Studies in Fiction (313-0-20)

Topic

Feelings, Moods, Atmospheres

Instructors

Lauren Jackson

Meeting Info

Kresge Centennial Hall 2-319: Tues, Thurs 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

Emotions are fickle and difficult to discuss. The challenge of translating a personal feeling into something another person would understand has been a persistent quandary within philosophy, science, and art since antiquity. Nevertheless, writers and artists persist in trying. How an artwork makes us feel is often one our first insights into what we think about it, often leading us towards other, more studious observations about its content. We will read fiction, poetry, essays, and scholarship to think about and discuss emotions as a problem of interpretation. How do writers enact scenes of bliss, melancholy, dread, and hilarity? What about feelings that extend beyond the borders of personal sensation? How are emotions read differently on different kinds of people and what does this tell us about the political, economic, and environmental organization of our world?

Teaching Method

Lecture-discussion.

Evaluation Method

Class participation, weekly quiz, essays (2).

Class Materials (Required)

Edgar Allen Poe, Herman Melville, Nella Larsen, Audre Lorde, David Foster Wallace, Cathy Park Hong.

Texts will be available at: Norris

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Pre-registration -- Reserved for English students.