610014 American Literature and Culture: Madness in American Literature
Wintersemester 2009/2010 | Stand: 12.02.2010 | LV auf Merkliste setzen610014
American Literature and Culture: Madness in American Literature
SE 2
7,5
Block
semestral
Englisch
This course examines “deviant” behavior of protagonists in texts and films from different periods of American history. We will trace forms of “madness” in literary texts from 19th century to the present. We will work with novels, short stories, plays, and films. This diachronic survey will permit us to shed light on how notions of abnormal behavior changed over time and how parameters of madness are rooted in the specific discursive practices of the time.
Presentation, active class participation, as well as a 15-20-page research paper.
Compulsory readings include:
Charles Brockden Brown, _Edgar Huntly_
E.A. Poe, “The Tell-Tale Heart” + “The Cask of Amontillado”
Herman Melville, “Bartleby, the Scrivener”
Charlotte Perkins Gilman, “The Yellow Wallpaper “
Kate Chopin, _The Awakening_
William Faulkner, _The Sound and the Fury_ (1st part: Benjy section )
Sylvia Plath, _The Bell Jar_
Tennessee Williams, _A Streetcar Named Desire_
Ken Kesey, _One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest_
Flannery O'Connor, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”
Edward Albee, _The Zoo Story_
J. D. Salinger, “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”
Bret Easton Ellis, _American Psycho_
Anmeldungsvoraussetzung/en im MA: keine
Entspricht im Diplomstudium (343): SE American Literature/Culture
Entspricht im Lehramtsstudium (344): SE American Literature and Culture
Beginn: 5.10.2009
Beginn: 5.10.2009