LFU:online

Institut für Amerikastudien Institut für Amerikastudien

Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. Christian Quendler Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. Christian Quendler, +43 512 507 41605

610011

Literature as the Noise of Culture

PS 2

wöch.

keine Angabe

Englisch

to become familiar with theories and functions of literature, major American works and literary movements (romanticism, realism, modernism, and postmodernism); to achieve proficiency in the use of basic literary theoretical concepts and to develop interpretative skills.

A paramount maxim in communication is to keep interfering noises at a minimum. In telecommunications, for instance, we habitually ignore the noises of a bad reception; as in general we code and decode messages in unambiguous and effective ways that leave as little room for interpretation and misunderstanding as possible. By contrast, in literature such disruptive ‘noises’ like ambiguities or gaps of information are used for a calculated effect. Literary works not only require interpretation, frequently they even resist conclusive interpretations. In this proseminar we will look at literature as ‘valuable noise’ and a practice of cultural interference that perturbs and challenges our ways of perception and making sense. Literature thereby performs the important function of giving meaning to culturally ‘invisible’ and ‘inaudible’ aspects of reality. The course is designed as an introduction to the history of changing functions of American literature. We will discuss (excerpts from) canonical and experimental works in American prose, drama, and poetry from the Early Republic to the Age of Cyberpunk.

introductory lecture input, oral presentations of texts and close reading of key passages.

Active participation; oral presentation; research paper (10-15 pages)

Recommended introductory reading: Wolfgang Iser. "Why Literature Matters." _Why Literature Matters: Theories and Functions of Literature._ Ed. Rüdiger Ahrens, Laurenz Volkmann. Heidelberg: Winter, 1996. 13-22.

Students must have passed the "Introduction to American Literature and Culture" to attend this course
Beginn: 7. 3. 2006