Course syllabus

Course Code: English 101

Course Title: Literature and the Contemporary

Semester: 1

Teaching staff: Prof. Erin Carlston and tutorial staff Mr. Mark Bond and Ms. Rachel O’Connor

Course Description

ENGLISH 101 is a wide-ranging study of literatures in English in different forms and media between the beginning of the twentieth century and the present. Themes such as modernity/postmodernity, memory, war, colonialism, gender relations, and ecological crisis will be studied in the context of important historical events and cultural movements in the Anglophone world. We also examine and compare key elements of narrative (structure, style, perspective, theme, characterisation, setting and so on in prose; all of the above plus lighting, tracking and so on in film).

After beginning by looking at the kind of realist literature that flourished before World War I, we will move on to modernism’s reaction against realism, and then to postmodernism and contemporary texts.

Course outcomes:

Students who successfully complete this course will have the opportunity to:

• read a range of innovative and enjoyable literary works
• familiarise themselves with some of the major trends and movements in twentieth and twenty-first century literature
• understand and carry out strategies for close reading and analysis of texts
• develop written and oral arguments about literature
• acquire additional skills in critical thinking and cooperative group work

Prescribed reading will include (listed in order of publication):

1. Arnold Bennett, “His Worship the Goosedriver,” from Tales of the Five Towns (1905); link on Canvas; also available as audiobook
2. Katherine Mansfield, “The Woman At the Store” (1912); “Prelude” (1918); “At The Bay” (1922), links on Canvas
3. Virginia Woolf, “Mr Bennett and Mrs Brown” (1923); on Canvas
4. Virginia Woolf, To The Lighthouse (1927); bookshop
5. Don DeLillo, White Noise (1985); bookshop
6. Bill Manhire, “The Brain of Katherine Mansfield” (1988); link on Canvas
7. Christopher Nolan (dir.), Memento (2000); to be screened for the whole class.

Recommended Reading:

Additional readings to enhance your understanding of lectures and readings are also available on Canvas and listed on the course outline.

Assessments:

• 10%     participation in and contributions towards discussion
• 35%     short writing assignments
• 5%       preparatory exercises for final exam
• 50%     two-hour final exam


 Workload and deadlines for submission of coursework:           

The University of Auckland's expectation is that students spend 10 hours per week on a 15-point course, including time in class and personal study. Students should manage their academic workload and other commitments accordingly. Deadlines for coursework are set by course convenors and will be advertised in course material. You should submit your work on time. In extreme circumstances, such as illness, you may seek an extension but you may be required to provide supporting information before the assignment is due. Late assignments without a pre-approved extension may be penalised by loss of marks – check course information for details.