ENG 290-01 - Introduction to Literary Theory

4 credits (Spring)

Something Written in the State: Hamlet and the Play of Language. The first half of this course is focused on discussion of readings clustered around important terms such as “craft,” “imitation,” “utility,” “sign,” “affect,” and “intention.” Doing so anachronistically will enable us to tease out the continuities and divergences between different critics and between different literary movements across time. The second half of the course will involve a series of practical applications focused on one canonical text, in this case Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Additional readings from contemporary theorists will enable us to reflect on the degree to which aspects of ideology-such as gender, sexuality, race, and class-impact a given reader’s interpretation of one of our culture’s most durable texts.

Prerequisite or co-requisite: ENG 120 or ENG 121 for majors; for non majors, ENG 120 or ENG 121 or any course in the study of literature in another language department.
Note: Plus-2 option available.
Instructor: Andrews