Studies in Literature and Culture (385-0-22)
Topic
Swindlers, Charlatans and Cheats
Instructors
Adam Cody Syvertsen
Meeting Info
Locy Hall 301: Tues, Thurs 3:30PM - 4:50PM
Overview of class
Scams have taken a central place in recent culture, providing Netflix and Hulu with seemingly endless material for documentaries and docuseries, from Fyre Island to Anna Delvey, Elizabeth Holmes, and the so-called Tinder Swindler, to name just a few. Some have even suggested that scams—and our obsession with them—are a particularly Millennial phenomenon. But scamming, and literature about scammers, has a long and rich history, from Herman Melville's Confidence Man, to the Wizard in L Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz, F. Scott Fitzgerald's Gatsby, or the protagonist of the recent Oscar-nominated remake of Nightmare Alley. This course surveys a selection of literature, film, TV, and podcasts about scams and scammers, explores historic and contemporary discourse about scams, and interrogates and critiques the current cultural obsession with them.
Teaching Method
Discussion-based seminar.
Evaluation Method
Mid-term presentation and final essay.
Class Materials (Required)
Herman Melville, The Confidence Man. Frank L. Baum, The Wizard of Oz. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby.
Texts will be available at: Norris Bookstore.
Class Attributes
Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area
Enrollment Requirements
Enrollment Requirements: Pre-registration -- Reserved for English students.