Cervantes (Taught in English) (223-0-1)

Instructors

Caroline Rose Egan

Meeting Info

Kresge Cent. Hall 2-380 Kaplan: Tues, Thurs 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

Don Quixote, one could argue, is a novel about how not to write and how not to read. The author, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, pens the work in order to demonstrate the absurdity of chivalric romances, the bestsellers of his day. The protagonist, Don Quixote, is incapable of understanding the difference between the fictions he reads and the real world around him. While all this happened some four hundred years ago, reading and writing are still central to our everyday lives. In the spirit of Cervantes, we will study his famous text with a focus on the practices of reading and writing—how and why did people read and write in 17th-century Spain? How were different forms of writing connected to class, gender, race, and religion? What did literacy mean in the early modern world and what implications does this have for us today? We will employ different methods of reading (close, distant, collective, etc.) and different forms of writing (analytical, creative, etc.) to gain a better understanding of this key text. The class will be taught in English.

Registration Requirements

This class has no pre-requisites. Readings, lectures, discussions, and all assignments are in English. Registration in a discussion section is required.

Class Materials (Required)

Cervantes, Miguel de. Don Quixote. Translated by Edith Grossman. New York: Ecco, 2003. ISBN 10: 0060934344 ISBN 13: 9780060934347.

Class Attributes

Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area