Assignment: First Weekly Summary and Personal Introduction

Since we’re just starting the class, this first writing assignment is much lower stakes than those that follow. For this first assignment, write a comment to this blog post that introduces yourself to me and your classmates, and that summarizes what I talked about in lecture and what you read before our next class.

For this first assignment, please spend more writing on yourself and tell us your major, your career goals, and your background/interest in Science Fiction. You can include your favorite SF or maybe what introduced you to SF. Then, briefly write about what I discussed in lecture (only a sentence or two) and what you are reading (again, only a sentence or two is necessary–but be sure to include the title, author’s full name, publication year, and something about what you’ve read so far–e.g., or for example, “So far, the book is about Walton sailing on a voyage of discovery and then his encounter with a man marooned on a floating piece of ice named Victor Frankenstein, who tells Walton about how he came to be there.”

It should be at least 250 words long. This is about 1 page, double spaced worth of writing. If you have the time and energy to write more, I highly encourage it as the 250-word mark is a minimal length. Looking ahead, there might be some weeks that you only write 250 words and others you might want to write more based on your reaction to the lectures and the readings.

These weekly writing assignments are based on best effort. If the word count is met and there are sufficient details, you will receive full credit for that week’s assignment. If the word count is low and/or the writing has too many empty words–meaning not focused on the task of summarizing lecture and readings–less credit will be received.

I STRONGLY suggest writing your weekly summary in a word processor like Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, or Google Docs first, so that your work is saved somewhere else. Then, copy-and-paste your writing into the comment box below this post (remember to click on the post’s title and scroll down the subsequent page to find the comment box). Finally, click the “Post Comment” button and wait for visual confirmation that your post was successful.

Always keep a copy of your work saved elsewhere in case your comment disappears from OpenLab for whatever reason. To check how many comments you have made over the semester, you can easily do so by going to our OpenLab site > Mouseover the title of the site at the top of the page > Click on Dashboard > Click on Comments on the left > type in your name in the search box on the right > Click “Search Comments.” The number of “approved” comments will appear under your name in the list.

17 thoughts on “Assignment: First Weekly Summary and Personal Introduction”

  1. I’m Philip Burkhard, and I’m a pre-med student (“post-bac”) that is taking this course because I enjoy science-fiction (and maybe also to fulfill an English requirement). I chose this course because I thought it would help me to enjoy the reading and writing that comes with an intensive writing course, and also because I’m hoping that it will help me improve my writing skills. My favorite work of science fiction is Robert Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land, which is about a Martian of human origin that comes to earth and sees our culture and habits for the first time as an outsider, providing the reader with objective reflections on the absurdity of some of our behaviors. It’s also very funny. I liked watching the X-Files on TV as a kid and enjoyed the era of movies like The Fifth Element, Contact and The Abyss; easy to watch. More “important” works that I’ve seen or read over the course of school and that I also enjoyed include 1984 and Blade Runner.
    In the first lecture (and online video lecture), we covered what came before science fiction and how science fiction came to be. We concluded with a quick overview of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The lecture covered precursors to the genre like The Epic of Gilgamesh, Prometheus (in Hesiod’s “Theogony”), The Tempest, Gulliver’s Travels, etc. and how the broad ideas in those works informed the science fiction genre that would come later. We covered science fiction’s emergence and the five movements that contributed to it (The Enlightenment, the Scientific Revolution, The Industrial Revolution, Romanticism and the Gothic). Finally, we got a quick overview of the author of Frankenstein Mary Shelley’s family history and upbringing, the broad themes in the novel itself that draw on themes from the Emergence of science fiction, and an overview of the different characters and their motivations.
    Frankenstein begins with multiple letters from Robert Walton, an English, self-styled explorer pursuing the mysteries of the North Pole – what creates the magnetism that directs compasses and whether or not a passage can be found that would allow more efficient travel between continents. He writes from Russia to his sister Margaret Saville about his progress in hiring a ship and a crew of men to make the journey northward. He acknowledges his own “romantic” nature due to his upbringing, being self-educated and more cultivated than the harder men that work labor jobs, and hopes to find a friend to keep him company on the journey. He thinks he is lucky to have found one in a fellow Englishman that is “softer” than the other crew members but has their respect nonetheless because of his character.

  2. I am currently in the Architectural Technology major in my final semester. My career goals are to work in a firm after graduating, and in the future start my own design team with some of my peers. I am hoping it is a firm that practices a more scientific theory of architecture. There are a lot of new and exciting studies happening in the architectural community regarding parametric design. This study involves graphical coding to create and manipulate iterative patterns as well as sculpted form. The genre of Science Fiction has always interested me, as you touched on in your lecture, there is this correlation between combining the arts and sciences. This combination is the same in architecture and appeals to me in a creative and technical sense. Science Fiction can expand my thinking towards a forward, futuristic, and theoretical sense of how we might exist and function in the future. Lately I have been listening to interviews with William Gibson. I enjoy listening to his ideas. I also just started his book “Neuromancer.” I enjoy the works of architectural firms such as Superstudio, Archigram, Archizoom who conceptualized their theory of futuristic societal environments which I feel is a visual form of science fiction. I am hoping this class will introduce and expand on what I have discovered so far. In the lecture you discussed the early influences that define what we know science fiction to be today. You then continued to give contextual information of the writer Merry Shelley and summarize her first work “Frankenstein”. Regarding our reading for the week, it starts off with letters written by Robert Walton to his sister Margaret Saville while on his voyage to discover why the compass points north. On this voyage he rescues Victor Frankenstein who eventually begins his story of why he was there, and his tale of woe. After the letters Victor Frankenstein begins to narrate his story of how he came to create his creator. Frankenstein introduces his family history in the beginning chapters, his schooling, and his early practice. Then the story continues with the tragic death of his little brother William, and the wrongly accused Justine. Finally, the last few chapters assigned for this week is told of the Creators accounts after Frankenstein abandoned him.

  3. My name is Rodrigo Medel, but I go by Roger since it’s a lot easier for people to pronounce. It’s also easier for me to just say “Hey my name’s Roger”. I’m an Entertainment Technology major, though I don’t necessarily enjoy it too much. I’m really into editing and directing type stuff in the film industry, and even though I get a glimpse of that in this major, it’s not enough honestly. I’ve always had a mixed feeling towards science fiction, and the reason why I chose this course was to figure out if I actually enjoy it at all or if I’m just not a fan of it. I always found science fiction a bit corny and repetitive, but for some reason, I always find myself being intrigued by what’s being shown on the screen or being put in front of me. I think the shift of me not really being a fan of science fiction was the hype surrounding “Star Wars”. My friends and I never grew up with Star Wars, so we decided to finally watch episode 1 after years of not knowing what it was. They loved it, I didn’t. In my opinion, it’s just not a good movie. I appreciate the world that was built and the type of details added to make it seem real, but I just didn’t enjoy the story and found it very boring. The Star Wars fan base is also very toxic. One bad review leads to loads of hate. I find that very annoying and it just shut me away from ever trying to enjoy anything sci-fi related. I enjoy theories, such as time travel and teleportation, but nowadays that is starting to look more and more real as technology grows more advanced. During our first lecture, we were given a couple of examples on what we would be learning throughout the course which ultimately caught my attention. In the online video, we got a glimpse on where science fiction may have come from. Stories such as “Frankenstein”and “The Epic of Gilgamesh” started off with made up monsters and creatures which later on transformed into the type of stories we have today. So far in the story of “Frankenstein”, from my understanding, one of the characters is writing a letter to his sister as he’s out exploring what the North Pole has to offer. He’s trying to gain some sort of fame and is starting to lose hope. While out exploring, his crew finds a man out in the snow which we come to find out is Victor Frankenstein looking for some sort of monster he himself has created. This is what I read up to but so far it seems to be leading to how Victor created the monster and he’s reasonings in doing so.

  4. Hi. My name is Victoria. I live in Queens. I also work in Queens at a nonprofit organization, doing administrative work for their College Access department. I’m a junior majoring in Communication Design.

    Somewhat of a short term goal that I have before I graduate would be to break into the design field so I can get my feet wet so to speak. I switched majors a bunch of times before I figured out this is what I wanted to focus on and now that I’ve found my niche I’m anxious to begin my career. The goal would be to find an internship for Summer 2020 and go from there. I’ve also recently been looking into graduate schools to further my education. I’ve waited this long – what’s another 2 extra years??

    My very first memory of science fiction is from being terrified of an episode of the X-files my parents were watching when I was young – it was an episode about killer bees. I have a vivid memory of this one scene where the bees were attacking kids on a playground and was basically scarred after seeing it. That memory combined with my older sister “forcing” me to watch movies like Hellraiser and Signs made my younger self extremely sensitive to things of the supernatural/science fiction sort. And now, years later I couldn’t be more intrigued with the genre (hence my enrollment in ENG2420).

    Having read Frankenstein in HS and remembering next to nothing now about the book, I was interested in revisiting the story. I loved that the introduction walks you through Mary Shelley’s recount of her time in the Swiss Alps, going up against other writers to win a ghost story competition. How it would keep her up at night because she couldn’t find inspiration to write. Then all of a sudden it finally dawned on her and she created the first science fiction novel.

    To review the first lecture, you spoke about the precursors of science fiction. The foundations that the genre stemmed from. Such as the story of Prometheus, which Shelley drew inspiration from when she was writing Frankenstein. A few periods of time that had a major influence on science fiction writers were also mentioned. I found the book, “Philosophical Inquiry into the Origin of Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful” by Edmund Burke to be most interesting. It’s the idea of categorizing and describing the way certain things make us feel (I will definitely be getting my hands on a copy asap).

  5. Hello, I am Carl J Barton. My major is mechanical engineering technology. I have no background in science fiction, I’m in this class because it was required to be honest. My favorite SF is Fullmetal Alchemist : Brotherhood, created in 2009. It follow the protagonist Edward Elric and his brother Alphonse Elric as they use the law of equivalent exchange, i.e. alchemy, to uncover the mysteries of the world. They search for the Philsopher’s Stone, hoping to restore their bodies, which were lost when they attempted to use their alchemy skills to resurrect their deceased mother. Edward, who lost only limbs, joins the State Military, which gives him the freedom to continue the search as he tries to restore his brother, whose soul is tethered to earth by a suit of armor. However, Edward and Alphonse are not the only ones seeking the powerful stone.
    In the lecture, the professor explains how to pass the class with note taking, homework, and generally spending the appropriate amount of time, to effectively be successful in class. He shows us a “effective note taking” method to help us review our notes. We covered the precursors to science fiction and how it came to be. The lectured covered the Epic of Gilgamesh (2150-2000BC), Prometheus in Hesiod’s Theogony(8th century BC), and a collection of stories telling myths about the gods. We also covered how science fiction emerge during the Age of Enlightenment, that brought skepticism and Scientific Revolution, where scientific observation, theories, and experiments were created. We later discussed the “first” example of science fiction Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein which draws on gothic, methodology and travel narratives as well as builds on the elements of romanticism and gothic. Frankenstein is the first novel to have the character choose between alchemy and the scientific mothed. It imagines what science could do to the world in the future.

  6. Hello everyone, my name is Pablo. I am a Communication Design (COMD) major in the animation/illustration module. My ultimate career goal(s) is to work as an animator. I am currently in my last semester at City Tech. Somehow I ended up being 2 credits short in Advance liberal arts and am taking this course to fulfill that requirement. This is the last and only class needed for me to graduate. I had a wide list to choose from but I chose SF specifically because Eng has always been one of my favorite subjects and I was hoping that as a creative SF would help spark my creativity. I also very much enjoy reading so I thought this would be a fun class to engage in. If I dig far enough into my memory perhaps my first introduction to SF would be probably be “The Jetsons” and “Star Wars”. The lecture covered the emergence of science fiction and how it came to be. What stood out to me the most is man’s journey to shaping what is today known as Science Fiction. It’s not like people just started coming up with scifi tales in fact the lecture explains 5 major changes in the world that took place including the Age of Enlightenment, Scientific Rev., and Industrial Rev. just to name a few. The lecture also provides information of early works such as The Epic of Gilgamesh and Prometheus. I found it interesting that Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is recognized as the first work of SF literature. I had read this book 5 years ago and am delighted to have the chance to revisit it. So far I have read the letters and the early chapters. It is exciting how enlightened Victor becomes when he begins to study at Ingolstadt. His relationship with his professors also serves as an interesting part of his development as a student. Its funny how he thinks he knows so much and then is nearly laughed at almost insulted by his professor. His relationship with Elizabeth sounds extremely passionate and her origin is very special. I’m glad that I do not remember the whole story however what I do remember is the excitement and anticipation I felt when reading it which I hope will re emerge in this second reading…

  7. My name is Santanu Bonik, and my major is in Mechanical Engineering. As far as my career goes, I’d like to do something with CAD (computer aided design). Right now, I work for a small-time architectural company doing shop drawings and construction takeoffs. Fall 2019 was supposed to be my final semester before I get my bachelor’s degree. But there was a small hiccup in my transcript, and I needed to take one more class, so at the last minute, I signed up for science fiction. I chose this class, because I had to, obviously, but I am a big fan of science fiction, so it appealed to me way more than the other class options. I’ve never been much of a book reader, but if I wanted to read something, I would choose from the fiction/science fiction sections. I love to watch sci fi movies and shows and play video games. Back when my family and I had cable, I spent majority of my time on the sci fi channel. What really got me into science fiction, was outer space. I enjoyed movies like Interstellar, The Martian, Arrival, Avatar. I loved playing through the Mass Affect series, and Deus Ex. I would like to dive deep into this subject and learn more. During the first lecture, we learned about the precursors of science fiction, stories and people that have influenced the science fiction we know today. Then we learned about five science fiction emergences which include the Age of Enlightenment, Scientific Revolution, Industrial Revolution, Romanticism, and the Gothic. Next, we briefly learn about Mary Shelley and her background and the introduction to Frankenstein. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein story, starts off with several letters from Robert Walton to his sister, Margaret Saville. Walton writes about his journey to the north pole by ship. Later, during the journey, Walton meets a lone man on a piece of ice whose name is Victor Frankenstein.

  8. Hello, my name is Christopher Wright. My major is computer engineering. Currently I’m uncertain about my career path currently but building and working with electronics is something I enjoy very much. I don’t have too much of a background history of science fiction but recently with cyberpunk 2077 I’ve taken an interest in cyberpunk. I don’t have a favorite work of science fiction, but some sci-fi devices can seem akin to magic which really interests me. Currently learning about building PCBs for keyboard and soldering battery cells. A small summary of the lecture is effective notetaking using the Cornell Method as well as overviews of many books that impacted modern science fiction novels. Like the precursor to Science fiction Epic of Gilgamesh, as well as the veiled political statements with use of science fiction in Gulliver’s Travels. The Emergence of science fiction through 5 certain events being The Enlightenment, The Scientific Revolution, Romanticism and the Gothic. Later we get an introduction to Mary Shelley as well as Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein who moved away from pseudoscience and moved towards chemistry and galvanism or the electricity produced by chemical action. Walton, journeys on a boat in his study of magnetism on the compass as well as studying mathematics and medicine. Several letters later He mentions a stranger who offered to tell a story about how he came to be where he is, in pursuit of knowledge similar to Walton

  9. Hello, my name is Ariana Dejesus, and I’m a sophomore majoring in Communication Design. I’m hoping to land a decent position in the advertising/marketing field after college. I graduated high school with a certification in Communications Media, so I’m proud to say i started off school here in City Tech a step ahead. One science fiction novel that I’ve been very fond of since high school is Fahrenheit 451. I loved the theme of censorship and shift of societal norm within it, which was a huge contribution to the way we see science fiction now. In the lecture video, there was talk about the history of how science fiction as we know it today came to be. There was background on people such as Isaac Newton and revolutions such as the Industrial revolution. These contributed to the evolution of science fiction. We’re now reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1831). I’ve read this book in high school and it’s fun getting to look back at it once more. I’ve read the background of Mary Shelley and how her life contributed to the work she produced. So far, a man named Walton is writing letters to his sister as he sets off on a voyage on his own, with moments of lack of self-confidence and then much of it. There is already the “romantic” aspect given when Walton describes the feeling of wanting a friend, the affection of being understood. He goes on explaining how there isn’t anyone around him to match his mind, thoughts, or feelings.

  10. Hello,

    My name is Shannon. I major in Human Services. I would be glad to achieve any position in the Human Services field, however, it would be a dream come true to be able to work in the organization UNICEF, maybe traveling the world helping out in third-world countries. I’ve been exposed to science fiction pretty much all of my life as my dad would watch science fiction movies often. I also have a cousin who was very into science fiction movies so the genre was always around. The only science fiction that I can say I’m into now is the show The Flash just because I don’t have much spare time to get into anything else and I haven’t even gotten caught up with that. Nonetheless, I am still very interested in the genre of science fiction as I do find it to be a very interesting and entertaining genre. This class seemed to be one of the most interesting out of all the liberal arts classes there are to choose from. In the lecture, we were given an overview of how science fiction first came to be. The precursors of science fiction were briefly discussed including The Epic of Gilgamesh, Prometheus, Gulliver’s Travels and Frankenstein. A brief overview of all those stories were given. We were also given some information regarding the author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley and her background. So far, the story includes several letters Robert Walton writes to his sister. He also writes about his voyage to the North Pole. Later on, Walton meets a man named Victor Frankenstein.

  11. Hello everyone, my name is Brandon Bendter and I’m majoring in Architectural Technology. I plan to get my bachelors and continue my studies further to achieve my masters and license in architecture. After gaining merit and experience under any successful firms, I’d like to start my own practice and return to college to gain my bachelors in an engineering field of later choosing. I don’t have any profound goals regarding my major that I expect to accomplish, or a lifetime of interest that has led me to choose it. Rather, I just want to be capable in as many fields regarding the design and production of human environments as possible. This information from my studies is for my own personal gain, to be able to pave a way for an environment I see fit.
    I’ve been interested in Science Fiction since middle school, Sam Raimi’s Spider-man series and the animated show Casshern Sins were a couple of my earliest introductions to the genre and led me into the exploration of SF films and shows. Western cartoons, Eastern animation, and some readings have heavily influenced my interest in Science Fiction. Birthing a fascination with creating new fantastic ideas based on reality, bending its rules to create fictional circumstances, narratives and characters that I find interesting. I spend plenty of time designing characters and writing concepts that take place in SF environments, mostly as a hobby but the thought of creating a concrete storyboard is exciting.
    In the first lecture we were given context to author Mary Shelley and her inspiration behind her 1831 “Frankenstein”. We also touched base on the five science fiction emergence’s: Age of Enlightenment, Scientific Revolution, Industrial Revolution, Gothic, and Romanticism. So far in the reading of Mary Shelley’s 1831 “Frankenstein”, Robert Walton has embarked on his journey to the North Pole in search of furthering his knowledge regarding magnetism. During his journey he encounters Victor Frankenstein in the midst of the sea, a man of science and grief, chasing a creature he branded a “demon”.

  12. Hi! My name is Alex Cartagena and I am a Facilities Management Major. I am currently employed as the Assistant Director of Facilities and Building Engineer at a nursery through 12th-grade private school located in midtown Manhattan. The school campus is comprised of two adjacent buildings, one a 7-story building, and the other a 10-story building, totaling approximately 250,000 sq.ft. In 2006 when I was hired by the organization I was entrusted with overseeing the operation of a 7-story building that had been renovated and expanded a few years prior. It was in 2012 however that my life changed when I was suddenly asked to help manage a new 10-story building being constructed next door. I knew I lacked some of the skills I would need to successfully run a state-of-the-art building and at that point, I decided I needed to further my education and expand my skill sets. In the Spring of 2013, I enrolled as a part-time Freshman student at Citytech with 0 credits. I hustled to school three nights a week and struggled to balance my work, school, and family responsibilities. It was only a matter of time before I became accustomed to my new high-stress life and after a few years and many sleepless nights, I earned an AAS in Environmental Control Tech with Honors in the Spring of 2017. But that was only the first phase of my master plan (grand scheme) as I am currently working toward my Bachelor in Facilities Management degree which I am just 9 credits shy of obtaining.

    ENG2420 is one of the final courses I am taking at Citytech and I think I will enjoy it as I have always been a fan of science fiction. As a boy, I enjoyed watching Star Wars, as an adolescent, I was an avid Star Trek The Next Generation and X-Men fan, and even to this day, I’ll binge-watch sci-fi on various streaming services when I find the time. The most recent series I have watched in the order of most to least enjoyable is Mandalorian, Man in the High Castle, and Travelers.

    During the first lecture, we discussed the class requirements, the benefits of notetaking, and we touched on the precursors of science fiction which included The Epic of Gilgamesh, Prometheus, Gulliver’s Travels and the assigned reading Frankenstein, 1831 ed., by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. From the time I was a child until present I was aware of Frankenstein and his monster from having watched movies about the subject, but never had the pleasure of reading the book. My impression of the book thus far is a favorable one as I enjoy the details with which Shelley described her characters and brought them to life. I am currently reading chapter 8, witnessing the trial of Justine Moritz who has been charged with William’s murder. I’m not sure if she did it or if Frankenstein’s creation did it, but I look forward to finding out as I finish the book within the next couple of days.

  13. Hello, my name is Joan Nunez and my major is Liberal Arts. I plan to get my associate’s degree in liberal arts and transfer to a different college to pursue a bachelors in Media Studies. I would hope to get a job as a social media manager or sports journalist. I’m not really familiar with science fiction but the course seemed really interesting and it also satisfied my writing intensive requirement. Science fiction has always caught my interest but I never got into it, I’m hoping this course will draw me into the genre and inform me on what science fiction actually is. In Highschool, I was assigned to read, “Fahrenheit 451” by Ray Bradbury which at first I thought was going to be another boring book I had to read but when I finished reading it I found it to be very good and that was my first glimpse of the genre. The idea implemented in the book of a dystopian society where books are illegal and if were to be found are immediately burned was so weird to me that I got hooked on to it. When it comes to Science Fiction movies, I mostly enjoy superhero films like everybody else. My favorite science fiction movies would have to be the Avengers series. They’re very entertaining to me because of how action packed they are and their easy to understand. I would label myself as a casual when it comes to science fiction because I only enjoy the mainstream stuff but I’m really open to learning more about the genre. In the lecture, you first showed us the Cornell note taking system, which you said is very effective for note taking. Then, you talked about the precursors of science fiction. You mentioned the early works of science fiction like the Epic of Gilgamesh and more. The lecture also covered the emergence of science fiction which occurred through five different events. It included the Enlightenment, Scientific Revolution and Gothic. Lastly, the lecture went into detail on the background information of Mary Shelley and we got a short introduction to Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”. So far in “Frankenstein”, it starts with many letters written by Robert Walton to his sister, Margaret Saville while he is on a journey to explore the North Pole. and find out more information about its magnetism.

  14. Hello Class! My name is Savan De Jesus and I am currently pursuing my Bachelors in Professional and Technical Writing here at City Tech, the fine school that we have the pleasure of calling home. Once I graduate my career goal is to become a Technical Writer preferably at an established company that can provide me with a decent salary and health benefits. Over the last few years I have become increasingly interested with, borderline obsessed with the idea that technology has the divine power to change cultures, shift societies, and to truly transform the trajectory of the human species on a global level. This is where my recently discovered love for Science Fiction stems from. One of my favorite Science Fiction shows at the moment is Black Mirror. A Netflix original that is similar to the Twilight Zone in the fact that every episode is a short story in and of itself but differs in the fact that every episode contains a story that explores different possibilities for future technology and the effects that it may have on humanity. Technology advances at an exponential rate and can propel humans into a multitude of unknown, unfathomable directions. I love Science Fiction because through it we can predict these directions and sometimes… We humans really hit the nail right on the head.

    In his online lecture Professor Ellis explained to us the importance of note taking and taught us the Cornell note taking method. He then went on to give us ten examples of precursors to Science Fiction which began with the Epic of Gilgamesh written in Mesopotamia somewhere around 2150 B.C, – 2100 B.C. He spoke of Prometheus, an ancient Greek story about Gods punishing a mortal man every night written in the 8th century. Lucian’s True History was written in 208 A.D. and ironically spoke of Aliens, a species or many different species not yet proven to be fact. A title that stood out to me was Sir Thomas More’s Utopia in 1516. In Latin utopia can be translated to “good place” or “no place.” I believe that this book, especially it’s title, is a major key to many Science Fiction stories.

    For class we are currently reading Mary Shelley’s 1831 version of Frankenstein. The story begins with a man named Walton sending letters to his sister while he is on a Sea Voyage. While sailing through icy waters Walton encounters and befriends a man named Victor Frankenstein who begins to tell him the tale of how he came to be where he is. In the first few Chapters Victor tells about his family and his childhood. He seems to be influenced by the Enlightenment while his adopted sister seems to be influenced by romanticism. Victor questions the world around him. When his mother dies of scarlet fever his father forces him to go to school in Ingolstadt. It is there that he truly begins to let go of the scientific ideas of alchemist and finds new hope in the scientific ideas of present men of Science. Influenced by his professor M. Walden, he turns his life towards “Natural philosophy, and particularly chemistry” these become “Nearly his sole occupation” (Shelley, 36).

  15. Hello Everyone, My name is LeRoy Kenner my Major is Entertainment Technology. I am pursuing a BTech degree and my interests are learning everything I possibly can about entertainment on a professional level. My short range goals wills be to take the information I learn from this class and all my other classes to formulate a well rounded concept of entertainment themes. I want to take this degree and use it in theaters, marketing, ie window displays, corporate events and themes, weddings and shows. My ultimate goal is to be the go to man in the entertainment industry for getting the themes right. Whether it be concerts, privates events or even Broadway shows. Currently I’ve been working for Enterprise Holdings for the past 10 years. It’s time for a change. I have many years experience in the computer industry and I run my own small business helping other
    small businesses with the websites and apps. As well as their online marketing. I currently have a dentist as a client in midtown manhattan, several limousine services and a few other businesses. The can be entertaining however I’d like to spice up what I am currently doing. I worked in a Television Studio before (MSNBC) and I have a lot of other experiences and skills I gained over the pass. This should be the icing on the cake for me and a lot of fun.

  16. I am Abigail Nasario Maldonado Ramirez, my major is the communication design. The goals that I have for this class and for my major are differently because of their nature. The goal of the class is short-term and, it is a stone of the building that I am constructing. The building that I am constructing in my proficient use and dominion over the English language. I am a foreigner who the life bringing to the United States the well-called land of opportunities. The first great barrier that I face is the language. Despise, I can communicate at the college level. I want to be a great writer and this class about Sci-Fiction is the perfect match to keep advancing through the challenge that I desire to surpass. My major goal is long-term. It’s a life’s goal and always I dreamed to be capable to create animated movies and videogames. Two forms of arts who have as one of their main pillars the sci-fiction, some of the greatest franchises of the cinema and video game are sci-fiction stories, they inspired, terrorized, promoted, predicted the advance of the human society who is impacted with the vision of the best authors of sci-fiction.
    Finally, I want to combine my knowledge about programming, creativity in art, graphic design, illustration plus my newest knowledge about Sci-fiction literature. And, we the dominion over all those aspects come to become in the author the greatest sci-fiction stories who change the world of the future.

  17. Hello there, My name is Ahmad my major is liberal arts. The second-year into college and I still have no idea what I want to do with my life still uncertain on my career path. Currently, my background with SF starts with Halo 2 the original Xbox was my first gaming console and it came with living and breathing masterpiece known as halo 2. 6-year-old Ahmad was blown away. With the atmosphere, the massive halo ring floating in space and the pure epicness of future warfare was the first taste of SF for me. Even with the awesomeness that came with halo. Star Wars A New Hope is by far my favorite piece of SF the sheer space adventure is like no other and it will always have a special place in my heart. We also talked about the birth of SF which is Frankenstein written by marry Shelby. Frankenstein was the first known story to reject alchemy for galvanic or the electricity produced by chemical action and that only that right there created a magnificent genre for the ages.

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