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An Introduction to Literature in English (Part II)
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:28:35
Abstract
The power that stories have over the audience's imagination has always proved one of the main pleasures of reading. In this course we shall consider some major works of English Literature dealing with the topic "story telling". We shall discuss narrative structures, the relationship between form and function, and explore how story-tellers control our reading experience.
Objective
The aim of this course is to enhance students' awareness of literary conventions and methods and to help them become discerning readers, hence to enjoy and benefit more from reading English literature.
Content
This course develops out of Part I, held in the Fall Semester 2007, but forms a completely self-contained unit. New students will be welcome! Our topic will be "story-telling". A fundamental element in many kinds of literature is the story, an organisation of experience into one or more narrative lines. We will consider some of the ways in which narratives are structured, discuss the relationship between form and function, between structure and meaning and explore how story-tellers control the reading experience. We will first discuss excerpts from Homer's "Odyssey", and continue with other major works of literature in which story-telling is a central issue: Geoffrey Chaucer, "The Canterbury Tales", S. T. Coleridge, 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner', followed by the witty and entertaining novel "The Gate of Angels" (2001) by the late English writer Penelope Fitzgerald.
Resources
Lecture Notes
No script.
Literature
Recommended reading: Vladimir Propp, "Morphology of the Folktale"; Wayne C. Booth, "The Rhetoric of Fiction"; H. Porter, "The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative" (2002).
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- DS
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- end-of-semester examination
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture | An Introduction to Literature in English (Part II) |
|
2 h weekly |
Offered In
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Humanities, Social and Political Sciences (In order to be awarded credits, please register under "Pflichtwahlfach GESS"!. The language courses are offered by the ETH and University of Zurich Language Center ( ))
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