Poetry, painting, calligraphy and other visual and plastic arts are ways of expressing oneself and forms of communication. In this course, we explore the relationships between words and images and the issues such as how poetry and other arts are inextricably linked; What makes a painting silent poem? and a poem a lyrical painting? and how do poetry and painting inspire one another? How do they respond to one another? All readings are in English translation. This course collaborates with Smith College Museum of Art in Spring 2017.

This course studies a range of poetic representations of war. After reviewing some of the writings of Homer, Virgil and Shakespeare that were most influential for British poets of the 19th and 20th centuries, the course moves from Tennyson, Hardy and Kipling to the poets of the first and second world wars (Rupert Brooke, Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon and others). We situate the poetry with relevant historical and theoretical materials, as well as prose responses to war by authors such as Vera Brittain and Virginia Woolf. We end by reading poets who did not see combat (W.B. Yeats, W. H.

What do we do when we read literature? Does the meaning of a text depend on the author’s intention or on how readers read? What counts as a valid interpretation? Who decides? How do some texts get canonized and others forgotten? How does literature function in culture and society? How do changing understandings of language, the unconscious, class, gender, race, history, sexuality or disability affect how we read? “Theory” is “thinking about thinking,” questioning common sense, critically examining the categories we use to approach literature or any discursive text.

A selection of poets from the last 70 years, including Sylvia Plath, Elizabeth Bishop, Adrienne Rich, Audre Lorde, Kimiko Hahn, Louise Glück, Susan Howe and Rita Dove. An exploration of each poet’s chosen themes and distinctive voice, with attention to the intersection of gender and ethnicity in the poet’s materials and in the creative process. Not open to first-year students. Prerequisite: at least one college course in literature.

A study of novels written in England from Aphra Behn to Jane Austen and Walter Scott (1688–1814). Emphasis on the novelists’ narrative models and choices; we conclude by reading several novels by Austen—including one she wrote when 13 years old.

A survey of American writing after the Civil War, with an emphasis on writers who criticize or stand apart from their rapidly changing society. Fiction by Twain, James, Howells, Dreiser, Crane, Chopin, Chesnutt, Jewett and Sui Sin Far, along with a selection of the poetry of the era.

"Not as good as the book,” is a frequent response to film adaptations of novels. Adaptation studies, an interdisciplinary field that combines literary and film studies, rejects this notion of “fidelity” (how faithful a film is to its source) and instead reads literature and film as equal but different artistic and cultural forms, where the film may translate, transmute, critique, or re-interpret the novel. This course will look closely and analytically at some paired fiction and film adaptations that focus on issues of imperialism, race, class, and gender.

This course traces the emergence of a 21st-century gothic tradition in American writing through texts including novels, films and television shows. We analyze the shifting definitions and cultural work of the Gothic in contemporary American literature in the context of political and cultural events and movements and their relation to such concerns as race, gender, class, sexuality and disability.

Topics course.: An introduction to the language and literature of early Ireland in a series of grammar lessons and readings from the epic saga Táin Bó Cúailnge ‘The Cattle Raid of Cooley.’ We supplement our study with readings in translation from Greek and Roman authors on the ancient Celts and from other works in Old Irish, in particular, those expressing conceptions of this and the Otherworld, the role of the Celtic gods and goddesses, the character of their legendary kings and queens, the tension between Christian and traditional values, and the celebration of warfare, sexuality an

This course teaches the skills that enable us to read literature with understanding and pleasure. By studying examples from a variety of periods and places, students learn how poetry, prose fiction and drama work, how to interpret them and how to make use of interpretations by others. English 199 seeks to produce perceptive readers well equipped to take on complex texts. This gateway course for prospective English majors is not recommended for students simply seeking a writing intensive course. Readings in different sections vary, but all involve active discussion and frequent writing.