Free Lunch Friday with the Christians.
The lunch topic this week: “post apocalyptic literature class.”

The guy I was sitting across from said he was taking a “post apocalyptic lit.” class. Really? This sounded interesting. My first thoughts: 1. he was taking a class on the book of Revelation at a Christian school, which would transfer to UTA as a lit credit? (it’s possible) 2. He doesn’t know what “apocalyptic” means. (very possible) 3. There was an apocalypse and I missed it. (I’m not a history whiz, but come on!)

I decided to ask. “What kind of class is it?”
“Post apocalyptic. Apocalypse is like the end of the world or something.”
“Yes, I know what apocalypse means, I want to know how you are studying literature that was written after something that hasn’t happened.”
(he gives me a blank look)
“Oh, no, it’s like Fahrenheit 451 and The Postman, stuff like that.”
“So, it’s negative utopian fiction class?” (gasp on the inside)
“Yeah, I guess.”

This is big news in Shannonland! Negative utopian fiction is the preferred form of literature here. I’ve been talking about such a class for years now. Brave New World, 1984, A Handmaiden’s Tale, Fahrenheit 451-- these are standard classics for negative utopia, but are there more? Where are they? I need to know! I’ve asked around before, but you say “negative utopia” to most people and their eyes glaze over like you are talking in tongues or something. I’ve already started looking for info, but I haven’t found it in the class schedule yet. At the very least I need the reading list for this class. I’m going to have to call the English department Monday.