Science Fiction and Cultural Studies

2004-01-27T13:30:00.000-08:00

1.27.04: the final class

I cannot believe this class is over. Done. No more. I can't believe how three weeks changed the way I look at SF and its implications. I've read some great works (as well as a few stinkers), but even those taught me some things about SF and the world we live in. What I have learned in this class will stay with me forever, and I will look at the world always as an ever-changing place, and that the future is always coming. I just have to ask "what if...?"

2004-01-23T13:03:00.000-08:00

1.23.04

Our short story is done. I think it turned out very well, and we all contributed to it. I think we'll shock a few with it, and I look forward to it. I guess it's now just a matter of getting the ol' web project done, but taht won't be that hard. I already know what I'm going to write about, and how I'm going to do it. It's just a matter of actually typing iot and putting it into Dreamweaver. I'm glad I get a chance to do something academic with my favorite video game of all time. I still can't believe after the weekend we will have 2 more class periods and be done. I can't believe how fast winter term went, and how much I have learned.

2004-01-22T13:10:00.000-08:00

1.22.04

Wow. That's all I can say after watching Trekkies. I've known Star Trek fans throughout my life, but never the calibur that I saw in this documentary. I can honestly say I didn't think Star Trek obsessions could be that strong. It was amazing how seriously fans took Star Trek, and still do today. I did see some of the more serious points of Star Trek, and if it eases someone's pain, changes someone's perspective on life for the better, or saves someone's life, then it is a good thing. I have no problem with that, and commend Star Trek for the power it holds. However, the dangerously obsessed fans are those that need a good slap in the face and a "hey, get a life!!!" I can't believe that this class is almost over. It's gone by really fast, and I've learned so much. We get to share our short stories soon with the class, and we've made great progress on it so far.

2004-01-21T12:44:00.000-08:00

1.21.04

Thank God Neuromancer is over. Such a confusing book. I really don't know if it's a book I would have liked under different circumstances of reading or not, but I know that I am not a huge fan. I did enjoy The Matrix discussions in class today. I really enjoyed talking about my feelings and thinking of new ideas that were within the film, as well as hearing other's interpretations of the film. This movie has so many interpretations, and I think it's always fun to talk about them. I hope the Gibson story we read tonight is better than his book.

2004-01-20T13:23:00.000-08:00

1.20.04

Today we watched The Matrixfor the umpteenth time, but this time I saw it in a new light. Light last winter term where I saw the religious aspects of this film, I was able to see the SF, cyberpunk, and cultural aspects of the film. I never really thought about it, but the movie does have a cultural significance, and is a perfect example of cyberpunk. THe response should be easy, since the amount of information available to write on for this movie is immense. In terms of otehr cyberpunk for this class, I'm still not too taken with Neuromancer. The style and story are jsut very confusing. The parts I understand are pretty good, but for the most part, I'm left going "what?" I guess the meat of our short stroy will soon be written as well.

2004-01-16T12:23:00.000-08:00

I believe our short story is going to be utterly amazing. I don't really want to reveal what its about on here for ceratin reasons, but rest assured, it will be amazing. I'm looking forward to getting started on it. I started Neuromancer today, and right now I'm not too impressed, especially after the hype it's gotten. But I have to continue to read. Sometimes books will catch you a ways in. Looks like a weekend of SF for us!

2004-01-15T13:28:00.000-08:00

Men in Black is a great SF movie that brings up many topics on race. I didn't really think about it until I saw it again and started taking this class. Anyway, it was much better than the short stroy we read last night, "Identifying the Object." Wow. I didn't think writing could be that bad! It was amazing how horrible the stroy was. It made no sense whatsoever. "The Exile," however, was not bad, and I rather enjoyed it. We're about to start our short stories, and I'm really looking forward to it. I can't wait going on that.

2004-01-14T12:50:00.000-08:00

Class 7: 1.14.04

Today was a heavy discussion day. We talked about feminism and sexuality in SF. The chapter we read on the subject last night was ok, but was not the most interesting thing. The short story, Boobs, wasn't my favorite, mainly because it was not, in my opinion, science fiction. I felt it was more horror or fantasy, since there was no explanation why the girl turned into a wolf. The story did, however, bring up some interesting topics for discussion and even a little debate among the class. I have found a wealth of websites that cover the topics I want to discuss in my web project, which I'm looking forward to getting fully geared up for and getting the bulk of written. The group short story is also coming up. Eric, Chris, Scott, and I want to work together, and if we do, I think we'll create on hell of a story.

2004-01-13T13:21:00.000-08:00

Day 6: 1.13.04

Though I'm not a Star Trek fan, First Conctact was a very good movie. I enjoyed it greatly and thought it was very thought-provoking. Reflection will be easy, as the film was surprisingly deep and had healthy amounts of symbolism. Last night's short stories were most definitely not my favorote stories, especially "The Ship Who Could Sing." I hope tonight's reading will interest me more. Research for the project is going fairly well, just a matter of getting a few more things researched and putting it all together.

2004-01-12T13:14:00.000-08:00

Class 5: 1.12.04

I loved "Ender's Game" and "Blood Music" from this weekend. They were amazing short stories that provided excellent fodder for class discussion. I loved expressing my thoughts, and some other new thoughts were brought up that I didn't even think about. That's what I like about this class: as much as I analyze something, someone else comes up with a totally different interpretation than I did. The basics of my website are ready to go, and I think it will be very cool. I believe I'm covering 4 SF areas in Chrono Trigger: Time Travel, A.I., Evolution (in a SF manner), and Post-Apocalypticism. I also can't wait to get started on the short stories. Lots to look forward to!

2004-01-09T13:09:00.000-08:00

Day 4: 1.9.04

Blade Runner is a great movie. I forgot how good it was. At first I was surprised at how many people DIDN'T like the movie, but then I forgot how Hollywood has bred a new generation of movie viewers that tire easily if there aren't explosions, nudity, and action every 5 seconds. It almost makes me mad. A slow movie isn't always a bad movie, and this is a perfect example. Let your imagination work, don't fall victim to movies that always give you everything outright. That's no fun at all. The symbolism in the movie is immense, and is open to so much interpretation. I hope others will take my advice and give this wonderful film a second chance if they didn't like it.

2004-01-08T13:00:00.000-08:00

Day 3: 1.8.04

The discussions in class today were very interesting. The most compelling, I believe, was the full class discussion on the article, which i thought, ironically, was the most boring of the readings last night. The stories last night were very intriguing, my favorite being the Bradbury story, but then again, I've read that story several times before and am a huge Bradbury fan. I'm excited we're watching Blade Runner tomorrow. It's truly a great movie. I think I will definitely be doing my web project on Chrono Trigger, since it is a truly amazing game with some very interesting SF themes and elements. I'm looking online to see what I can find about the various aspects of SF, then relating them to the game. I've found plenty on time travel and A.I. I'm still looking for the other aspects I want to cover. We shall see...

2004-01-07T12:44:00.000-08:00

Class 2: 1.7.04

Today was an interesting class period. I enjoyed working with Scott, Chris, Eric, and Bill, discussing the readings from last night and our thoughts on them. There were some very interesting ideas proposed, and brought forth some other ideas within me as well. Though I initially was not intrigued by either story, though Shelley's story more than Poe's, some new ideas and light shed on the subject opened up a new world of possibilities to the stories and their being the basis, the precursors, to science fiction. I'm still unsure of a topic, but am leaning toward using Chrono Trigger as a basis for my project. Either strictly talking about time travel, or talking about the vasrious aspects of science fiction within the game, such as time travel (obviously), artificial intelligence, teleportation, post-apocalyticism, unntaural evolution, and/or DNA altering. I will decide very soon.

2004-01-06T11:35:00.000-08:00

Class 1: 1.6.04

I'm really looking forward to getting going in this class. I've always been interested in science fiction and after hearing about the topics that will be studied, I'm looking forward even more to reading short sotries and watching great sci-fi films. Not sure of a topic for my web project yet. Time travel has always interested me, its concepts and theories, especially the video game Chrono Trigger. Might be an intersting topic. Also maybe religion and science fiction. It might be fun to look at and analyze the religious aspects of the sci-fi anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. I'll decide soon. Either way, I'm looking forward to this class!