English Language and Literature (C1-C2), Part I

Abstract

The course is designed for students who already possess the language skills defined in level C1 of Global European Framework. The teaching units focus on the reading and discussion of literary texts, requiring active participation and commitment to the various forms of human experience displayed in the literary work.

Objective

We shall read and discuss a selection of literary texts, such as poems, short stories and a novel - covering the period from the 18th - 21st century. A close and thorough reading will sharpen our awareness of the author's intention and artistic devices to define the fascinating interplay between narrator, reader and literary work. With this purpose in mind we shall look at the structural organisation of texts and its effects on meaning; trace the poetic stance of a writer by exploring the metrical forms and types of sound pattern. We shall describe the relationship between form and content, trace symbols, metaphors and other rhetorical devices of the writer, look at style, syntax and vocabulary. Vocabulary study will include that of the individual texts but also the (meta)language we need to describe and discuss these texts.

Content

Topics: Reading literature is like watching fictional life through a window or magnifying glass: we observe and criticise the protagonists and their actions and the nature of their values, we sympathise with them, pity or dislike them. This process, which is controlled by the author, will provide ample opportunity for oral participation. Hence our topics will embrace "fictional character and action", "motive, action and consequence", "relationships and human values", "the reader's response", "rhetorical devices and figurative language" and many other aspects, as stimulated by the specific nature of the literary work. The ultimate goal of this course is to increase our understanding and appreciation of literary forms and to enhance our pleasure of reading.

Resources