Comparative Literature Courses
Spring 2012

Any literature course in any language, including English, at the 3000 level or above
counts towards the Comparative Literature major or minor.

Courses of Special Interest to Comparative Literature Students

CPLT 2020 History of European Literature
1230-0145 TR - McLeod 2014
Instructor: Paul Cantor

This course surveys European literature from the seventeenth century to the twentieth.  Although it builds upon work in CPLT 2010, 2020 is a self-contained course and can certainly be taken by students who have not taken 2010.  Among the topics to be discussed will be the rise of the novel, the nature of the Enlightenment, the Romantic revolution in poetry, the new role of women in literature, responses to revolution and imperialism, nihilism and modern literature, and the issue of postmodernism.  Readings will include Tartuffe, Robinson Crusoe, Candide, Faust, Persuasion, Wuthering Heights, Notes from Underground, and Waiting for Godot, as well as poetry by Blake and Rilke and short stories by Kafka.  Two lectures and one section meeting per week.  We will require three papers and a final examination, as well as regular attendance and participation in discussion sections.  The course fulfills the Second Writing Requirement, and 3 hours of it can be counted toward the English major under the “literature in translation” option.

CPLT 3590/GETR3563 Spiritual Journeys in Young Adult Fictions
0200-0315 WF - Cabell 520
Instructor: Dorothe Bach

This comparative inquiry into young adult fiction invites you to explore the topic of the spiritual journey both academically and personally. Different disciplinary perspectives such as religious studies, gender studies, history, psychology, and literary studies, will help us shed light on our private reading experiences and deepen our exploration of such themes as: religiosity vs. spirituality, experiencing divine presence and absence, becoming a hero, confronting evil, being different, achieving autonomy, faith and doubt, and the magical and the miraculous. Our hope is that, over the course of the semester, you will develop a personal vocabulary in which you can express your thoughts on spiritual journeys in young adult fiction as well as articulate the relationships between your own quest and your academic pursuits.

This discussion based, reading-intensive seminar is cross-listed in the Comparative Literature and German departments and most texts come from the Western tradition. We encourage all students to participate actively in discussion, to engage the readings and each other critically and compassionately, to develop a regular reflective writing practice, and to work collaboratively in small learning teams.

We warmly invite students from a variety of academic backgrounds and with diverse interests in the topic to apply. For more details see http://pages.shanti.virginia.edu/12Sp_GETR_3563-001_CGAS/

Readings (available at the bookstore)
    Card, Orson S. Ender’s Game
    Cisneros, Sandra. The House on Mango Street
    Frost, Helen.  Keesha’s House
    Hamilton, Virginia. Zeely
    Hesse, Herman. Siddhartha
    Potok, Chaim. The Chosen
    Pullman, Philip. The Amber Spyglass
    Rylant, Cynthia. God Went to Beauty School
    Schlink, Bernhard. The Reader
    Spiegelman, Art, Maus I & II
    Tatar, Maria. The Classic Fairy Tale
    Pan’s Labyrinth

CPLT 3730 Modern Poetry: Rilke, Valéry and Stevens
1200-0315 TR - Cabell 335
Instructor: Lorna Martens

Studies in the poetry and prose of these three modernist poets, with emphasis on their theories of artistic creation. The original as well as a translation will be made available for Rilke's and Valéry's poetry. Their prose works will be read in English translation. Requirements: Three 6-7-page papers (one on each poet); participation in seminar discussion, including oral presentations on poems; final exam.

CPLT 4990 Seminar for Majors
0330-0600 M -Cabell 516
Instructor: Randolph Pope

What makes an international best seller that is celebrated by the general public and yet attracts the attention of scholars? This combination is less frequent than would be expected. We will start with the analysis of short stories by Arthur Conan Doyle and Borges, continuing with three novels, Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose, Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Haruki Murakami’s The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, and Roberto Bolaño’s 2666. Requirements are weekly written comments, one class presentation, and a final paper. Comparative Literature majors will have preference, but the class is open to all. Randolph Pope [rpope@Virginia.edu]

CPLT 8002 Comparative and Transnational Studies
0330-0600 T - Fayerweather 215
Instructor: Rita Felski

This course offers an overview of key arguments and debates within the field of comparative literature, transnational studies, and recent theories of world literature. It is a required course for all those enrolled in the graduate certificate in comparative literature; other students are welcome. Topics to be discussed include the benefits and risks of thinking comparatively; the relations between comparative literature and postcolonial theory; questions of canonicity and aesthetic value; multiple modernities; theories of translation and adaptation, and comparative treatments of genre.