Students Imagine the Worst Apocalypse
Source/Author: Natalie Updike, Upper School English Teacher
September 17, 2021
Ms. Updike's Dystopian Literature Honors English class allows seniors to investigate the fine line between the fantastical and reality. They study the cultural phenomenon of post-apocalypses, apocalypses, dystopias, and utopias in multiple genres of writing and film. The course also focuses on creative writing for students to build utopias and discuss apocalypses.
In a recent assignment, seniors enjoyed presenting their idea of the worst apocalypse. Paired with "The Road," a 2006 post-apocalyptic novel by Cormac McCarthy, students shared a post-apocalyptic social media post of their own creation to engage them in the bleak worlds that warn us against possible futures, especially as we actively endure our own virus narrative.
Some examples of apocalypses shared include alien invasions, zombie plagues, earthquakes leading to tsunamis, artificial intelligence takedowns, depleted oxygen levels due to nuclear war, and the all ominous, omnipresent climate change.
In a recent assignment, seniors enjoyed presenting their idea of the worst apocalypse. Paired with "The Road," a 2006 post-apocalyptic novel by Cormac McCarthy, students shared a post-apocalyptic social media post of their own creation to engage them in the bleak worlds that warn us against possible futures, especially as we actively endure our own virus narrative.
Some examples of apocalypses shared include alien invasions, zombie plagues, earthquakes leading to tsunamis, artificial intelligence takedowns, depleted oxygen levels due to nuclear war, and the all ominous, omnipresent climate change.
