Frankenstein+Game+Page

ENG 204 Fall Quarter 2011 Dr. Crystal Lake
 * Frankenstein: The Game **


 * Overview of the Game: **

Mary Shelley’s //Frankenstein// has long been seen as a classic work of literature, and it has inspired countless retellings and adaptations. At the same time, its readers have debated what constitutes its most important themes. Early reviews of the work found it “disgusting,” yet spectators flocked to dramatic renditions of the novel in the theatre. Something about //Frankenstein//, in short, has captured our imaginations. Current researchers have argued that the novel’s unique form as an epistolary, Romantic work of science fiction was innovative and inspirational. Similarly, current researchers have argued that the novel’s enduring humanistic themes provide endless possibilities for readers to imagine and re-imagine the novel’s layered contours.

Playing the //Frankenstein// game will help you better understand what’s so compelling about the novel. Importantly, it will also help you develop your critical thinking skills by asking you to see the novel as a series of choices – some conscious on the part of Mary Shelley and some conditioned by the historical-cultural moment in which the novel was written – as meaningful. In order to understand the novel’s choices as meaningful, you will need to consider what other options were available to Mary Shelley when she was writing it. Therefore, the game will ask you to use reliable research to imagine the novel in new lights: drawing on the concepts covered in two lectures, your team will rewrite two scenes from the novel and explain how your alternative versions illuminate and explain the novel’s most important themes. The scenes you choose to rewrite and the ways in which you present your rewrites will be up to your team, but lectures will help you hone in on the most controversial aspects of //Frankenstein// that are appropriate for you to work with.


 * Game Day Procedures: **


 * Game Days 1 and 2 (please note: Team 1 will go first on Game Day 1 / Team 2 will go first on Game Day 2): **


 * Team 1 has a total of 30 minutes of game play: **
 * Ten minutes: perform scene or describe it in your own words as it originally appears in the novel.
 * Five minutes: critically introduce the insights your alternative version of the scene will offer with regards to the novel’s central themes, explaining briefly any research your team conducted on either current scholarly perspectives on the text or nineteenth-century contexts.
 * Ten minutes: perform or describe your alternative scene.
 * Five minutes: review the main claims and arguments put forward by your alternative scene with regards to your interpretation of the novel.


 * Team 2 has a total of 30 minutes of game play: **
 * Ten minutes: perform scene or describe it in your own words as it originally appears in the novel
 * Five minutes: critically introduce the insights your alternative version of the scene will offer with regards to the novel’s central themes, explaining briefly any research your team conducted on either current scholarly perspectives on the text or nineteenth-century contexts.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ten minutes: perform or describe your alternative scene.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Five minutes: review the main claims and arguments put forward by your alternative scene with regards to your interpretation of the novel.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Throughout Game Days 1 and 2, the Indeterminate Team observes and develops questions in response to Team 1 and Team 2’s performances, taking their introductions, summaries, and any other supplemental materials into account. On Game Day 3, the Indeterminates will lead class discussion, spending
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Game Day 3: **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">5-10 minutes reviewing Team 1’s performances: they will summarize Team 1’s claims as they understood them and present several discussion questions for Team 1.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Team 1 then has 10-15 minutes to respond to those questions
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">5-10 minutes discussing Team 2’s performances: they will summarize Team 1’s claims as they understood them and present several discussion questions for Team 1.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Team 2 has 10-15 minutes to respond to those questions
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Indeterminates spend 20 minutes directing general class discussion or engaging the course in an activity

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The Indeterminates will provide Dr. Lake with a brief report announcing the winner and justifying their decision.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Choosing a winner: **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">After Game Day 3, the Indeterminates will choose a winner based on the following criteria:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The level of time and effort put into preparing for game day
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The level of professionalism displayed during game day
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The level of engagement with //Frankenstein//
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The level of engagement with other resources (scholarly and nineteenth century)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The overall persuasiveness of the Team’s performances, analyses, and answers to discussion questions


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Game Rules: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Carefully prepare for and adhere to game day procedures, making sure that you use your allotted time and follow directions. Failure to follow game day procedures or the tenets of the game could compromise your entire group’s participation grade.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Maintain respect and professionalism at all times: All interactions with your team, the other team, and the jury – both inside and outside of the classroom – should be undertaken with respect and professionalism. You are each individually responsible for maintaining a civil tone and for conducting your work to the highest professional standards. Interrupting a classmate, disregarding a classmate’s perspective, undermining a classmate’s work, or disregarding the procedures of the game will all compromise your final grade.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Take responsibility for your participation in the game: A class like this demands that you actively participate by reading assigned texts, conducting independent outside research, and taking ownership of your team’s needs and goals. You need to be prepared to adjust your schedule as well as be flexible about the division of work and tasks among group members. Avoid taking on too much responsibility; avoid letting everyone else do the work. You are responsible for ensuring that the instructor can see the work that you’ve done for your team, and you will have to make considerable effort to ensure your presence and participation during game days.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Maintain the highest standards of academic integrity: You may not represent someone else’s work as your own. This is true in regards to the work of your team, the other team, and other specialized researchers you may consult. You need to explicitly acknowledge your reliance on other sources. For example, if you’re argument one day is based on the work of another researcher you may begin your speech with the phrase “According to [name of researcher].” Likewise, if you share information on the wiki, provide a bibliography of or a link to the sources you consulted. Finally, sabotaging the other team’s work by deleting it, stealing it, or making it difficult for them to conduct may result in a grade of 0 for your entire team. When in doubt about the integrity of your work, seek the advice of the instructor.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Failure to follow these rules may result in a grade of 0, both for participation in the game and on the reflection essay.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> **Schedule:**


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Game Day 1: Team 1 goes first **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Game Day 2: Team 2 goes first **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Game Day 3: Indeterminates Lead Class **