 |
- “Doomsday Fears and Modern Life” by Norman Podhoretz
- “The Curse of Akkad” by Elizabeth Kolbert
- “The Great Thirst” by Glen Martin
- “There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury
- “Holy Water” by Joan Didion
- The Rough Guide to Climate Change by Robert Henson
- What would Norman Podhoretz argue about global warming now if he accepted the science in the chapters of The Rough Guide we have studied? Would he still consider the concerns about end-of-civilization scenarios overblown? Would he reconsider? Or would he be undecided? Summarize Podhoretz’s main arguments. Then you’ll need to take a broad look at The Rough Guide and weigh the evidence. Does The Rough Guide give us good reason to think that doomsday scenarios are fairly probable as a result of global warming? After reading about the possible consequences of warming, do you think Podhoretz would argue for taking action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions?
- Norman Podhoretz claims that “prophecies of doom are more likely to put people to sleep than to wake them up: why bother striving if the end is in sight?” Three of our readings—“The Curse of Akkad,” “There Will Come Soft Rains,” and “The Great Thirst”—tell stories of disaster as ways to make readers think about the direction modern civilization is heading. How effective is each of these stories at waking readers up to an existing problem? You should consider the following questions as you formulate your answer: What is the message of each of the stories? What does the author do to make his or her scenario seem realistic? Do these stories make readers more or less likely to try to change their societies? Which of these stories will have the most profound impact on readers, and why?
- Compare and contrast Norman Podhoretz’s attitudes toward technology, both explicit and implicit, with one of the other writers’ attitudes. Analyze how these attitudes lead the two writers to think differently about doomsday scenarios. You’ll need to summarize each writer’s attitudes toward technology and toward doomsday scenarios using quotations and paraphrases from the text.
- Create your own essay topic which requires you to discuss and quote from three of the other readings or the Podhoretz essay and one other reading. You’ll need to submit the topic to me for approval before you write your rough draft.
|
|
|
