Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Explores how texts resonate in other cultural contexts, influence foreign traditions, and become works of world literature. Breadth-Humanities.

COURSE DETAILS:

World Literature explores how literary texts play out beyond their cultures of origin. This course will study the themes, symbols and characters that radiate throughout the ancient world into modern Europe, Africa, India and North America. These texts feature journeys, both literal and figurative, from one “world” into others. We will follow characters as they grope from one world’s value system into others. We will experience their perplexity before dilemma, their creative responses and their personal discoveries.

Course materials will include epic, drama, novel, lyric poetry, feature film and short story. We will watch a video stage production of Antigone and a film adaptation, Apocalypse Now, comparing literary representations with those of the visual arts. Throughout the course, we shall pay attention to how translation, intertextuality and various protocols of reading contribute to the still emerging sense of a richly diverse yet uniquely human world culture.

Students in this course can expect to hone their responses to literature in writing and through a creative project. Creativity, in fact, is a mantra for the course. Students will recognize literary creativity in the works we read, and will tap into their own creativity in class discussion and in their academic writing. Mastering the basics of critical reading, thinking and writing, students will gain a deeper appreciation for the role of literature in defining and exploring the dilemmas that make human life an ongoing process of discovery.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

In this course you can expect to:
    - Hone your responses to literature in writing and through creative projects.
    - Learn to integrate creativity and analytical thinking in academic writing.
    - Master the basics of critical reading, thinking and writing.

Grading

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

Additional Course Fee: $40

All Required Readings listed below are not provided by the Distance Education Office (CODE).

All required additional reading material (poetry packet for week 5 and a short story packet for week 13) will be available on the Canvas; they are also on reserve at the SFU Surrey Library.

REQUIRED READING: