2021-22 Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature
Please note: The ang070 module consists of
- a seminar (S/Ü "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature", offered in the current winter term),
- a lecture (VL "Introduction to Literary History and Textual Analysis", offered in the current winter term),
- a seminar (S/Ü "Key Concepts in Cultural Studies", offered in the following summer term), and
- a lecture (VL "Historical Background and Critical Concepts", offered in the following summer term).
All students beginning in the winter term 2021/22 need to enroll in the lecture VL "Introduction to Literary History and Textual Analysis", AND in a seminar S/Ü "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature" in ang070. Registration is via Stud.IP.
On this page you will find detailed information on the eleven courses of our seminar S/Ü "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature".
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Lecture: VL "Introduction to Literary History and Textual Analysis"
VL "Introduction to Literary History and Textual Analysis" Course Outline "Introduction to Literary History and Textual Analysis" Seminars: S/Ü "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature"
S/Ü "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature" Course Outline "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature" Revision: Ü "Revision Course"
Ü "Revision Course" Course Outline "Revision Course" Tutorials: TUT "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature"
TUT "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature" Course Outline "Introduction to the Critical and Scholarly Discussion of Literature" |
This seminar is part of the Basismodul ang070 and focuses on techniques of textual analysis in the context of discussing literature. We are offering eleven parallel courses. Please make sure that you are registered under ONE of these in Stud.IP.
All parallel courses have a common structure. The texts for our courses will come from a common pool, though each course may focus on different text passages.
The "analytical tools" presented on the handouts will be discussed at the beginning of each meeting and then applied to the texts. The additional reading on which the handouts are based is not obligatory, and it can be done either before or after each session.
Both the texts and the other materials will be made accessible to you electronically (cf. the links below). In addition you will need to purchase two books:
- Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Eds. Ann Thompson and Neil Taylor. The Arden Shakespeare, third series. London: Bloomsbury, 2016. Print. [ ISBN-13 : 978-1472518385 ]
- James, Henry. The Turn of the Screw. Eds. Deborah Esch and Jonathan Warren. New York and London: Norton, 1999. Print. [alternatively, you may of course also use the current Norton edition: James, Henry. The Turn of the Screw. Ed. Jonathan Warren. New York and London: Norton, 2020. Print.(ISBN-13 978-0393420371)]
Course work: You will be asked to write three ungraded exercise assignments (analysing poetry, drama, and fiction, respectively, max. 3 pages each; and composing a short bibliography, max. 1 page each) and produce a research paper outline and a problem-oriented sample analysis of a relevant passage (RPO+, due on February 28). Both the outline and the sample analysis are preparatory steps for the research papers you will be asked to produce in future seminars. For this RPO+ you will need to find your own topic to work on, document the preliminary work (this includes finding an appropriate title, writing a paragraph on the state of the art of your problem and one that describes your problem and your goal, and presenting a tentative table of contents as well as a short bibliography) and write up a formal and genre-specific analysis of a passage that fits in with the research question and thesis statement put forward in your RPO. All assignments are to be formatted according to the style sheet.
Three useful links for all assignments:
- Useful Hints for Assignments
- Literary Studies:Writing academic texts - esp. for the research paper outline
- General Reading List: British and Anglophone Literatures
Contents
- 1 Session One, October 20/21/22: Introduction
- 2 Session Two, October 27/28/29: Analysing Poetry I: Poetic Conventions, Rhyme and Metre
- 3 Session Three, November 03/04/05: Analysing Poetry II: Figurative Speech
- 4 Session Four, November 10/11/12: Analysing Poetry III: Close Reading
- 5 Session Five, November 17/18/19: Analysing Drama I: Rhetoric
- 6 Session Six, November 24/25/26: Analysing Drama II: Dramatic Communication and Plot Structure
- 7 Session Seven, December 01/02/03: Analysing Drama III: Characterisation
- 8 Session Eight, December 08/09/10: Critical Debate and Literary Theory I
- 9 Session Nine, December 15/16/17: Analysing Fiction I: Narration and Focalisation
- 10 Session Ten, December 22/ January 06/07: Analysing Fiction II: Characterisation
- 11 Session Eleven, January 12/13/14: Analysing Fiction III: From Close Reading to Problem-Oriented Textual Analysis
- 12 Session Twelve, January 19/20/21: Critical Debate and Literary Theory II
- 13 Session Thirteen, January 26/27/28: Recap
- 14 Session Fourteen, February 02/03/04: RPO+ Projects
Session One, October 20/21/22: Introduction
Welcome
- Introduction to the ang070 Curriculum, Aims and Goals
- Introduction to the ang070 Course Outline
Analytical Tools
- Handout Literature & Representation
Texts
Skills and Activities
Preliminaries for seminar communication.
Session Two, October 27/28/29: Analysing Poetry I: Poetic Conventions, Rhyme and Metre
Analytical Tools
- Handout Analysing Poetry
- Sources: Culler 161-178; Ludwig, 31-33; Cambridge Companion to Literatures in English
Texts
Skills and Activities
Structural approach to poetry: communicative situation, themes, metrics and language. Acquire a basic checklist of what to look (first) for in a poem. Recapitulate the basics of metrics and rhyme patterns. Recognise the features of a particular genre and genre conventions: the sonnet.
Session Three, November 03/04/05: Analysing Poetry II: Figurative Speech
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Figurative Speech
- Sources: Ludwig, 47-60; Leech, 147-157
Texts
Skills and Activities
Figurative language, interplay. Spot metaphors, similes, etc. the metric pattern and valorise the points where it is broken. Reinforce basic checklist of previous week. Analyse particular features of poetic language (figures of speech, metrical effects).
Session Four, November 10/11/12: Analysing Poetry III: Close Reading
Analytical Tools
- Handout Analysing Poetry
- Handout: Figurative Speech
- Sources: Ludwig, 47-60; Leech, 147-157
Texts
Skills and Activities
Figurative language, interplay. Spot metaphors, similes, etc. the metric pattern and valorise the points where it is broken. Reinforce basic checklist of previous week. Analyse particular features of poetic language (figures of speech, metrical effects).
Assignment I: Poetry
Sample Solution Assignment I: Poetry
Session Five, November 17/18/19: Analysing Drama I: Rhetoric
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Rhetoric
- Sources: Plett 3-22, 102-105
Texts
- William Shakespeare, Hamlet
Skills and Activities
A speech from the Shakespeare play
[Assignment I: Poetry - Due]
Session Six, November 24/25/26: Analysing Drama II: Dramatic Communication and Plot Structure
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Analysing Dramatic Communication
- Sources: Pfister 49 - 57, 86 - 94, 126 - 147
Texts
- William Shakespeare, Hamlet
Skills and Activities
Dramatic Structures and Communication; Exposition.
Session Seven, December 01/02/03: Analysing Drama III: Characterisation
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Analysing Dramatic Communication
- Sources: Pfister 183 - 195
Texts
- William Shakespeare, Hamlet
Skills and Activities
Characters and Genre Aspects.
[Assignment II: Drama]
[Sample solution assignment II: Drama]
Session Eight, December 08/09/10: Critical Debate and Literary Theory I
Material
- Handout: Editing Shakespeare
- Handout: Brief Overview of Theoretical Approaches and Movements
Texts
Skills and Activities
Theory and Critical Discussion. Secondary Material.
[Assignment II: Drama - Due]
Session Nine, December 15/16/17: Analysing Fiction I: Narration and Focalisation
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Narratology
- Sources: Rimmon-Kenan, Chapter 6, 72-86
Texts
- Henry James, The Turn of the Screw.
Skills and Activities
Narration, Focalization.
Session Ten, December 22/ January 06/07: Analysing Fiction II: Characterisation
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Narratology
- Sources: Rimmon-Kenan, Chapter 5, 59-71
Texts
- Henry James, The Turn of the Screw.
Skills and Activities
Characterisation.
Session Eleven, January 12/13/14: Analysing Fiction III: From Close Reading to Problem-Oriented Textual Analysis
Analytical Tools
- Handout: Narratology
- Sources: Rimmon-Kenan, Chapter 5, 59-71 and Chapter 6, 72-86
Texts
- Henry James, The Turn of the Screw.
Skills and Activities
Close Reading
[Assignment III: Fiction]
[Sample Solution Assignment III: Fiction]
Session Twelve, January 19/20/21: Critical Debate and Literary Theory II
Material
Texts
Homework
- What kind of RPO+ would precede this kind of secondary text? While reading the text, deduce and reconstruct the parts relevant to an RPO+: (1) research problem, (2) thesis statement, (3) state of research, (4) argumentative structure.
Skills and Activities
Theory and Critical Discussion. Secondary Material.
Session Thirteen, January 26/27/28: Recap
Assignments Poetry, Drama, Fiction
[Assignment III: Fiction - Due]
Session Fourteen, February 02/03/04: RPO+ Projects
Skills and Activities
Brief Report on 'Work in Progress': Your Term Paper Projects
[Assignment IV: RPO+ - due February 28]
