Course Objectives

The goal of the course is to familiarize students with the main streams of American literature and society from colonial times up to around 1980, and to acquaint them with literary analysis and the use of textual criticism terminology. The course provides part of the background material for the course, The Contemporary English Speaking World (course code: 2009) and will thus place it in a historical perspective.

Course Description

The course will follow the development of the USA from the colonial period on the fringe of the Western world to its position as a modern super-power by studying fiction from a broad spectre of genres together with factual prose from several historical epochs. The texts will be read in their political and/or historical contexts but will also be discussed as independent works. The majority of the texts will be taken from the 19th and 20th centuries.

Learning Methods

The instruction is organized into lectures and seminars. Lectures will provide background for the course areas that will be discussed, and will also be used to review the course literature. Seminars will be used to review and discuss the course texts; great emphasis will be placed on the students' active participation, especially with a view to promoting oral competence in the subject.

Assessment Methods

Continuous assessment (mid-term examination) will comprise a written or oral examination and / or submissions and will count for 40% of the final grade. The final written examination counts 60%. Both the mid-term and final examination must receive passing marks. Grades will be given on a scale from A to F, where E is the lowest passing grade and F represents a failing grade.

Minor adjustments may occur during the academic year, subject to the decision of the Dean