ENGL227 - Political Fiction from Plato to the Present

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Academic Year 2002/2003

Political Fiction from Plato to the Present
ENGL 227 FA

Thomas More coined the term "Utopia" in a speculative political fiction that describes an actual ideal society - rather than the merely envisioned ideal in Plato's REPUBLIC. More's ironic, trenchant, and at times elusive criticism of 16th century England became the standard for an increasingly popular literary form. Meaning "No Place", many subsequent Utopias were devised as the blueprints for future ideal worlds that served to both criticize and reform pernicious social norms. We will study the history of this literary form, turning from the early modern Utopias to the "Dystopias," or "Bad Places," which emerged during the disillusionment following the World Wars. These nightmarish visions of future social systems, such as Orwell's 1984 or Atwood's HANDMAID'S TALE, subverted the literary conventions of the earlier utopias, and served as warnings about the future of civilization.

MAJOR READINGS

Plato, THE REPUBLIC
Thomas More, UTOPIA (1516)
William Shakespeare, THE TEMPEST (1611)
Sir Francis Bacon, NEW ATLANTIS (1627)
Andrew Marvell, "The Garden" and other poems
James Harrington, THE COMMONWEALTH OF OCEANA (1656)
Henry Neville, THE ISLE OF PINES (1668)
Jonathan Swift, from GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
Samuel Butler, EREWHON (1872)
Ursula LeGuin, THE DISPOSSESSED
Aldous Huxley, BRAVE NEW WORLD
Margaret Atwood, THE HANDMAID'S TALE

EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS

Two short papers and one longer writing project. Some short written assignments. There will be two short ID examinations.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS

Class attendance and participation is required. Because this is a seminar, each one of us is responsible for contributing to the class. Participation in class means sharing your ideas (by talking) and actively listening to others. Participation is worth 10% of your grade.

This class meets the English Department's pre-1800 requirement.

Unless preregistered students attend the first class meeting or communicate directly with the instructor prior to the first class, they will be dropped from the class list. NOTE: Students must still submit a completed Drop/Add form to the Registrar's Office.

COURSE FORMAT: Seminar

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Level: UGRD Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: HA ENGL Grading Mode: Graded

Prerequisites: NONE

SECTION 01

Instructor(s): Fulton,Thomas C.

Times: .M.W... 02:40PM-04:00PM; Location: DAC300

Reserved Seats: (Total Limit: 19)

SR. major: 7 Jr. major: 7

SR. non-major: 3 Jr. non-major: 1 SO: 1 FR: X

Special Attributes:

Curricular Renewal: Ethical Reasoning

Links to Web Resources For This Course.

Last Updated on MAR-18-2003