In this assignment you will be assigned to debate one side of a social question using evidence from the material presented in this class as well as your own opinions and outside knowledge. The two topics to be debated are as follows:

1. By striving to create and ensure equality of living conditions for all its citizens, a nation can increase the quality of life and thus happiness of its people.

2. The advancement of science, and its applications in the creation of new technology, is a benevolent force that leads to social progress and the improvement to the conditions of people’s everyday lives.

Debate is a discipline of argumentative discussion. It takes place according to set rules and in a strict time organization. There are two teams in each debate, the affirmative and the negative team. The former attempts at supporting the debate statement and the later tries negate the resolutions. Judges decide on which team has done a better job in the debate round. This is an opportunity to learn to express your opinions and discuss differences in opinion with your peers peacefully. This exercise will develop your critical thinking skills, your ability to construct an argument, and give you practice at public speaking. The debate will be conducted in the cross examination style:

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In this course we have seen how propaganda has played an important role in establishing and maintaining Utopian societies. Images and words are used to communicate the an ideal vision of the society, to indoctrinate the public to the benefits of that vision, and convince them to believe this vision exists despite their own experience.

For this assignment I would like you to write and/or draw and advertisement that promotes a physical, social, political, economic or technological vision. Think about examples form the societies depicted in books or movies thus far. The advertisement should depict the society as idealized by its proponents. Also think about how you can hide, or give positive spin to the negative aspects of the society.

You will be graded on:

In Brave New World, Aldous Huxley portrays a variety of experiences of his utopian/dystopian vision by portraying the point of view of different characters such as Lenina, Bernard, and John. Depending on the character’s personality, knowledge and experiences, they reacted differently to living in the Brave New World. How do you think you would feel living in this society? Would you feel relaxed and leisurely or oppressed and controlled? Would you accept the codes of society, or resist them? Imagine that you are living in the society depicted in this book. Write a diary of how you would respond to one of the activities represented in this book? What would you think, feel, say, do? Some examples of activities would include: meeting the savage, visiting the reservation, touring the factory, participating in a community sing, etc.

Write a short creative essay depicting what you think may be the effect of this utopia on yourself as an individual and as a human being. This essay should be 600-1000 words, 2-4 pages typed, double-spaced. You will be graded on the level of thoughtfulness, evidence of direct response to the readings, the quality of writing, and creativity.

Both Edward Bellamy (Looking Backward) and Aldous Huxley (Brave New World) portray Utopian visions in which a central authority governs over an army of workers and technological change has solved many practical problems. However Bellamy portrays these developments as positive advances toward creating a Utopia, while Huxley portrays the darker consequences of modern social changes.

Write a 5 paragraph essay (600-1000 words, 2-4 pages typed, double spaced) comparing and contrasting these two visions. Using quotes and/or examples from each book discuss how these authors portray three aspects (such as spatial, social, political, economic and/or technological) of their Utopian vision. What similarities and differences exist between the characteristics of these two societies? How does the mood or attitude with which the authors discuss the two societies differ?

Your comparison should have a central thesis, or overall statement of comparison between the two visions, and three supporting points. Quotes should be used as support, but should always be discussed and analyzed in your own words, to show how they demonstrate your argument. You be graded on the clarity of your comparison, the strength of your argument, the successful use of examples and quotes from the two books to support your ideas, and the quality of writing.

Imagine you are transported back in time to 19th century as described in Bellamy and in lecture. How would you explain the changes that have occurred? How would you account for the success or failures of the reforms they hoped to engender? What would you say to people who asked you to describe the future for them?

Imagine you have been hired as a newspaper reporter or lecturer who will communicate your knowledge and experience of the future to the public of the 19th century. What would you say?

Choose at least two of the following topics to discuss: physical, social, political, economic, and technology. Try to reference your knowledge of contemporary 21st century conditions, 19th century conditions, and the reform agendas that people from the 19th century hoped to engender.

This can be relatively short, approximately 2 pages, about 1000 words. Think about your rhetorical style, consider your audience.

In this class we will be reading novels and watching films which portray cities in different ways. Some will depict idealized urban centers that are clean, orderly, and efficient, where people live in freedom and equality. Others will depict cities of fear that are dark, crowded, chaotic, where people are anonymous, cruel, or oppressed. Think about the way that cities are represented in films, novels, or advertisements that you have been exposed to. How do these images relate to your own experience of living in your home town or region?