Syllabus

ENGL 110-028 Syllabus

Lecture Thur 10-12  //  Tutorial Groups Tue 10-11

As we approach the end of the second decade of the twenty-first century, the impact of the human race on the global climate are increasingly undeniable. From the beginning of the European Industrial Revolution in the nineteenth century, human civilization has entered what scientists now term the Anthropocene: the period of time when human activity is leaving indelible marks on the geological history of the earth. Global warming looms over our early twenty-first century civilization, with dire warnings of future catastrophe appearing on a weekly basis. But what is the average citizen supposed to do in the face of such impending doom?  Recycle?  Cycle? Buy a Tesla? Remember to turn your lights off when you go out?  Vote Green? Take transit? Buy eco-soap? Shop local? Become vegetarian? So many small possibilities, but all seemingly insignificant in the face of the onrushing apocalyptic storm. Instead we are faced with the question of how we will experience dramatic climate change? How we will survive it? How we will witness it?

In this course we will examine how cli-fi (or climate fiction) writers of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries have addressed our fears of global climate change. We will begin by reading the Nature poetry of the Romantic period, in order to understand where our ideas of Nature come from, before turning to contemporary novels and short stories that examine our current-day fears about environmental apocalypse. Texts will include: Learning to Die in the Anthropocene, The Collapse of Western Civilization, Cli-Fi: Canadian Tales of Climate Change (short fiction), We Stand on Guard (Canadian graphic novel), The Water Knife, The Year of the Flood.

ENGL 110 counts as 3 credits toward most faculties’ English/Writing requirements, and also can count as 3 credits of the Faculty of Arts Literature requirement.

Course Polices:

The minimum expectations for the course will be (a) that you come to both lectures and discussion groups having read the required texts, (b) that you have thought critically about the texts, and arrive ready to ask questions and engage in discussion, and (c) that you actively engage with the process of building a community of co-learners with your peers. I will also endeavour to arrive ready to engage in discussion of these fascinating texts, and will strive to act as both guide and fellow pilgrim in our mutual journey of exploration.

Attendance: Department of English Attendance Policy can be read here: (http://www.english.ubc.ca/resources/attendance.htm)

Lectures:

Week 1 (Thur 4 Jan): Intro class.

Week 2 (Thur 11th Jan): Learning to Die in the Anthropocene

Week 3 (Thur 18th Jan): The Collapse of Western Civilization

Week 4 (Thur 25th Jan): In-class Midterm One

Week 5 (Thur 1st Feb): Cli-Fi: Canadian Tales of Climate Change, pp. 1-76

Week 6 (Thur 8th Feb): Cli-Fi: Canadian Tales of Climate Change, pp. 77-152

Week 7 (Thur 15th Feb): Cli-Fi: Canadian Tales of Climate Change, pp. 153-end

For those of you with a creative bent, you might be interested in a cli-fi short story wiring competition that ASU is running.

You might also like to take a read of the Bifrost site

Reading Week Break (Thur 22nd Feb)

Week 8 (Thur 1st March): The Water Knife

The Colorado River

Rivers are complex and fascinating creatures, and water politics are real.  For recent context you might like to read any of the following:

on South-West USA climate (re: Water Knife)

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-colorado-river-runs-dry-61427169/

https://www.outsideonline.com/1928261/day-we-set-colorado-river-free

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/11/141123-lake-powell-colorado-river-drought-water/

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/summer-of-hell-and-high-water-shows-climate-change-is-here-w441345

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/oct/05/climate-change-megadrought-california-global-warming

on water rights

https://www.abqjournal.com/1116605/supreme-court-hears-nmtexas-water-dispute.html

https://globalnews.ca/news/3967288/cape-town-running-out-of-water-crisis/

on US militias

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/10/undercover-border-militia-immigration-bauer

Week 9 (Thur 8th March): The Water Knife

And just in case you think that the Water Knife is entirely fiction...

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/mar/20/phoenix-least-sustainable-city-survive-water

Week 10 (Thur 15th March): We Stand on Guard

An interview with Brian Vaughan

Week 11 (Thur 22nd March): Year of the Flood

Week 12 (Thur 29th March): Year of the Flood

Week 13 (Thur April 5th): Review Class 

Books to Order (all available through the UBC Bookstore or other vendors)

Learning to Die in the Anthropocene

The Collapse of Western Civilization

Cli-Fi: Canadian Tales of Climate Change

The Water Knife

Year of the Flood

We Stand on Guard