Professor H. Bruce Franklin Office: Hill 515 Phone: 973-353-5279 ext. 515

e-mail: hbf@andromeda.rutgers.edu Web site: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~hbf

Office Hours: MON: 1:00-2:00; WED 2:30-3:30; and by appointment.

REQUIRED TEXTS: (Editions listed are those ordered at New Jersey Books and Bradley Hall. You may substitute except where noted.)

Mary Shelley, Frankenstein; Or the Modern Prometheus. Bantam.
H. Bruce Franklin, Future Perfect: American Science Fiction of the 19th Century. Rutgers University Press, 1995. [Do not use any earlier edition of this book.]
William Gibson, Burning Chrome. Ace Books.
H. G. Wells, The Time Machine. Bantam.
Joe Haldeman, The Forever War. Avon Books [Do not use any edition earlier than 1997; the text
has been revised.]
Stanislaw Lem, Solaris. Harcourt Brace.
Gardner Dozois, The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-First Annual Collection. St. Martin's. (Be
sure to get the Twenty-First Collection, published in 2004.  Many inexpensive copies are available on the internet.)
Pamela Sargent, Women of Wonder: The Classic Years. Harcourt Brace.
Dennis Danvers, The Fourth World. Avon Eos. (This book may now be out of print, but many cheap copies are available on the internet.)

This is an interdisciplinary course designed for students with serious interest in the subject. Although no previous knowledge is required, the readings may challenge your intelligence and imagination and will certainly demand considerable time and thought. Assignments must be completed by the indicated dates.

January 26 Mary Shelley, Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus (1818).

January 31 In Future Perfect: Introduction; Nathaniel Hawthorne, "The Birthmark" (1843); "The Artist of the Beautiful" (1844); Fitz-James O'Brien, "The Diamond Lens" (1858).

February 2 In Future Perfect: Edgar Allan Poe, "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar" (1845); Jack London, "A Thousand Deaths" (1899).

February 7 In Future Perfect: "Women's Work"; Annie Denton Cridge, "Man's Rights" (1870);
Mary E. Bradley Lane, Mizora (1880). In Women of Wonder: Pamela Zoline, "The Heat Death of the Universe" (1967).

February 9  In Future Perfect: "Space Travel"; Washington Irving, "The Men of the Moon"
(1809); Edward Bellamy, "The Blindman's World" (1886). In Women of Wonder: Joan D. Vinge, "View from a Height" (1978).

February 14  In Future Perfect: "Automata"; Herman Melville, "The Bell-Tower" (1855). In
Women of Wonder: C. L. Moore, "No Woman Born" (1944); Anne McCaffrey, "The
Ship Who Sang" (1961).

February 16 In Future Perfect: "Time Travel"; "Four-Dimensional Space" (1885); Mark
Twain, "From the 'London Times' of 1904" (1898); "The Perfect Future"; William Harben, "In the Year Ten Thousand" (1892).

February 21  H. G. Wells, The Time Machine (1895).

February 23  In William Gibson, Burning Chrome: "The Gernsback Continuum" (1981).  In Women of Wonder: Judith Merril, "That Only a Mother" (1948); Margaret St. Clair, "Short in the Chest" (1954).

February 28  (Please bring Burning Chrome and Women of Wonder to class.)

March 2  (Please bring Burning Chrome and Women of Wonder to class.)

March 7  Stanislaw Lem, Solaris (1961). (Note that you have twelve days to read Solaris,
which is a challenging book.)

March 9  In Women of Wonder: Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, "False Dawn" (1972); Vonda N.
McIntyre, "Of Mist, and Grass, and Sand" (1973).

March 21  Joe Haldeman, The Forever War (1974; 1997).

March 23  In Women of Wonder: Kate Wilhelm, "The Funeral" (1972); James Tiptree, Jr.
(Alice Sheldon), "The Women Men Don't See" (1973).

March 28 In Women of Wonder: Eleanor Arnason, "The Warlord of Saturn's Moons" (1974);
Lisa Tuttle, "The Family Monkey" (1977).

March 30  In Gibson, Burning Chrome: "Fragments of a Hologram Rose" (1977); "Johnny
Mnemonic" (1981).

April 4 In Burning Chrome: "New Rose Hotel" (1983); "Burning Chrome" (1985); "The
Winter Market" (1986).

April 6 In Burning Chrome: "Hinterlands" (1983). In Year's Best SF: Jack Skillingstead, "Dead Worlds" (2003).

April 11  In Year's Best SF: Paolo Bacigalupi, "The Fluted Girl" (2003); Kristine Kathryn Rusch, "June Sixteenth at Anna's" (2003); Paul Di Filippo, "And the Dish Ran Away With the Spoon" (2003); Dominic Green, "Send Me a Mentagram" (2003).

April 13 (Please bring Year's Best SF to class.)

April 18   Dennis Danvers, The Fourth World (2000).

April 20  In Year's Best SF: William Shunn, "Strong Medicine" (2003); Steven Popkes, "The Ice" (2003).

April 25  In Year's Best SF:  Terry Bisson, "Dear Abbey" (2003).

April 27 (Please bring Year's Best SF to class.)

May 2 Final day for submission of original short story or essay (minimum length 2,500 words). Do not leave the writing or typing of this project for the last minute.

May 9  Final Examination.
 

There will be frequent brief tests on the readings, usually on the day they are due. These are not meant to be ambushes but aids for reading and for our discussion. There will be a final examination but no mid-term.

In determining the grade for the course, approximately equal weight will be given to (1) the brief tests, (2) the short story or essay, and (3) the final examination. In addition, each student's work will be evaluated on overall performance, with attention given to attendance, participation in discussion, and the level of knowledge and understanding ultimately reached.

Instructions for Writing Project

The essay or short story you are writing for this course is an opportunity for an original, valuable achievement. Think of it as something you are preparing for publication. That is, you are addressing an audience of reasonably intelligent strangers whom you must entice to read your work and who will have a valuable experience reading it. Most questions about form and content can be answered easily if you put yourself in your readers' shoes. The essay or story should also contribute to your readers' understanding of some aspect of the subject matter of the course.

The minimum length is 2,500 words. If you are having difficulty reaching this length, you can be sure there is some problem in your conception and development of your essay or story. There is no maximum length.

On proper use and acknowledgement of sources, be sure you have a copy of the Rutgers Policy on Academic Integrity and are familiar with its contents, especially the sections on Level 2 and Level 3 violations.

The physical appearance of your work should be attractive and professional looking. It must be typed or printed from a computer (double-spaced throughout). The print should be very black (not gray and faded) and pleasant to read. There is no adequate excuse for frequent errors in spelling, punctuation, or grammar. So allow yourself ample time for proofreading. Late papers will be penalized unless there is a medical or other emergency. Be sure to keep a copy of your paper when you turn it in. Barring any catastrophe, the graded paper will be returned to you at the time of the final examination.