WiSe 13/14: SI: Literatur u. Medien im Kontext des Englischunterrichts: Dysitopias
Anya Heise-von der Lippe
Information for students
Comments
Dystopian texts describe the dismal conditions of life in a fictional, future state, thus contravening utopian visions of an ideal society and warning against the totalitarian dangers that might follow in the wake of grand narratives of utopianism. By projecting cultural trends into the future, dystopian texts speculate about the consequences of contemporary conditions.
Classics of dystopian literature like Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (1932) and George Orwell's 1984 (1949) remain on school curricula because of their critical assessments of contemporary social and political conditions - e.g. the emerging system of industrial mass production and oppressive, totalitarian regimes. Later examples of dystopian literature like Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale (1985) and Cormac McCarthy's The Road (2006) explore the possibilities and dangers of more recent ecological, technological and political developments, focusing on their alienating effects in postmodern society.
This seminar will provide you with an overview of classic dystopian texts and their literary and cultural background as well as a number of critical approaches to these texts, which will enable you to work with them in a classroom context. Individual analyses of a dystopian text of your choice will be due at the end of the semester (official deadlines to be announced). A reader with relevant excerpts will be provided via Blackboard.
Regular attendance, active participation and a short presentation or participation in an expert group are obligatory for all participants. This seminar will be held in English. To participate, your command of the English language should at least be equivalent to level B2 or higher according to the CEF (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages).
close7 Class schedule
Regular appointments
Location:
J 30/109 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
Location:
JK 31/124 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)
Location:
J 30/109 (Habelschwerdter Allee 45)