The Left Hand Of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 9

I had planned not to write this essay, partly because I'd only read just over a quarter of the book. Realising a couple of hours before the deadline that I wanted to read other people's opinions, I wrote this quite quickly.

Some of my thoughts are possibly a bit confused as they were emerging as I wrote. I changed the thesis at least once and it could have used more editing for clarification.

The story seems to me to be about perceptions of duality and how point of view influences our thoughts and opinion. I think I managed to get some of that across and I felt I was heading in the direction of what Peer 2 writes, although I didn't express it as well.

I agree with Peer 4 that I slipped up in describing the scope of the reaction to the character Genly, but I disagree with their second point as I qualified my statement about the reader's point of view by saying that is what a reader would think "at the outset". That is, it sets up one of the main tensions of the story.

Thanks, as ever, for the comments.

The Left Hand Of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin

A cursory reading of Ursula LeGuin's "The Left Hand Of Darkness" might lead the reader to conclude she is writing about gender as a source of antagonism. She dispenses with other traditional origins of conflict: there are two non-antagonistic religions on Gethen and racism and inter-society conflicts are either rare or low-level. The extreme cold seems to exacerbate the struggle for survival to the extent that large-scale competition over resources seems a luxury no one cannot afford and the implication is that the societies have developed more slowly as a consequence. There is however, a highly-developed system of politics in Karhide based on social status and while it is from this the initial conflicts emerge and amplify, LeGuin makes it clear how an individual's context informs their viewpoint and gender is a lens through which we view all things.

Genly vainly attempts to unravel his own feelings about Estraven's lack of gender, but can only do so from his own context: "Was it... this soft, supple femininity that I disliked and distrusted in him? ...and yet, whenever I thought of him as a man I felt a sense of falseness, of imposture: in him or in my own attitude to him?"

Even when Estraven is trying to warn Genly about his lack of favour within the society, Genly has a hard time overcoming his gender perceptions to grasp the former's meaning: "I at last saw that I was missing another signal. Damning his effeminate deviousness..."

The Karhidians' respond to what they learn of Genly's biology by dismissing him and his people - and by implication all non-Karhidians - as "A society of perverts".

Ironically, by removing gender altogether, LeGuin succeeds in making biological context such a strong source of conflict at the outset that the reader immediately questions whether a resolution will ever be possible between such antithetical beings.

Responses

Form: 2/3

peer 2 → I cannot complain about the form of this essay.
peer 3 → The structure is ok but piling a lot of information in the first paragraph is not very appropriate… Any way, the expressions used are generally good.
peer 4 → Your essay was generally well-written and understandable. There are a few problems with form. Some examples: 1) "a luxury no one cannot afford" should be "a luxury no one can afford" or "a luxury one cannot afford." The double negative is poor form. 2) Your use of commas is incorrect and frequently confusing.
peer 5 → A well constructed and thought out essay.Well done.

Content: 2/3

peer 2 → This was well written. The problem is you start by suggesting that gender isn't the only issue, then say the society/government is the antagonizing issue, and then write "LeGuin makes it clear how an individual's context informs their viewpoint and gender is a lens through which we view all things." So that's a bit confused. Genly is so unsuccessful in incorporating the Gethenians for so long because he doesn't realize that his own gender bias is distorting his perception of their society; it's almost as if they are speaking another language. That's why the government and the culture is so antagonizing to Genly in this text.
peer 3 → The thesis is expressed clearly ---- the gender issues. However, about half of the essay is taken up by quotes from the story. Giving more of your own opinions may be better.
peer 4 → Your theme is understandable, but I see some problems with it: 1) You state "and by implication all non-Karhidians." I disagree. Your statement might be correct if you had said "and by implication all non-Gethenians." 2) You state "the reader immediately questions whether a resolution will ever be possible between such antithetical beings." I disagree. I think Le Guin does answer the question. I believe your essay misses one of the points of the book.
peer 5 → This essay is very well written. the thesis/agrument is clear and concise.

Comments

None.

The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 8

The only Ray Bradbury I've read previously was in English classes at school where we read the short story collection "The Golden Apples of the Sun". Although it includes the classic "A Sound Of Thunder", I don't clearly recall any of the other stories. Reading this excellent book has opened a door to further reading, exactly what I'd hoped for from this course.

Insightful comments this week. I had got distracted from my original thesis by some interesting ideas and was in a rush to submit. If I'd started earlier, left it overnight and returned to it, I might have picked up the problem and fixed it. Thanks to the reviewers.

The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury

Only forty years separate the writing of Bradbury's "The Martian Chronicles" and Burroughs' "A Princess Of Mars", but the two books are clearly from different ages.

Burroughs' story is rooted in the nineteenth century and he transposes the Wild West to Mars to act as a backdrop for heroic adventure. By contrast, Bradbury's post-modern narrative is a product of the twentieth century which examines the mechanics of colonisation in a collection of stories replete with irony and black humour.

Burroughs signals otherness by casting the Martians as a physical analogue of Native Americans whose strength is literally in their strength. Bradbury though pushes further, evoking a sense of the uncanny in the astronauts' interactions with the Martians through the latter's telepathy. When the first expedition to Mars ends in the death of the astronauts, interplanetary warfare isn't the cause: the men are killed by a jealous Martian husband who tells his wife he's “Just hunting...” When the second expedition fails, the mental impact of Martian telepathy leads to the astronauts' murder and a Martian psychologist's suicide.

Were Bradbury merely writing an adventure about the inevitability of colonisation and the triumph of humanity, the rule of three would lead us to expect two failures then success. Instead he adds irony by having the third landing party killed and making the Martians appear unassailable. Yet, like the Martians who succumbed to the common cold while attempting to invade Earth in H.G. Wells' “War Of The Worlds” and the Incas killed by the smallpox virus, humans overcome Martian resistance by inadvertently infecting them with disease.

Mankind does not deserve to have conquered Mars. His victory is an accident, a side-effect. And Bradbury forces us sympathise with the Martians as subsequently, human after human blunders foolishly and selfishly across their planet.

Responses

Form: 2/3

peer 1 → You write well and saw no obvious errors in grammar or use of language. However, your conclusion didn't mirror your introductory paragraph.
peer 2 → Nice clear comparative structure and effective language use
peer 3 → Clear exposition, correct grammar and a nicely constructed flow of sentences.
peer 4 → The form is fine. Spelling grammar and word usage. It is well laid out and paragraphs logical. The exposition and argument are unclear.
peer 5 → The essayist clearly possesses a decent mastery of the English language, and his grammar and vocabulary are relatively well developed. However, I personally found the essay to be a little unfocused; the introduction seems to propose an impending comparison between Bradbury and Burroughs, but Burroughs is abruptly and conspicuously dropped in the midst of the essay. The third paragraph is particularly suspect; from that point onwards, the diction of the essayist makes him sound as if he is going off on a tangent.

Content: 2/3

peer 1 → I'm not sure I agree with your conclusion that man's victory was an accident. Earthmen didn't give up easily even after losing several expeditions. They were persistent, which is usually what is required for conquest. Also I'm not sure that Bradbury's sympathies lie with the Martians. They are absent through most of the book. As I have mentioned, from your introduction I thought you were going to compare Burroughs' and Bradbury's approach in writing about extraplanetary conquest but you veered off half way through. Nevertheless your essay makes some good points about Bradbury's post-modern narrative.
peer 2 → Nice ideas
peer 3 → A novel, absorbing and nicely narrated work displaying a good understanding of Ray Bradbury's work.
peer 4 → The essay is interesting but doesn't tell me anything new. You start off by telling us that the books are clearly from different ages but this doesn't seem to be the premise that you argue through to a logical conclusion. I would have liked to see some comparison between the two showing how they are " clearly form different ages".
peer 5 → A relatively well written essay; the background knowledge, and the contextual interpretation and comparison, does make a striking point when viewed in that respect. However, as mentioned, the essayis should focus his essay a little more, possibly focusing on either the Burroughs-Bradbury comparison or the colonization/alienation theme, which would make for a narrower, more detailed, and this more engaging essay.
peer 6 → I like what you are saying with Wells bringing to light the uncanny, but I don't see how Burroughs connects into the essay. It's as though you started with one idea and then changed.

Comments

peer 1 → It would have been interesting to pursue Bradbury's novel as an example of post modern fiction considering its structure, the ironic playfulness and its ambiguity of meaning.

A Princess Of Mars - Edgar Rice Burroughs

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 7

 

I struggled to keep reading and only made it about 20% through this book, so the essay tends towards the generic. I can't really argue with the comments.

A Princess Of Mars - Edgar Rice Burroughs

 

Edgar Rice Burroughs' "A Princess Of Mars" is a prototypical superhero story which bridges the 19th Century western and 20th Century interplanetary science fantasy. John Carter, the lead character is a 19th Century prototype for 20th Century superheroes, who - like Superman - finds his abilities are enhanced to super-human levels when he changes environments. This strength compensates for his outsider status on Mars, providing him with curiousity value and garnering him the respect of the violent Green Martians who are the first race that he encounters.

Transposing the American West to the planet Mars, with the civilised Red Martians in conflict with savage Green Martians, the story follows a narrative popular for over 100 years prior to its publication. The captivity narrative tells how a hero adapts when captured and imprisoned in an unfamiliar society. Carter's outsider viewpoint sees him define each race by the qualities he observes. Like the society from which Carter himself originates, the Red Martians' society is structured around control of resources, in their case the Martian canals. By contrast, the Green Martians are violent, nomadic and communal, in common with many popular depictions of some Native American tribes.

What seems so impressive in hindsight is how Burroughs weaves such familiar, yet disparate elements into a coherent story, writing about things he knew and at the same writing infusing his stories with elements of the fantastic. Anyone attempting the same feat now would find numerous sub-genres into which their tale would fit. Burroughs had very few antecedents and was effectively blazing a trail for a new type of fiction that would come to be one of the most popular and imaginative forms of the next one hundred years.

Responses

 

Form: 2/3

peer 1 → I 'm not a fluent english speaker so i'm not able to evaluate your grammar and vocabulary properly. In my humble opinion you write correctly and use appropriate words. Your argumentations flow from a sentence to another soundly.
peer 2 → The grammar and structure has minor error, but the essays very understanable
peer 3 → "when he changes environments": he did not. "Carter's outsider viewpoint sees him define...": too many words for too little. "What seems so impressive in hindsight is...": "hindsight" may not be a right word.

Content: 2/3

peer 1 → You said A Princess of Mars stays within his time. It trasposes the just concluded American West epic to the red planet and compares savage Green Martians with American Natives and Red Martians with European Colonizers. In my opinion you should better setting out any obiection to this drastic separation right/wrong,
peer 2 → The content make some insight to the reader, but likely lack a clear conclusion as the main ideas about the story
peer 3 → I see you did your homework. A lot of information, unfortunately, not anything new. So, where is your original problem and your thought about it?
peer 4 → Interesting and article is well organized.

Comments

peer 2 → Maybe add more word to make some exploration about the story will make this essays better.
peer 3 → Try to expand your own ideas. That would make your essay more interesting.

The Invisible Man - H.G. Wells

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 6

Although I only made it 60% of the way through during the week, I enjoyed The Invisible Man and felt I managed to pull a decent essay together.

The Invisible Man - H.G. Wells

In The Invisible Man, Wells continually shifts the forces of antagonism as the story progresses in order to reveal different qualities of his protagonist, Griffin, through their interactions. He does this by making each antagonist represent a different form of morality.

The landlady Mrs. Hall is a sympathetic woman with a strong personal sense of morality based on traditional values of respect and politeness. She tolerates Griffin's brusque manner for business reasons, but stands up to him when he threatens to transgress the boundaries of politeness: "Mrs. Hall was quite alarmed. But she was a resolute woman." Although volatile, Griffin too has standards and knows he should respect her, despite his exasperation: "And he mumbled at her - words suspiciously like curses." Politeness dictates that Mrs. Hall respect her guests' wishes, but Griffin's abruptness begins to grate on her and she refuses to let him dominate her.

Marvel, by contrast is cowardly, corrupted and co-opted into Griffin's emerging scheme. Marvel's weakness is an inadequate source of antagonism, so the villagers must band clumsily together to form a mass of sufficient volume to repel Griffin. Together, they represent a collective form of morality which emerges through their response to circumstance. As the village's response coheres, its response is personified in the policemen who represent the law as the highest form of social morality.

The calm, rational Dr. Kemp is a voice of reason; a man of science and therefore a fundamental threat to Griffin. Through enquiry and debate, Kemp seeks to understand Griffin's problem from a scientific viewpoint while at the same time wrestling intellectually with the moral implications of helping or denouncing a criminal.

These different levels of morality - the individual strength based on traditional moral sense, the collective knowledge of right and wrong, and the intellectually validated moral response - ultimately combine, the people cooperate and the immoral Griffin is overcome.

Responses

 

Form: 2/3

 

peer 1 → Good use of language
peer 2 → Your essay follows a very clear, logical structure. It's obvious you've thought carefully about how your ideas relate to each other. My only complaint is that the paragraph about Dr. Kemp does not have as much support as the other paragraphs. I did not take off points for this because I realize we are restricted to 320 words, which makes it nearly impossible to provide equal support for each claim.
peer 3 → Very nicely written.
peer 4 → All in all, your essay is well constructed. (Maybe that's why) I think it needs a better constructed bibliography.

Content: 2/3

 

peer 1 → Good argument
peer 2 → The ideas are very illuminating and explore an aspect of the novel that I hadn't thought too much about. My only complaint is with the sentence: "in order to reveal different qualities of his protagonist, Griffin, through their interactions." In your essay you do not explore Griffin's qualities so much as the other characters he encounters.
peer 3 → I really liked the topic you wrote on. It definitely added to my understanding of the reading.
peer 4 → I enjoyed your topic. I think you chose a good one and, somehow, developed it well. This could make a better essay (there is a lot more to be said, I bet). Well done!

Total: 4/6

Twice Told Tales, Mosses From An Old Manse And Other Stories - Hawthorne

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 5 

Despite stories from Poe and Hawthorne being on offer, I stuck with Hawthorne. After a bit of digging, this essay the points I identified seemed to cohere around morality and I was pleased with the result.

Twice Told Tales, Mosses From An Old Manse And Other Stories - Hawthorne

As obsession increases we are drawn ever deeper into the world of madness. Hawthorne uses different methods to signpost this by choosing to locate an objective voice differently in three of his tales. In each case, the victim or victims lose their sense of perspective, but a voice of reason exists to define the moral centre.

In "The Birthmark", as Aylmer's obsession leads Georgiana into a madness which will ultimately overwhelm her, the author relects her descent through an ironic lifecycle image system which passes through puberty: "...a crimson stain upon the snow..."; marriage: "...he led her over the threshold..."; procreation: "...a... fragrance, capable of impregnating the breezes..." and finally "...he was as pale as death..." Once Georgiana dies, the narrator's voice returns the narrative to an objective voice.

By contrast, in "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", Heidegger himself appears objective. His four elderly friends who taste the elixir are so seduced by the feeling of youth they momentarily experience, they resolve to dedicate the remainder of their lives to seeking, obtaining and consuming it. The wise Heidegger looks on, apparently remaining the incorruptible and objective scientist, but at the same time responsible as the catalyst of their downfall.

In "Rapaccini's Daughter", one objective voice is the wise protector Guasconti, who warns Giovanni that he has "...fallen into fearful hands..." by coming under the spell of Beatrice and her father. Giovanni is so enchanted, he refuses or is unable to listen, but a second protector in Baglioni provides an antidote which finally results in Beatrice's death.

Ultimately, this makes the latter the more moral tale. Rapccini's transgression is punished, Heidegger is revealed not to be the benign figure he originally appeared, while Aylmer may never escape from the delusion he has fallen into.

Responses

Form: 2/3

peer 1 → Very well written. Excellent use of quotations. Very well structured.
peer 2 → Well written, with clear examples taken from the stories to defend your point. Clear and concise with a very easy-to-follow structure
peer 3 → I like it very much, I would like you to give a title, as I always say, but no matter, the essay is well written and calibrated, everything is clear and the comprehension is fluid and pleasant...
peer 4 → "As obsession increases we are drawn ever deeper into the world of madness." I really liked how this sentence was worded, and that it was the beginning of your essay. You have a very clear beginning that helps the reader know what to expect throughout the beginning. This is a very clear and matter-of-fact form of essay. The grammar is correct and the words are properly used.
peer 5 → very well-structured

Content: 2/3

 

peer 1 → I learned a thing or two from your insightful analysis, and appreciate it very much.
peer 2 → Good insight and comparison among the 3 stories. I like your final summary in the last sentence. It really expresses in a concise way the point you want to make in the essay
peer 3 → Contents are interesting, the question of madness is an important point in Hawthorne's poetics. I like how he/she deals with it, the examples are well explained and the fil-rouge is clear. Bravo!
peer 4 → "Hawthorne uses different methods to signpost this by choosing to locate an objective voice differently in three of his tales." This is a very interesting insight. I was amused reading your essay.
peer 5 → This is so far the best essay I've read this week

Total: 4/6

 

Comment

peer 1 → This is the first score of 6 I have given to any essay so far in this course. Well done!

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 4

I didn't finish Frankenstein, but having read it before I didn't feel I was being dishonest. Maybe a couple of loose points as pointed out in the responses and I was surprised this scored so highly.

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" explores a man's desire to create life, underscoring the abnormality of this endeavour by emphasising imagery of unconventional relationships. While each relationship seems driven by a desire for intimacy on the surface, the story shows how this is destroyed by an unnatural obsession.

In the framing story, Walton has been driven to explore The Arctic in pursuit of fame. His commitment to this aim leaves him unable to form attachments, as he laments to his sister by letter: "I have one want which I have never yet been able to satisfy... I have no friend." Although Frankenstein embodies the qualities Walton seeks in a confidant: "I have found a man who... I should have been happy to have possessed as the brother of my heart..." as Frankenstein relates his story, it becomes clear he too is driven by an exigency which precludes the formation of normal relationships.

Frankenstein's mother desires a daughter, but is unable to bear her own and adopts the young Elizabeth from a peasant family. Elizabeth herself is an orphan, whose own mother has died giving birth. This failure to create life - and the strong link made between life and death - foreshadows Frankenstein's own effort: "...so much time spent in painful labour, to arrive at once at the summit of my desires was the most gratifying consummation of my toils." If Frankenstein's own "labour" seems unnatural, it's because the consummation and birth - usually separated by nine months - are conflated "at once" into one, all-consuming act.

Ironically, Frankenstein has what Walton seeks in Henry Clerval. His childhood friend nurses Frankenstein back to health after his breakdown, but Frankenstein's obsession is all-consuming, precluding the possibility of him ever returning Clerval's friendship. Ultimately, it is the desire to create life while failing to form human relationship that destroys Frankenstein.

Responses

 

Form: 3/3

 

peer 2 → Interesting point of view, I came to similar conclusions. It shows a clear understanding of the novel. Arguments make sense, show that you've put a lot of thought into it. Well done, great job!
peer 3 → The theme is laid out well, but there were no supporting examples of "the desire to create life" and "abnormal relationships". Elizabeth is adopted out of kindness; Frankenstein's mom is still able to bear children as seen by his two younger brothers. It can be argued that Frankenstein's consumation and birth happened over a period of time, starting from when he first started the project, until the life was born. "Frankenstein has what Walton seeks in Henry Clerval": but Walton never met Clerval.
peer 5 → The writer clearly understands the literature. Their argument is very persuasive and they did a great job at using references from the book to support their view point.
peer 6 → The theme that you explored was well supported by the examples you chose. Each portion was detailed and relevant to the text. There were parts were it read as if this should have been a longer piece that allowed you a deep analysis of each example.

Content: 2.5/3

 

peer 3 → Each point mentioned in the opening paragraph should be supported with examples. If not, then the ideas must be discarded for another hypothesis. I've had to do that myself even though I really liked the ideas, but they failed to be supported by the text.
peer 5 → Great essay! Loved your argument
peer 6 → This was a pleasure to read and demonstrated excellent thought of the deeper meanings in the text.

Total: 5.5/6

 

Comments

peer 3 → Each point mentioned in the opening paragraph should be supported with examples. If not, then the ideas must be discarded for another hypothesis. I've had to do that myself even though I really liked the ideas, but they failed to be supported by the text.
peer 5 → Great essay! Loved your argument
peer 6 → This was a pleasure to read and demonstrated excellent thought of the deeper meanings in the text.

Dracula - Bram Stoker

Coursera Fantasy and Science Fiction Week 3

A gripping story which was supposedly longer than the others, so I was surprised to sail through it in a week. I might have scored higher and thought my point was clear, interestingly similar to what the professor in the lectures, but not disappointed.

Dracula - Bram Stoker

The male characters spend most of Bram Stoker's "Dracula" patronising the females, but the group only prevails when they stop trying to limit women's participation and work together.
Stoker uses two females to examine the changing role of women. The attractive, aristocratic Lucy Westenra represents the past, the practical and intelligent Mina Harker the future. While the former dallies over three marriage proposals: "Why can't they let a girl marry three men... and save all this trouble?" her self-possessed friend observes the differences between them: “the 'New Woman' won't condescend in future to accept. She will do the proposing herself."

Sleepwalking, the vulnerable Westenra is literally unaware when attacked by Dracula. Her three suitors cannot protect her and as her strength fails, they are unable to save her. Her fate is sealed when the men, fearing the shock will kill her mother, fail to explain their unconventional treatment and Mrs. Westenra unwittingly exposes her daughter to attack once more.

The turning point comes when the all-male team penetrate Dracula's lair. Mina Harker is now central to the group having collated their intelligence. The men, again knowing best, respond by excluding Harker from their expedition, leaving her alone and vulnerable, whereupon she is herself attacked.

As her strength fails, Harker's husband Jonathan remains blind to his error. He patronises her further, withholding news as they track the missing caskets. Though it "wrung my heart..."  he reassures himself of his "courage... of keeping her out of our grim task..." because, ironically "...our growing knowledge would be torture to her."

Ultimately, through properly accepting Mina Harker as a member and fully employing her power, the group unites to overcome its powerful foe.

Responses

Form: 2/3

 

peer 1 → The sentences are good but I don't think the exposition is very clear. You should try to organize your text in a different way, for example: the main argument, examples and defense of the argument, and a conclusion.
peer 2 → The text is well presented and everything is clear.
peer 3 → Elaborated well with clear vocabulary.
peer 4 → Everything here is good except the lack of explanation of your argument. In the essay There is plenty of evidence given but tragically, there is no connection between the evidence and the point you are trying to make. Next time see if you can maybe cut down another example and explain the first one. Solid-low 2
peer 5 → Sentences are good and with a correct grammar. I'm not English mother tongue, so I don't dare to say there is something wrong (I actually didn't find any mistake), but I find some sentences a bit less clear, but still understandable. The schedule you have followed to present your thesis is simple but arranged in a good way, the whole text flows well. I don't understand why some sentences are written in a bigger font. I don't like too much the use of the noun "female" referring to a woman, it is correct but sounds a bit "sexist"; I would have used it only as "thesaurus", not main word of essay.

Content: 2/3

 

peer 1 → I liked the idea of Lucy and Mina representing the woman from the past and the woman from the future, but I think you should have explored it better.
peer 2 → Bravo! I think your thesis is excellent and well argumented. Your essay shows a deep understanding of the feminine symbolism presented in the work. You opened a new door in my reading of the novel.
peer 3 → Good point noticed about male attitude towards women.
peer 4 → The content wants to be there and I believe if this essay was more than 320 characters long it would be there. I did like your theory on how women are left out when things go bad, then when they are included everything starts to work.
peer 5 → Interesting thesis and good examples to support it and make your case. Nevertheless, you could have laid it out better. You made a good summary of the plot, focalizing on relationship and behavior toward women, but the reader of your essay understands the purpose of that only at the end. Alternating a bit more your considerations to the narration of events you could have got the point clearer.

Total: 4/6

Comments

peer 2 → Thank you for sharing your essay. It was fun and interesting to read.
peer 3 → Liked the idea.
peer 4 → Just remember that I have also read the Novel. You don't need to explain every character in excruciating detail (especially when there is such a short character limit). Other than that i believe you have great potential as a writer, keep up the good work
peer 5 → I like your point of view on this argument, good job! I note that you tend to quote a lot: when doing it, you can put some note (in the "Works cited" box) to exactly locate words you quoted on the book (i.e. "Chapter X", or "Mina's journal entry dated xxx"). That could make your essay a bit more "professional" and precise.

Alice's Adventures In Wonderland And Through The Looking Glass - Lewis Carroll

Coursera Science Fiction and Fantasy Week 2

I didn't complete the second book, so concentrated on the former. The supporting points may have been a little murky, but I was very happy with the conclusion.

Alice's Adventures In Wonderland And Through The Looking Glass - Lewis Carroll

"Alice's Adventures In Wonderland" portrays the subconscious fears of a young girl facing puberty and the prospect of entering an unknown adult world.

On coming of age, the protagonists of Grimm's Tales are often called to leave home and venture into the world to “seek their fortune”. Alice, by contrast, is still a child when she is thrust headlong into an unfamiliar dream-world of odd creatures and strange customs. Unlike Grimm's children, who face threat and danger when leaving their own world, Alice is confronted by incomprehensible rules and absurdity.

Initially unsure of herself, Alice is shocked when her polite attempts to communicate are misunderstood and cause offence. Her childish conviction is soon replaced by doubt and confusion. Her hesitancy grows, but she remains aware of her lack of knowledge, testing her multiplication and geography as she questions her identity: “Who in the world am I?”

Alice's body changes too. She shrinks and grows under the influence of magical food and potions, becoming tiny, helpless and nearly drowning in her own tears, then growing large and powerful. Repeatedly rebuking herself for crying, she gradually learns control, until finally, in the courtroom scene, she asserts her power, ultimately overcoming the absurdity of the law.

As Alice wakes from her dream, we see her through her older sister’s eyes: "Little Alice", returned to normal size once again. We are touched by nostalgia as the older sister considers what she herself has lost in accepting "dull reality", imagining "how this same little sister of hers would... be herself a grown woman; and... keep, through all her riper years, the simple and loving heart of her childhood." This reassures us that although traumatic, the onset of puberty is a natural development and Alice's character will see her prevail.

Responses

 

Form: 2/3

 

peer 1 → Very well formed. Grammatically correct and good use of words.I don't find anything wrong, but if I have to make a suggestion, maybe it would on using linking words for the paragraphs (ex. Last paragraph could have a "finally" or "in the end").
peer 2 → Good flow, good language, I don't find any obvious grammatical errors. It does not try to be overly complicated which is good. Can't really find anything to complain about.
peer 3 → No grammar and spelling errors spotted. Thesis is present and asserted from the outset, which is a great start. There is a great flow of ideas within the body of the essay, but it seems to suffer from a chronological perspective. You could have extracted your key points like "rules and absurdity", "who am I", and "asserts her power" and branched off from there instead of branching off from the chronology of events. The first method allows you more freedom to talk about various points in the story while a chronological approach does lure one into the trap of descriptive writing, which you have done here to a small extent. There is a clear thesis, a point to each paragraph though it could use more tightening, and a conclusion; making this a solid essay structurally. However, the chronological approach does derail the essay from its argument. It sometimes does work and I used it for my last essay on The Death of the Hen, but in my opinion, it worked then only because The Death of the Hen is only two pages long while a chronological analysis of two books is trickier and have reduced your essay's clarity. Score given: 2
peer 4 → Good structure. Everything flows perfectly.
peer 5 → A Straightforward, concise thesis for the essay. several paragraphs elaborating on the thesis follow, with the last paragraph concluding the point made in the thesis paragraph. No overt issues of structure or grammar,

Content: 2/3

 

peer 1 → I liked the point of view. I also found very interesting the comparison with the Grimms. I don't know though if maybe it could be avoided, maybe mentioned just once could be enough.
peer 2 → Nice work. I especially, in the context of this course, like the reference back to the Grimm tales. If I should say anything "negative" about the content it is that the topic is not very unique when it comes to analyzing the Alice-books. To see how your argument stretches to Through the Looking-Glass would be interesting too, but it was probably good to only do the first book, and do it well.
peer 3 → This is the first essay I have evaluated that really sets out an argument, which I have to give you props for! I like how you concluded on how it is a natural development and how Alice will prevail. However, your body would have benefited with some significant cutting down of descriptions and by focusing on your points, which are there! Some ways to economise your word limit is to cut down on quotes too, like the one you used from Alice's sister. When it is that long, it could be simpler just to use the words 'keep... heart of her childhood' within a different syntax, or paraphrase it altogether. I can see that you have tried to cut it down though. I suppose a little more editing would really make this essay. In terms of your ideas, I think you focused well on the aspects of your thesis, especially on the 'adult world'. However, I think it should still be fleshed out a little more, and that could maybe be done by focusing on an aspect of Alice's coming of age. Some examples could be: adulthood in Wonderland, Peter Pan syndrome/fear of growing up, overcoming authority as part of growing up, etc. These are much more specific and would allow you more freedom to range about in the text. Score given: 2
peer 4 → I think the theme you chose is quite done, as it is something most people know and understand about this story. On the other hand, I really like how you ended in that nostalgic note, analyzing Alice through her sister's eyes instead of just considering the symbolism in the events of the story. Nicely done.
peer 5 → Mist if the essay authors arguments make sense, The essay author correlates many of the elements in Alice to the struggle of a young woman growing up. The Essay author would benefit from not including the paragraph on Grimm as it does not fit in the flow of the essay.

Total: 4/6

 

Comments

peer 2 → Good essay which I enjoyed reading.
peer 3 → Very nearly 3s for both parts. The best essay I've evaluated out of the 6 I have done so far, though! I think I might have ranted a little in my evaluation. Sorry if I did! Too many evaluations in one sitting.

Household Tales - The Brothers Grimm

Coursera Science Fiction and Fantasy Week 1

Interesting to return to fairy tales now that I have children. Many of the originals are closer in tone to those read to us in the 70s than the modern, sanitised versions. The imagery of the woods sudden jumped out as I was searching for patterns and I couldn't stop thinking about it until I'd examined what it represented to different characters.

Household Tales - The Brothers Grimm

Despite the varying subjects of these tales, a number of elements appear repeatedly which help to unify them in meaning. The woods as a setting recurs in over half the stories and while we might assume the woods to be dark, dangerous and full of evil deeds, events reveal it as a place of numerous fantastic possibilities, symbolising the adult world.
Like the tales themselves, this is a world we as children don't fully understand when living in a home with clear rules. Children entering the woods alone experience the threat of danger: Little Red-Cap encounters a wolf who will devour her and her grandmother, while Hansel And Gretel's parents agree to leave their children in the woods to be torn apart and eaten by wild animals because they can no longer look after them.

But once, like the brothers from "The Knapsack, The Hat and The Horn", we decide to "go out into the world and seek our fortune" we are forced to confront the strange world and to learn its ways quickly if we are to survive. Inevitably, it is a "great wood" the brothers come to first and repeatedly in these stories, the woods are a place of transformation, risk, adventure and magic where normal rules - those we learned at home - no longer apply. In these woods, people lose themselves, find shelter, hide, undergo incredible transformations and encounter magical animals and tricksters.

And yet, those who belong to and are part of the woods, like the woodcutter and the huntsman, remain unaffected by the forces at work there. They are able to restore order and balance: rescuing Little Red-cap and freeing Snow White from the evil Queen's death sentence.

This gives us the hope that if we can find a wise ally, we too will survive and make our own way in life.

Responses

 

Form: 2/3

 

peer 2 → Beautifully written analysis of the collection of fairy tales. The structure lends great clarity, and the writing is well done.
peer 3 → Lack of concise conclusion
peer 4 → Nice form. Good use of typical essay structure and word choice. I wish you hadn't started sentences with conjunctions (and, but...) as that is typically too conversational for an essay. I would like to see that last sentence added to the paragraph above it, not standing alone. Otherwise great work.
peer 5 → Well-used formatting that really helps following the idea

Content: 3/3

 

peer 2 → The strength of this argument, examining the mystical qualities of the wood (or the pastoral in Shakespearean terms), lies in your use of specific tales to support the assertion of the danger and transformative power of the woods. I really like what feels like an addendum at the end that those who belong to the woods are unchanged. I wonder, though, in such a short tale, how those characters could be dynamic. There just doesn't seem time to develop them any more fully.
peer 3 → Very clear
peer 4 → This argument makes sense and was well presented. I liked how you used examples from several stories instead of only mentioning one. I would have liked to hear more about the differences between experiencing the woods as a child and experiencing them as an adult - like in The Wonderful Magician - where the adult fiddler comes into the woods and it is HIM who is the threat.
peer 5 → Interesting and promising idea of a "adult-world woods" that can explain the different points of view through characters

Total: 5/6

Comments

peer 2 → This essay is a well written exploration of one of the more powerful themes of literature--the wild (whether meadow or deep woods) as a place of transformation. I really love the way you used specific stories to support your assertions.

Coursera: Fantasy and Science Fiction: The Human Mind, Our Modern World

My HCI course ended recently and I was looking for something a bit different, so I signed up for the above Coursera course in an effort to kickstart my writing again.

There are a couple of books I've read before, along with a fair few I haven't. Although I read science fiction when I was younger, I stuck to a relatively limited number of authors. I'm hoping therefore to expand my knowledge of the genre at the same time.

I'll post my essays here along with some of the comments I receive.

The social value in music

An remarkable development: you can listen to streaming music online for free at Bandcamp and pay if you want to download it and take it with you.

But the newly social site only recommends people to follow - and thus new music to discover - based on your tastes if you pay for the music in order to display it on your page.

Result: I have just forked out for all the tracks which have been sitting in my cart for possibly over a year. 

Fiendish.