Language, Authority, Power

elective courses

Remote learning

The aim of the course is to explore the relations between language and power through the lenses of critical and literary theory and through the analysis of literary texts. The course introduces key concepts and developments in critical theory and focuses on employing concepts and theories related to power in the critical reading of literary texts, in particular with reference to texts by Michel Foucault, feminist and gender-oriented analysis, deconstruction and postcolonial theory.

The aim of the course is to explore the relations between language and power through the lenses of critical and literary theory and through the analysis of literary texts. The course introduces key concepts and developments in critical theory and focuses on employing concepts and theories related to power in the critical reading of literary texts, in particular with reference to texts by Michel Foucault, feminist and gender-oriented analysis, deconstruction and postcolonial theory. Students are encouraged to research topics connected to the questions of power, discourse analysis, gender, feminism, ideology, queer theory, and with reference(s) to British literature. During the course students will discuss both texts in literary theory and critical theory as well as selected literary texts, for instance: John Milton’s Paradise Lost, Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Oscar Wilde’s Picture of Dorian Gray, selected writings by Mary Wollstonecraft, selected poems by William Blake, William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.

Literary texts:

John Milton’s Paradise Lost

Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

Oscar Wilde’s Picture of Dorian Gray

Selected writings by Mary Wollstonecraft

Selected poems by William Blake

William Shakespeare’s The Tempest

John Maxwell Coetzee’s Foe

Zadie Smith’s White Teeth

Selected critical sources:

Modern Criticism and Theory. A Reader. 2000. Edited by David Lodge. Revised and expanded by Nigel Wood. Pearson Education.

Modern Literary Theory. Edited by Philip Rice and Patricia Waugh. London: Arnold.

The Foucault Reader. 1984. Edited by Paul Rabinow. Pantheon Books.

Eagleton, Terry. Literary Theory. An Introduction. 1990. Oxford: Blackwell.

Eaglton, Terry. The Ideology of the Aesthetic. 1993. Oxford: Blackwell.

Hawkes, David. Ideology. The New Critical Idiom. 2003. London and New York: Routledge.

Williams, Raymond. The Country and the City. 1975. New York: Oxford University Press.

Knowledge:

The student:

- knows the terminology applied in literary studies and cultural studies, in particular within the Anglophone context;

- has deeper understanding and awareness of the role of symbols in interpreting the texts of culture and cultural practices;

- becomes familiar with the major trends in contemporary literary and cultural studies and their impact on English studies;

Skills:

The student:

- is able to present the acquired knowledge in a clear and well-organized manner, both in speaking and writing;

- knows how to interpret, analyze, evaluate and synthesize the content and problems in their cultural, social, historical and economic dimensions;

- can appreciate the diversity of opinions included in the studied texts and materials as well as see the plurality of opinions in terms of opportunity and inspiration, not as a threat to his or her worldview;

In class discussions students acquire skills of expressing their thoughts in a clear, coherent, logical and precise manner, with the use of language which is correct grammatically, lexically and phonetically.

Social Competence:

The student:

- becomes aware of the importance of his or her knowledge in social and cultural context;

- recognizes the nature of problems, issues and conflicts and strives to find for them the most beneficial solutions;

- is willing and prepared to express his or her views in a coherent and clear way to ensure understanding and cooperation with other persons.

Final grade shall be based on:

- attendance and participation

- essay on the selected topic or text

- final exam