Halt and Catch Fire Syllabus

Class 9 - Places // Silicon Valley

Apéritif

RFC as koan

Emulator as koan

Themes

Prompts

Description

Episodes: - S3E2 “One Way or Another”, S3E3 “Flipping the Switch”, S3E4 “Rules of Honorable Play”

Over the past few episodes, the characters are thrown into the pressures of Silicon Valley – pitching to venture capital, buying/selling companies, government contracts, ousting of executives, overworking, and so on. The San Francisco Bay Area wasn’t the only major “innovation hub” for U.S. technology, but it has had the largest staying power and impact. The physical damage caused by Silicon Valley was largely covered in #4: Material; this covers the economic, structural, and emotional impact.

Readings