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Unit of study_

ENGL3710: Utopias and Dystopias: Literature; Films; TV

2021 unit information

This unit critically explores modern and contemporary utopias and dystopias in literature, tv, and cinema. It examines the history, aesthetics and politics of utopias and dystopias, focusing on questions of the development of new spaces and social orders, technology, the environment, surveillance, the posthuman and IT. It assesses different conceptions of the future in relation to the present and the past. The unit addresses questions about the representation of the future in different media and asks students to imagine the future as both dream and nightmare.

Unit details and rules

Managing faculty or University school:

Code ENGL3710
Academic unit
Credit points 6
Prerequisites:
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12 credit points at 2000 level in English or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Australian Literature
Corequisites:
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None
Prohibitions:
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None
Assumed knowledge:
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None

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

  • LO1. demonstrate a knowledge of the generic quality of utopias and dystopias
  • LO2. work in interactive groups, developing complex responses to the unit's key texts
  • LO3. generate inventive and independent-minded responses to the key texts that you can defend in group discussion
  • LO4. critically assess positive and negative fiction and nonfiction texts, expanding your sense of potential social and cultural futures
  • LO5. demonstrate a deep awareness of how historical developments are incorporated into inventive speculations about the future
  • LO6. develop your awareness of the ways in which literature, film and television respectively represent and evaluate utopias and dystopias.

Unit availability

This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.

The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.

There are no availabilities for this year.
Session MoA ?  Location Outline ? 
Semester 1 2021
Normal day Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney
Semester 1 2021
Normal day Remote

Modes of attendance (MoA)

This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.