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(2016
premidterm assignment) Model Student Pre-midterm answers 2016 (Index) Essay 2: Personal / professional research topic proposal |
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Nikki
Jones
20
Feb. 2016
Science Fiction: A Tangible Future?
Personally, I have never been a huge fan of the typical science fiction
novel or movie. My interests have always leaned more towards fiction that has an
element of fantasy to it but is also realistic and tangible. Things that are
more likely to happen, rather than things that would typically happen in science
fiction, like an alien invasion, for example. (Because we need to face it,
although it is likely that there is some type of alien life in the universe, we
as a whole should not be so self-centered as to believe that the invasion of
Earth is the first and only thing on their mind.) The thing about
Parable of the Sower that I have
never experienced with other science fiction reads or films, like Blade Runner
or A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, is a tangible future, something that has
an actually possibility of happening. There is a real chance that America could
in the future blunder and end up being similar to the state of the world in
Parable. Also there is a realness to
Lauren and her coming-of-age story that I think students just coming into their
own as well can understand and relate to.
Parable mixes the two genres of science fiction and dystopia, which I think
students comprehend and appreciate much more that pure, hard science fiction.
In my teaching career I have found so far that the only thing that will
keep a middle or high school student’s attention are things that they find a
high level of interest in. At that age what are they more interested in other
than themselves? They are constantly striving to understand who they are and to
find like-minded peers. Sometimes they will find these peers in characters in a
novel and end up relating to the traits and qualities they share with them. They
may even grow to idolize these heroic characters. There are books required in
public school curriculum, like The Giver,
that provides this kind of character for students, but
Parable gives its audience something
a little different from the norm. This is because Lauren, instead of just
falling by chance into the lead role,
strives to be a leader in the novel. From the beginning Lauren has an
extremely strong personality for her age, possibly because of her sharing
abilities, and seeks out ways to be a prophet for others through Earthseed. I
would like to find other strong male or female leads that openly seek to be the
lead of the novel instead of falling into it by happenstance.
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