Special Topics in World Literature

Curriculum guideline

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Course
ENGL 3160
Discontinued
No
Course code
ENGL 3160
Descriptive
Special Topics in World Literature
Department
English
Faculty
Language, Literature & Performing Arts
Credits
4.00
Start date
End term
201420
PLAR
No
Semester length
14 weeks
Max class size
25
Contact hours
4 hours per week
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Learning activities

Some or all of the following methods will be used:

  1. lecture/discussion;
  2. group work;
  3. peer review;
  4. independent research;
  5. instructor feedback on students’ work;
  6. individual consultation; and presentation (individual or group).
Course description
This course provides an in-depth study of literature from one or more world regions other than the British Isles and Anglo-North America. This literature may be written originally in English or be studied in translation, and will be selected to highlight an organizing cultural, linguistic, national or thematic focus: for example, works about home and migration; works from Latin America; representations of gender in Indian literature.
Course content

All third-year English courses share the following features:

  1. Students are presumed to have had first-year level instruction and experience in writing critical essays on literary subjects.
  2. Students are required to read in the course subject area beyond the texts assigned by the instructor.
  3. Students are required to incorporate into their oral and written coursework secondary source materials, which may include biographical information, literary criticism or theory, unassigned texts by the author under study, relevant cultural or intellectual history, or other aesthetic works such as music or visual art.

Readings and topics vary with each instructor’s presentation of a course, but all course materials are consistent with the objectives and outcomes of the course. 

Additionally, in English 3160,

  1. students will examine a topic or group of related topics, such as concepts of identity, nation, revolution, migration, time or censorship, in a selection of literature that largely comes from outside the British Isles and Anglo-North America: for example, they may examine political revolution in French and Russian literature, or gender and class in Indian literature.
  2. students may focus on one literature (for instance, Chinese) or on two or more literatures (for instance, a comparison of Chinese and Indonesian literatures).
  3. the works chosen may be written originally in English or may be studied in translation.
  4. students will learn about some of the cultural and historical contexts of the literature.
Learning outcomes

Upon completion of any third-year English literature course, students should be able to

  1. read and analyze literary texts with increased skill and insight;
  2. integrate their understanding of literature into an evolving awareness of relevant cultural and historical contexts and perspectives;
  3. perceive connections among literary texts across genres, historical periods, and/or cultural contexts;
  4. conduct independent research to supplement the course material and integrate this information into course assignments; and
  5. write different kinds of literary analyses, such as thematic, technical, or theoretical.

Upon completion of English 3160, students should also have

  1. developed an understanding and appreciation of a topic, or group of related topics, in a chosen body of literature that is largely outside the traditional canon of English literature;
  2. developed an understanding of some of the unique geographic, linguistic, and historical conditions out of which the literature arises, and to which it responds; and
  3. become familiar with a variety of relevant perspectives or contexts—art forms, literary and aesthetic traditions, cultural practices and beliefs, religious traditions, gender relations, etc.—which will often be different from those dominant in the British Isles or Anglo-North America.
Means of assessment
  1. A minimum of two academic essays and a final exam worth at least 80% of the course grade (combined total).
  2. 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.

Sample Assignment Structure

  • Two essays 50%
  • Class presentation (with oral and written components) 20%
  • Final examination 30%
Textbook materials

Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students

Texts will be selected by the instructor, and may include shorter readings compiled in custom course packs. 

The following list represents one sample course reading list, focusing on the theme of “Home and the World: Identity and Migration”:

  • Rabindranath Tagore, The Home and the World
  • Anita Desai, Bye-Bye, Blackbird
  • Rohinton Mistry, Tales From Firozsha Baag
  • Su Tong, Raise the Red Lantern
  • Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club
Prerequisites

Any TWO university-transfer first-year English courses, or ONE first-year university-transfer English course and ONE first-year university-transfer CRWR course, AND a minimum of 45 credit hours.