Seminar: "Take us to your Chief": Indigenous Sci-Fi by Drew Hayden Taylor and others

Even if you are not a science-fiction nut, you are probably aware of specific sf tropes like space adventures, first contact stories, an AI gone rogue or time travels (with a DeLorian, perhaps). In the Foreword to Take Us To Your Chief (2016), Canadian Anishinaabeg author Drew Hayden Taylor admits "...First Nations and science fiction don't usually go together."

Yet with his collection of humorous sci-fi short stories, he proves his own observation wrong.

Drew Hayden Taylor spins those sf tropes into brilliant stories about contemporary First Nations people, often on Canadian reserves, and creates opportunities for his readers to make their own (literary) first contact while recognizing and respecting indigenous people's humanity. With that the author affirms the usefulness of science-fiction for reflecting on the realities of First Nations in North America and how essential their experiences are for forging the future of humankind.

This course will introduce the participants to contemporary indigenous science fiction written by Drew Hayden Taylor. A selected few other indigenous  speculative stories and indigenous superhero comics will be included. The in-class discussions will be used to explore both the literary texts and the cultural challenges of contemporary indigenous people (in Canada) they reflect.

Required text/please purchase:

Taylor, Drew Hayden (2016). Take us to your Chief.  Madeira Park, BC, Douglas and McIntyre

ISBN-10 1771621311

(ca. 8 to 10€ and definitely worth it!)

This seminar is conceptualized as an in-person, discussion-based seminar  that requires the active participation of all enrolled students. Consequently, participants ought to read one short story per week to be able to join the discussion.

Students should have completed the Introduction to the USA module successfully.

Studienleistungen in Topics in Literature and Cultural Studies USA or B.A. Topics in Literature and Cultural Studies (Worksheet/LA or oral presentation/B.A.). They can be used for the literature seminar OR the Cultural Studies seminar.

Term paper  for B.A. "Topics in Literature and Cultural Studies" (focus should be on Cultural Studies)

Term paper or oral exam (20 min) for Lehramt StO 2020 "Topics in Literature and Cultural Studies USA" (format will be decided at the beginning of the semester and will depend on the number of participants.

Junior students (B.A. and Lehramt English)