Genre Expectations 1. What codes and conventions establish the genre or the style? 2. Is there a prescribed setting for the genre/style? 3. Who seems to be the intended audience?

Genre Expectations 4. Does the genre/style seem cultural specific or is it readily adaptable and understandable across cultures? 5. Is there a discernible change in time for the genre (as, for instance, we witnessed in the Western)? 6. What is the special status of technology in this genre?

Historical/Cultural Specificity Westerns often rely on a certain period and place (setting) and even certain historical situations. In this sense they are culturally specific. Are science fiction films also culturally specific? What is necessary to understand the development and codes of a science fiction film? Is it possible to make a Western, science fiction, or other so-called specialized genre relevant for all people and if so, how would this be done?

To Consider “Despite its status, science fiction remains an intriguing and significant area of consideration for the student of television. It is one of the few popular fictional television genres that allow a framework for difficult philosophical and political debate. The articulation of questions based on ‘What if this were to happen?’ provides a way of considering collective hopes and fears and may work as symbolic manifestations of a shared unconscious. Seemingly lightweight popular texts can thus function as collective catharsis by representing mythically the fears and concerns that are commonly shared” (Casey).

Science Fiction as a Genre When does science fiction first appear? What is necessary for it to appear? What authors are you familiar with? Which films or television series are you familiar with? What themes recur in science fiction?

Situating Science Fiction The scientific revolution is associated with 17th and 18th century innovators New laws to describe nature Challenges to religious belief Gradual shift to empiricism, away from divine revelation (note religious disputes that fuel this change)

Previous Slide Galileo Galilie Francis Bacon “Oscar” Isaac Newton Albert Einstein

The Social Picture Socio-historical changes are registered in the arts Industrialization in the 19th century Scientific and technological changes Social disparities brought about by capitalism

Rabkin’s Three Points 1. the fantastic is made plausible through the use of scientific rhetoric 2. science fiction includes high adventure 3. good science fiction asks its readers to think

Nineteenth-Century Precursors European writers Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818) Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea (1870) H.G. Wells, The Time Machine (1895)

Mary Shelley (1797-1851)

Jules Verne (1828-1905)

H.G. Wells (1866-1946)

Social Critics Aldous Huxley, Brave New World (1932)

Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)

American Developments Post-Civil War rise of pulp publishing Extended readership through expansion of education Low-end readership in terms of high cultural knowledge and class status

Development: Magazines/Fan Culture Hugo Gernsback, Amazing Stories, 1920s John W. Campbell, Jr., Astounding, 1930s “Golden Age” of science fiction, characterized by Heinlein-type stories, in the 1940s and 1950s Ian Ballantine and the rise of the paperback, 1953

Gernsback and Campbell

Robert Heinlein (1907-1988)

Changes in Direction Ray Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles (1950): politics Frank Herbert, Dune series (1960s): environment/ecology Samuel Delaney, Babel-17 (1966): difference Ursula K. LeGuin, The Left Hand of Darkness (1969): gender

Ray Bradbury (1920-)

Frank Herbert (1920-1986)

Samuel R. Delany (b. 1942)

Ursula K. LeGuin (b. 1929)

New Wave and Cyberpunk Historical revisionism, drug culture, political protest Philip K. Dick, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) William Gibson, Neuromancer (1984)

Philip K. Dick (1928-1982)

William Gibson (b. 1948)

Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) 2001

Theodore Sturgeon (1918-1985) More than Human

Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) Foundation trilogy

Stanislaw Lem (1921-2006) Solaris

Roger Zelazny (1937-1995) Nine Princes in Amber

Octavia E. Butler (1947-2006) Patternmaster

Douglas Adams (1952-2001) The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

Star Wars (Part 1 or 4) Director: George Lucas Release date: 1977

Characters Luke Skywalker Ben Kenobi Han Solo Leia Organa Darth Vader C-3PO R2-D2

Character Relations One of the successful traits of the film is its character chemistry: the pairing or grouping of characters whose differences are complementary and therefore interest-generating. Describe how this is accomplished within the character list.

Luke Skywalker

Ben Kenobi

Han Solo

Leia Organa

Darth Vader

C-3PO

R2-D2

Content 1. What conflict seems to be taking place at the beginning of the film? Who are the opponents? What is Vader’s purpose in boarding the Rebel ship? 2. How do C-3PO and R2-D2 escape? Why do they do so? 3. How are the androids picked up by the Skywalkers? 4. What is Luke’s life with his uncle? 5. What message does Luke discover? How does his uncle react?

Content 6. Why does Luke go out into the desert? What happens to him while he is there? 7. What does Luke learn of his father? What prompts him to leave Tatooine? 8. Where do Luke and Ben intend to go? What interferes with this plan? 9. What is the Death Star? 10. How do they escape? What happens to Ben in the process? 11. What weakness is found in the Death Star?

Good Guys and Bad Guys How are sympathies manipulated in this film? How is good and evil reduced to clear-cut sides? Note that the good guys are presented in a certain way—racially, physically, and ideologically. segment: 2.45-4.45

Critique of Representation Is there reason to criticize this representation, given the fact that much science fiction is regarded as alluding to contemporaneous social problems? Consider the way that identity and singularity is manipulated—what else can we add?

Reluctant Hero Han Solo is a new type: the reluctant hero. What characterizes this type? Have you encountered it in other works of literature or film? How would you define this type? What range of character traits are possible within the type (thinking of other examples that you can come up with)?

The Force What is the Force? This is not defined very well here—better in later films (e.g. The Phantom Menace). But, what do you make of it in this film? Is this a religious concept? a supernatural phenomenon? a metaphor? Note that Kenobi remarks on the “dark side” of the Force, which gives rise to more questions. segments: 34.30-; 1:00.40-

Comparison Note how the Force is turned into a special effect/action movie gimmick in later films, such as we find in the opening segment of The Phantom Menace (1999). segment: 5.00-6.20

A Universal Narrative? Why was Star Wars so successful? Assume that the movie represents something universal in its way of telling a story. What are the components of its universality? Or does it also have a claim to universality?

Cultural Specificity, etc. Why would Chinese film viewers have any reason to find the film engaging (or would they)? Consider other marks of difference that might influence the reception of this film.

SF as Masculine Students as well as critics often identify science fiction as a “masculine” genre? Why would it be understood this way? Presumably, Star Wars was watched enthusiastically by women, too, so what does the film provide for them if it is catering primarily to (young) men? Consider the function of Leia—really the only woman in the movie.

Note The final destruction sequence seems especially sexualized, though from a masculine perspective. segment: 1:56.30-

The Collapse of Narrative? This episode of the series should be compared to Revenge of the Sith (2005). If you have seen this film, you should think about how it differs from the original film. segment: 57.30- Consider (as more evidence) an important fight scene from The Empire Strikes Back. segment: 1:39.30- … 1:45.30-

Social Functions for Audiences A film (plot) could confirm or reinforce a belief, give voice to or concretize a set of values, persuade the viewer to adopt a point of view, serve as a fantasy to counter reality, project a goal that is worth striving for or realizing, …

Social Meanings of Star Wars We always ask why a work appears when and where it does, which is related to why it appears (function) for whom. Some have suggested that the first Star Wars film, released in 1977, had a mollifying effect on Americans who began to see their country as, at least potentially, a culture in decline.

The U.S. in the 1970s Why would they feel this way in 1977? This would require considering the events following World War II, and particularly the changes from the early 1960s to the mid 1970s.

Star Wars as Allegory How might the film be allegorized to fit the contemporaneous American situation? Who stands for what? Why would this fantasy response (a form of consumerism) be sufficient instead of addressing the problems that caused anxiety?

Continuing Meaning Why did the series continue? Why was it possible to resurrect the series in the 2000s (The Phantom Menace, The Clone Wars, and Revenge of the Sith) and to do so again in 2015 (The Force Awakens)? If films have this sociological function, what new problems are these new films addressing? Does this shift in the type of problem help explain why the films are fundamentally different from the first and possibly second film (in fact, I think the second one, The Empire Strikes Back, may be the best)?

Booker’s Critique What does Booker mean by calling Star Wars a nostalgia film (114)? There is a technological answer and a social answer.

Booker’s Critique Why does Booker declare Star War’s politics to be complicated? How does he focus on the human element in determining alliances? How is this idea expanded (or how could it be expanded) into contemporary politics?

Blade Runner (1982) Director: Ridley Scott

Characters Rick Deckard Rachael Roy Batty Tyrell Garr Pris Leon

Deckard

Roy Batty

The Future What is familiar and unfamiliar about the representation of life in Los Angeles in 2019? What seems to be anachronistic, if anything? This could refer to objects, behavior, whatever.

Human Meaning A central question of the film concerns what it means to be human. How does the film make definitions of humanity difficult? How is the human distinguished from the machine?

Sympathy Sympathy towards the replicants is partially blocked, but only partially. Despite their violence why is it possible to be sympathetic? If these androids are symbolic of something, what could they symbolize?

Deckard’s Status What is Deckard’s real status? Can we be certain? Can he? What are the consequences of this knowledge? Why is it a universal consequence? How do different versions of the film complicate this further? What type of hero do we get, if any? What is a reluctant hero? Note how Ford plays this role in both films, but what distinguishes them? How do characters fall into types, or do they? Or how do they compare with Star Wars?

Different Visions How does the vision given us in Blade Runner differ from that in Star Wars? How do both films incorporate elements of other genres (and what are these other genres)? Why was this film not acknowledged upon release, or at least given much praise? Why would E.T. appeal more than Bladerunner?

Versions If you watched other versions: What impact does the different ending and absence of voice-over have on the film? We are watching the 1992 director’s cut, as opposed to the 1982 theater version (or the 2007 reworking).

Relevance Assertion: These science fiction films are not about the future; they are about the problems of today (and their solutions or our attitudes towards them) projected into other contexts, which are not entirely unfamiliar.

Shaviro’s Assertion Shaviro criticizes the mise-en-scene element of the film as favoring static spaces to encourage nostalgic reverie, which we could say is a sort of reification that reduces images to marketable experiences. This position would undermine the critique of capitalist relations (which are overly simplified in the film), reducing the spectacle of suffering to an aesthetic experience that far from prompting active resistance, fulfills a (created) need, or which draws that experience under the category of observation alone. We could say that the comfort of our viewing experience confirms that we don’t have a stake in that world. Do you understand this argument?

For Next Time Watch: Magnificent Obsession and/or The Big Chill