ENGL 440 A: Special Studies In Literature

This seminar is a comprehensive introduction to James Joyce’s Ulysses as the summit of literary modernism. We’ll read the book one episode at a time, tracking the progressive weaving and unweaving of sense. Discussions will address the book’s Irish connections, Joyce's mocking homages to tradition, the exuberant transvaluations of all novelistic values (narrative devices, generic conventions, topics, perspectives, styles and humors), and the book’s affinity with the European avant-garde and experimentation across the arts. A portion of each meeting will be devoted to music in Ulysses. Desiderata: inklings of Joyce's earlier work, intimacy with Homer’s Odyssey, interest in sly uses of language. Text: Ulysses: The Corrected Text, ed. by Hans Walter Gabler, (available at UW Bookstore and elsewhere). Requirements: weekly tasks/quizzes and a final or an ongoing project involving independent research. Please note that Ulysses is a delightful but very demanding book: contact instructor for additional information and reading suggestions.