Lauren Kurtz Professor Beadle Sociology 105 5 October 2009 Instead of doing an annotation for Bell s Faces at the Bottom of the Well please read and answer the following guideline and questions Part One 1 What is science fiction Science fiction is based on imagined future scientific or technological advances and major social or environmental changes frequently portraying space or time travel and life on other planets 2 What kinds of work do science fiction movies and novels do that non fiction and other fictional works cannot do Science fiction movies and novels explore features and ideas that exist but are not technically real or scientifically proven These topics tend to be controversial and supernatural therefore these moves and films allow audiences to use their imagination 3 Why could this reading be considered a science fiction story This reading could be considered a science fiction story because it never happened and therefore is not technically real It causes the reader to imagine what the situation would be like if the issue actually occurred 4 What is Bell s main argument Bell s main argument is that racism still exists today By using African Americans as the main focus he is making them analogous to the aliens that intend to take them home with them 5 Who is Bell s audience Bell s audience is all of America especially students who are learning to analyze deeper meaning behind texts to realize that this story is one of prejudice and how to handle it 6 What is the social historical and political context in which Bell is writing Bell writes in a social manner when using the colloquialism of the dialogue The history context is portrayed in phrases such as Black people left the New World as their forebears had arrived Finally he writes politically when discussing the president and the judicial system and all the ridiculous decisions that were made 7 What is Bell s biography How might this influence his argument Bell s biography states that he is part of the we of the black people at the bottom of the well This would influence his story and his argument by defending his people to the end Part Two 1 Which groups of individuals supported the request of the space traders What if any interests did they have in supporting this request How did they justify their support The groups of individuals supporting the request of the space traders were Caucasian citizens who believed that what the nation would give up was as worthwhile as what it would receive 163 They called and sent telegrams to the White House and Congress shortly after the offer was made and to justify their intentions they left their names and signatures so they could be personally contacted and identified 2 Which groups of individuals opposed the space trader s request What if any interests did they have in supporting this request What if any consequences did these dissenters face by going against the main decision Naturally the African American community objected to the space trader s request They believed that it is one thing to offer one s own life to fight for their country but it is another to offer one s entire family as a sacrifice for the rest of the country It is unfair to give up twenty million people on behalf of the rest of them especially because their ancestors had fought so hard to get them where they were today 3 What was the reaction of African Americans to both the request of the aliens and the decisions made by their leaders Although they were obviously distraught over their unknown ultimate fate in space with the space traders they were unsure if their fate on Earth would have been any better If they had stayed they feel as if the rest of the country would have blamed black people anyways for any increases in debt pollution and fuel shortages that would occur in the future
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