TEXTS AND FILMS:

Texts: Plato from Book V The Rebublic More, Thomas Utopia Swift, Jonathan Gulliver's Travels Gilman, Charlotte Herland Huxley, Aldous Brave New World LeGuin, Ursula K. The Dispossessed LeGuin, Ursula K. "The Day before the Revolution" Piercy, Marge Woman at the Edge of Time

Films: Fahrenheit 451 A Man for All Seasons The City Metropolis The Wall 1984 Logan's Run The Handmaids Tale

Goals This course is in Liberal Education Category IVA - Literary and Artistic Expression: Analysis and Criticism. Liberal education courses are intended to add breadth to your education. HmCl 3230 deals with human dreams of perfection and nightmares of social control, their historical and cultural context, and their influence on contemporary thought and behavior. Specific liberal education objectives are to: (a) encourage you to think critically about these significant ideas; (b) provide experience in the analytic methods of interpretation and criticism; (c) provide an awareness of historical intellectual traditions; and (d) introduce you to knowledge important for an active and socially responsible citizen.

The course is designed to acquaint you with utopian and dystopian images of society primarily in literature, but also in film. The course will approach the study of sample utopias and dystopias historically, though we will begin our discussions with a recent dystopia probably already familiar to you, Fahrenheit 451. We will then look backward to Plato's Republic and Thomas More's Utopia and move forward through history to analyze how humankind's conceptions of ideal societies have changed in conjunction with technological advancement and "natural" social reform.

Structure:

Class sessions will alternate between lecture discussions on assigned text nd workshop sessions. During workshop sessions quizzes on assigned readings will be given and after quizzes are completed students will participate in small group and/or class discussions. Attendance at discussion sessions is mandatory.

Grading:

The six quizzes in the course are 15 point true false quizzes, corrected for guess and with the opportunity to write responses to confusing questions. Required posts are scored according to a general rule of thumb which is 15 points for an A post, 10 points for a B, and 5 points for a C. There is, however, no upper limit for the number of points earned on a post or on the number of posts that students may submit. Posts are not limited to written work or analytic essay formats. Students may choose the form of their posts. Oral presentations, poetry, musical performance and works of art are acceptable. Whenever possible the product should be posted on the Utopias Forum.

In addition students will write a final exam which will involve synthesizing course materials and ideas. If students earn 240 quiz/commentary points will be excused from the final exam.

YOUR FINAL EXAM WILL BE DUE WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, BY 12:00 P.M.

A modified contract grading system will be used in determining the grades for this course.

Essentially, students will have to earn specified numbers of quiz/commentary to qualify for "A," "B", or "C" grades. In computing the final grade quiz/commentary points will be weighted equally with points earned on the take home final examination, making the cutoffs for grades:

In order to qualify for an "A" students must earn a minimum of:

120 quiz/commentary points.

In order to qualify for a "B" students must earn a minimum of:

100 quiz/commentary points.

In order to qualify for a "C" students must earn a minimum of:

80 quiz/commentary points.

In addition to taking the quizzes, students must submit to each other and me 300 word posts on any course discussions, materials read, or videos seen as part of the course. These reactions must be posted on the Utopias Forum. Points earned on such commentaries will be added to points earned on the quizzes.

All students must complete all six scheduled quizzes with a total of 54 points to qualify for an A; five of six with a total of 40 points to qualify for a B: or four of six with a total of 28 points to qualify for a C. Students seeking an A must submit at least five (5) posts. Those contracting for a B must submit four (4) posts. Those contracting for a C must submit three (3) posts. There is no limit on the number of posts students can make.

Students with any disability, either permanent or temporary, which might affect their ability to perform in this class should inform the instructor at the start of the quarter. Adaptation of methods, materials or testing will be made as required to provide for equitable participation.