LFU:online

Students will engage in in-depth textual analyses and get a profound insight into the historical and cultural context of the plays discussed. They will furthermore be introduced to latest research in Shakespeare studies. The course will nurture critical reading skills, enhance students' knowledge about Early Modern culture and politics, and enable them to develop arguments and counter-arguments while engaging in critical discussions of different approaches to these plays. 

As Stephen Greenblatt claimed in The New York Times, Shakespeare’s play Richard III can explain the results of 2016 US-election insofar as it presents a theatrical case study on the rise of an inapt ruler who is supported the support “a nation of enablers”. Especially with regard to recent political and cultural developments, Shakespeare’s plays have become highly relevant again. They do not only expose principles of power and (gender) politics: they also urge their audiences to reflect upon unconscious biases concerning religion, ethnicity, or gender. In this seminar, we will focus on Richard III, The Merchant of Venice, and Othello as well as on selected adaptations of these plays. In addition to historicising and contextualising Shakespeare’s drama and analysing its significance in the Elizabethan era, we will discuss to what extent these plays still speak to us today and examine the key features that make them seem so timeless. Students are expected to have read Richard III by the start of the course. Further reading will be made available by the beginning of the semester. 

Please note: As this seminar will be taught as Blockseminar, students have to attend all sessions to gain credits for this course.

Expert sessions, research assignments, (group) discussions in class, course blog, final research papers

Regular and active participation in class, preparation of an expert session including a short presentation, active participation in the course blog, and a final research paper.

William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice (Arden or Oxford edition)

William Shakespeare, Othello (Arden or Oxford edition)

William Shakespeare, Richard III (Arden or Oxford edition)

positive completion of compulsory modules 10, 11 and 12