First-Year Writing Seminar (101-8-23)

Topic

Coming of Age in Literature and Film

Instructors

Laura MacKay Hansen

Meeting Info

University Hall 418: Tues, Thurs 9:30AM - 10:50AM

Overview of class

Growing up is hard to do—whether surrounded by the turbulence and poverty of post-war Naples, the violence of war-torn Vietnam, the devastation of the Islamic Revolution in Tehran, or the more genteel decline of an American auto town in the 1970's. This course will explore coming-of-age stories and some of the challenges presented both by difficult and complicated relationships, and by the social and political forces that shape the worlds in which the protagonists are raised. What role do friendships and family play in creating identity, and how might betrayal be a part of growing up? How are the stakes different and higher for some, and how do gender, race, and class play a role in narrowing a person's choices?

We'll begin by considering the novel and tv series, My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante, looking in particular at the female friendship at its center; then we'll examine some of the ways that coming of age is represented in film, looking at Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom, Sophia Coppola's Virgin Suicides, and Greta Gerwig's Ladybird; we'll think about the way that graphic memoirs can capture both the personal and the historical, considering Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis and Thi Bui's The Best We Could Do; and finally, we'll consider how films like Miyazaki's Spirited Away and Jordan Peele's Get Out might make us think differently about what it means to come of age and help us consider the question: How do we push against the life stories that have been chosen for us?

Class Attributes

WCAS Writing Seminar

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Weinberg First Year Seminars are only available to first-year students.