552.331 (19S) Issues in Literature: The Life and Writings of Mark Twain

Sommersemester 2019

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First course session
04.03.2019 14:00 - 16:00 N.0.42 On Campus
... no further dates known

Overview

Lecturer
Course title german Issues in Literature: The Life and Writings of Mark Twain
Type Seminar (continuous assessment course )
Hours per Week 2.0
ECTS credits 6.0
Registrations 12 (25 max.)
Organisational unit
Language of instruction English
possible language(s) of the assessment English
Course begins on 04.03.2019
eLearning Go to Moodle course

Time and place

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Course Information

Intended learning outcomes

Students will further develop their skills in the systematic analysis of literary texts and advance their competence in interpreting texts within their specific socio-cultural and historical contexts. They will also broaden their knowledge of the (literary) history of the mid- to late-nineteenth-century U.S., and of various genres (e.g. travel writing, Romance, science fiction).


Teaching methodology including the use of eLearning tools

Short input lectures; in-class exploration of primary texts through close textual analysis and in-class and group discussion; short oral presentations by students.


Course content

The literary works of Samuel Langhorne Clemens – better known under his pen name Mark Twain – continue to fascinate readers and scholars. In our seminar, we will consider a broad variety of texts by this prolific American writer, ranging from newspaper and periodical writing, lectures, and short stories to travelogues and novels like A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889), Pudd’nhead Wilson (1894), or the American classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885). Moving chronologically through Clemens’s oeuvre, we will examine his style, technique, characteristic use of pseudonyms and humor, his dominant themes (e.g. technology, nature vs. nurture, religion, and animal welfare) and broader questions of race and gender. Beyond exploring Clemens’s life as a writer, however, the aim of the seminar is also to explore the lives of nineteenth-century Americans. Considering how an author often perceived as quintessentially American did shape and was shaped by the massive cultural transformations of his day is revealing not only regarding nineteenth-century America, but also with respect to the United States today.


Literature

Mark Twain. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Any edition.
Mark Twain. Pudd’nhead Wilson. Any edition.
Mark Twain. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. Any edition.

All other texts will be made available by the course instructor.


Examination information

Im Fall von online durchgeführten Prüfungen sind die Standards zu beachten, die die technischen Geräte der Studierenden erfüllen müssen, um an diesen Prüfungen teilnehmen zu können.

Grading scheme

Grade / Grade grading scheme

Position in the curriculum

  • Bachelor's degree programme English and American Studies (SKZ: 612, Version: 15W.3)
    • Subject: Literatur- und kulturwissenschaftlich ausgerichtetes Wahlfach (Compulsory elective)
      • 9.1 Issues in Literature ( 0.0h SE / 6.0 ECTS)
        • 552.331 Issues in Literature: The Life and Writings of Mark Twain (2.0h SE / 6.0 ECTS)
          Absolvierung im 4., 5. Semester empfohlen
  • Bachelor's degree programme English and American Studies (SKZ: 612, Version: 10W.3)
    • Subject: Literature (Compulsory elective)
      • Issues in Literature ( 2.0h SE / 7.0 ECTS)
        • 552.331 Issues in Literature: The Life and Writings of Mark Twain (2.0h SE / 7.0 ECTS)

Equivalent courses for counting the examination attempts

This course is not assigned to a sequence of equivalent courses