Course details
Name: ENLT - 578
Title: SCIENCE FICTION
Section: 01
Semester: Fall - 2024
Credits: 3
Description:
After federal suspect Jeffrey Epstein died in his cell at NYC’s Metropolitan Correction Center in 2019, the New York Times reported on his connection to leading scientists. Charged with sex trafficking minors, Epstein had also planned to impregnate up to 20 women at a time at his ranch in New Mexico and financed the World Transhumanist Association, now known as Humanity+. Transhumanists believe that technology will transform some humans into superior, immortal beings. The belief that science may make people superhuman has a long prehistory that coincides with the eugenics movement. Once repudiated as ableist and racist, eugenics has reemerged under the term liberal eugenics, which touts the possibility of longevity (even immortality) and curing human ailments.
In ENLT 578: Science Fiction, we will read and reflect on authors who complicate liberal transhumanism’s narrative of scientific progress. Octavia Butler’s short novel "Dawn" (1987) tells the story of an alien race that makes genetic trades with new worlds, forming symbiotic relationships that transform both species. Kazuo Ishiguro’s recent novel "Klara and the Sun" (2021) takes place in a dystopian future where children are genetically modified (with potentially debilitating side effects) or ostracized from mainstream society. We will pair these texts with some literary forebears: Mary Shelley’s "Frankenstein" (1818) and E.T.A. Hoffmann’s "The Sandman." Readings may also include short stories by N.K. Jemisin, Philip K. Dick, and James Tiptree, Jr. (Alice Bradley Sheldon) and non-fiction texts by Sigmund Freud, Masahiro Mori, and Alan Turing.
These texts allow us to question: How should we feel about a future where humans can be created and gestated outside the womb? How might producing designer children impact equality and social justice in society? Genetic editing of embryos is already happening, and nurturing human fetuses outside the uterus may soon become possible. In 2021, scientists reported growing mouse embryos in rotating glass vials; their results were nearly identical to mice produced in-utero. The graduate version of this course invites students to engage in interdisciplinary research projects that tackle these and other pressing questions. This course will also meet synchronously online, likely via InSpace.
Last updated on 2024-03-04 By
Nielsen Wendy (nielsenw)
Schedule: Tuesday From 5:30 pm To 8:00 pm
Graduation requirements:
- Any Literature (1e)
- Post-1900 (1d)
- Women and Gender Studies (3c)
- Class Issues (3d)
- Graduate (BA/MA)
Teaching Faculty: Nielsen Wendy (nielsenw)
Is course canceled: No