CN4406 Modern Chinese Science Fiction

Academic year

2024 to 2025 Semester 1

Further information on which modules are specific to your programme.

Key module information

SCOTCAT credits

15

The Scottish Credit Accumulation and Transfer (SCOTCAT) system allows credits gained in Scotland to be transferred between institutions. The number of credits associated with a module gives an indication of the amount of learning effort required by the learner. European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits are half the value of SCOTCAT credits.

SCQF level

SCQF level 10

The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) provides an indication of the complexity of award qualifications and associated learning and operates on an ascending numeric scale from Levels 1-12 with SCQF Level 10 equating to a Scottish undergraduate Honours degree.

Availability restrictions

Restricted to students on Chinese Studies joint honours programmes - max 35 students

Planned timetable

TBC

This information is given as indicative. Timetable may change at short notice depending on room availability.

Module coordinator

Dr K Cai

This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module Staff

Dr Keru Cai

This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module description

This module covers science fiction in literature, film, and other media produced in China since the late Qing to the present. We will discuss definitions and theorisations of science fiction and the ways practitioners innovate to push the genre's boundaries. How has science fiction attempted to grapple with colonial modernity, the political upheaval of the 20th and 21st centuries, social crises, and technological advances? What are the continuities in science fiction across major historical ruptures in this period? We will consider how science fiction tropes and devices can be marshalled to address issues of race, ethnicity, gender, and class; and how different forms (short stories, novels, comics, films) use medium-specific techniques to convey these themes. Key topics include utopia and dystopia; temporal and spatial imaginaries; intertextual resonances with traditional Chinese and foreign resources; the blurring of human and nonhuman binaries; and the potential for subversion.

Relationship to other modules

Pre-requisites

STUDENTS MUST HAVE READING KNOWLEDGE OF CHINESE

Assessment pattern

Coursework - 100%

Re-assessment

Coursework - 100%

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact

1.5 contact hours per week.

Scheduled learning hours

15

The number of compulsory student:staff contact hours over the period of the module.

Guided independent study hours

132

The number of hours that students are expected to invest in independent study over the period of the module.

Intended learning outcomes

  • Demonstrate their knowledge of the evolution of Chinese science fictional art forms in historical and intellectual context.
  • Discuss the differences in how formal elements specific to literature, film, and visual media evoke science fiction tropes and themes.
  • Identify and debate varying definitions and theories of science fiction, arising in China and elsewhere.
  • Analyse key works of Chinese science fiction and their evocation of political, economic, and social crises.