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English 247.920
Sensational Literary London
Lance Wahlert profile

TR 1:30-4:40
Fulfills Sector 5: 19th Century Literature of the English Standard Major
Fulfills Pre-1900 Seminar Requirement of the English Standard Major

"Panic on the streets of London"--or so goes the opening line of a song from the English New Romantic band The Smiths. The essence of that statement about London popular attitudes might well describe the sensational nature of the city's literary output. When there's a commotion in London, you can hear it the streets, see it in its newspapers, and (most dynamically) read it in its literature. In this five-week course, we will study narrative texts from five of the most sensational decades in London's history. From the menace of Jack the Ripper to the phenomena of Swinging London and the British punk aesthetic, the eras we study in this class will reveal the thrilling nature of England's capital at times of significant social change and complementing cultural spectacle. We'll learn that London's not just the source of some of the greatest works of art; it's also the setting, the inspiration, and the subject.

updated 2007-08-10
 
 
 
 


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Photo caption: Francis Daniel Pastorius, Beehive manuscript, 1696-1865, Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Pennsylvania.
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