This class is an introduction to the study of English literature. While the word literature can mean simply things written on other things (think of words on paper like buttons on a sleeve; or even words on a screen, like what you’re reading right now) here literature means literature taught in an English department, and refers to poetry, fiction, and what I call “fiction-facing material”: the nonfiction essay, the prose poem, jokes, fables and fairy tales, epigrams and aphorisms, and songs. This class focuses on fiction and poetry, with a small section on experimental forms and the non-fiction essay. The focus is consistently on the primary text, and to this end is a recurrent emphasis on close reading. To this end we will spend a lot of time with one of the best novels ever.
The course is structured as a series of interconnected lectures, and focusses on terminology for the discussion of poetry and prose. The overall method in which the student is trained combines big-picture thinking with detail in order to achieve the most powerful -- aka persuasive-- effect. I employ a pragmatic approach in lecture, using ordinary language as a means of understanding literary terms and ideas. You'll get a lot of vocabulary, and be tested on it, and will be able to take it into other literature courses, whether you’re interested in cultural criticism, rhetoric, creative writing, or other languages. Another aspect of the pragmatic approach is to hit you with actual source material, rather than telling you what literature means.
A major learning objective is understanding the differences between macro (big) with micro (little); meta- with infra-, then recognizing them, and finally achieving a balance on your own as you read and think about what you’re reading. The latter is called “critical thinking.” This should help you with future courses, wherever you are in the humanities (or the sciences). You will also be acquainted with some excellent writers, and a sense of some possible paths of study. One major learning outcome is being able to identify and deploy what constitutes non-subjective evidence for a literary-critical argument. If you want to go to law school, take this class. My goal is to equip you to answer a question about literature in concrete ways, rather than by starting a sentence with "To me....."
Oh, and you’ll probably write a poem.
Readings will include Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray: A Norton Critical Edition, 3rd ed.--which is required in this specific edition, in hard copy (note: this is not the same as "hardback"; the edition is paper-back): ISBN-13: 978-0393696875.
An additional course reader contains additional readings.
Grading is based on exams, quizzes, and some writing.
This course is in-person only and is not recorded; if work and/or life schedules preclude attendance, find another course. The use of electronic screens is prohibited in the classroom. We may also engage a text that involves references to sexual violence.
While this description is subject to change, it's guaranteed that you'll need the Wilde, so go ahead and buy it.