Modern World Literature

elective courses

Classroom

The aim of this course is to get students acquainted with selected masterpieces of modern world literature.

Students learn selected problems, tendencies represented in modern works of world literature.

Class in the form of a discussion.

The aim of these course is to introduce the students the subjectively selected novels among the most important masterpieces of 20th century world literature. Pointing out the main streams and models of modern literature as well as the main models of cultural analysis of literature works is no less important.

Within the framework of the discussion on the selected novel the problem of the very concept of world literature (appeared during 20th and 21st centuries), the status and the role of the translated texts as well as the relation between national (ethnic) and a cosmopolitan culture of the last decades will be focused on. In the context of analyzing every novel, several issues can appear, such as: trans-culturalism, multilingual works, individually understood comparative research, which can mean the analysis of different perspectives of similar philosophical, social, psychological, political and other problems in different literatures (Inter-personal relationships, dissolution of traditional communities, breakdown the traditional cultural and social roles, identity crisis, claims of minorities within the definite communities, modern cities).

During the course the following books will be discussed:

1. Colombia – Gabriel Garcia Marquez – One Hundred Years of Solitude;

2. Argentina - Jorge Luis Borges – Stories;

3. Peru – Mario Vargas Llosa – Death in the Andes;

4. Turkey – Orhan Pamuk – Istanbul: Memories and the City;

5. Spain – Jaume Cabré – Confessions;

6. Great Britain – William Golding – Lord of the Flies;

7. Russia – Aleksander Tierechow – Stone bridge;

8. Poland– Wiesław Myśliwski – Eye of a needle;

9. France – Patrick Modiano – Villa Triste;

10. Italy – Umberto Eco – The name of the rose;

11. Germany – Thomas Bernhard – Woodcutters;

12. Croatia – Dubravka Ugrešić – Fording the Stream of Consciousness;

13. Bulgaria – Georgi Gospodinow – The Physics of Sorrow;

14. USA – Joseph Heller – Catch-22;

15. Japan – Haruki Murakami – A Wild Sheep Chase.

Translation of texts from Polish into English.

Student workload includes:

Classroom participation – 30 hours (1 ECTS)

Preparing for classes – 30 hours (1 ECTS)

Literary works of outstanding authors of world literature of 20th and of the 21st centuries.

Theoretical texts:

D. Damrosch, Literatura światowa w dobie kanonicznej i postkanonicznej [w:] Niewspółmierność. Perspektywy nowoczesnej komparatystyki. Antologia, pod red. T. Bilczewskiego, Kraków 2010.

Genette G. Palimpsesty, [w:] Współczesna teoria badań literackich za granicą, oprac. H. Markiewicz, t. IV, cz. II, Kraków 1992.

Kulturowa teoria literatury. Główne pojęcia i problemy, red.: M. P. Markowski, R. Nycz, Universitas, Kraków 2012.

Wolfreys J., Robbins R., Womack K., Key Concepts in Literary Theory, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2002.

As regards specialty learning outcomes, after the course:

1) one has profound and structured knowledge comprising methods, theories, terminology in relation to the literature and language in the context of other liberal studies (K2_W02; reference to P7S_WG The range and depth);

2) one knows and understands the basic tendencies of 20th and 21st centuries literature in world context, is acquainted with program and ideological phenomena, knows the representatives and major texts of writers who are representative for the generations and the literary groups of that period (K2_W03; reference to P7S_WG The range and depth);

3) is able to gain knowledge and develop research skills on his/her own, to undertake activities aimed at developing academic and professional competence as a literary critic and a critic of other arts (K2_U01; reference to P7S_UW exploiting knowledge / problems resolved and tasks performed);

4) can carry out a critical analysis and interpretation of different types of cultural works, implement different approaches, has regard to new achievements of liberal arts, can introduce and justify his/her own position in different ways (K2_U05; reference to P7S_UW exploiting knowledge / problems resolved and tasks performed);

5) is ready to participate actively and consciously in international scientific, linguistic, artist and cultural exchange (K2_K01, reference to P7S_KO);

6) is ready for the active involvement in the social and cultural life, employing the knowledge of the relations between different fields of art; to recognize values contained in cultural diversity delivered by literature and art. (K2_K05, reference to P7S_KO).

To get a credit students have to attend the classes according to the Faculty’s Statute.

A student shall have the right for two unexcused absences; each subsequent absence requires the explanation. The lecturer is responsible for its recognition. The exceeding amount of excused and unexcused absences for 50% can be the basis for non-completion of the course.

If the amount of absences rises above the permitted number, a student shall request the lecturer to provide for a time and a way to get credit for the course.

The unexcused absences during the classes within the prescribed time result in losing the first credit deadline. A student has the right to make up absences and to get credit during the repeat term.

Active participation in the class and discussion.

Credit mark is based on the attendance, active participation in the class, homework and translation of selected passages of texts.

The final mark comprises the following elements:

Active and substantive participation in the class (50%).

Performing the task (e.g. presentation) or the review of a selected literary text (50%).

Grading system:

99 – 100% - 5 (excellent)

93 - 98% - 5 (very good)

87 - 92% - 4,5 (fairly good)

77 - 86% - 4 (good)

71 - 76% - 3,5 (satisfactory plus)

60 - 70% - 3 (satisfactory)