Bachelor
2021/2022
Literature of the USA
Type:
Elective course (Foreign Languages and Intercultural Communication)
Area of studies:
Linguistics
Delivered by:
School of Foreign Languages
Where:
School of Foreign Languages
When:
1 year, 3, 4 module
Mode of studies:
offline
Open to:
students of all HSE University campuses
Language:
English
ECTS credits:
3
Contact hours:
46
Course Syllabus
Abstract
This course surveys selected American authors representing the major periods, schools, and traditions in American literary history. The course covers the pre-colonial eras (before European colonization in the 1600s) to our contemporary era; multiple genres (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama). Some attention is also paid to the historical/cultural contexts of the literary periods. In particular, the course examines the manner in which writers with diverse backgrounds responded to or appropriated different types of language as part of their efforts to offer alternative expressions of the American experience. Special emphasis will be given to the study of American identity, multiculturalism, race, gender, religious belief, technology, and economic difference. The course traces the formal and thematic developments of literature, focusing on the relationship between writers and readers, the conditions of publishing, innovations in the novel’s form, fiction’s engagement with history, and the changing place of literature in American culture. Given the knowledge that literature is inseparably linked to history and is generated from a specific historical period, the student will be able to discern historical events and influences as depicted, explicitly or implicitly, in literature. Students should be able to show the relationship between an author’s life and the philosophy of the time in which they lived and their literary works. The course offers students a broad introduction to American literature, also serves as preparation for more an advanced course in American studies and American literature in particular. The course is designed to provide students with the analytic skills and factual knowledge necessary to deal critically with the problems and materials in American literature. Students will learn to assess literary and cultural materials, their relevance to a given interpretive problem, reliability, and importance, and to weigh the evidence and interpretations presented in literary and scholarship. The American Literature course is aimed to develop the skills necessary to arrive at conclusions on the basis of an informed judgment and to present reasons and evidence clearly and persuasively in essay format. The course combines activities of a traditional (quizzes, essays, discussions etc.) and a nontraditional (presentations, games, creative writing etc.) nature. It also envisages various research projects conducted individually or in small groups on a wide range of topics related to its subject matter. This syllabus sets minimal requirements for the knowledge and skills of students and determines the contents of the course. It targets both lecturers and teaching assistants, and 2nd - year undergraduate students of the Foreign languages and intercultural communication programme, to whose needs it is specifically tailored.
Learning Objectives
- The American Literature course is aimed to develop the skills necessary to arrive at conclusions on the basis of an informed judgment and to present reasons and evidence clearly and persuasively in essay format. The course combines activities of a traditional (quizzes, essays, discussions etc.) and a nontraditional (presentations, games, creative writing etc.) nature. It also envisages various research projects conducted individually or in small groups on a wide range of topics related to its subject matter.
Expected Learning Outcomes
- be able to apply selected theories of American literature
- be able to compare the characteristics of major literary movements
- be able to content, and mechanics
- be able to contrast the theoretical aspects of literary genres
- be able to define major literary movements and schools
- be able to evaluate the quality of literary works by comparing them to the recognized best in that genre
- be able to identify the connections between contemporary American literature and culture
- be able to interpret major literary works
- be able to outline the literary history of America
- be able to present acceptable critical analysis of a novel from the standpoint of style
- be able to summarize an argument, compare/contrast the thematic and structural characteristics of literary texts
- develop skills of of thinking, reading, and writing analytically and critically
- develop skills of presenting one’s own opinion and participating (individually or in small groups) in the debates on a wide range of topics related to the course subject matter
- develop skills of thinking, reading, and writing analytically and critically
- develop skills of using terminology and methods taught within the course
- develop skills of working with primary and secondary sources
- know literary heritage and its meaning to American nation and the whole world
- know main political and cultural leaders
- know major periods in American literature
- know significant periods and streams of American literature
- know social and cultural development of the USA
- know their representatives and major texts
Course Contents
- Topic 1 American literary periods. Colonial period and democratic origin of American literature
- Topic 2 Literature of Enlightenment and Establishment of American literary traditions
- Topic 3 Romantic period in American literature
- Topic 4 Rise of Realism and the development of regional literature
- Topic 5 Naturalism and Muckraking in American literature
- Topic 6 Post-war literature. Literature of the Lost Generation.
- Topic 7 Literature of the first quarter of the XXth century. Modernism and Experimentation. Trends of Realism
- Topic 8 Second World War and American view. American Identity in literature.
- Topic 9 Literature of exhaustion. Change of paradigms: Realism-Modernism-Postmodernism
- Topic 10 American literature of the last decades (the turn of the XXst century). Moving to Postmodernism and back. New trends, new tradition. Interaction of different traditions and experiments.
Assessment Elements
- Attendance and participationActive participation in group discussions and in-class assignments is required at every seminar and will be evaluated according to a points scale. Please be in class on time – this will give us all an opportunity to finish on time as well. If a 5-minute quiz or a written paper (a short essay) is used as a written form of checking home assignment a student who is late is not permitted to write the quiz (paper). A student who is absent is not permitted to do it either. You are not permitted about a written quiz in advance, as it is up to your teacher to decide on a way of checking home assignment – oral / written. Therefore, results for written quizzes are summed to all points you get during the course. If your quizzes results are equal to 0, but you get points by participating in the whole process you still have a chance to get a high cumulative grade. Written quizzes are compulsory for everyone who is in class at that moment. The total amount of quizzes can be 5-13 in two modules
- Ongoing quizzes and testsBefore some of the seminars, LMS quizzes will evaluate students’ understanding of the required Key Texts. It is up to the instructor to decide whether to give a quiz or not; students will not be warned about it in advance, so they should do their reading beforehand
- Projects, presentations, and other activitiesSeveral projects, presentations, and other activities will be given throughout the course as a way for students to demonstrate understanding and mastery in their own unique way. Students must complete projects on time. If a student has taken up a project that requires their presence in class (for instance, a presentation), but has to miss the class, they should find themselves a replacement (another student who will agree to do the project in their place). Otherwise, they will get a zero regardless of any excuses. Each student must take part in such activities at least twice per course. The mean grade for all the projects is rounded starting with 0,6.
- Written home assignmentsStudents should meet assignment deadlines by all means. In case one’s assignment is 1-2 days late, they lose 50% of their grade. In case one’s assignment is 3 or more days late, it is not accepted or assessed – the grade is a zero. There will be several written home assignments in the format of journal writing (analyzing fiction / non-fiction of a given period). The assignments should be typed and follow basic academic style conventions and formatting rules. Instructions will be given per assignment.
- ExaminationPossible Exam forms: an essay, a test, an exam card. Exam cards include 3 questions: 1. A Question in theory and history of American Literature (lectures) 2. A Question on compulsory short texts to be read during the course 3. A Question on a students’ choice novel Approximate or sample exam questions concerning theory are to be given to students after their last seminar. Questions on texts All the grades are rounded half up (arithmetic rounding) to the nearest whole numerical grade.
Interim Assessment
- 2021/2022 4th module0.15 * Ongoing quizzes and tests + 0.2 * Projects, presentations, and other activities + 0.25 * Attendance and participation + 0.25 * Examination + 0.15 * Written home assignments
Bibliography
Recommended Core Bibliography
- Massa, A., & Goldman, A. (2016). American Literature in Context : 1900-1930. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1240144
- Pavese, C., & Fussell, E. S. (2017). American Literature : Essays and Opinions. London: Routledge. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1564310
Recommended Additional Bibliography
- Albin Beqiri. (2019). American Literature throughout Its History. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.2550204
- Balkun, M. M. (2006). The American Counterfeit : Authenticity and Identity in American Literature and Culture. Tuscaloosa: University Alabama Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=279718
- Wagner-Martin, L. (2013). A History of American Literature : 1950 to the Present. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=531595