Short Paper #3: Eyewitness to History

Short Paper #3: Eyewitness to History

INTRO: This is the flip side of Short Paper #2: I want you to imagine that in the future, things really work out and we solve a lot of our ‘dystopian’ problems. Your children—or your children’s children—live in a very different world than we do, and the problems of the early 21^st century now seem remote and almost impossible. However, you were there—you remember this. So I want you to act as an eyewitness and explain to these later generations what the world was like when you were just starting college.

ASSIGNMENT: For this paper, you don’t have to do much writing (not yet, anyway). Instead, I want you to identify ONE specific problem or issue we’re dealing with today that you hope will be conquered in 50 years. It could be anything from student loans, environmental issues, racial unrest, health issues, political parties, etc. In just 1-2 pages, I want you to briefly introduce this issue to someone who doesn’t understand it (the later generations) and explain why it was such a big problem. You don’t have to explain all the complexities of the issue yet—just introduce it to someone who has never heard of it, so they can appreciate why it matters and why we needed to solve it.

SOURCES: The biggest part of this assignment is SOURCES: I want you to include an ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY of 5-6 sources that you would offer as “recommended reading” to your audience. At least TWO of these sources can be stories from class, since the stories all use metaphors and science fiction/fantasy to help examine various aspects of our world. THREE (or more) sources should be journal articles, relevant websites, books, You Tube videos, etc. You’ll list each sources just as you would in a Works Cited page, but after each source, you’ll provide a few sentences summarizing the main points/ideas of the source for your audience. This way, they’ll know how the source is relevant and what they should look for as they read/examine it.

FOR EXAMPLE:

Strauss, Valerie. “A University of Wisconsin campus pushes plan to drop 13

majors.” The Washington Post. 12  March 2018. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news.  Accessed 29 March 2018.

This article discusses the university’s argument for making a very controversial decision—scrapping most humanities majors in favor of more “lucrative” or “hands-on” career fields. Even though many claim this goes against the very fabric of what a university stands for (character building rather than mere job creation), the university feels that this will better meet “the state’s workforce needs.” The article also explains that this is part of a trend in Wisconsin politics which has tried to undermine a liberal arts education under Governor Scott Walker’s leadership.

SHORT PAPER #3 IS DUE FRIDAY, APRIL 12^th by 5pm [no class that day]

For Wednesday: Finish The Martian Chronicles (see below)

For next class, read the following stories that finish the book:

* "The Long Years"
* "There Will Come Soft Rain"
* "The Million-Year Picnic"

We'll  have an in-class response for the entire class when you arrive based on some idea/passage from these chapters, so be sure to read so  you won't be taken by surprise. We'll also discuss the paper assignment a bit more and how to find appropriate sources. 

See you then! 

For Monday: Bradbury. The Martian Chronicles (see below)

STORIES: “The Old Ones,” “The Martian,” “The Luggage Store,” “The Off Season,” “The Watchers,” and “The Silent Towns”

Group B/F should answer TWO of the following:

Q1: In the story, “The Silent Towns,” Walter Gripp is one of the only men left on Mars and is desperately lonely. By the end of the story, he runs away from the only other woman and never answers the phone again. What made him swear off human contact forever? Just that she was unattractive? Or does this story say something else about the illusion of human companionship?

Q2: In “The Luggage Store,” Father Peregrine explains how their relationship with Earth has changed: “Well, that’s how it is now. Earth is China.” What does he mean by this? How does this story also explain what it would mean to become a ‘Martian’ for the first generation of settlers?

Q3: When questioning his “son” in the story, “The Martian,” the father is told, “You don’t question Providence. If you can’t have the reality, a dream is just as good.” Does the story seem to support this? Is a dream—or an illusion—as good as the real thing as long as enough people believe in it? How might this relate to the settling of Mars itself?

Q4: How might Sam Parkhill, the main character in the story, “The Off Season,” represent the very reason that Earth is blowing itself to pieces in the night sky? Why is he so paranoid about the Martians? And what is his general attitude towards the new world he’s settled with his dreams?

For Monday: Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles (see below)

Stories: “The Shore,” “Interim,” “The Musicians,” "The Way in the Middle of the Air," “The Naming of Names,” “Usher II”

NOTE: “Way in the Middle of the Air” is a story explicitly about race in the 40’s/50’s, and uses some harsh racial language. Be warned!

Q1: In “Usher II,” he alludes to the Great Burning of 1975, where most imaginative literature (such as Poe’s stories) were burned throughout the world. Why did this occur? What were people trying to accomplish? How might this reflect political fears of the 1950’s—or even of our own time?

Q2: “The Musicians” is a very controversial story, and like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, is often censored by schools and libraries (especially as it contains the “N” word). Do you think its message is still relevant despite the objectionable language? Or is it no longer safe or appropriate to read such stories?

Q3: When the teenage boy, Silly, is finally escaping the town, he calls back to his former boss, Mr. Teece, and says, “What you goin’ to do nights, Mr. Teece?” What does he mean by this? And why does the question (and its answer) both anger and terrify Mr. Teece?

Q4: In “The Shore,” the narrator notes that “The second men should have traveled from other countries with other accents and other ideas. But the rockets were American and the men were American and it stayed that way…And they came from cabbage tenements and subways.” Why do you think Bradbury makes Mars exclusively American in these stories? If Mars is made not in Earth’s image, but in America’s image, what does that allow him to do (or show) in these stories? In other words, if Mars is a metaphor for America, what does that metaphor look like?

For Wednesday: Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles (see readings below)

Read the next 5 Chapters: “And the Moon Be Still as Bright,” “The Settlers,” “The Green Morning,” “The Locusts,” and “Night Meeting”

GROUP B/F should answer TWO of the following:

Q1: What does Spender mean when, in the story, “And the Moon…” he claims, “I believe in the things that were done, and there are evidences of many things done on Mars…Everywhere I look I see things that were used. They were touched and handled for centuries.” Also, why does this prompt him to kill his companions? What don’t they see about the landscape that he does?

Q2: In a passage (in the same story), Spender seems to critique his own society back home by stating, “[Art] is always a thing apart for Americans. Art was something you kept in the crazy son’s room upstairs. Art was something you took in Sunday doses, mixed with religion, perhaps. Well, these Martians have art and religion and everything.” How is he criticizing America’s relationship with art? What are they doing “wrong” in his view? Do we have the same problem today, do you think?

Q3: In the story “Night Meeting,” an old man tells the main character, Thomas, that “We’ve got to forget Earth and how things were. We’ve got to look at what we’ve in here, and how different it is.” Why might it be potentially dangerous to import Earth and its customs to Mars? What could this prevent us from seeing or doing?

Q4: According to the story “The Green Morning,” why are trees a fundamental part of our experience of Earth? Why couldn’t we exist without trees on another planet? What have trees provided for us besides oxygen throughout our history on this planet?

Short Paper #2: The Trappings of Earth

“I think I’d rearrange the civilization on Mars so it resembled Earth more and more each day. If there was any way of reproducing every plant, every road, and every lake, and even an ocean, I’d do so. Then by some vast crowd hypnosis I’d convince everyone in a town this size that this really was Earth, not Mars at all” (“The Third Expedition”).

For your second short paper, I want you to imagine that you’re in charge of establishing an Earth-2 on another planet. While you don’t have to worry about the realities of living there (the scientists took care of that), you have to figure out how to convince people that this is their new home which can look and feel almost like Earth. Ideally, within a few years, they will think that this is Earth, or at least an acceptable substitute for it.  

Based on some of the ideas from The Martian Chronicles, discuss one aspect of culture you would immediately re-establish on the new planet. For example, you might want to immediately create schools on the new planet, so everyone could still attain the same level of education; or you might build fast food restaurants, so that everyone could remember what it’s like to eat hamburgers and milkshakes while their kids play on the slide. Think about your own life and consider the one thing you did growing up that is most essential to your experience on Earth, and explain why this would be essential on the new planet as well.

SHOW us why it was so important to you, and why it might help preserve a sense of sanity and normalcy among pioneers of a new planet. ALSO, explain how you might preserve or modify some specific aspect of it—for example, maybe you want fast food places to occasionally mess up your order, since that was an important part of the experience? Or schools that still have mean principals to give the students something to bond over?

Be sure to QUOTE from the book for support; show that you’re both having a conversation about culture that uses science fiction as a framework (and don’t use the quote I included at the top of this assignment!).

REQUIREMENTS

• 2-3 pages, double spaced
• At least one quote from the book, enough to show you responding to some idea in the book (not a random quote, but one you engage with)
• Due Friday, March 29^th in class [note: we do have class that day—bring your paper with you]

For Friday: Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, “The Taxpayer” and “The Third Expedition”

Group “SF/A” should answer TWO of the following:

Q1: According to “The Taxpayer,” what’s wrong with Earth? Why does he want to flee to Mars so badly? Does this explain why there have been so many expeditions to Mars in such a short period of time (1999-2000)?

Q2: When the Third Expedition discovers the Earth-like city on Mars, one exclaims, “we’re looking upon a phenomenon that, for the first time, would absolutely prove the existence of God, sir.” What does he mean by this? Why would an Earth-like civilization prove that God exists (and do you agree)?

Q3: The Expedition offers a number of theories for the existence of an early-1900s town in the middle of Mars: why do all of them insist that the inhabitants must be insane or hallucinating? What does this remind us of in the previous chapters?

Q4: When Hinkston asks Lustig’s grandmother if this is heaven, she responds “Nonsense, no. It’s a world and we get a second chance. Nobody told us why. But then nobody told us why we were on Earth, either.” Even though this seems to be a set-up, what might the grandmother’s words suggest about our own life on Earth? Why might this lie (if you believe it’s a lie) contain a bit of truth?

For Wednesday: Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles, pp.1-39

Read the following chapters for class:

• Rocket Summer
• Ylla
• The Summer Night
• The Earth Men

Group “B” or “F” should answer TWO of the following:

Q1: Why is Mr. K so antagonistic about his wife’s dreams about strange men from the “third planet”? What does he think these dreams mean? Or, why is she so excited about the prospect that these dreams are real?

Q2: As we discussed in class, The Martian Chronicles was written in the late 40’s and published in 1950. Like many science fiction writers, Bradbury liked to use metaphors of the future, aliens, space travel, etc. to examine his own culture. Where do you see him doing this? Discuss a short passage where he seems to be talking more about 1950’s earth than the culture of another planet.

Q3: What is strange about how the Martians react to “The Earth Men” in Chapter Four? Why aren’t they excited to see them and learn about a foreign culture? Also, why do all of them wear masks, which they change depending on their mood or surroundings (like the little girl who puts on an “expressionless mask” when interrogated by the astronaut)?

Q4: When the Earth Men try to convince the psychologist, Mr.Xxx that the spaceship is real, he responds, “May I congratulate you? You are a psychotic genius!...Your insanity is beautifully complete!” Why can’t he believe that the ship, and the astronauts, are actually real? Does he ever waver in this belief (and if so, why)?

Conference Schedule for March 4-8

The conference times we signed up for in class are below. If you didn't sign up for a time, feel free to come in any of the blank times (or e-mail me for a time). If you miss your conference, it's equivalent to skipping three classes, which will put you over (or dangerously close to) the maximum number of absences without penalty. So please come! 

We're meeting in my office, HM 348. The meetings shouldn't take very long, but I want at least ten minutes just in case. E-mail me with any questions or if you need to reschedule. 

MONDAY
11: Daniel
11:10 Kentaaj
11:20 Mandi
11:30 Hannah
11:40 Isabel
11:50 Timothy

1:00 Nichole
1:10 Rven
1:20 Lydia
1:30 JJ
1:40 Rylee
1:50 Tinia 

WEDNESDAY
11:00 Benjamin
11:10 Cody
11:20 Emily
11:30 Arren
11:40 Wyatt
11:50 George

1:00 Sebastian
1:10 Angela
1:20 Jamie
1:30 Michael
1:40 Austin
1:50 Zachery

2:00 Jaren
2:10 Brook
2:20 Danielle
2:30 OPEN 

THURSDAY
10 to 10:30 OPEN
10:40 Faith

11:00 to 11:50 OPEN

1:00 Lily 
1:10 to 1:50 OPEN

FRIDAY
11:00 Tarah
11:10 John
11:20 Destin
11:30 McKenzie
11:40 Shelby
11:50 Kaylee

1:00 Kealan
1:10 Dalton
1:20 Sandro
1:30 Klayten
1:40 Nathan
1:50 Wyatt

For Friday: Buckell, “Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance”

Group “A/SF” should answer two of the following:

Q1: When Armand, the CEO, first calls the narrator “robot,” it replies, “Robot. That was a Formist word. I never liked it” (326). Why does it take “robot” as an insult, and what does it mean by “Formist”? Why does the CEO look down on someone like the narrator?

Q2: When they arrive at the narrator’s cubby, the CEO is amazed that he collects things, saying “You collect nonessential mass?” (328). Why is he surprised that the narrator collects “mementos” of his travels? Isn’t this a normal thing for most travelers/tourists to do? What makes it so strange in the future?

Q3: When the narrator goes to the temple, the Holy of Holies tells it to “engage in passive resistance…You will be like a genie, granting Armand’s wishes” (336). What do you think passive resistance means, and why can’t the narrator actively resist Armand? Why is an indirect route essential—and perhaps, more effective?

Q4: In the end, the narrator gives up its entire identity to help the CEO: “Everything I had ever worked for disappeared in a wet, slimy gulp. My reason. My purpose” (337). Why would it abandon its identity simply to follow orders? What does it gain in return? Simply a sense of being a ‘good’ robot? Or something else?

For Monday: Rustad, “Brightened Star, Ascending Dawn” (pp.100-113)

Group B/F should answer TWO of the following:

Q1: Pronouns are interesting in this story: the ship refers to itself as “she,” the android on board is always “zir,” and the stowaway, Li Sin, is “they.” Why does only the ship get a specific gender, while the other two are either indeterminate or something alien? What might this say about how the ship views other beings in relation to itself?

Q2: At one point, the narrator reflects that “The ship is perfect obedience and nothing more” (106). What does the ship understand about its identity and how is this identity questioned in the story? Where is the first time the ship questions what it’s been told to think about itself?

Q3: Why does the ship agree to take the “ghost” (Li Sin) under her protection, but allows the refugees from Aes August to be destroyed? Technically, protocol should have her deny sanctuary to anyone not decreed by the Sun Lords. What makes Li Sun worth defying its programming?

Q4: In this story, the ship and the android quickly begin showing signs of humanity, though neither one is technically human. Though some might deny that a robot could even be human, according to this story, what makes something ‘human’? What trait or clue does each one exhibit to show that they’re more than circuits and protocols?