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Proseminar

ENGL 600.301
instructor(s):

 This course will introduce graduate students to the professional study of literature by considering the ways in which debates in critical and cultural theory have shaped the analytical practices of English scholars.  We will study the key assumptions, terms, and concepts of a range of methods (broadly grouped, these include Formalism, Structuralism, Deconstruction, Psychoanalysis, Feminism, Queer Theory, Post-colonial Studies, New Historicism, and Cultural Materialism) by reading some of the early, foundational texts from these fields.  We will also read more recent theoretical work to think about the ways that older models have been absorbed and reconfigured by current critical, cultural, and literary analysis.  Throughout the course, we will consider the implications that the changing state of the discipline of English has for graduate students as they form their own methodologies, investments, and projects.

fulfills requirements