This course examines selected works of literature of a single genre or several genres. The conventions of the genre(s), as well as the techniques and devices employed by authors to effect meaning, will be the focus of classroom activities. Students will continue to practice writing critical essays.
To pass English 102 at Dawson College, students must be able to do the following:
|
| 603-102-MQ |
American Prose and Drama |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course we study American literature from the end of the nineteenth century until the present. While the main focus of the course is on prose fiction and drama by authors such as Jewett, Crane, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Parker, Faulkner, and Williams, we distinguish the main characteristics of the shifts in sensibility from realism through modernism to contemporary literature. We also discuss the historical, philosophical, and literary background out of which the texts arise, examining, where relevant, gender-related issues. The course includes a close look at the idea of the American dream. There will be lectures, class and group discussions, quizzes, and, occasionally, the presentation of audio-visual material. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Arthurian Romance |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
How did an obscure 6th Century Welsh chieftain named Arthur, hero of the even more obscure Battle of Badon, become one of the most enduring figures of Western literature? Attempting to answer this question, the course will examine the earliest literary and historical sources of the Arthurian legend. Variants on the adventures of Arthur, the sorcerer Merlin, the wayward Queen Guinevere and her paramour Sir Lancelot, along with other Avalonian characters will be enjoyed. We will trace how Arthurian literature grew from sketchy historical chronicles into the literary genre called Medieval Romance. Some of the genre characteristics to be looking for are (1) A hero-knight superior to others (2) Courtly Love; a knight’s Love Service to his Lady (3) Imaginary, vague settings (4) Supernatural elements: enchanted weapons & animals, ogres, faeries, druids (5) Disguised identities & kept secrets (6) Faithfulness and courage in adversity & especially on quests, etc. (Charlotte Hussey)
How did an obscure 6th Century Welsh chieftain named Arthur, hero of the even more obscure Battle of Badon, become one of the most enduring figures of Western literature? Attempting to answer this question, the course will examine the earliest literary and historical sources of the Arthurian legend. Variants on the adventures of Arthur, the sorcerer Merlin, the wayward Queen Guinevere and her paramour Sir Lancelot, along with other Avalonian characters will be enjoyed. We will trace how Arthurian literature grew from sketchy historical chronicles into the literary genre called Medieval Romance. Some of the genre characteristics to be looking for are (1) A hero-knight superior to others (2) Courtly Love; a knight’s Love Service to his Lady (3) Imaginary, vague settings (4) Supernatural elements: enchanted weapons & animals, ogres, faeries, druids (5) Disguised identities & kept secrets (6) Faithfulness and courage in adversity & especially on quests, etc. (Charlotte Hussey) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Classical Myth and Modern Imagination |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Though the culture that produced them is long gone, classical myths have enjoyed a rich afterlife, surviving and even thriving to this day. But why do we turn to these old stories— endlessly transplanting and adapting them to our own times? What roles do these myths play for us? How can we explain their continued popularity and resonance? This course will give students the opportunity to explore the nature and function of mythic narratives, both for the ancients and for ourselves. We will begin with a brief overview of ancient Greek culture, to better understand the role these myths played for those who originally produced them. Then, we will examine a number of classic myths: reading them first as they were told in the ancient world and then analyzing some of the many creative retellings we find in contemporary literature and popular culture. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Coming of Age Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The literature and films we will explore in this course are all concerned with the momentous, joyful, painful, awkward, epiphanic, and traumatizing experience of growing up. The coming-of-age narrative relates an adolescent’s movement toward or initiation into adulthood and the corresponding awakening to a new understanding of both the independent self and the external world. Rooted in the bildungsroman (the education novel that charts a character’s moral and spiritual growth), coming-of-age narratives frame this formation of the self and one’s position in society against the backdrop of the loss of innocence, the confrontation with the “real” world, moral dilemmas, rites of passage, individual desires and dreams versus external expectations and norms, failures and disappointments. While this process of maturation and a new awareness of the self can be comedic and liberating, it can also be tragic and painful — and some of these coming-of-age stories are heartbreakingly cut short. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Contemporary African Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The importance of Africa and the role it plays in global health cannot be overstated. A significant number of cultural and literary theorists (Olaniyan, Csicsery-Ronay, Armillas-Tiseyra) have argued that the future of our planet will be dependent on the future of Africa. Because of the vastness of Africa’s geographical space and its diverse array of cultures, languages, and ethnicities, it is impossible to classify it into a whole and so this course is a small sampling of sub-Saharan African Literature from Ghana and Nigeria that highlights Africa’s increasing influence in global conversations. Classwork will consist of short lectures, group discussions and writing workshops. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Contemporary Native Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Contemporary Short Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this genre course, we will study the short story in general, contemporary short stories in particular. We will begin by tracing the history and development of the short story and exploring the elements and techniques short story writers use. Then we will apply this knowledge to a collection of contemporary short stories published in various magazines and journals in the past 15 years. Classes will consist of lectures, grammar/vocabulary/reading quizzes, discussions, group and individual work. Writing and grammar will be done both in and out of class and will take the following forms: e-journals, grammar exercises, short writing assignments, a process written essay, a mid-term in-class essay and a final formal critical essay. Students will also give a group oral presentation. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Contemporary Short Story |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is perfect for students new to comparative literature who are interested in relating fiction to contemporary world events and the modern forces that shape our fluid and unfolding global culture as it emerges. Identity is forged through a dialogue between self and world, and is a reflection of how we have resolved the dilemmas in our lives. Students will try to situate our writers in both social and political contexts. Examining short stories from a wide range of international writers should convey the incredible spectrum of possibilities over which the short story genre can unfold. The course will employ a participatory, hands-on approach to learning about the formal aspects of short stories and familiarizing students with the conventions of literary criticism. Emphasis is placed on essay structure and argumentation. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Crime and Detective Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This class introduces students to the history, generic conventions, and narrative strategies of crime and detective fiction. What we will discover this semester is that crime is at the very centre of the western storytelling tradition: from Greek Mythology, to the Book of Genesis, to Shakespeare’s Tragedies, narratives about transgressions of laws proliferate in our culture. What explains our collective fascination with crime and criminality? That is one question that we will aim to get to the bottom of this semester. Beginning with Edgar Allan Poe’s invention of detective fiction, and with pit stops along the way to consider the golden age mystery whodunit, film noir, and contemporary crime thrillers, students who take this course will leave with a full understanding of, and appreciation for, the central genre in our culture. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Crime and Punishment |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Often considered among the best novels ever written, Crime and Punishment is a phenomenal introduction to the genre of the novel and to the works of the one of the world’s great writers, Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky. His hero Raskolnikov commits what he believes is a fully rational murder, but is unprepared for the consequences. A murder story told from the point of view of the murderer, it’s a harrowing psychological portrait and an intense experience for any reader, as we journey with Raskolnikov through the depths of human depravity. The novel is a brick – 550 pages (approx.). Students should be prepared for a reading challenge. But if you put in the effort, it becomes a page turner, and reading it can be a memorable life experience. We will finish the course by reading a shorter work by a second Russian novelist, Leo Tolstoy’s The Kreutzer Sonata. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Crime Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Is the crime novel simply a “whodunit”? This familiar term for the genre implies that such novels are simply plot-driven. Is there more to the genre than resolving a mystery, finding the culprit and bringing him to justice? This course offers examples of the crime novel that show both the diversity and the depth of this genre, including hard-boiled detective fiction (and noir aesthetics in general), novels of the Golden Age with literary pretensions, and the thriller. At the same time, the question of social commentary arises in each subgenre of crime fiction. Required readings in this course include Dorothy L. Sayers' The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, Chester Himes' Cotton Comes to Harlem, and Batya Gur's Literary Murder. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Detective Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
After a brief consideration of the origins of detective fiction in Godwin, Poe and Collins, we will evaluate the contribution of the short story form of this sub-genre by a close reading of A.C. Doyle's "The Adventure of the Speckled Band" and short stories by G.K. Chesterton and D.L. Sayers. The main focus is the period between the two World Wars, the Golden Age of the classic English detective novel. We will pay particularly close attention to the influence of the Detection Club, founded in England in 1928, on the conventions of detective fiction in the work of Agatha Christie. Throughout the term, you will be learning the techniques used to create the "puzzle" of "whodunit". This means texts must be read more than once. Theoretical work will consist primarily of lectures and class discussions based on the primary texts as well as relevant secondary sources. Practical work will include film analysis and written analyses of the material, including revisions. (Rita Much)
This course examines detective fiction through the analysis of a range of detective stories from the genre's emergence to more contemporary examples. Through reading these stories, students will come to understand the key features of the detective genre and how different authors have engaged with them. Discussion of these stories will rely on close-reading skills that involve the analysis of literary techniques such as plot, setting, characterization, symbolism, and metaphor. (Louisa Anne Hadley) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Domestic Gothic |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Recent cultural production has looked to the Gothic genre as a means of representing the “haunting” traumas of oppression and marginalization. More often than not, these depictions concentrate their horror within the space of the family home. This course contextualizes this resurgence, examining the genre of Domestic Gothic. It interprets the notion of domesticity broadly — from the familial to the architectural, from homemaking to house building. Using the figure of the haunted house, this course tracks the Gothic genre’s evolving treatment of evil from an abstraction that, in the words of Henry James, “cannot be explained away” to a psychological effect deeply situated within history, culture, and systems of power. Texts include James’s The Turn of the Screw (1898), Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House (1959), Carmen Maria Machado’s memoir In the Dream House (2019), and Ari Aster's Hereditary (2018). |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Drama |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course students will explore the language of drama, analyzing the complex of theatrical signs--language, movement, gesture, setting, music, etc.--that dramatists use to create and tell stories. Students will learn to identify, compare and contrast the dramatic conventions of different periods and societies with particular reference to the origins of ritual drama in ancient Greece and to the theatre of Shakespeare. And we will survey Western drama up until the twentieth century. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Edgar Allan Poe |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Encountering the Other |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In our survey of literary genres, we will encounter racialized, gendered, and non-human Others as an abstract concept; as flesh and blood beings; and as the product of fantasies, fears, and fictions. As a means of imposing order, Othering has as much to do with how we look as to how we think. And so this class will be about the gaze: what happens when we scrutinize and classify the Other from a distance…or when the Other returns the look, confronting these stares and stories? Texts from the English portion of the class may include Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Shakespeare’s Othello, and Tod Browning’s film Freaks (1932). We will examine these texts within their cultural contexts and through the lenses of psychoanalysis, philosophy, race and disability studies, and “freak” and monster theory. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will focus on North American fiction from the 1950s to the present day. We will give particular attention to the work of Alice Munro, whose writing will be the subject of an oral presentation as well as the major term paper. Throughout the course we will discuss the elements of fiction, such as theme, character, plot and point of view. Our primary goals will be to improve critical reading, thinking, and writing skills and to develop the appreciation and understanding of serious literature. Students will continue to learn to write a formal essay of literary criticism. Please note that there is a heavy reading load for this course. It is essential to complete the weekly reading assignments on time. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Graphic Memoir by Women |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In the last several decades, the comics genre has emerged as an important mode of storytelling. Increasingly, it is becoming known as an effective tool for both social commentary and self-representation, political and otherwise. In this course, students will explore one very particular subset: autobiographical narratives produced by women which combine visuals and text. Analyzing both of these literary components, students will develop a critical approach to studies in graphic memoir. This course is cross-listed with the Women's Gender Studies Profile. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Graphic Women |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In the last several decades, the comics genre has emerged as an important mode of storytelling. Increasingly, it is becoming known as an effective tool for both social commentary and self-representation, political and otherwise. In this course, students will explore one very particular subset: autobiographical narratives produced by women which combine visuals and text. Analyzing both of these literary components, students will develop a critical approach to studies in graphic memoir. This course is cross-listed with the Women's Gender Studies Profile. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Greek Tragedy and the Modern World |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course considers the enduring influence of Greek tragedy in the modern world. We will read a selection of plays by the three great Athenian tragedians – Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides – as well as several modern adaptations that relocate the action of the original texts in a range of 20th - and 21st-century settings. Through these works, we will engage with some of the important political crises of our time and in so doing examine the ways that certain prevailing tensions in human civilization (the clash of freedom and tyranny; the allure of military conflict; the resilience of patriarchal domination; the trauma of migration; the terror of plague) can be traced back to the ancient world. One of the principal objectives of our investigations will be to learn what the ancient texts can tell us about our world. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Indigenous Literature and Place |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Indigenous Science Fiction and Fantasy |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Students will approach the genres of science fiction, speculative fiction and fantasy, written mainly by contemporary Indigenous writers. The term “Indigenous futurisms,” coined by Grace Dillon, and paying homage to Afrofuturism, is a creative movement within art, literature, and other media that places Indigenous people within science fiction work, fusing traditional knowledge and culture with futuristic ideas and settings. It often considers reconciliation, decolonization, and (re-)turn toward environmental consciousness. Students will learn to recognize the formal and stylistic elements of short fiction and the novel as well as some of the central tropes common to science fiction and fantasy: estrangement, slipstream, contact, and world-building. Students will attend study labs, book club events, and several out-of-class activities organized by the First Peoples Center. Finally, students will collectively publish a journal showcasing their own creative explorations of the genre. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Irish Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The literature in this course is from critically-acclaimed writers and is varied, complex and rewarding. The first two weeks will be dedicated to a crash course in Irish history with the goal of empowering students and setting them up for a more sophisticated and satisfying engagement with the literature. Please note aspects of the material touch on violence (including sexual violence) and other sensitive topics and could be triggering to some. Rest assured that nothing is sensationalized or superfluous, however, and classroom discussions are premised on respect. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Liberal Arts Poetry |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will develop students’ understanding and appreciation of poetry, poetic forms, devices, and strategies. We will practice close reading and recognizing devices and structures with the aim of writing clearly and thoughtfully about poetry in a critical essay. Learning activities may include reading or reciting poetry aloud, reading essays, doing poetry-writing exercises, listening and responding to lectures/discussions, participating in smaller group discussions, and writing informal/formal (analytical) responses to poems. Literary terms will be introduced/reviewed so students improve their comprehension of poetry and can skillfully apply terms of literary analysis. Students will submit an original sonnet for consideration for the Liberal Arts Brick Books Poetry Prize and may be asked to attend a poetry reading and to write a collaborative essay. Each student will make a Favourite Poem video in response to their choice of poem on the Poetry Foundation website. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Literary Genres with New School |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines selected works of literature of a single genre or several genres. The conventions of the genre(s), as well as the techniques and devices employed by authors to effect meaning, will be the focus of classroom activities. Students will continue to practice writing critical essays. New School’s approach to learning is based on the principles of Critical Pedagogy and Humanistic Education. Students are divided into smaller learning groups. These groups explore the same learning competencies as in the regular course, but our facilitators give students a greater role in shaping their courses and designing their assessments. Our aim is to relate our studies to our personal and social lives, and to link the personal to the political. Go to the New School website for more information about our approach. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Literature into Film |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The act of storytelling is not only just about as old as humanity itself, it’s also one of the core components of the human experience. We tell stories to share wisdom, give warning, or simply to provide entertainment. This course will take a look at several forms of storytelling – including film, stories, biographies, and photography, among others - in an effort to discover exactly what it is that makes it such an integral part of our lives. We will perform both analytical and creative work. Interspersed throughout the study of these various forms of storytelling will be a study of approaches that are essential to the act of telling stories, and that can also be useful in researching and preparing a formal research paper. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Lyrical Ballads |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is an intensive study of Lyrical Ballads, the landmark collection of poetry published in 1798 as a collaboration by two friends, the famous British Romantic poets William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Students will use this work to consider poetry as a concept and the various styles of poetry that comprise Lyrical Ballads. We will study Lyrical Ballads both for its importance in its own time and for its influence upon our own. By the end of the course, each student will be able to read poetry closely, recognize its different forms, theorize the forms’ histories and significance, and demonstrate these abilities both through a term paper and a creative class presentation. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Medieval Literature in Translation |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course explores the poetics of important Anglo Saxon and Middle English texts (in Modern English translations) using the philosophical writing of Boethius as a central underpinning. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Memes and Archetypes |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Memes, Myths, and Archetypes |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Metafiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Why do writers write so much about writing? This course will explore this question by focusing on examples of metafiction — fiction about fiction — in three literary genres: the short story, the novel, and the play. While metafiction is a term often associated with postmodern literature from the second half of the twentieth century, metafictional techniques can be found in literature from much earlier periods, such as the “plays within plays” in the works of Shakespeare or early novels like Don Quixote and Tristram Shandy. Through lectures, discussions, and in-class activities, this course will explore a wide range of metafictional works and consider the questions they pose about the nature of the creative process, the boundaries between fiction and reality, and the artist’s role in society. Readings will include Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement, Michel Tremblay’s play The Real World?, and short stories by writers such as Margaret Atwood, Luis Jorge Borges, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Modern and Contemporary Drama |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is designed to introduce the student of drama to various plays from the modern and contemporary periods. The five plays that are studied vary each term and are chosen for their challenging topics, innovative structures and compelling language. This course is meant to encourage the reading of plays out loud in the classroom as well as a group presentation of a scene in lieu of an oral. The student will develop a deeper understanding and respect for the genre and hopefully develop a continued interest in theatregoing. The attendance at a play and its written review are mandatory. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Modernist Poetry |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This class will introduce you to some of the major figures and ideas in Modernist British and American poetry and will improve your reading, writing, and analytical skills. Classes will be discussion-based, but there will also be lectures, a significant amount of collaborative work, and frequent individual writing activities. In addition, while the course will emphasize close-reading, we will also be exploring the historical, cultural, and political contexts in which the poetry was produced. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Old English Poetry in Translation |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Our Stories, Our Voices |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
"Our Stories, Our Voices" will focus on modern short fiction, mostly involving young protagonists in recognizable, everyday settings. The stories will look at the possibilities for literature, and for meaning, in our everyday lives of jobs, school, relationships, and the modern world. Many, but not all of the authors, will be Indigenous, and a number of works in the course will be internet-based, looking at the ways artists and writers are using modern media to tell the timeless stories of our search for purpose in a changing world. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Poetry |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
This course explores how poems develop their effects and meanings. It focuses on lyric poetry—poetry that maps subjective human experience from the perspective of an individual consciousness. We will be looking at some early examples of lyric poetry, as well as the evolution of some key poetic forms over the centuries, but for the most part we will be reading, discussing, analyzing and interpreting poems from the 20th and 21st centuries. Students can expect to improve their close-reading, analytical and interpretive skills and to put them to use in in-class discussions, short compositions, and essays. No previous experience with poetry is required, only an open and willing mind. (George Slobodzian)
This is an introduction to poetry and so, in this course, we will read a variety of poems (mainly contemporary poems). By reading closely and asking questions about the poems and how they work, we will learn about word choice, figurative language and various poetic structures. Through class discussions and different types of written assignments (both creative and analytic), we will look at how the poems function: how language is at work in the poems and the effects it creates. We will read poems by: Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Bishop, Ezra Pound, Adrienne Rich, Seamus Heaney and T.S. Eliot (just to name a few). We will also read a few short essays by poets writing about poetry and take an in-depth look at Canadian poetry by examining the work of 10 contemporary Canadian poets. No advance knowledge of poetry is required — just your curiosity and willingness to pose questions. (Kathryn Hall)
This course, an introduction to poetry, will develop students’ understanding and appreciation of poetic genres, forms, movements, devices, and strategies. The study of prosody, rhyme, and figurative language will be featured. We will practice close reading, learning to recognize devices and structures, with the aim of writing clearly and thoughtfully about poetry in a critical essay. Learning activities may include reading or reciting poetry aloud, completing poetry-writing exercises, listening and responding to lectures and class discussions, participating in group discussions, and writing informal or formal (analytical) responses to poems. Numerous literary terms will be introduced or reviewed to help students gain some of the vocabulary of critical writing and improve their comprehension and analysis of poetry. Students will produce and present a Favourite Poem Video, commenting on their favourite poem and may be asked to attend an online poetry reading during the semester." (Susan Elmslie) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Poetry Face Off: Eliot and Larkin |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
In this course, we will explore the basic elements of the poetic literary genre. We will start with the general question of what poetry is and how it is different from other literary genres, and then focus on the language and form of poetry by studying the works of two major poets from the world of English literature. Both T.S. Eliot and Philip Larkin wrote in the 20th century, but represent two very different poetic traditions: Eliot’s work is the key example of Modernist experimentation in poetry in the first half of the century, while Larkin’s poems revive an older poetic approach but within a new post-war England, and a post-Modernist literary context. By looking at such divergent writing traditions side by side, we are hoping to get a more comprehensive idea of poetry in general, its different manifestations, and specific social and cultural environments around them. (Tijana Stojkovic)
In this course, we will explore the basic elements of the poetic literary genre. We will start with the general question of what poetry is and how it is different from other literary genres, and then focus on the language and form of poetry by studying the works of two major poets from the world of English literature. Both T.S. Eliot and Philip Larkin wrote in the 20th century, but represent two very different poetic traditions: Eliot’s work is the key example of Modernist experimentation in poetry in the first half of the century, while Larkin’s poems revive an older poetic approach but within a new post-war England, and a post-Modernist literary context. By looking at such divergent writing traditions side by side, we are hoping to get a more comprehensive idea of poetry in general, its different manifestations, and the specific social and cultural environments around them. (Tijana Stojkovic) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Poetry Now |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course aims at introducing students to the study and appreciation of poerry, in this case the most recent poetry by today's celebrated poets, both Canadian and international, in both English and translation. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Postcolonial Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to postcolonial literature. Broadly speaking, the category of postcolonial literature refers to work that has emerged from the formally colonized world and that engages with “the experience of colonialism and its past and present effects” (Quayson). Postcolonialism is simultaneously an historical, a geographical, and a literary phenomenon that is distinctly global in character. We will read fiction and non-fiction from Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean, as well as work produced by writers who have settled in the West but retain an abiding interest in the legacy of European colonialism. In our efforts to identify some of the key concerns of postcolonial literature, we will strive to gain a better grasp of the world we currently inhabit and the degree to which it is arranged along “postcolonial” lines. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Postwar Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Literature and the arts were forever altered by history’s most cataclysmic event, World War II. This course focuses on how that change manifests itself in the novels, stories and poems of the generation of writers that came of age in the late 1940’s to 1960’s, and how their altered worldview informed their work. Readings will be international in scope, with possible authors including Graham Greene, Kurt Vonnegut, Carson McCullers, John Updike, Muriel Spark, Don DeLillo, Primo Levi, Thomas Pynchon, Kazuo Ishiguro, and Joan Didion. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Remember the Humans?: Science Fiction and Post-human Possibilities |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Shakespeare's Comedies |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The course will explore the genre of dramatic comedy through William Shakespeare’s plays As You Like It, Twelfth Night and The Tempest. We will use Shakespeare’s plays to come to a broad understanding of the key aspects of dramatic comedy. We will explore the plays in the historical context of their production/staging and with a view to understanding their enduring appeal. Historical background texts and other useful sources will be made available online and in class. In this course we will read and discuss literature critically, closely, and sensitively and learn to develop effective spoken and written arguments. The course will include instruction in the revision and editing of texts. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Shakespearean Drama |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this class, we will imagine Shakespeare as though he were standing at a crossroads, looking backward and forward in time, pulled between the forces of the traditional and the modern. We will find Shakespeare was embedded in his own social and historical context and was at times political in both maintaining and overturning the status quo. The playhouses in which Shakespeare’s works were staged (and in which he himself acted) were new commercial enterprises in a nascent capitalist order, yet their roots reached back to church practises and imperatives of feudal communities. To craft his plays, Shakespeare borrowed from chronicles of England’s history, the literature of classical antiquity and old folktales, but also contemporary sources, like King James’ book on witches, and Demonology, to name a few of his sources. He innovated these into fresh, new forms in his dramas, which we will study together in this genre class. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Shirley Jackson and the Horror Tradition |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Perhaps most famous for her 1948 short story “The Lottery” and her 1959 novel The Haunting of Hill House, Shirley Jackson’s work reveals a world of both a “localized” uncanny (individual, communal, national) and cosmic dread; the eschatological nature of much of her work is no mere sensationalism but rather suggests a broader allegorical project that reaches to the most profound human desires — yearnings that, in the absence of real human connection, find intimacy through ritualized physical or emotional violence. These key themes among others in her work show Jackson reaching out through the conventions and motifs of popular generic forms (melodrama, folktale, horror, the Gothic, the Weird) to questions universal and humanistic. This course will consider these and other issues with a focus on key Jackson works such as her 1951 novel Hangsaman, a selection of her short fiction, and recent Jackson scholarship. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Short Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines short fiction from different parts of the world. Most of the works on the syllabus were originally published in English; a few are translations. While paying attention to the formal characteristics of the genre of the short story, students do close-readings, reflect on different writing styles, consider cultural and historical contexts, and evaluate critical responses. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Short Story: From Poe to Postcards |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course we will be focusing on the short story, from 19th century examples of the form to contemporary experiments, thus plotting the evolution and permutations of the genre. Students will learn to apply a familiarity with the genre's formal characteristics and conventions to their own readings, literary analyses, and creative efforts. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Signifying Nothing: Pessimism and the Tragic World View |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
With fools and philosophers as our guides, we’ll read tragedies about suffering and playing human in a world of mysterious machinery, spinning fates, and grinning gods. We’ll explore themes related to time, fate, force, meaning, and human agency in a world-as-stage. We’ll read Schopenhauer and Camus, run around in circles with the Theatre of the Absurd, talk about robots, play with puppets, listen to Norwegian Black Metal, and read work by techno-, queer-, cosmic-, and Afro-pessimists. We’ll consider the creative possibilities and, perhaps, ethical necessity of keeping it real in a world devoid of meaning, or half-empty at best. Humanities texts include works by Arthur Schopenhauer, Albert Camus, Sigmund Freud, and Sara Ahmed. English texts include Sophocles’s Oedipus, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, selections from Samuel Beckett, and films Throne of Blood (Kurosawa) and Get Out (Peele). |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Survey of Drama |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to drama and the process of reading, discussing, rereading and composing a college-level essay in response. The principal objective is to provide you with an introduction to theatre history and to some of the important plays of various historical epochs. Our emphasis will be upon the critical and literary analysis of the plays themselves, and recognizing the essential differences between drama and other literary genres, i.e., poetry or fiction. We will recognize the elements of drama and learn to situate plays within their historical and literary contexts. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Autobiography |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In recent years, the autobiography/memoir has experienced a resurgence in the publishing industry and today is one of the most popular forms of nonfiction writing. Its success as a genre is not surprising given William Zinsser’s comments that “No other form of fiction goes so deeply to the roots of personal experience.” As we will see, the urge to ‘confess’ is deeply rooted in the human psyche. In this course, we will explore the personal and social ramifications of this form of writing. Class time will consist of short, focused lectures, writing exercises on ideas related to the memoir form, group and individual workshops. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Contemporary Canadian Novel |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to the contemporary Canadian novel. All three of the novels studied have been published in the past 30 years, but their settings together cover a time span from approximately 1930 to 2000. They all feature adolescent or pre-adolescent protagonists coming to terms with their identities and surrounding environments. The protagonists come of age in times of great flux, whether it be turmoil in their families, in the community and nation in which they live, or both. Themes involving growing up, identity, family, community, and nationhood will be among those of primary interest to us in this course. The common subject matter will enable us to better explore the differences in form and content of the three works studied toward a better understanding of the genre of the novel. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Epic: Paradise Lost |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The greatest English epic poem, John Milton’s Paradise Lost is a retelling of the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, but it opens in Hell and introduces us to Satan, then travels to Heaven to meet God, before arriving in our world and introducing our “grandparents” both before and after The Fall. A kind of cosmic science fiction, this 12-book (250-page) poem written in 1667 is a reading challenge. But if you are prepared to put in the effort, reading it can be a memorable life experience. What is the relationship between Satan and God, good and evil? Is Paradise perfect or flawed (was it already “lost” when it was created)? Can Paradise be regained? Is there direction and meaning within human history and individual human life? Join us as we read this great story and consider these and other key questions. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Fiction of Shell Shock |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Modern Short Story |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
A survey of short fiction written over the last 100 years. Authors can include Franz Kafka, James Joyce, Raymond Carver, Toni Cade Bambara, Alice Walker, Flannery O’Connor, William Faulkner, Joyce Carol Oates, Alice Munro, George Saunders, James Baldwin or Shirley Jackson. This course features lots of homework, lectures, discussions, assignments, group work, writing workshops, rewriting workshops, quizzes, koans and essays. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Novella |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
Novellas are works of prose fiction of intermediate length, shorter than novels but (by most definitions) longer than short stories. The Italian term “novella” was first used to describe short or medium-length tales in Early Modern collections, but in English it has come to denote longer stories of the type that enjoyed a boom in nineteenth-century Europe. Novellas offer a more sustained exploration of character and theme than do short stories, but with a unity and focus usually not found in full-length novels. As Judith Leibowitz puts it, "Whereas the short story limits material and the novel extends it, the novella does both in such a way that a special kind of narrative structure results, one which produces a generically distinct effect: the double effect of intensity and expansion.” Students will read some major novellas from the last hundred years and will discuss the cultural and historical contexts of these works, their formal features, and their themes. (Matthew Taylor)
Novellas are works of prose fiction of intermediate length, shorter than novels but (by most definitions) longer than short stories. In English the word novella has come to denote longer stories of the type that enjoyed a boom in nineteenth-century Europe. Novellas offer a more sustained exploration of character and theme than do short stories, but with a unity and focus usually not found in full-length novels (described by Henry James as “large loose baggy monsters, with their queer elements of the accidental and the arbitrary”). As Judith Leibowitz puts it, "Whereas the short story limits material and the novel extends it, the novella does both in such a way that a special kind of narrative structure results, one which produces a generically distinct effect: the double effect of intensity and expansion.” Students will read some major novellas from the last hundred years and will discuss the cultural and historical contexts of these works, their formal features, and their themes. (Matthew Taylor) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Short Story |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
What exactly is “essential” about short stories? Taking the above quote as a starting point, this course will approach the short story as a generic form distinct — not merely in length—from other forms of prose narrative: the novel, the tale, the fable, and the parable. We will briefly consider some of these other genres, but most readings for the course will be short stories, from Edgar Allan Poe's seminal works of genre fiction to more recent works by Etgar Keret and Amy Hempel. Several critical methods and perspectives will be employed, but the major emphasis will be on the formal characteristics of literature and close textual analysis. Class meetings will include brief lectures but will emphasize group and class discussions. Participation is essential. Students will also refine critical thinking skills and essay-writing techniques through regular group writing assignments. (Trevor Rouse)
In this course, students will learn about the genre of the short story by looking at three remarkable short story writers. Starting with Russian Anton Chekhov, who was writing in the late nineteenth century, and moving on to American Raymond Carver who was influenced greatly by Chekhov, to the sometimes subtle, but accessible Canadian writer Alice Munro; students will observe the development of the short story both historically and stylistically. The class will be made up of close readings, class discussions, writing activities, and the viewing of documentary and feature films. Required texts include Anton Chekhov’s Selected Stories, Cathedral by Raymond Carver and Dance of the Happy Shades by Alice Munro. (Tracie Gemmel) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
The Unseen World: Magic in Ritual, Fairy Tale and Fantasy |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
Not so long ago, most humans lived in a world where substance was changeable and the natural world — indeed the very air around them -- was inhabited by unseen beings and spirits. They felt connected to that unseen world and believed that it could be made manifest and even manipulated, if they only knew the way to do it. That way was Magic. This course will seek to understand the role that Magic has played (and continues to play) in the human journey, tracing the story of Magic through the work of historians, anthropologists and sociologists. At the same time, we will explore the ways in which Magic has always lived: in Fairy Tale and Fantasy, stories where the veil between the unseen world and the world of substance grows thin and then dissolves … with a sprinkling of Starstuff, an incantation, a wave of a wand -- or a fervent wish. (Rebecca Million)
Not so long ago, most humans lived in a world where substance was changeable and the natural world — indeed the very air around them -- was inhabited by unseen beings and spirits. They felt connected to that unseen world and believed that it could be made manifest and even manipulated, if they only knew the way to do it. That way was Magic. This course will seek to understand the role that Magic has played (and continues to play) in the human journey, tracing the story of Magic through the work of historians, anthropologists and sociologists. At the same time, we will explore the ways in which Magic has always lived: in Fairy Tale and Fantasy, stories where the veil between the unseen world and the world of substance grows thin and then dissolves…with a sprinkling of Starstuff, an incantation, a wave of a wand -- or a fervent wish. (Rebecca Million) |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Themes in Contemporary Irish Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The literature in this course is challenging and rewarding. However, please be warned that some of the material is dark. One novel is set during the First World War and is quite graphic in its depiction of that war’s notorious violence. The second novel boldly explores rape culture and mistaken understandings — or blatant disregard — of consent. The content and descriptions in both can be upsetting, though never sensationally or superfluously. Indeed, both novels are highly praised by critics. Nonetheless, please consider closely whether this is the course for you given the sensitive nature of the material. Finally, we will look at writing from some of the voices that have been more traditionally marginalized (non-white and LGBTQ). This work reflects the challenges and rewards people can have while making a home in what has historically been a predominantly white and religiously conservative community. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Three 20th Century Novels |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, students will read three novels that launched the careers of their respective authors: Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961), Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) and Alan Sillitoe (1928-2010). These novels have little in common �' thematically, stylistically or otherwise. They are the stories of three very different, but equally memorable characters in very different places at very specific points in the twentieth century: Paris in the 20s, various locales across the USA in the 40s and 50s, and an English industrial town in the early 60s. Students and the instructor will explore their reactions to these works through readings, classroom discussion, recordings and video, and attempt to give clear expression to these reactions in our in-class and homework assignments. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Tragedy |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Tragedy explores the often subtle relationship between an individual and the societal rules that govern everyday life. For many reasons, the tragedic protagonist finds such rules restricting and acts against them. It becomes a question of whose values/ideas/practices are right—those the tragedic protagonist rejects or those he/she embraces. The answer to that question brings about tragedy’s most analyzed generic convention: catharsis. Catharsis is the process by which the emotions elicited by the tragedic protagonist are purged—the initial sympathy for protagonist as well as the later fear of the change that the protagonist represents. Throughout the semester we will read a number of tragedic texts, focusing not only on the narrative form of tragedy, but also the typical conventions involved in a tragedy. We will examine both classical examples or tragedy as well as more modern examples to see how the genre addresses social issues relevant to contemporary audiences. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
Weird Fiction |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Weird fiction overlaps with horror fiction and dark fantasy but distinguishes itself by moving beyond traditional tropes of the supernatural towards more radically undefined — and unsettling — versions of the unknown. Pioneered in the early 20th century by writers like H.P. Lovecraft, weird fiction has been revisited by 21st-century writers including Jeff VanderMeer, Kelly Link, China Miéville, N.K. Jemisin, Victor LaValle, Rebecca Roanhorse, Alice Sola Kim, and many more. |
|
| 603-102-MQ |
What is a Classic? |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
A survey of the classic short story, from Anton Chekhov to Yiyun Li, and including Flannery O’Connor, Franz Kafka, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Alice Munro. We will read with an eye to understanding these stories more deeply (their characterization, narrative point of view, plot, imagery, tone, etc.) and why they have endured. Class time will include short lectures, discussions, individual writing exercises, and group exercises. We will also ask a set of philosophical questions about classic art, inspired by Italo Calvino’s book Why Read the Classics? How can a work written over a hundred years ago still speak to us today? In what ways is it strange to us, and in what ways familiar? Moreover, why read challenging, complex texts — with characters who are not always ‘relatable,’ endings that are neither happy nor offer closure, and meanings that are ambiguous? What is the difference between classic art and contemporary entertainment? Can a classic be entertaining? |
|
|
|
