emergence and education

Seriously... tell me about your final papers!

So we've danced around this issue for a while but I haven't heard much from you. A few rumblings. A few ideas thrown out. A few panicked moments.

Now your final paper is 9 days away! At this point you really ought to know what you are doing. So out with it.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Rebecca Burtram on July 28, 2008 at 3:30pm: I am going to write a paper titled
"A Look at Technology Through the Eyes of Cyberpunk Literature: The Greatest Evil and The Greatest Savior" ......There is nothing new under the sun......(I have to look up the reference for that quote, but that is going to be under the title.....)

Anyway, I think I have narrowed it down to using cultural studies.
The concept is that the books we have read portray society, nature, government, etc. in ruins with man's use of technology at fault, but they also show technology as the remedy to the ruins. This is not a new idea... I have found this to be the sentiment back in the late 1800's and early 1900's as well. We are fearful of the power of technology, and we are hopeful because of the power of technology. This is seen throughout the books we have been reading, but it is also in literature from over 100 years ago.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Joshua Lawrence on July 28, 2008 at 10:06pm: I've been working at a paper on Neuromancer and the absence of love and God in Gibson's cyberpunk world. I already have a few pages done. What do you think, Prof. Reid?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Amanda McK on July 28, 2008 at 11:22pm: I am working on crime and punishment in cyberpunk lit... Is it ok that I am not limiting my paper and discussion to one book? And also, can you give the description of the assignment one more time, just to be sure I achieve the goals. Thanks.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by AlexReid on July 29, 2008 at 9:55am: It sounds as though you are all started off on some interesting paths so far. You're addressing themes that would seem to have some resonance with the texts we've been discussing. I would hope that by looking through the material on this site that you could find plenty of ideas worth further development.

Yes, Amanda, it is fine to focus on a single book. Your primary task is to write for an audience of other graduate students and/or teachers who might have an interest in cyberpunk and tell them something interesting and/or useful.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Rachel Alexander on July 29, 2008 at 4:24pm: Is it ok to incorporate all or multiples (more than one) of the novels that we've read into our final paper, or do we need to restrict ourselves to only discussing one of the books we've read for class? Sorry to keep asking this, but I'm still unclear.

My topic is going to be a discussion of cyberpunk, specifically predictions of our future, from a political economistic standpoint. I hope to compare and contrast the ideas we've read about with the vision of the super-commercialized future predicted by the economist Veblen (coined the phrase 'conspicuous consumption') and hopefully to tie this in with other economists' theories as well. PLEASE respond and let me know if you think this is a viable topic, or if you think I should focus on one of the other possible topics I mentioned in a previous discussion about this. Before I do too much more writing/research, I'd love to hear if you think I'm on a good track, though it is clear that you do not want to offer tons of input. Anything at all would be great. Thanks!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by AlexReid on July 29, 2008 at 4:35pm: Yes you can use multiple texts. And yes your idea sounds good to me. Cyberpunk is deeply interested in these concerns.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Rachel Alexander on July 29, 2008 at 4:37pm: Thanks!! I shall proceed...; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Judith Piccione on July 29, 2008 at 5:41pm: So...I think I've finally ironed things out. The title of my paper, thus far (things are always subject to change in my world), is Shira’s Mid-Life Crisis Come Early: A Cyberpunk Tale of Female Transcendence. I am looking at Shira beginning the novel as this sexless, fragmented individual who seems lost to becoming this whole, sexual, powerful being at the hands of a technologically-born cyborg. I am looking into some feminist studies, psychoanalysis, and your regular run-of-the-mill cyberpunk scholarship. Hopefully I'm onto something...as I've already reached the end of page 4 and I'm pretty satisfied with my paper's beginings.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Cheryl Meany on July 30, 2008 at 9:31am: Prof. Reid,
My paper is done:) and I submitted it to WebCT this morning. Thank you!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Rebecca Burtram on July 30, 2008 at 11:23am: I am so jealous! I would love to be able to say that I am finished already! Great work Cheryl!; ▶ Reply to This