Literary and Cultural Theory CLC 3300G - Winter 2015 Classes: Tuesdays 10:30-11:30; Thursdays 10:30-12:30; UC 207 Instructor: Luca Pocci, Arts and Humanities Bldg. 3G28E (lpocci@uwo.ca; tel. 661-2111 ext. 86062) Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday, 3:30-4:30 Mark Breakdown Class Participation 15% Midterm Test 15% Essay 25% Class presentation 15% Final exam 30% Course Description and Aims: This course introduces students to the exciting and dizzying world of literary and cultural theory. We will explore together a wide variety of influential schools and figures, from Plato to the hottest contemporary trends. The primary objective is for the students to understand that familiarity with the vocabulary and concepts of literary and cultural theory makes one both a better reader and a better, i.e. more critical, thinker. References to the literature of Western Europe, Anglo-and Latin America, and Asia will serve as the testing ground for the
2 theories that we will study. In addition to the above primary objective, the course also aims to achieve the following: - guide students into grasping the relationships between language, literature, and culture; - analyze the interplay between theories and the cultural, political and technological contexts in which they are created; - examine how theories influence the rise and evolution of literary movements and styles. Learning Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students are expected to be able to: - describe major theoretical schools and approaches; - use a range of theoretical concepts, and understand how concepts travel across time and cultures; - demonstrate increased awareness of the relationships between language, literature and culture; - connect theories with their cultural, political, and technological environments. Students will improve their ability to express themselves on these and other related topics, both orally (through in-class presentations) and in writing (in the form of essays). Course Guidelines: Students are expected to attend all lectures and to complete all required readings before coming to class. Essays must be submitted within the deadline. Course Requirements: A. Class Participation (15%): students are expected to participate actively in class. If you have a legitimate reason to miss class (sickness, family crisis, religious holiday), please contact me beforehand so that we can arrange for you to make up any missed material. B. Class Presentation (15%): 15-20 minutes, delivered orally, to be followed by class discussion. C. Midterm Test (15%): It will consist of identification questions. D. Essay (25%): the essay (6-8 pages) is to be written on a topic of your choice. All students are expected to have their topics approved during office hours or via email. It would be a good idea to begin thinking about the final essay as early as possible in the semester. E. Final Exam (30%): It will consist of identification and essay questions. The final examination (3 hours) is cumulative, i.e., it covers the entire year. It is timetabled by the Office of the Registrar without any input from the Department. Since it may be scheduled for any date during the April examination period, and since students must write at a scheduled time, you should not make any plans which might run into conflict with the examination timetable. N.B. E-mail will be used extensively for communication. Students must make sure that their UWO account is in order.
3 Textbook: The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism, Vincent B. Leitch, Gen. Ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2010 (available in the Comparative Literature and Culture section at the University Bookstore) Class Schedule All readings are from The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism: 2nd Ed. (hereafter NATC). Jan. 6 Introduction to the course: What is Theory and why do we need it Jan. 8 Origins or Philosophy and/as Theory: Plato, NATC 41-77 Jan. 13 Origins or Philosophy and/as Theory: Plato, NATC 77-83 Jan. 15 Origins or Philosophy and/as Theory: Aristotle, NATC 83-115 Jan. 20 Origins or Philosophy and/as Theory: Aristotle, NATC 115-119 Jan. 22 Origins or Philosophy and/as Theory: Nietzsche, NATC 759-784 Jan. 27 Origins or Philosophy and/as Theory: Nietzsche, NATC 759-784; Jan. 29 Language in literature: : Ferdinand de Saussure, Nature of the Linguistic Sign, NATC 845-866; Roman Jakobson, Linguistics and Poetics, NATC 1141-1155 Feb. 3 Authorship: Roman Jakobson, Linguistics and Poetics, NATC 1141-1155 Feb. 5 Authorship: Michel Foucault, What Is an Author? NATC 1469-1489; Roland Barthes, The Death of the Author NATC 1316-1319 Feb. 10 Authorship & Readership: Roland Barthes, From Work to Text, NATC 1322-1331 Feb. 12 Midterm; Readership: Wolfgang Iser, Interaction between Text and Reader NATC 1521-153; Hans Robert Jauss, from Literary History as a Challenge to Literary Theory, NATC 1403-1420 Feb. 17 & 19 Reading week Feb. 24 Psychoanalysis: Wolfgang Iser, Interaction between Text and Reader NATC 1521-153; Hans Robert Jauss, from Literary History as a Challenge to Literary Theory, NATC 1403-1420 Feb. 26 Psychoanalysis: Sigmund Freud, from The Interpretation of Dreams, NATC 807-824 Mar. 3 Psychoanalysis: Sigmund Freud, from The Uncanny, NATC 824-841
4 Mar. 5 Feminism: Simone de Beauvoir, from The Second Sex, Myth and Reality, NATC 1261-1273; Hélène Cixous, The Laugh of the Medusa, NATC 1938-1959; Classpresentations Mar. 10 Politics Walter Benjamin, The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility, NATC 1046-1071 Mar. 12 Politics and Culture, Walter Benjamin, The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility, NATC 1046-1071 Mar. 17 Politics and Popular Culture, Jean Baudrillard, from The Precession of Simulacra, NATC 1553-1566 Mar. 19 Politics and Popular Culture, Fredric Jameson, Postmodernism and Consumer Society, NATC 1818-1821 & 1846-1860 Mar. 24 Postcolonial Theory, Edward Said, from Orientalism, NATC 1861-1888 Edward Said, from Culture and Imperialism, NATC 1888-1904. Mar. 26 Postcolonial Theory, Edward Said, from Culture and Imperialism, NATC 1888-1904. Mar. 31 Essay due ; Class-presentations Apr. 2 Class-presentations Apr. 7 Class-presentation and Course conclusion Please note: You are responsible for ensuring that you have successfully completed all course prerequisites (or have special permission from your Dean to waive the prerequisite) and that you have not taken an antirequisite course. If you are not eligible for the course, you may be removed from it at any time, and it will be deleted from your record. In addition, you will receive no adjustment to your fees. These decisions can not be appealed. Plagiarism: Plagiarism is a major academic offense (see Scholastic Offense Policy in the Western Academic Calendar). Plagiarism is the inclusion of someone else's verbatim or paraphrased text in one's own written work without immediate reference. Verbatim text must be surrounded by quotation marks or indented if it is longer than four lines. A reference must follow right after borrowed material (usually the author's name and page number). Without immediate reference to borrowed material, a list of sources at the end of a written assignment does not protect a writer against the possible charge of plagiarism. The University of Western Ontario uses a plagiarismchecking site called Turnitin.com. Absenteeism Students seeking academic accommodation on medical grounds for any missed tests, exams, participation components and/or assignments must apply to the Academic Counselling office of their home Faculty and provide documentation. Academic accommodation cannot be granted by the instructor or department. UWO's Policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness
5 (https://studentservices.uwo.ca/secure/index.cfm) Downloadable Student Medical Certificate (SMC): https://studentservices.uwo.ca under the Medical Documentation heading Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Mental Health@Western http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for a complete list of options about how to obtain help. The Department of Modern Languages and Literatures Policies which govern the conduct, standards, and expectations for student participation in Modern Languages and Literatures courses is available in the Undergraduate section of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures website at http://www.uwo.ca/modlang/undergraduate/policies.html. It is your responsibility to understand the policies set out by the Senate and the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, and thus ignorance of these policies cannot be used as grounds of appeal.