Course: American Literature 1

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Course title American Literature 1
Course code KAJ/4153
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminary
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study not specified
Semester Winter
Number of ECTS credits 4
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Course availability The course is available to visiting students
Lecturer(s)
  • Čapek Jan, Mgr. Bc. Ph.D.
Course content
1. Native American oral storytelling 2. Puritans and their heritage (17th Century) 3. Enlightenment, Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin (18th Century) 4. Romanticism, Nathaniel Hawthorne 5. Edgar Allan Poe 6. American transcendentalism (Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Margaret Fuller) 7. Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson 8. Slavery and African-American writing 9. Realism and women's literaure (Chopin, Gilman) 10. Realism, local color (Twain, Crane) 11. Naturalism

Learning activities and teaching methods
unspecified, unspecified
  • unspecified - 56 hours per semester
Learning outcomes
The aim of the course is to introduce the students to distinctive periods of American literary history from the 17th to the end of the 19th century. Students will read and interpret important works representing the period.
Students are able to interpret selected canonical works of American literature from Native oral storytelling until late 19th century, and utilize their skills in literary theory, literary history and cultural theory which they have gained during the course as well as in their preceding study of literary subjects.
Prerequisites
Students come to this course with basic knowledge of literary terminology and with skills that enable them to analyze and interpret literary texts (acquired in the courses Children's Literature, British Literature 1 and British Literature 2).

Assessment methods and criteria
unspecified
Students need to comply with all of the following requirements: 1. Regular attendance (80 percent, two missed classes are allowed). 2. Regular preparation for the course. If unprepared for two and more classes, the student will not receive the credit for the course. 3. Final test score of 70 percent and more. If scoring less, students are allowed to take an alternative credit test. 4. Write and submit an essay. More details regarding the topic and guidelines for writing will be provided by the lecturer. Students are allowed one resubmission.
Recommended literature
  • Od Poea k postmodernismu. Proměny americké prózy. Odeon, Praha, 1993.
  • Abrams , M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. Holt, Rinehart and Winston Inc.. 1985.
  • Baym, N. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York, 2003.
  • Quinn, J. Lectures on American Literature. Praha, 2011.
  • Ruland, K. - Bradbury, R. Od puritanismu k postmodernismu. Dějiny americké literatury. Praha. 1997.
  • Ruland R. & Bradbury, M. From Puritanism to Postmodernism: A History of American Literatrure. New York, 1991.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester
Faculty: Faculty of Education Study plan (Version): English Language and Literature (A14) Category: Philological sciences 3 Recommended year of study:3, Recommended semester: Winter