Universität Wien

123426 SE Literary & Cultural Studies Seminar / BA Paper / MA American/North American Lit./Studies (2016S)

The American South and Europe : Mutual Perceptions

11.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 12 - Anglistik
Continuous assessment of course work

The participants in the seminar will also benefit from a lecture on the general theme of the seminar by a prominent expert on Southern literature and culture, Professor Fred Hobson, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on March 16 in the regular seminar session at 4 p.m.

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 20 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

My next office hour will be on 23 February at 3 p.m. in my office on the 2nd floor of the departmental building. Volunteers for early topics are specially invited to see me in my office hour.

  • Wednesday 09.03. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 16.03. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 06.04. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 13.04. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 20.04. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 27.04. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 04.05. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 11.05. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 18.05. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 25.05. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 01.06. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 08.06. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 15.06. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 22.06. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09
  • Wednesday 29.06. 16:00 - 18:00 Raum 2 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-09

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

The seminar will offer opportunities to study key texts from the 18th to the 20th centuries reflecting the impressions of visitors from the other side of the Atlantic. The texts chosen range from observations on plantation culture in the American South during the late colonial phase to the encounter with different institutions, manners and customs in various European countries. The perception of difference familiar from studies of travel literature, a currently well-established branch of literary and cultural studies, is aggravated in the case of the American South by the enlightened critical view of 'the peculiar institution', slavery, the mainstay of the plantation economy, expressed by European visitors before the emancipation of the slaves. The encounter in the 19th century of graduates or common men rooted in the American South, such as Mark Twain, with different conceptions of university life in continental Europe and the impact of political and military confrontations in the 20th century on their perception of European societies will also be examined. Finally we will analyze the impact of different conceptions of individual and collective life styles on characters from the American South as mirrored in the fiction of Elizabeth Spencer.

Assessment and permitted materials

Participants would submit a written seminar paper of 20-22 pages and offer an oral presentation. Regular attendance and active class participation and two written reports on seminar sessions of up to two pages each are expected. There will be a final written essay test.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Students will have to be familiar with the key texts mirroring the difficulties transatlantic observers have had with understanding the different institutions and cultural habits in the other respective hemisphere. They should understand the challenges of cross-cultural encounters with the inclination or potential need of observers to criticize and reject certain regulations incompatible with their own convictions. They should also be aware of the special appeal of foreign destinations and manners, which has provided many an impetus for visiting transatlantic places.

Examination topics

Student presentations of research papers on the topics chosen, general discussion of the texts in the Reader and their biographical, historical, and cultural contexts, and, if applicable, their literary form.

Reading list

All the stories and excerpts from the non-fictional texts are contained in a Reader to be acquired at Copy Studio. A list of the topics will be published shortly. Participants are encouraged to volunteer for the first topics of the seminar. A reserved shelf (Handapparat) with selected texts and relevant studies will shortly be accessible on the upper floor of the departmental library.

Association in the course directory

Studium: UF 344, BA 612, MA 844;
Code/Modul: UF 4.2.4-322, BA09.2, 10.2, MA5, MA6, MA7;
Lehrinhalt: 12-0406

Last modified: Mo 07.09.2020 15:33