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121 International Short Story Russian,
Czech, German, French, Italian, Spanish, English, American,
and Latin-American stories from
Romanticism to the present. Fantastic tales, character sketches,
surprise endings; main types of the short story. (AL)
122 Spiritual Autobiography
Exploration of the individual psyche, growth of self-consciousness;
the dark night of the soul and the role of suffering in personal
growth. Reading from a variety of spiritual diaries, autobiographies,
from East and West, written by women and men, believers and
heretics. Ancient and modern examples. See a syllabus from
a previous semester for more information. (ALG)
131 Brave New Worlds
Utopian and dystopian novels. The ability
of literature to generate social critique. Readings include
works by Huxley,
Orwell, Kafka, Atwood, Burgess, Gibson, Piercy, Gilman, Dick
and others. (ALG)
133 Introduction to Science Fiction
This course introduces twentieth-century science fiction
through reading American, European and Japanese novels and
stories, examining SF in social, critical and literary contexts,
and its sites of production
and consumption. (ALG)
141 Good and Evil, East and West
The imaginative representation of good and
evil in Western and Eastern classics, folktales, children's
stories, and 20th
century literature. Cross-cultural comparison of ethical approaches
to moral problems such as the suffering of the innocent, the
existence of evil, the development of a moral consciousness
and social responsibility, and the role of faith in a broken
world. (ALG)
151 Fiction East and West
Introduction to traditional and modern Chinese,
Indian, and Japanese fiction. The encounter between Asian
cultures and the "West" in 20th-century fiction.
Cross-cultural views of self and society East and West, and
of writers who work between Asian and Western worlds. (ALG)
204 Woman, Man and Myth
The heroic tradition in European literature
from ancient Sumeria to the Medieval period. Emphasis on
the myths of masculine and feminine, male and female divinities,
male and female heroes and the problem of war and peace.
(AL)
231 Comedy
Our course begins with the premise that
contemporary American comedy is informed by the histories
of ethnic American groups — African Americans, Native
Americans, Asian Americans and U.S. Latinos/Latinas — along
with issues of race, class, sexuality and citizenship. American
comedians, independent filmmakers, feminists and transgendered
comics deploy the language of comedy to invoke serious social
matters in contemporary American life: racism, heterosexism,
homophobia, class biases against the poor and the undocumented,
misogyny, war and other burning issues of the day. We will
thus consider that the ends of comedy are more than laughter.
Comedy confronts political issues that are constitutive of
and threatening to the U.S. body politic. (AL)
233 Fantasy and World Literature Fantasies as escape into strange realms
where time and space are not our own. Exploration of fantastic
voyages to learn
about human desires and dreams, and the reality they grow out
of. Interdisciplinary approach; psychological theories of dreams
and individual fantasies related to the structure and effects
of fantasy literature. Honors section available, with greater
attention to theoretical material and historical background.
(AL)
234 Myth, Folktale, and Children's Literature
Reading and analysis of selected traditional
European and African folk narratives and of contemporary
stories for children from
picturebooks to chapter books. Addresses questions of personal
and social identity, of narrative presentation and response,
of power and authority in changing environments focused on
the child. See a syllabus from
a previous semester for more information.(AL)
236 Digital Culture
An introduction to digital culture, with
emphasis on the study of digital works of art (hyperfiction,
computer art, electronic music, virtual dance, digital cinema,
etc.) with some attention to the broader social and intellectual
implications of the digital revolution. (ASI)
256H Poets and Poetry of New England
A study of poets and poetry of New England,
with attention to the role and function of the natural, social
and cultural landscape in nurturing, attracting or sustaining
poets, immigrant or native. While poets writing in English,
from Ann Bradstreet to Elizabeth Bishop and Sylvia Plath,
will figure prominently, immigrant poets writing in languages
other than English will also be introduced, recognized, and
discussed. (AL)
291R Russian Culture
General introduction to Russian culture;
historical roots of contemporary Russian habits and ways
of thinking. History, social ideas, government, literature,
arts, architecture, cinema, education, etc., in selected
historical periods; emphasis on 19th-century development.
No knowledge of Russian required; course conducted in English.
(AL1)
381 Self-Reflective Avant-Garde Film (AT)
Modern origins of experimentation in film
and literature in avant-garde schools such as Expressionism
and Surrealism, with
contemporary results of this heritage. Whether film is the
most modern of the media, the results of two obsessive concerns:
1) the poetic, dreamlike, and fantastic, 2) the factual, realistic,
and socially critical or anarchic. For additional information
on film-related courses and activities, visit the Interdepartmental
Program in Film Studies web site.
382 Cinema and Psyche (AT)
Exploration of contemporary international
cinema through film history and psychoanalytic theory. Focus
on comparative representations
of nationality, childhood, and social dislocation. Topics addressed:
inscriptions of the autobiographical; transcultural readings
of visual texts; cinematic constructions of gender and subjectivity;
dreams, fantasy, and memory; the "family romance." See
a syllabus from a previous semester for more information. For
additional information on film-related courses and activities,
visit the Interdepartmental
Program in Film Studies web site.
383 Narrative Avant-garde Film (AT)
Explores modern origin of experimentation in film in
avant-garde modes such as Expressionism, Surrealism and contemporary
results of this heritage. Trying
to determine if film is the most resolutely modern of the media.
Emphasis on the ways in which Avant-garde films can problematize
themselves through the
ploys of telling a story. By means of a self-consciousness
of story-telling which undermines viewer identification,
the drive for closure, the demand for
origins and order, and even cause and effect, these avant-garde
films restore to playfulness its strength and ambiguity.
For additional information on film-related courses and activities,
visit the Interdepartmental
Program in Film Studies web site.
384 Vietnam: Literature and Film
Focus on "images" of the war as presented
in poetry, fiction, and film, often comparing the same image
as it has been "rewritten" in literature and film. How images
are manipulated by (re)writers to reinforce or subvert powerful cultural
and political
institutions. See a syllabus from
a past semester for more information. For additional information
on film-related courses and activities, visit the Interdepartmental
Program in Film Studies web site. (ALG)
385 Russian Themes in World Cinema Introduction
to Russian cinema, focusing on selected contemporary themes (violence,
youth culture, race and gender issues), and on Western film inspired
by Russian literary works, comparing Russian and Western approaches.
387 Myths of the Feminine
Myths about women and the life cycle from many cultures:
ancient near east, classical antiquity, Old Europe, India,
Asia, the Islamic world. Women writers from those same cultures,
showing the interplay
between the cultural construction of the feminine and personal
voices. See a syllabus from
a past semester for more information.
391B French Film
Course taught in English (with screenings). The development
of French film from the 1930s and its relations to French
society. Analysis and reading of specific films, the ideology
of different film practices,
and relevant aspects of film theory, including questions
of representations. Films by directors such as Vigo, Carné, Renoir,
Bresson, Resnais, Godard, Truffaut, Ackerman, Kurys, Tavernier.
For additional information on film-related courses and activities,
visit the Interdepartmental Program
in Film Studies web site. (AT)
391D War Stories
An inquiry into the representation of war in the late
20th century, this course will focus largely on a single conflict, the
war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We will examine a variety of media: photography,
theater, poetry, and narrative, as well as testimonials and documentaries.
Our discussions will also respond to readings grounded in theory rather
than context.
391H Literary Criticism
A survey of the basic questions philosophers and poets
have posed about the nature of literature: What literature is, what it
imitates, how it can be studied, its function in human community. Major
texts in the history of literary criticism East and West, in the classical
and medieval periods.
393B Comic Art in North America
An introduction to comic art, from the beginnings of
the newspaper comic strip through the development of books, the growth
of graphic novels, and current developments in electronic media. We focus
on the history of aesthetics of the medium, comparison between developments
in the United States, Mexico, and French Canada and the social and cultural
contexts in which comic art is created and consumed.
393C International Graphic Novel Examines contemporary works in the literary and
artistic medium of the graphic novel, including works from
the United States, Japan,
Mexico, and Europe. The course will concentrate on the period
bewteen 1978 (when the term "graphic novel" was invented by
Will Eisner for the publication of 'A Contract with God')
and the present, combined
with examination of antecedents to contemporary graphic novels
and traditions of visual narrative in the popular and high
arts.
394A Women and Men in Myth: Epic Monsters, Epic Betrayals
This course studies some famous stories of couples and
pairs in western literature, to see how we might think about male and
female heroes, their adventures and trials, and how they compete or cooperate
with each other. We'll also look at other dyads: fathers and sons, mothers
and daughters, same sex peers. See a syllabus from
a previous semester for more information.
397A Intro to Discourse Analysis An introduction to
the study of discourse, a field that has been approached
from a variety of perspectives (deriving from linguistics, anthropology,
sociology,
philosophy, communication theory, artificial intelligence,
and other disciplines.) We shall examine several of these approaches,
looking at
their assumptions, methodologies and goals, and at samples
of research carried out within these approaches. Topics will include
the discourse
of advertising, conversational analysis and style, interactive
sociolinguistics, politeness. Prerequisite: an introductory course in
linguistics or permission
of the instructor.
397B Junior Year Writing
An advanced composition class. Hands-on library research; close readings of texts from various genres
and media; brief overview of literary theories and their application in literary analysis; basic writing
skills necessary for job and grad school applications. Students will research and write a
conference-length academic paper on a topic of their choice to be presented in a formal setting
at the end of the semester. This is NOT a basic writing class. Enrolled students are expected to
have good command of paragraph and essay structure, as well as of grammar and the mechanics of writing.
397C Asian American Cinema
A survey of Asian American documentaries,
narrative films, and experimental shorts. By "Asian American film
and video," we refer to films by and/or about Asian Americans including
those who are immigrants, American-born, the exiles, the
refugees and the undocumented. For each week, we will study
a critical film or genre
and discuss Asian American cultural politics and history.
For additional information on film-related courses and activities, visit
the Interdepartmental Program in
Film Studies web site.
514 Modern Poetry and Poetics
Selected major authors and movements in modern poetry
from Symbolism to present. Backgrounds of contemporary poetry in European
and American intellectual and literary history: modern experiments with
poetic form. Influence of movements such as symbolism, surrealism, modernism
and postmodernism, with their relation to contemporary art and aesthetics.
551 Translation and Technology
Translation today requires advanced language and computer
skills. This course covers several technologies, including desktop and
internet publishing, computer tools for translation, and programs editing
audio and video files. Prerequisites: Excellent knowledge of one language
other than English.
552 Medical Interpreting Online
An online course that teaches how to interpret for both
patients and for healthcare providers in a medical setting. Skills covered
include medical terminology, word derivations, memory retention, note-taking,
standards of practice, ethics, and multicultural problem-solving. The
class is multilingual, with most major languages offered. Requirements
include an advanced knowledge of one language other than English, a general
knowledge of scientific concepts, and the desire to improve interpretation
skills. Students passing the course will receive a certificate and are
eligible for 3 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and/or 3 hours of academic
credit. Open to interpreters, translators, bilingual health workers,
nurses, doctors, hospital administrators, therapists, social workers,
and anyone interested in improving the quality of bilingual health care.
Register for this online course at UMass
Continuing Education. See the MA
in Translation Studies page for additional information on graduate
studies in translation, or visit the Translation
Center web site.
592A Medieval Women Writers
Selected medieval and Renaissance women writers from
the point of view of current feminist theory. Writers include Marie de
France, Mechthild of Magdeburg, Margery Kempe, Angela of Foligno, Sor
Juana de la Cruz, Christine de Pizan. Themes of love and desire in women's
writing; the models provided by Sappho, Plato, and the Bible; critical
approaches derived from French feminism, feminist theologians, Marxist
critiques, and object-relations theory.
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