Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2024 - WL 403 D100

Contemporary World Literature (4)

Class Number: 5798

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 8 – Apr 12, 2024: Fri, 12:30–4:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Prerequisites:

    60 units including two 300-level courses in world literature, English, and/or humanities.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Explores literary texts and movements emerging since the second half of the twentieth century. May focus on responses to modernism, hybrid genres, digital media or contemporary themes.

COURSE DETAILS:

What is power, where is it rooted, and how is it sustained and perpetuated? One possible answer comes to us via the Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben, who posited that “in modern bio-politics, sovereign is he who decides on the value or non-value of life as-such”. In this course, we will analyze literary texts where the concepts of power and sovereignty create a complex and intricate web of meaning. Power in these texts is either exclusively “owned” by a mysterious group of bureaucrats (The Palace of Dreams), secured in a totalitarian state (Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea), dispersed after a civil war (Girl at War), or contested within the realm of law and criminality (The Day of the Owl). We will closely examine the relationship between power and life, with a focus on Agamben’s Theory of the State of Exception, defined as a situation in which people are often stripped of political rights and authority seems to rise above any other rule.
 

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

By the end of this course, students should be able to:
•Broaden their knowledge of the specific sociocultural and political contexts described in the texts.
•Apply theoretical concepts to literary texts.
•Sharpen theircritical thinking skills, especially through the lens of bio

Grading

  • Attendance & Participation 15%
  • Oral Report 15%
  • Midterm 25%
  • In-Class Presentation 15%
  • Final Essay 30%

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

Leonardo Sciascia. The Day of the Owl (1961).
ISBN: 978-1590170618

Ismail Kadare. The Palace of Dreams (1981).
ISBN: 978-1628723236

Guy Delisle. Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea (2007).
ISBN: 978-1897299210

Sara Nović. Girl at war (2016).
ISBN: 978-0812986396

REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity website http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the university community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the university. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the university. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.