Okay, this may seem weird, but follow me for a second before you start scratching your heads in bewilderment. At my college, UC Berkeley, there's an option for students to *teach* their own elective classes, about whatever frivolous topic they want. They're called Decal classes. The topics range from pop culture to politics to medicine to whatever. Some classes focus on TV shows. This is treated as a legitimate class, that gets college credit (pass/no-pass). The student simply chooses the topic, and heavily prepares for the class the semester before (and goes through a whole bunch of hoops before being allowed to start their own decal class). For obvious reasons, they're extremely popular among students and is truly a one-of-a-kind opportunity that doesn't exist in many other colleges. I, myself, have attended two decal classes over the last year: 1.) Simpsons and Philosophy. 2.) Batman: The American Mythology. Both have been entertaining and, quite simply, a great experience.
The reason I'm bringing this up is because I'm starting my own decal class next semester, and am in the middle of preparation right now. My class will focus on 'Feminism in Science Fiction,' which will range from TV shows, movies, to books. I'll talk about how feminism in sci-fi is unique and different from most conventional feminist definitions. I'll talk about the pros and cons of most stereotypical females in science-fiction, and how that relates to images of women in real life.
Basically, I'll talk about a variety of deep-seeded feminist issues, but I'll relate it to popular female science-fiction characters.
For instance, one day, I'll cover Ripley from Aliens, then Dana Scully from the X Files, then Hermione Granger in HP. I'll take about the characters and how their image relates to the underlying themes and motifs that permeates through science fiction. Why are these women popular? Do real life women, like me, relate to them? Are they merely fantasies with no tangible connection to real life? Etc . . .
I also want to devote at least a day or two to the Stargate universe, and the women in it.
My question is, how do I go about discussing the females of Stargate? My personal fav is Weir, but I don't want to be biased towards her, 'cause Sam and Teyla deserve major props, too. Also, should I bring up Vala? Fraiser? What examples should I use? How should I describe these women? Are each of them good examples of typical science fiction women, and do they portray women in good light? I wanted to get some input from you guys on this, so any feedback or recommendations would be highly appreciated.
The reason I'm bringing this up is because I'm starting my own decal class next semester, and am in the middle of preparation right now. My class will focus on 'Feminism in Science Fiction,' which will range from TV shows, movies, to books. I'll talk about how feminism in sci-fi is unique and different from most conventional feminist definitions. I'll talk about the pros and cons of most stereotypical females in science-fiction, and how that relates to images of women in real life.
Basically, I'll talk about a variety of deep-seeded feminist issues, but I'll relate it to popular female science-fiction characters.
For instance, one day, I'll cover Ripley from Aliens, then Dana Scully from the X Files, then Hermione Granger in HP. I'll take about the characters and how their image relates to the underlying themes and motifs that permeates through science fiction. Why are these women popular? Do real life women, like me, relate to them? Are they merely fantasies with no tangible connection to real life? Etc . . .
I also want to devote at least a day or two to the Stargate universe, and the women in it.
My question is, how do I go about discussing the females of Stargate? My personal fav is Weir, but I don't want to be biased towards her, 'cause Sam and Teyla deserve major props, too. Also, should I bring up Vala? Fraiser? What examples should I use? How should I describe these women? Are each of them good examples of typical science fiction women, and do they portray women in good light? I wanted to get some input from you guys on this, so any feedback or recommendations would be highly appreciated.
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