Summer Quarter in London 2019

Courses

ENGL 344/ENGL 444: London's Contemporary Theater (5 credits) VLPA

London is one of the theatre capitals of the world. More than ten million people attend performances in the West End alone, and in addition are dozens of "fringe" venues where the theatre is often of top quality and the seat prices very reasonable. We shall be seeing at least one play a week, and read some of them in order to appreciate the decisions that have been made in turning a text into a live production, looking at some of the essential elements of production and stagecraft. In addition to a production at the government subsidised Royal National Theatre and a production at the reproduction of Shakespeare’s Globe where we shall be standing as groundlings, just as the Elizabethan audience did, we shall be attending a commercial West End production. We shall also be attending a fringe production. Backstage tours may include the National Theatre and the Globe in order to deepen your understanding of how theatre works; the class also takes a trip to Shakespeare’s birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon, where we shall be seeing two plays, one of them at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. You will be asked to take notes on each of the productions we see and to use these notes to write a critical review of each of the productions, bearing in mind the class discussion.

Learning goals include:
• a review of each production • a portfolio submission (your journal, your reviews and a self-reflective essay) • watching carefully • reading critically • writing to a deadline (as a reviewer has to do) • participation in class discussion • attendance at all the theatre class events

For Language and Literature English majors: if taken as ENGL 344, this course counts as a forms & genre; if taken as ENGL 444, this course counts as a senior capstone.This course may also count as an English major elective in language and literature or creative writing pathways.  Non-English majors: this course counts as a VLPA.

ENGL 395: Writing London (5 credits) VLPA

This course takes London as its inspiration for students' creative writing. We visit some writers' houses--Shakespeare's being one of them-as well as go to sites that are likely to spark imagination: urban spaces that provide insight into (or literal oversight of) the city, bustling markets (Borough Market, Portobello Market), multicultural urban spaces, and quiet gardens, and Bloomsbury Garden Squares as commemoration to possibly the greatest novelist of the early 20th century, Virginia Woolf, and the Bloomsbury Circle. Sites may include the Poetry Library, the London Review Bookshop and possible readings held there, as well as readings throughout the city. Too we will visit some museums and public street art (Brick Lane) in order to think about interarts connections, and read some London texts to consider writerly styles and techniques. One exercise will be to find a good place in London to write, and to write about that place. The course will be conducted as a workshop, with students sharing writing for critique and revision. In addition to producing original creative writing, students will keep and turn in a "Commonplace Book" in which they record bits of the city, overheard conversations (the Tube is a great space for this) and quotations from self-selected readings that jump out to them as worthy, wonderful, and/or peculiar; and turn in a portfolio. Prose (short stories and creative nonfiction in particular), short scripts, and poetry are all welcome, even as the student can specialize in one genre.  No previous experience in creative writing is required.

Learning goals include:
Students will improve their writing skills, gain exposure to other writers' techniques, and increase their capacity for paying attention to detail. "Art," wrote Laurie Anderson, "is about paying attention."

 This course may count as an English major elective in the Language and Literature & Creative Writing pathways. For non-English majors, this course counts as a VLPA.

HSTRY 399: Contemporary Britain (2 credits; IS credit-Individuals and Society)

This course introduces students to various aspects of life in Britain, from royalty to the homeless, from politics to sport. There is a major emphasis on direct contact with the people and institutions of contemporary Britain, including meetings with homeless people and politicians, visits to Parliament and the media, and individual research projects which encourage students to follow up their own interests. The course also looks at issues such as race, diversity, the problems and delights of being young in Britain today, and current events. The course should enable students to gain a deeper understanding of contemporary Britain and equip them better to understand their own society.

Learning goals include:
Direct contact with the people and institutions of contemporary Britain provides students with the knowledge of the complex, specific interrelations of an individual's place in society. Active engagement allows focus and exposure to the history and culture of the present moment; student projects foster a creative and grounded approach to education.