Courses

English

Note:Prerequisites: The satisfaction of the English C050 requirement or its equivalent is a prerequisite for English courses numbered above 0050. The only exception is for entering freshmen who must postpone C050 until the second semester; these students may take English C056 or English C083 in the first semester.

Sequence: Students, and especially English majors, are expected to work out with their advisors the sequence of courses which best meets their educational and professional goals.

Offerings: Offerings are subject to change, and some courses have variable content. Students should consult the list of detailed, up-to-date course descriptions which is available in print in the Undergraduate English Office (1030 Anderson) and on line at http://www.temple.edu/english/courses during registration each semester.

0505. Literary Forms and Critical Practices   (3 s.h.)

Surveys the major literary forms and traditions and the critical practices that have characterized academic literary study from its origin to the present. Required of doctoral students. Courses at or above the 500 level are open to students in the M.A. in Creative Writing or Ph.D. program in English and, with the instructor's permission, to students matriculated in any graduate program at Temple.

0508. Composition Theory and Practice   (3 s.h.)

This course is designed to introduce students to the theory and practice of writing instruction. The course requires a modest amount of reading accompanied by brief assignments. Courses at or above the 500 level are open to students in the M.A. in Creative Writing or Ph.D. program in English and, with the instructor's permission, to students matriculated in any graduate program at Temple.

0509. Surv. Of Res. And Rhet   (3 s.h.)

Introduces students to research questions and methods in the fields of composition studies and the pedagogy of literature.

0510. Movies/Film/Cinema: Histories and Practices   (3 s.h.)

An introduction to film studies that considers the historical, institutional, and technological contexts of film production and reception, with attention to different film traditions and genres. Courses at or above the 500 level are open to students in the M.A. in Creative Writing or Ph.D. program in English and, with the instructor's permission, to students matriculated in any graduate program at Temple.

0556. American Writers After 1880   (3 s.h.)

Generally taught not as a survey but with a focus on some aspect of American writing: may cover any genre or focus on the literature of a particular racial or ethnic group.

0565. Readings in Poetry   (3 s.h.)

Documentary Poetics: an examination of the ways, purposes and consequences of incorporating documents into contemporary poetics.

0630. English Literature of the Renaissance   (3 s.h.)

This course examines the relationships among imitation, innovation, literary production, and circulation in sixteenth and early seventeenth century England.

0645. Milton  

This course will introduce students to Milton's life and his writings. Class sessions will consider the canonical position that Milton occupies for both our profession and for the tradition of writers who follow Milton.

0650. Dryden to Burns   (3 s.h.)

This course surveys major literary figures and representative literary forms of the 18th Century. We will consider literature's relation to political, social, and cultural developments.

0671. Romantic Poetry   (3 s.h.)

Examines poetry of the Romantic period in relation to the social and historical forces surrounding its prodction and the critical traditions involved in its interpretation.

0673. Victorian Novel   (3 s.h.)

Major novelists of the Victorian period, from the Brontes to Hardy. Social and cultural backgrounds of the Victorian Age.

0679. British Literature in Transition   (3 s.h.)

The transition between Victorian and Modernist literature; roughly 1880-1920. Content varies, e.g., the aesthetic movement, naturalism, colonialism and postcolonialism, gay/lesbian issues.

0684. American Writing: 1800-1865   (3 s.h.)

This course juxtaposes works that have achieved the status of "classics" with rediscovered works by women and African Americans. The class explores the relationship between aesthetic judgments and political or ideological values; the consequences of reading canonical works in new literary and historical contexts.

0685. American Writing: 1865-1910   (3 s.h.)

May survey the period 1865-1910, concentrating on major figures together with a sampling of the full range of literary discourse, or may focus on single theme or genre.

0687. American Writing 1940 to Present   (3 s.h.)

May be taught as a survey or as an examination of a single category of American literature such as Asian-American writing or African-American poetry.

0691. Victorian Prose and Poetry   (3 s.h.)

Examination of a theme, topic, or group of writers in more than one genre; may include fiction, poetry, drama, essays, and/or popular culture.

0705. 20th C. Lit. Criticism & Theory   (3 s.h.)

Analysis of important features of twentieth century literary criticism and of the interactions between competing theoretical explanations of literary practice.

0707. Theory and Methodology of American Literary Studies   (3 s.h.)

An examination of the major approaches to the study of American literature over the past fifty years, emphasizing methodologies and underlying theoretical assumptions and demonstrating the ongoing debate over the nature of American literary study.

0709. Modern Literature - Major Texts   (3 s.h.)

A close examination of a small group of modern literary texts. The most recent offering focused on the novels of James Joyce.

0710. Modern Literature: Background and Movements   (3 s.h.)

Introduction to the intellectual traditions and principal movements of twentieth century world literature, including representative major writers.

0712. Twentieth Century American Poetry   (3 s.h.)

We will study early modernist poetries up to about 1930 treating a variety of figures. Emphasis will be placed (1) On poetics, (2) on the poets' many interactions and affiliations, (3) on the ways ideologies and debates emerge in poetic texts, and (4) on contemporary critical interventions studying modernism.

0713. Twentieth Century American Fiction   (3 s.h.)

The craft of fiction: a study of contemporary American fiction through analysis of the fictional strategies selected by the author.

0716. British Literature: The 1920s   (3 s.h.)

Early Modernism as illustrated by the leading writers and movements of the decade.

0719. Major American Writers After 1900   (3 s.h.)

A comparative readings of American writers in the twentieth century together with a practice in the methods of scholarship useful for understanding American literature.

0724. African American Literature of the Twentieth Century   (3 s.h.)

Considers the emergence of African American Studies as a field with literature as a sub-field. Rhetoric that were paramount at the outset of the century will be examined, with particular emphasis on how at the end of the century critical approaches to African American literature are in transition.

0735. Twentieth Century World Fiction, 1900-1945   (3 s.h.)

Comparative study of fiction from the first half of the twentieth century, much of it read in translation.

0736. 20th Century World Fiction   (3 s.h.)

Examines the novel as genre and its contemporary strategies through works which represent the varieties of fiction practiced today. May include postcolonial theory and practices.

0740. Epochs of Literary Criticism   (3 s.h.)

A comprehensive survey of major critical schools and approaches from classical beginnings to early modern developments. Emphasis is on the changing relations between critical theory and literary practice within the culture in each period.

0743. Philosophy of Literary Criticism   (3 s.h.)

A study of problems that arise from reflection on the critic's tasks of describing, interpreting, and judging literary works. Among the topics to be considered are the language of poetry, metaphor, style, form in literature, symbolism, truth, criteria of evaluation, obscenity.

0750. World Drama   (3 s.h.)

Survey of world drama including plays representing: the Classical Age; the Middle Ages; the Renaissance in Italy, Spain, and England; the French, neo-Classical period; the Romantic epoch in Germany and France; the Modern Age.

0760. Advanced Textual Analysis   (3 s.h.)

A study of complex texts, analyzing the discourses of disciplines, professions, and public institutions.

0765. Ideas and Forms   (3 s.h.)

A variable content course. Recent topics have included lyric practices in poetry and prose since 1848, modernist prose, and the problems involved in film adaptations of works from literature or other fields.

0766. Approaches to Literature   (3 s.h.)

A variable content course which generally considers one or two formal techniques or critical methods in conjunction with appropriate literary texts. The literary content may be from any genre or historical period.

0770. Practical Criticism   (3 s.h.)

A variable content course. Recent topics have included rhetorical theory and scientific discourse.

0790. Poetry Workshop   (3 s.h.)

Open only to students in the Creative Writing MA program. Intensive discussion of student poetry and the work of established poets whose concerns are related to those of the students. Frequent individual conferences.

0791. Fiction Workshop   (3 s.h.)

Open only to students in the Creative Writing M.A. program. Intensive discussion of student fiction and the work of established fiction writers whose concerns are related to those of the students. Frequent individual conferences.

0799. Preliminary Examination Preparation   (1 s.h.)

Advanced Seminars

0815. Sixteenth Century Studies   (3 s.h.)

Various literary, intellectual, and critical traditions, including Spenser and other major authors, movements, forms, themes, or critical procedures.

0816. Seventeenth Century Studies   (3 s.h.)

Seminar with varying content, from Donne, Jonson, and Bacon to the Restoration.

0825. Studies in Victorian Prose and Poetry   (3 s.h.)

Students will learn the bibliographical and research techniques needed to tap the primary sources available in Philadelphia libraries and place the materials in historical context.

0827. Studies in Victorian Novelists   (3 s.h.)

Seminar in Victorian fiction and critical analysis.

0835. Studies in Major 20th Century Poets   (3 s.h.)

A study of issues in poetry and poetics which may emphasize recent long poems, a survey of important genres, or other approaches to the relations among form, subjectivity, ideology and the construction of authorship.

0838. Studies in Modern British Fiction   (3 s.h.)

Variable content: individual authors (Woolf, Joyce, etc.) or special topics.

0840. Studies in American Literature Since 1900   (3 s.h.)

A variable topic course which may focus on a theme, a group of authors or texts, a technique, or some other aspect of American writing.

0850. Studies in Literary Criticism   (3 s.h.)

An intensive analysis of current trends in critical theory and method, in the context of their philosophical, literary and historical backgrounds. Special emphasis is given to the various purposes of contemporary critical activity.

0851. Studies Lit. of Restn + 18th C   (3 s.h.)

Variable content: has recently been taught as Eighteenth-Century Poetry

0899. Pre-Dissertation Research   (1-6 s.h.)

Advanced seminar

0901. Studies in Victorian Novelist   (3 s.h.)

Advanced seminar in Victorian fiction; may take up one novelist or a group of writers.

0902. Independent Study   (3 s.h.)

0904. Master's Manuscript Tutorial   (3 s.h.)

For English: Creative Writing majors. A tutorial in which the creative manuscript required for graduation is developed. Related readings. Weekly conferences. Two semesters are required.

0940. Intensive Study of Single Authors   (3 s.h.)

Advanced scholarly exploration of the problems of interpreting the work, the life and the past and present critical and cultural contexts of single authorial figures.

0950. St in Am. Lit since 1800   (3 s.h.)

Advanced seminar with variable content. Recent topics have included American Realism to 1945.

0970. Ideas and Forms in Lit.   (3 s.h.)

Advanced seminar with changing focus: may be interdisciplinary or international

0971. Recent Literary Crit.   (3 s.h.)

Advanced seminar in critical theory and practice

0974. Literature and Society   (3 s.h.)

Advanced investigation of social, sociological and historical frameworks for studying literary production and for debating the nature of "literature."

0975. Media Studies   (3 s.h.)

A variable-content seminar devoted to an exploration of a topic in media studies, such as a film or television genre, a national cinema, the work of a particular director or a critical and theoretical issue of current debate.

0990. Master's Essay   (1 s.h.)

For doctoral candidates who select the M.A. option.

0999. Dissertation Research   (1-6 s.h.)

Dissertation seminar for doctoral candidates.