The Comic Vision

Curriculum guideline

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Course
ENGL 2315
Discontinued
No
Course code
ENGL 2315
Descriptive
The Comic Vision
Department
English
Faculty
Language, Literature & Performing Arts
Credits
3.00
Start date
End term
Not Specified
PLAR
No
Semester length
15 weeks
Max class size
35
Contact hours
4 hours per week
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Learning activities

Some or all of the following methods will be used:

  • Lecture/discussion;
  • Group work;
  • Peer editing;
  • Instructor feedback on students’ work; and
  • Individual consultation.
Course description
This course offers a wide-ranging study of literary works in the comic tradition. Students will read from a variety of genres—fiction, drama, poetry, essays, and cartoons—and view examples from T.V., film, and the Internet.
Course content

All second-year English literature courses share the following features:

  • Students are presumed to be proficient in the writing of critical essays on literary subjects.
  • Students are required to read in the course subject area beyond the texts assigned by the instructor or discussed in class.
  • Students are required to incorporate into their oral and written coursework secondary source materials. These may include autobiographical or biographical material; literary criticism or theory; unassigned texts by the author under study; relevant cultural or intellectual history; or other arts, such as music, film, or fine arts.
  • Readings and topics will vary with each instructor’s presentation of a course; however, all course materials are consistent with the objectives/outcomes stated above (in section “M”).

In English 2315, students will examine:

  1. what makes a literary text (or other modes such as jokes, cartoons, T.V. shows, or film) humorous;
  2. ways in which comedy is shaped by its historical and cultural contexts, and, conversely, the transcultural nature of some comic elements which seem unaffected by time, place, or language;
  3. ways in which comic writing is used to address social, psychological, political, and ethical questions.
Learning outcomes

Upon completion of any second-year English literature course, the student should 

  1. be able to use with increased proficiency the skills of literary analysis taught in first-year English courses;
  2. be able to recognize the significance of the literary and non-literary or cultural context of a work being studied, such as the biographical, historical, mythological or philosophical context;
  3. be able to read critically and use in essays secondary sources, such as criticism and other texts by the same author, as an aid to comprehending the primary text(s) being studied;
  4. be able to read critically and independently works or aspects of works not discussed in class; and
  5. be able to formulate a thesis on a given subject in one or more specific works, and to develop this thesis using suitable textual evidence.

Upon completion of English 2315, the student should also have deepened her/his understanding of

  1. writers’ use of language and structure to create comic effects;
  2. influences of cultural and historical contexts in shaping comic writing;
  3. the differences between comedy and tragedy;
  4. the differences between “high” and “low” comedy;
  5. the characteristics of various sub-genres within the comic tradition, such as social satire, parody, black humour, and romantic comedy;
  6. critical theories of humour and comedy.
Means of assessment
  1. A minimum of two formal academic essays, with a combined value of at least 40% of the course grade.
  2. A minimum of 80% of the course grade will be based on writing assignments (essays, essay-based exams, journals, paragraphs); a maximum of 20% of the course grade may be based on informal writing (quizzes, short answer tests); oral reports/presentations; participation/preparation grades; and/or other non writing-intensive assignments.
  3. A minimum of 15% of the course grade will be based on in-class writing (essay or exam).
Textbook materials

Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:

Texts will vary depending upon the instructor, and may include shorter readings compiled in custom course packs. 

Two sample reading lists follow:

Sample List A: 

  • Aristophanes,  Lysistrata
  • Selections from Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales
  • Shakespeare,   As You Like It
  • Jane Austen,  Pride and Prejudice
  • Mark Twain,  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
  • Oscar Wilde,  The Importance of Being Earnest
  • Samuel Beckett,  Waiting for Godot

Sample List B:

  • Regina Barreca, The Penguin Book of Women’s Humor
  • Alan Ayckbourn, Table Manners (part of The Norman Conquests trilogy)
  • Drew Hayden Taylor, The Buz’Gem Blues
  • Thomas King, One Good Story, That One
  • Nora Ephron,  Heartburn
  • Jonathan Franzen,  The Corrections
  • Sarah Silverman,  The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption, and Pee
Prerequisites

Any TWO university-transfer first-year English literature courses, or ONE university-transfer first-year English literature course and ONE university-transfer first-year Creative Writing or English writing course.