1997-98 COURSE DESCRIPTION

(from the FYS class listing)

To many, science fiction has come to mean Star Wars and/or Star Trek, perhaps even The X-Files. Space Matters aims to change such a perception. We will be reading and watching sci-fi texts and films and ask questions that will widen your (space) horizon. What is your idea of utopia? Dystopia? Do men and women imagine space differently? Are their concerns about earth and space the same? How do they formulate those concerns? What kinds of issues do writers and directors project into their space texts? Does race play a role in space paradigms? And, even, if Star Wars is the answer, what is the question?