SCIENCE-FICTION AND INTRODUCTORY SOCIOLOGY - THE HANDMAID IN THE CLASSROOM

Although there is a great deal of available material on using nontradi tional resources for leaching sociology, the pedagogical uses of scien ce fiction have not been examined for 20 years. This essay first asser ts the need for an update based on changes in society and in science f iction over the past two decades. The paper then focuses on the uses o f SF to teach sociology and critical thinking by describing how SF can help students to ''make strange''(i.e., develop a skeptical, question ing stance), to ''make believe'' (i.e., develop critical and creative thinking), and to ''make real'' (i.e., use sociological concepts and t heories). As illustration, the essay concludes with a detailed descrip tion of the use of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale in teaching i ntroductory sociology.