Carleton University
Fall 2015
Department of English
ENGL 2107A: Science and Literature: The Importance of Science Fiction
W F 8:35 – 9:55
Location: Southam Hall 403
Instructor: David Hamilton
Email: [email protected]
Office: DT 1929
Phone: TBD
Office Hours: TBD and by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION
“As we learn about each other, so we learn about ourselves.”
Dr. Who
"You will be Absorbed. Your individuality will merge into the unity of Good. And in your
submergence into the common being of the Body, you will find contentment and fulfillment. You
will experience the Absolute Good."
Landru
“Human beings never think for themselves, they find it too uncomfortable. For the most part,
members of our species simply repeat what they are told – and become upset if they are exposed
to any different view. We are stubborn, self-destructive conformists. Any other view of our
species is just a self-congratulatory delusion.”
Michael Crichton, The Lost World
Are we self-destructive conformists? Has our natural curiosity about the world and about
ourselves been beaten down through a systematic, mind-numbing, technologically-driven
(educational) paradigm? Or should we just resign ourselves to the “Force” or the “will of
Landru” and give up our personal responsibility entirely?
This genre-specific course will focus on the roots, development, and allegory of science fiction
literature, and then we’ll apply these to contemporary issues. We will explore the relationship
between scientific concepts and the arts, and progress through to our (sometimes) uneasy
relationship with technology. As we consider our psychological attraction to speculative fiction,
we will examine a number of issues in contemporary culture, specifically: our fascination with
the “god complex”, the juxtaposition of hope and danger in the possibility of other worlds,
postmodernism, our contemporary, social media-driven culture, politics and power, and
ultimately what it means to be human.
Speculative (or science) fiction gives us special insight into making sense of the world in our
everyday lives. Science fiction can uncover the ways ideology, narrative, and epistemology
function on a day-to-day basis. As a result, we will be taking science fiction literature seriously
and will consequently be dealing with a number of "human" issues that concern us in our
contemporary culture.
This course will be taught through a combination of media-driven lectures, dialogic journaling,
and class discussions in a format that provides you with an opportunity to work specifically with
primary materials, introduces you to relevant collections and archives, and facilitates the
development of critical thinking skills. To that end, you will be expected to prepare fully for each
class by reading the required texts, preparing discussion questions, and participating
(dialogically) in the discussions.
Please note… this course has a heavy reading load along with weekly journaling assignments.
Some of the questions informing the structure of this course include:
• How did (and how does) the rise in science and technology impact on romanticism and
faith?
• How does the role of science in society subsequently inform the evolution of human
identity?
• In what ways does a logical, “scientific” approach to understanding our world allow us to
critically evaluate the nature of human beings?
• Can science, and by extension science fiction, solve our social problems?
• How do we reconcile ourselves to the monster within?
Since many of the course requirements are initiated, refined, or completed in class, full
attendance and participation are expected.
Not sure this course is for you? Check out the unabridged feedback from your peers at the end of
this outline.
PRIMARY READINGS
Please note: I expect you to have the texts entirely read on the first day we discuss them. The
emphasis in this course is on the discussion of ideas, and in order to do that effectively, you must
have actively read the texts.
Books
The Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction
Arthur B. Evans (Editor), Istvan Csicsery-Ronay (Editor), Joan Gordon (Editor), Veronica
Hollinger (Editor), Rob Latham (Editor)
The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1: 1929-1964
Black No More: A Novel
Slaughterhouse Five
Robert Silverberg (Editor)
George Schuyler
Kurt Vonnegut
These texts should be available through the Bookstore or through Chapters. You may also be
able to find some of the early individual stories on line.
All other stories and articles may be found on line or on CULearn. Please see the Weekly
Breakdown for details.
ASSIGNMENTS
There are weekly assignments for your dialogic journal – a journal in which you will write your
thoughts, questions, analysis and comments about texts we are reading along with specific
questions that I will be asking. Your journals are to be handed in electronically each week and
they are worth 40% of your final mark in the course.
In addition to the weekly journal, there is one term assignment where you will have an option
between writing an academic essay or doing something creative.
ATTENDANCE / PARTICIPATION
You are expected to attend every class and to actively participate in the discussions. Participation
includes: bringing the text to class, having read the assigned pages, and contributing to the
discussion either by offering ideas or comments, or by listening attentively.
FINAL EXAMINATION
There is a final examination for this course. It will comprise two sections: short answer, and an
essay. The material on the exam will be drawn from the lecture material, readings, and class
discussions.
METHOD OF EVALUATION
Assignment
Dialogic
Journal
Random
Quizzes
Mid Term
Test
Term
Assignment
Final Exam*
Description
A weekly journal comprising your
thoughts, responses, comments etc about
the texts or class material that we
encounter. Up to 12 journals will be
written. Your best 10 results will be
counted.
Up to 12 quizzes, given weekly in class.
Your best 10 results only will be counted.
Quotes identification / short answer
covering lecture material to this point.
Option (A) Essay – an original analysis
and argument of some aspect of an
assigned text. OR
Option (B) Creative Project - a short story
revealing substantial understanding of the
science fiction genre.
Covers all material from the course. In
two parts: (1) Quotes identification / short
answer; (2) Essay.
Length
Varies
Value
40%
Due Date
To be handed in
electronically
each week
10
quizzes
In class
10%
Weekly, almost.
10%
Oct 15
(A) 1500
words
15%
Nov 24
25%
TBA
(B) 2500
words
3 hrs.
Further instructions regarding the dialogic journal, quizzes and term assignment will be provided
in class.
*The final exam and airplane ticket bookings: The mid-term exam period is from December 9
– 21, 2015. Since the Registrar’s Office does not set exam dates until well into the term, you
must plan to be available throughout the entire examination periods. Do not purchase plane
tickets or plan vacations with departure dates prior to the end of each exam period. Exams will
not be rescheduled for students who take on other commitments during the exam period.
COURSE PROCEDURES, GRADES, AND GRADING
Basic Preparation: As a matter of course you are expected to: (1) attend all lectures, (2)
complete the scheduled readings beforehand, (3) arrive prepared to discuss what you have read,
(4) bring the relevant text(s) to class and (5) bring your journals with you, either to add notes as
we go along or to use to contribute to the conversation.
Handing In Assignments: Weekly dialogic journals are to be handed in electronically to me via
CULearn each week. Dates and times to be discussed in class. Any journal that is not submitted
by the due date/time will be considered late. It is the students’ responsibility to become familiar
with any dates/regulations which may take precedence over any course outline.
Late Assignments / Extensions: Do not ask for extensions without a medical certificate. If your
work is handed in late, so be it. As such, you already have an automatic extension with
consequences. For the weekly journal, I will note the lateness and this will factor in to your mark
for this part of the course. For each day that your term assignment is late – including weekends –
I will automatically deduct 2% .
Grading Criteria: Grades for term work will be based on insightfulness, originality, focus,
organization of ideas, clarity of expression, scholarly rigor, correct use of MLA style, spelling,
and grammar.
Grade Scale:
Letter
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
%
90-100
85-89
80-84
77-79
73-76
70-72
67-69
63-66
60-62
57-59
53-56
50-52
0-49
GPA
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Plagiarism:
The University Senate defines plagiarism as presenting, whether intentionally or not,
the ideas, expression of ideas, or the work of others as one’s own.
This can include:
• reproducing or paraphrasing portions of someone else’s published or unpublished
material, regardless of the source, and presenting these as one’s own without proper
citation or reference to the original source
• submitting a take-home examination, essay, laboratory report or other assignment
written, in whole or in part, by someone else
• using ideas, quotations, or paraphrased material, concepts or ideas without appropriate
acknowledgement in an essay or assignment
• failing to acknowledge sources through the use of proper citations when using another’s
works, and/or failing to use quotation marks
• handing in substantially the same piece of work for academic credit more than once
without prior written permission of the course instructor in which the submission occurs
Plagiarism is a form of intellectual theft. It is a serious offence that cannot be resolved directly
with the course’s instructor. The Associate Deans of the Faculty conduct a rigorous
investigation, including an interview with the student, when an instructor suspects a piece of
work has been plagiarized. Penalties are not trivial. They can include failure of the assignment,
failure of the entire course, suspension from a program, suspension from the university, or even
expulsion from the university. See the Section on Academic Integrity in the Student Conduct
Portion of the Undergraduate Calendar.
ACCOMMODATION
You may need special arrangements to meet your academic obligations during the term. For an
accommodation request the processes are as follows:
Pregnancy obligation: write to me with any requests for academic accommodation during the
first two weeks of class, or as soon as possible after the need for accommodation is known to
exist. For more details see the Student Guide
http://www.carleton.ca/equity/accommodation/student_guide.htm
Religious obligation: write to me with any requests for academic accommodation during the first
two weeks of class, or as soon as possible after the need for accommodation is known to exist.
For more details see the Student Guide
http://www.carleton.ca/equity/accommodation/student_guide.htm
Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: The Paul Menton Centre for Students
with Disabilities (PMC) provides services to students with Learning Disabilities (LD),
psychiatric/mental health disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism
Spectrum Disorders (ASD), chronic medical conditions, and impairments in mobility, hearing,
and vision. If you have a disability requiring academic accommodations in this course, please
contact PMC at 613-520-6608 or [email protected] for a formal evaluation. If you are already
registered with the PMC, contact your PMC coordinator to send me your Letter of
Accommodation at the beginning of the term, and no later than two weeks before the first inclass scheduled test or exam requiring accommodation (if applicable). After requesting
accommodation from PMC, meet with me to ensure accommodation arrangements are made.
Please consult the PMC website for the deadline to request accommodations for the formallyscheduled exam (if
applicable). http://www.carleton.ca/equity/accommodation/student_guide.htm
Intellectual Property
The materials created for this course (including presentations and posted notes, lecture audio,
case studies, assignments and exams) remain the intellectual property of David Hamilton. They
are intended for personal use and may not be reproduced or redistributed without prior written
consent of David Hamilton.
ENGL 2107A DRAFT Weekly Breakdown
The following outlines the general chronology of the course to give you an idea of how we will
cover the material. Depending on class discussion and other factors, there may be a minor
discrepancy in relation to the weeks.
Fall Term
Please note this is a draft outline and may be modified.
Date
Sept. 2
Sept. 9
Sept 11
Sept 16
Sept 18
Topic
Introduction to the course; review outline; discuss requirements of the
weekly Dialogic Journal and on-line quizzes; Film (in-class): Star Trek
“Where No Man Has Gone Before” 1967. The script may be found here
http://www.chakoteya.net/startrek/2.htm
Science Fiction Roots: Proto Science Fiction (pre 19th C); Imaginary
Landscapes. Utopias/Dystopias; Alien visitors/observers; Towards a
Definition for Science Fiction
“The Literature of Change”
http://www.ou.edu/worldlit/onlinemagazine/2010may/mckitteri
ck.html
Lucian of Samosata. Excerpt from “A True Story” (AD 165)
http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/luc/true/index.htm
Excerpt from Margaret Cavendish from “A New World Called
the Blazing World” (1666) CULearn
Proto Science Fiction (pre 19th C) continued; discussion of term
assignment
Ludvig Holberg. From “The Journey of Neil Klims to the
World Underground” (1741)
http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/7/8/8/27884/27884-8.txt
Voltaire, “Micromegas: A Comic Romance” (1752)
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/30123/30123-h/30123-h.htm
Voltaire, "Plato's Dream" (1756):
http://wondersmith.com/scifi/plato.htm
th
Early 19 C Science Fiction. The Creature, the "resisting monster," the
"Mad Scientist," arctic landscapes, doppelgangers, mesmerism,
immortality and other themes.
“The Mortal Immortal” Mary Shelley
http://www.rc.umd.edu/editions/mws/immortal/mortal.html
“Frankenstein” (1831 ed.) Mary Shelley read the Preface and
ch 1 – 5 http://www.literature.org/authors/shelleymary/frankenstein/index.html
Early 19th C Science Fiction continued
“Mesmeric Revelation” Edgar Allen Poe
http://poestories.com/stories.php
-
Sept 23
Sept 25
Sept 30
Oct 2
Oct 7
Oct 9
"From Man's Rights or How Would You Like It?" Annie
Denton Cridge read Dreams 1, 2 and 5
http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/cridge/rights/rights.html
th
19 C Science Fiction: Invention, science, "mad scientists," curiosity,
underearth worlds, magnetism, prehistoric survivors, time travel, earth's
future, end of the world, entropy, defiance of mortality/aging, undersea
worlds, misleading paradises, jungle landscapes, desert landscapes,
futuristic visions, scientist as savior and other themes.
“Rappaccini’s Daughter” Hawthorne in Wesleyan
excerpt from “Journey to the Centre of the Earth” Verne in
Wesleyan
19th C Science Fiction continued; How to read Science Fiction
“The Protocols of Science Fiction”
http://www.sfcenter.ku.edu/protocol.htm
“The Science Fiction Sentence”
http://www.sfcenter.ku.edu/SF-Lit/SF-sentence.htm
“The Book of Jonah” in CULearn (yes, THAT Jonah…)
“The Star” Wells in Wesleyan
1900-1929. Scientific Concepts and the Arts; more social criticism; the
robot is born, space opera and other themes
“The Ray of Displacement” Prescott
http://gaslight.mtroyal.ca/raydispl.htm
“Sultana’s Dream” Hossein
http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/sultana/dream/dream.ht
ml
excerpt from “The Princess of Mars” Burroughs Chaps. XIII,
XIX, and XX http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~rgs/pmars-table.html
1900 – 1929 continued: technology out of control! Loss of humanity.
“R. U. R.” Capek http://preprints.readingroo.ms/RUR/rur.pdf
“The Machine Stops” Forster in Wesleyan
1930s More End of the World! Robots running amok!
“Helen O’Loy” del Ray in Silverberg
“Shambleau” Moore in Wesleyan
1930s continued; Satire in literary Science Fiction; addressing racism.
Black No More Schuyler
Oct 14
1930s continued; Satire in literary Science Fiction; addressing racism.
- Black No More Schuyler
Oct 16
Mid-term test. In class.
Oct 21
1940s. Golden Age; Robots, nuclear hazard, war, Earth's future, religion,
longevity, curiosity, feminist sf, etc.
“Nightfall” Asimov in Silverberg
“The Weapon Shop” Vogt in Silverberg
Oct 23
Oct 26 – 30
Nov 4
Nov 6
Nov 11
Nov 13
“Arena” Brown in Silverberg
1940s continued
“That Only a Mother” Merril in Silverberg
“Desertion” Simak in Wesleyan
Fall Break – no classes
Please use this time to read ahead as much as possible, and to work on
your term assignment
1950s. Space exploration, alien worlds, colonization, alien invasion, "mad
scientists," genetic engineering, androids, robots, psychodrama, cultural
conflict, alternative energy sources, feminist science fiction, alien
possession of human bodies, interplanetary communication, etc.
“All Summer in a Day” Bradbury on CULearn;
“The Nine Billion Names of God” Clarke in Silverberg
1950s continued; Narcissist Personality Disorder
“It’s a Good Life” Bixby in Silverberg
“Flowers for Algernon” Keyes in Silverberg
Science Fiction of the 1960s. Language, multiple species, apocalyptic
science fiction, cold wars and hot wars, entropy, feminist science fiction,
cultural conflict, gender benders, federated planets,
exploration/colonization, near futures, far futures, intelligent apes, sentient
planets, sentient ships, anti-intellectual humans, comic gods, robots, super
smart children, androids, intergalactic communication,
exploration/colonization, winter landscape and other themes.
“The First Men” Howard Fast
http://www.trussel.com/hf/firstmen.htm
“Aye, and Gommorah…” Delany in Wesleyan
Science Fiction of the 1960s continued; Bakhtin’s Carnivalesque
“’Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman” Ellison in
Wesleyan
Nov 18
Science fiction of the 1970s. Feminist science fiction, hard SF, future
worlds, class/cultural conflict, disease, healing, overpopulation, alien
invasion, misleading paradises, androids, mutations, alternative families,
technological warfare, and other themes.
“When it Changed” Russ in Wesleyan
“And I Awoke and Found Me Here On the Cold Hill Side”
Tiptree, Jr. in Wesleyan
Nov 20
Metafictional Science fiction
Slaughterhouse Five Vonnegut
Term Assignment due
Nov 25
Metafictional Science fiction continued
Slaughterhouse Five Vonnegut
Nov 27
Dec 2
Dec 4
Science Fiction of the 1980s. Alien species (friendly and otherwise),
earth's future, dystopias, disease, doppelgangers, androids, arctic
landscapes, feminist SF, spatial anomalies, time anomalies, longevity,
genetic engineering, cultural conflict, cyberpunk, gritty, violent worlds,
technological warfare.
“Computer Friendly” Gunn in Wesleyan
Science Fiction of the 1990s; Cyborgs, android, time travel, time quakes,
probability, megalopolis, the supercorporation, cyberpunk
“Closer” Egan in Wesleyan
“Think Like a Dinosaur” Kelly in Wesleyan
Science Fiction of the twenty-first century. What's New? Where are we
heading? Review for the exam.
-
“Exhalation” in Wesleyan
David A. Hamilton (ENGL2107B - Science Fiction )
Amazing prof 10/10
Your science fiction class both very interesting, and a lot of fun. I gained a lot of respect for the genre after
listening to your lectures. I enjoy your teaching style and charisma immensely, keep doing what your doing!
If I had an extra free English elective credit, I'd take another one of your classes for sure.
David Hamilton is a great professor. There's nothing better than taking a class and knowing the teacher is
passionate and interested in what their teaching, and helping their students succeed. The content of the course
is interesting and suitable for a second year level course. I'd like if he analyzed the texts in a more deeper
context, but like I said appropriate for a second year level course. His comments on his assignments are
always nice to read, detailed and shows that he really cares about what he's teaching. I learned a lot from this
professor!
I loved this class and the professor. He made it extremely fun and interesting and made me actually think and
engage with the material in a way that four previous years of English profs haven't really been able to do. I
would, and have, recommend this class to anyone! Thanks for a fantastic semester
I LOVE HIM. I LOVE HIM. I LOOOOOOVE HIM. I cannot describe enough how glad I am that I Have
taken his class! He is fun and amusing and understanding and actually pushes his students to do better and
excel in their field and whatever they like doing. I cannot wait until I take his other courses in my upcoming
two years of university. He actually provided a fun and fulfilling semester for me.
Your teaching style is the most effective method I have ever encountered as opposed to other professors.
Although at first I thought that the weekly journal assignments and quizzes would be "too much work" for me
to keep up with, it has kept my knowledge of what we have studied fresh and I am able to recall past lectures
easily. Your incorporation of lecture slides online as well as recording your lectures for us to listen to is
something I believe every professor should be doing! Thank you for being a fantastic professor and making
science fiction fun and exciting!
David Hamilton has been a pleasure to listen to. He knows his material well, and appreciates students who
put in the effort to come to class and read the material. His class was fair, and well organized. Additionally,
his assignments are fairly graded and weighted.
I found the amount of information being communicated to be excessive on some occasions. Complex ideas
(both philosophical and historical) were not given enough time in lecture. On some occasions, slides were not
used when they would have been helpful -- e.g., in the March 25 lecture, where I couldn't absorb information
about important figures in 20th century Indian history because the pertinent facts were not displayed visually.
More detailed slides, and leaving slides up for longer, would have been helpful.
Ultimately, I think the professor attempted to communicate more information than is realistic for a singlesemester course. Too much time was spent on concepts of secondary importance, and not enough time on
concepts of primary importance (I.e., which we were expected to know well enough to be tested on them). In
future, secondary concepts should eother be omitted, or their secondary status should be clearly marked so
that students will not attempt to memorize them.
The vocabulary, introduced as a study tool for the midterm exam, was extremely helpful for overcoming the
language barrier; introducing it earlier, so that students can use it as a reading and lecture aid, would be
helpful.
Otherwise, an excellent and interesting course. Thank you!
I have only great things to say about Mr. Hamilton. I was expecting a much different kind of class before I
took it, but I was pleasantly surprised that even though it was not what I was expecting it was a good class. I
mean how can you not love a class that starts off with a full class of Star Trek. I'd take a class with him again.
The selection of readings was amazing, and was very informative of the science-fiction genre as a whole, but
I found the analysis of the texts to be lacking. There was to much summarizing, and I found it dull as i had
already read the text. The quizzes and tests were mostly fair, as someone who had done close reading of the
assigned work would have no problem answering the questions.I also take issue Prof. Hamilton's use of
multi-media, as the videos shown in class often have nothing to do with the material and tend to waste time.
This is a small thing, but I find it irritating when he calls his students scholars, as it seems pretentious. We're
not scholars, we're just a bunch of kids.
Professor Hamilton does a great job of teaching this course. He doesn't just know the material really well, he
also has a passion for it, which makes learning so much more fun. Recording the lectures is also a great
technique. Personally I haven't used them, but it's nice to know that if I did miss a lecture I wouldn't be totally
lost and for students who like to review that way it seems to be a good resource.
Favourite class at Carleton by far. I wouldn't change a thing.
I loved the class, completely blew my mind HOWEVER, we need to focus on teaching students how to make
their own tin foil hat!!
I did not have any difficulty to follo the class even though I'm an exchange student and I really loved it.
Thanks!
Super fun course. Professor is quite entertaining while being able to remain on topic. It is a very interesting
course and much more relevant than I expected.
I absolutely loved this class. Big thanks to Prof Hamilton for organizing and teaching a great subject in a
great way.
I absolutely LOVED this class! I was not really a science fiction fan before registering for this course but I
enjoyed this much more than my Science Fiction Film class last semester. I appreciated that the course
material was not the conventional megapopular SF. The readings comprised of a multitude of topics from
renowned authors to relatively unknown ones. We did read about robots, spaceships, and planets but the
context varied from human radiation to scientific experiments gone wrong. This course shaped my
understanding of science fiction as something that provides social commentary and is actually relatable to
human nature beyond the standard Star Wars/Star Trek fanfare.
The assignments were at times laborious but they kept my engaged in the class and having to complete them
on time weekly kept me on track and focused. By having to submit weekly journals and quizzes in class, I did
not neglect to do my readings which is very easy to do in second-year. My favourite assignment that required
a lot of hard work, time, and effort was the short story final assignment. I always underestimated my
creativity and ability to write fiction but after reading all the stories, I am so glad I decided to write the short
story instead of a boring essay. I was so happy and proud of the outcome of the assignment and the feedback
Professor Hamilton provided. I am thankful for this creative option to the final assignment as I wish more
English professors allowed their students to write their own literature.
Although the classroom was a little claustrophobic and not spacious enough for all the students, Professor
Hamilton definitely made up for it by always adding humour, energy, and enthusiasm to his lectures. Aside
from the fun video clips and entertaining images on the slideshows, the lectures provided a lot of different
viewpoints and an in-depth analysis of the literature. I am grateful for the lecture slides and audio posted on
CULearn which were life-savers. Professor Hamilton delivered every lecture with genuine passion for
science fiction and I could not have asked for a better instructor!
Thank you for teaching us and have a wonderful summer !
Only comment I have is that for stuff like the novels it would be nice to really delve into them rather than
spending one to two 1 1/2 hour lectures on them, but there's so much to get into in terms of science fiction
that it probably just won't fit.
Honestly one of the best courses I've ever taken. The content, analysis, and instruction were all flawless, and I
thoroughly enjoyed every class. With that, I'd just like to say thank you. I wish you all the best in future
instruction, and I hope you continue to research the marvels of science fiction. Live long and prosper!
One of the best profs I've had in university
I found this a really good survey course of science fiction literature. I had expected to study a lot of texts I
knew, but I was only familiar with a couple of the readings we did, so this class exposed me to a lot of new
material. I liked the evaluation style with the weekly journal entries and quizzes. I enjoyed the opportunity to
do something creative for my final project, and appreciated that the professor encouraged creativity in
general.
I enjoyed the lectures and felt there was reasonably good opportunity for class discussion, although not quite
as much as I would have liked. My one complaint is that the professor often spent a lot of each class
summarising the reading we had just done, which seemed redundant (or, at the least, beneficial only to the
students who didn't do the readings) and took away time that could have been spent doing other things (class
discussion, descriptions of other important texts, watching clips of Doctor Who).
Over-all a really good class.
This class was a joy, thank you so much :)
This was easily my favourite class of the year.
Great class, but the workload was unnecessarily heavy. The reading load was manageable and typical for an
english class, but writing 12 (or even just 10) journals is excessive and it makes it hard to justify working on
them over other assignments when they are only worth 4% each. I think in the future the number of entries
should be cut down to make it worthwhile for the students.
He clearly has a passion for the topics and it makes the classes fun and zany. Though sometimes his dramatic
whispers didn't quite make it to the back of the class.
Professor Hamilton loves to teach this class, it is pretty evident through the way he approaches and teaches
the material. Therefore, he encourages you as a student to do the same. A wonderful professor and I wished I
was able to pick his brain more than my shy self allowed me to. Everyone should take this class
Excellent professor! Obviously loves the topic and extends that love to his students. Learned a lot and
enjoyed every single class. Only gripe is the weekly assignments, as for those of us who work while taking
classes it is extremely difficult to find the time each week. Would take another one of his classes in a
heartbeat as he makes you passionate about what you are learning.