Science Fiction & Climate Disaster

Catalog description

Explores the genre of Science Fiction from its periodized beginnings in 1950s magazine culture through its extensive cultural influence today in novels, film, TV, conventions, Cosplay, and eSports. The overarching lens is fundamentally political: is the speculative nature of Science Fiction merely escapist, or can it provide for us an early warning signal of impending disasters? Students will analyze dystopian, post-apocalyptic, and disaster focused trends and themes in Science Fiction pertaining especially to climate change and its myriad social, economic, political, and environmental effects.