ENGL1739 · Complex Problems and Enduring Questions

Crafting Alternative Futures: Imagined Worlds in Literature

Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences

This is an Enduring Question course and is open to FRESHMEN only. You must take both COMM2205 and ENGL1739. How can we harness the power of imagination to build alternative societies? These transformative paired courses invite students to explore the power of public imagination as a tool for constructing alternative societies. By working with critical, media, and communication theories alongside literature and film about speculative future worlds, students will interrogate existing systems and envision futures that challenge the status quo. Students will be encouraged to take agency in the process of creating new futures by collaborating on projects and crafting narratives and blueprints for societies that prioritize sustainability, equity, and the common good. Through the course, students will develop the tools to critically examine scholarship and literature in social, political, intellectual, and literary contexts while learning to use persuasion to mobilize communities and take an active role in shaping the future.