Schedule
Week 1: Introduction. Common ‘beliefs’ on the specificity of science fiction literature by its readers and writers
Essays: · Jacques Sadoul, History of Modern Science Fiction (1911-1971), 1973 [1984] · Brian Aldiss, Billion Year Spree (a true history of science fiction), 1975 [1986]
Fiction: · Hannu Rajaniemi, Neurofiction, 2013 [2015; 2017]
Concepts: Sense of wonder; skill; state of mind; neurofiction
Week 2: Literary Studies: Darko Suvin & Richard Saint-Gelais as science fiction readers
Studies: · Darko Suvin, Metamorphoses of Science Fiction, On the Poetics and History of a Literary Genre, 1979 · Richard Saint-Gelais, L’Empire du pseudo. Modernités de la science-fiction, 1999 [excerpts will be translated in English by the TA]
Fiction: · Christopher Priest, Inverted World, 1974. · William Gibson, Neuromancer, 1984.
Concepts: novum; cognitive estrangement; science-fictional reading; science-fictionality
Week 3: Ethnography: Emmanuel Grimaud & Pierre Déléage as science fiction readers
Essays: · Emmanuel Grimaud & Pierre Déléage, Estrangemental, 2019 [Forthcoming] · William James, The Will to Believe, 1896 · Philip K. Dick, The Exegesis, 2011
Fiction: · Philip K. Dick, Ubik, 1969 · Philip K. Dick, Martian Time-slip, 1964
Concepts: reality; description; epistemic doubt; dead hypothesis; living hypothesis
Week 4: Anthropocene I: Anna Tsing & Amitav Ghosh as science-fiction readers
Studies: · Anna Tsing et. al., Less Than One but More Than Many, 2015 · Amitav Ghosh, The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable, 2016
Fiction: · Ursula K. Le Guin, The Word for World is Forest, 1972.
Week 5: Anthropocene II: Chiara Mengozzi as a science fiction reader
Study: · Chiara Mengozzi, The Blind Spot of the Plot: Thinking Beyond Human with Karel Čapek, 2019
Fiction: · Karel Čapek, War with the Newts, 1936
Week 6: Feminism: Donna Haraway as a science-fiction reader
Studies: · Donna Haraway, A cyborg Manifesto, 1985 · Donna Haraway, Primate Visions: Gender, Race, and Nature in the World of Modern Science, 1990
Fictions: · Naomi Mitchison, Memoirs of a Space Woman, 1962 · Ursula K. Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, 1969 · Karen Joy Fowler, What I didn’t see, 2010.
Week 7: Animals & Posthumanism: Erica Fudge & Sherryl Vint as science fiction readers
Studies: · Jacques Derrida, The Animal That Therefore I Am, 2008 · Erica Fudge, Animal, 2002. · Sherryl Vint, Animal Alterity, 2010
Fictions: · H. G. Wells, The Island of Doctor Moreau, 1896 · Olaf Stapledon, Sirius, 1944 · Clifford D. Simak, City, 1952
Week 8: Postcolonialism: Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak as a science fiction reader
Studies: · Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Thinking Academic Freedom in Gendered Post-Coloniality, 1993.
Fictions: · Ursula K. Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness, 1969 · Octavia Butler, Xenogenesis Trilogy, 1984-89
Week 9: Science & Technology I: Astrophysicists as science fiction readers
Studies: · Freeman Dyson, Search for Artificial Stellar Sources of Infrared Radiation, 1960. · Freeman Dyson, Disturbing the Universe, 1979. · Jason T. Wright, The Search for Extraterrestrial Civilization with Large Energy Supplies, 2016. · Arthur C. Clarke, Profiles of the Future, 1962.
Fictions: · Olaf Stapledon, Star Maker, 1937
Week 10: Science & Technology II: Hal Clement & Larry Niven as scientific readers
Essays: · Hal Clement, Whirligig World, 1953 · Larry Niven, Bigger Than Worlds, 1974.
Fictions: · Hal Clement, Mission of Gravity, 1953. · Larry Niven, Ringworld, 1970
Week 11: Translations & World Literature
Study: · Pascale Casanova, The World Republic of Letters, 2007
Fiction: · Ken Liu, Invisible Planets: Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction in Translation, 2016 · Ken Liu, Broken Stars: Contemporary Chinese Science Fiction in Translation, 2019 · Julie Nováková, Dreams from Beyond: Anthology of Czech Speculative Fiction, 2016 · Tarun K. Saint, The Gollancz Book of South Asian Science Fiction, 2019
Week 12: Conclusion: Drawing some elements for a historical perspective on the studies on and with science fiction since the 1970’s Poslední úprava: Vostruhová Anna, Mgr. (11.02.2020)
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