Instr: Jessica Stender
Office: CRT 533; 229-5041
e-mail: jstender@uwm.edu
Office hours: TBA
Course Information: MW 11:00am - 12:15pm; CRT 108
This course is an introduction to multiple forms and contexts of literary and nonliterary texts and discourses in English, in a cultural, historical, and global framework. We will explore, question, challenge, and reflect upon the diverse ways and methods of reading texts, investigate how meaning is created, and why it matters. In doing this, we will consider the relationship between the text, the reader, the author, and the world. We will explore ways of interpreting a text's meaning and significance by examining and incorporating perspectives offered by literary and cultural theories.
Part of the aim of this course will be to consider how and why various kinds of texts are a part of historical, social, political, and cultural frameworks. Texts don't just "happen": they emerge out of a particular set of circumstances, and one of our concerns will be to consider how texts are produced, how they are received, and how and why reading and writing are meaningful activities. We will draw on such genres as the novel, poetry, non-fiction prose, drama, and film to engage with these and other questions.
