208B W22 Moreno Ojeda

ENGL 208B: Science Fiction 

Winter 2022 - Online

Instructor: Diana Moreno Ojeda, PhD - ABD Class Time: Tuesdays 2:30 pm to 3:50 pm

Office Hours: Thursdays 2:30 pm to 3:50 pm or by appointment

Email: dmorenoo@uwaterloo.ca

Course Overview 

Course Description:

This course will explore the boundaries of Science Fiction as a complex genre with significant social and cultural ramifications, thinking not only about what constitutes a work of Science Fiction but also how and where definitions break down.

We will pay particular attention to the manner in which the genre discusses techno-scientific developments and artifacts and their impact on society. The main aim of this course is to facilitate close readings, analysis, and in-class discussion surrounding:

• Techno-scientific anxiety
• Ethics and responsibility
• Alien encounters approaches to difference
• Embodiment and identity
• Explicit and implicit definitions of learning, intelligence, and humanness
• Posthumanism, Thing Theory,

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Investigate and contextualize various forms (subgenres) of science fiction, understand the suasive maneuvers of the genre and discuss the specific authors who use them.
• Apply critical approaches to reading and understanding science fiction as a cultural product; what influences sci-fi’s key contemporary topics and the philosophical issues sci-fi discusses (including but not limited to robotics, digital life, alien life, cyberspace, identity, and the body.)
• Speak confidently and knowledgeably about the role of imagination in scientific and technological development.
• Conduct effective research and written analyses in the style of academic writing and/or through the development of creative, speculative, or applied projects.
• Engage critical thinking skills in the discussion of the techno-scientific praxis.

Schedule:

Date	Readings
Jan. 11 - Week 1	Syllabus. Hello, why are we here?
Jan. 18 - Week 2	Second Variety, Amnesty, Spider the Artist “A Posthuman-Xenofeminist Analysis of the Discourse of Autonomous Weapons”
Jan. 25 - Week 3	The Things, Mazes, The Machine Stops, “Thing Theory”
Feb. 1 - Week 4	Arrival, “Feminist Theory of Technology”
Feb. 8 - Week 5	The Bicentennial Man, Nine Lives, The Shipmaker, “Intentional Bodies”
Feb. 15 - Week 6	Burning Chrome, Emergence
Feb. 22	Nothing Due: Use your reading week wisely. Go for a walk, call a friend, play video games, take naps.
Mar. 1 - Week 7	The Lifecycle of Software Objects, “The Everyday Life of Artificial Intelligence”
Mar. 8 - Week 8	No Class - Project Presentation and reactions due this week
Mar. 15 - Week 9	No Class - Project Response due this week
Mar. 22 - Week 10	Blade Runner, “Mind in Motion”
Mar. 29 - Week 11	Little Lost Robot, Robot Dreams, Cat Pictures Please, “Transformations of responsibility in the Age of Automation”
Apr. 5 - Week 12	“Why Fiction Might Be Twice as Truth as Fact,” “The Forever War: understanding, science fiction, and thought experiments”
Date	Assignments
Feb. 9	Midterm Assignment
Mar. 9	Project Proposal
Mar. 11	Project Reactions
Mar. 16	Project Response
Apr. 5	Final Project
Apr. 15	Final reflection

Texts:

Any format of the texts listed below is sufficient. If you opt to own the book or the e-book, perfect. All that I ask is that you read (or listen) to the required text each week before coming to class. Many of the contemporary short stories we will discuss are available online, for free. Most texts have been hyperlinked either to an open source repository or to UW library. Some of the critical texts will be made available in the “Bag of goods” section of the course, on LEARN.

Note that "reading" need not be staring at words on a page. There are multiple free reading softwares (like NaturalReader), which allow ebooks and text files to be read to you through your phone or computer, and several audiobook retailers out there. If you're struggling to complete the readings for whatever reason, and you want to get them done, listening to the material is a great strategy to employ.

Textbook

Roberts, Adam – Science Fiction

Object Texts

Asimov, Isaac - The Bicentennial Man, Robot Dreams, Little Lost Robot De Bodard, Aliette - The Shipmaker

Butler, Octavia - Amnesty (refer to “Bag of Goods”) Chiang, Ted - The Lifecycle of Software Objects Dick, Philip K. - Second Variety

Forster, E.M. - The Machine Stops

Gibson, William - Burning Chrome (refer to “Bag of Goods”) Kritzer, Naomi - Cat Pictures Please

Jones, Gwyneth - Emergence Okorafor, Nnedi - Spider, The Artist

Ursula K. Le Guin - Mazes (refer to “Bag of Goods”), Nine Lives Watts, Peter - The Things

Critical Texts (All available through UWLibrary)

“Fear and Loathing of the Imagination in Science”

“A Posthuman-Xenofeminist Analysis of the Discourse of Autonomous Weapons” “Thing Theory”

“Feminist Theory of Technology” “Intentional Bodies”

“Mind in Motion”

“The Everyday Life of Artificial Intelligence” “Transformations of responsibility in the Age of Automation” “Why Fiction Might Be Twice as Truth as Fact”

“The Forever War: understanding, science fiction, and thought experiments”

Reference Texts

The Routledge Companion to Science Fiction The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction The Oxford Handbook of Science Fiction

Academic Integrity:

Members of the University of Waterloo community are expected to both follow and promote principles of honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility. That includes me as much as you; one of the reasons that I spell things out in this much detail in our syllabus is to make our mutual responsibilities as clear as possible. If you think any aspect of my conduct, including teaching, marking, and counseling, is unfairly detrimental to you or the class in general, or inhibits your ability to thrive, you have not only the right but the obligation to let me, the English Department Chair, and/or the Dean of Arts, know about it, whomever you are most comfortable speaking with or you feel is the most appropriate for hearing your views and their reasons.

See the UWaterloo Academic Integrity webpage and the Arts Academic Integrity webpage for more information.

UWaterloo Policies:

Discipline

A student is expected to know what constitutes academic integrity, to avoid committing academic offences, and to take responsibility for his/her actions. A student who is unsure whether an action constitutes an offence, or who needs help in learning how to avoid offences (e.g., plagiarism, cheating) or about “rules” for group work/collaboration should seek guidance from the course professor, academic advisor, or the Undergraduate Associate Dean. When misconduct has been found to have occurred, disciplinary penalties will be imposed under Policy 71 – Student Discipline. For information on categories of offenses and types of penalties, students should refer to Policy 71 - Student Discipline. For typical penalties check Guidelines for the Assessment of Penalties.

Grievance

A student who believes that a decision affecting some aspect of his/her university life has been unfair or unreasonable may have grounds for initiating a grievance. Read Policy 70 - Student Petitions and Grievances, Section 4. When in doubt, please be certain to contact the department’s administrative assistant who will provide further assistance.

Appeals

A decision made or penalty imposed under Policy 70, Student Petitions and Grievances (other than a petition) or Policy 71, Student Discipline may be appealed if there is a ground. A student who believes he/she has a ground for an appeal should refer to Policy 72, Student Appeals.

Course Assessment 

Component	Due	Weight
Weekly Postings	Throughout the term	20%
Midterm Assignment	Due on Feb. 9	20%
Project Pilot		20%
1 Project Presentation	Due on Mar. 9	(8%)
2 Written Reactions	Due on Mar. 11	(4%)
1 Project response	Due on Mar 16	(8%)
Term Project	Due on Apr. 5	30%
Final Reflection	Due on Apr. 16	10%
Total		100%

Weekly Postings 20%

Each week, you will need to post a “status update” or 280-character post on LEARN. Each week will be labelled in the forum. Your post needs to clearly and directly engage with the readings for the week and relate them to something tangible to you; be it relevant resources, recent news, a show you are watching, something you are learning in a different class, etc. The post can take the form of a comment, an opinionated review of the reading(s)’s theme(s), etc. You get the idea. Your posting should go on the LEARN course site by 4:00 PM, EST, on the Friday before class meeting (e.g. January 14 for the class on January 18, January 21 for the class on January 25, etc.)

In order to ensure your continued engagement, points for this section of the course will be assigned as follows:

• Publish 9 posts, you get the full 20%
• Publish 8 posts, you get 17%
• Publish 7 posts, you get 15%
• Publish less than 7 posts, you get 0%

Midterm Assignment 20%

You will write a Critical Analysis for two (2) object texts discussed in class. Your analysis will include:

• A table that outlines: the text’s central argument, its main theme(s), useful keywords.
• A 500-word analysis of the text of your choice in which you will argue why this text is science fiction. Your analysis should succinctly explain how the text conforms to and breaks away from the definitions of science fiction provided in your textbook (Roberts, pp. 7 - 28)
• You need to cite at least 5 sources (which can include course materials but should, also, include at least 1 external source).

Write a 2000-word, well-researched essay, due by the last day of class at midnight (EST). I suggest you choose one of the 3 movies listed below, explore its core argument and the manner in which it develops, and situate it within the larger science fiction context discussed in class. Discuss, for example, what 3 elements make it a science fiction narrative, highlight the commentaries it makes about our relationship with technology or our encounters with the Other, etc. If you would like to propose a different object text for analysis, please, talk to me before working on your Project Proposal (see Project Pilot).

• I, Robot (2004)
• oon (2007)
• Dune (2021)

Word counts are not an especially good measure of when you should stop writing your essay, or how far you should prune back your profusions. Let the subject matter determine the vessel. But if it's under 1500 words, you probably haven't developed enough matter for an appropriate college-level essay.

Bear in mind that your Project Presentation will allow you to test drive and review the ideas you will develop in this project. Therefore, although your thesis and argument can change from the time of the Proposal Presentation to the time of the essay submission, your object text CANNOT change after you submit the proposal.

In many ways, all the rest of the course is a support system for this essay, and everyone else in the class, the professor and your classmates, are resources for the development of your essay. The research and the way you explore, marshal, and extend that research in the writing process, are what defines your understanding of the material we take up. You should start thinking from very early on about which texts, which topics or domains you want to focus on, which subgenre or theory or perspective you might want to develop arguments around and about, and you should start test driving some of those arguments in class, or in discussion with the rest of us outside of class, by email, or by phone.

Project Pilot 20%

Your Project Pilot is the vehicle in which you will test drive your Term Project ideas and gain familiarity with the work of your classmates. It is, intrinsically a collaborative experience.

The Project Pilot has three components: a presentation, worth 8%; two written reactions, worth 2% each; and, a response, worth the other 8% .

1. The conditions of the Project Presentation are as follows:
   • Create a 5 minute video (+- 30 secs.), upload it or embed it on our LEARN forum by the due date (detailed instructions on how to do this will be available after reading week).
   • Make sure to introduce your thesis and discuss your preliminary research (evidence, related analyses, contribution to the field).
   • Do you foresee opposing views? How would you address them?
   • Reading your proposal in front of the camera is a no go. You can take a look at some mnemonic aid, if that makes you comfortable, but this is a live presentation. Talk to us.
   • Use of a powerpoint or other type of visual aid is encouraged.

Grading for the Project Presentation will accord with the following rubric:

• • Clarity and precision: 2.5%
  • Professionalism (satisfying the conditions above): 2.5%
  • Delivery (physical, including use of aids): 2%

2. The conditions of the Written Reactions are as follows:
   • Write a comment on at least two of your classmates' posts reacting to their Project presentation. A class list will be published on the discussion forum showing you what classmates you must reply to, after reading week.
   • Each comment must be around 200 words.
   • Please provide at least one time stamp of what you enjoyed or best understood from your classmates presentation and one time stamp of what you think requires improvement. Explain your thoughts.
3. The conditions of the Project Response are as follows:
   • Create a 5 minute video (+- 30 secs.), upload it or embed it as a comment to your classmate's original video, on our LEARN forum, by the due date. A class list assigning you a classmate to respond to will be published on the discussion forum, after reading week.
   • Address your classmate's thesis: is it clear? Is it making a solid argument? Is it appealing to a general audience?
   • Address the evidence and analysis provided: what is your classmate’s presentation contributing to the class/science fiction field? Do you find the evidence convincing? Is the evidence easy to follow? Are there inaccuracies or errors in your classmate's proposal?
   • Contribute: Provide at least 2 resources that directly address themes/texts in your classmate’s proposal.

Grading for the Project Response will accord with the following rubric:

• • Clarity and precision: 3%
  • Professionalism (satisfying the conditions above): 3%
  • Delivery (physical, including use of aids): 2%

Final Reflection 10%

The idea here is that in 2-pages (double spaced) you reflect on what you have learned in this course. How has your definition of science fiction changed throughout the term?

How will this class affect the way you look at your own work moving forward? In what ways do you find the class materials applicable to your life?

The only condition is, aside from being clear and legible, for you to cite a minimum of 3 critical texts in the development of your reflection. Sit down in front of your laptop for 30 to 60 minutes, and let me know what has been percolating in your head for the past 12 weeks. You can even get started on this assignment early, creating a captain’s log ofsorts, by making sure to take one or two quotes from the weekly readings whenever an idea strikes you as particularly enlightening, intriguing or, even, a bit short-sighted, and explaining in your own words the rationale for your assessment.

Course Policies 

Late Policy:

Please, don't be. If personal concerns, including health issues, prevent you from meeting a deadline, contact me ahead of time to make arrangements; if unforeseen circumstances prevent you from meeting a deadline, contact me when you are able and we can work something out. Please, note that bad planning is not interpretable as personal concerns.

The weekly-postings are completion marks, if you turn any of them in past the deadline, it no longer counts towards your grade.

The term project in particular comes after over three months of work, and plenty of in-course scaffolding to assist with its completion. I realize you have other courses and other assignments, and that not everyone works at the same pace or in the same frame of mind, but there is sufficient time and there are sufficient resources for you to submit the essay on time. If you need more time to edit, send me an email explaining your situation, you will be asked to submit whatever you have ready by the official deadline and if your reason merits an extension you will receive a 48hr extension with no penalties.

The project proposal and project response are integral parts of the development of your term project and that of your classmates. You need to submit these on time, period. It is important for you to figure out what you will be working on and try things out, and you will learn a lot while reviewing someone else’s work, as long as you do it rigorously (comments like “great idea” or “I don’t get it” are meaningless when not followed by a description of how this idea works well and/or what is getting in the way of your understanding).

Note that this class does not have a final exam. I did not want to put pressure on you to produce a fully fledged essay, when you will be under pressure to remember and perform for most of your other courses, but you are still required to submit something. Please do not overthink your final reflection. Look at your notes and be honest. If you are really sleep-deprived and need a few more days, you will receive a 2% penalty, per day late

Communication Policy:

The “Ask Your Instructor” forum, on LEARN, is your best bet for contacting me with any class or assignment questions. When you write, please have a clear subject. Be as specific as you can with your request or question. I will do my best to reply within 24 hrs., except on weekends.

If you decide to email me instead, please understand I have other academic commitments and I receive a lot of emails. Make sure to list the course code at the start of your subject line or it might take me longer to get to you. Expect a reply within the next two business days. Weekends do not count as business days.

If you'd like to meet over a video call, I am available every Thursday from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Microsoft Teams. I would appreciate it if you give me a heads up, letting me know what you would like us to discuss. I might look available at other times, but will probably not be able to answer queries.

Information on Plagiarism Detection:

I expect your essays to cite all material that is not your original work. This means that if you reference a title or drop in a statistic or a quote, you should back it up with an

in-text source and a reference page in MLA format. You do not need to cite in your weekly postings, but be clear about whose ideas you're talking about. Put in the author's name, the pg if there is a pg, and/or insert a link somewhere so someone else can find your information.

Plagiarized work in official assignments will be penalized harshly and an academic integrity charge might be brought against the student, through the English Department. I do not use traditional plagiarism software such as TurnitIn, but I have become very adept at spotting obvious issues and missing citations.

UWaterloo Services for Students (Most Have Been Updated for Online Only-Care):

Writing Help at the UW Writing Centre

The Writing Centre works across all faculties to help students clarify their ideas, develop their voices, and communicate in the style appropriate to their disciplines. Writing Centre staff offer one-on-one support in planning assignments, using and documenting research, organizing papers and reports, designing presentations and e-portfolios, and revising for clarity and coherence. You can make multiple appointments throughout the term, or drop in at the Library for quick questions or feedback. To book a 50-minute appointment and to see drop-in hours, visit http://www.uwaterloo.ca/writing-centre.

Note for Students with Disabilities

The AccessAbility Services office, located on the first floor of the Needles Hall extension (NH 1401), collaborates with all academic departments to arrange appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities without compromising the academic integrity of the curriculum. If you require academic accommodations to lessen the impact of your disability, please register with the AS office at the beginning of each academic term.

Special Note on Mental Health and Wellbeing

If you encounter any issue pertaining to mental health and wellbeing, please feel free to contact me via email to discuss the issue. You may also contact me personally during my regular office hours, or arrange a phone call appointment to discuss the matter. You can be assured that all discussions are strictly confidential, and your privacy will be fully protected.

If you require professional counselling and psychological services, or other forms of mental health programs, please visit the UWaterloo Counselling Services office in Needles Hall North, 2nd Floor, or visit their website.

You can also contact Counselling Services by phone at: 519-888-4567 ext. 32655

Special Note on Basic Needs

Access to the basic needs of life is a crucial aspect of overall wellbeing for any person. Proper nourishment is vital for good physical, cognitive, and mental functioning. If you encounter any trouble accessing such basic needs as food and clean water, please visit the FEDS Office’s Student Food Bank website: