Fall/Winter 2016-2017
AP/EN 4390 6.0A (Y)
Contemporary American Gothic
Course Director:
Dr. Natalie Neill
[email protected]
Delivery Format:
Seminar
Time:
Mondays, 7:00pm ‐ 10:00pm, RS‐101
Description:
This course examines the evolution of American gothic literature from the post‐
WWII period to the present day. It introduces students to the important conventions and contexts of late 20th‐ and early 21st‐century‐American gothic fiction through a survey of various texts, ranging from such modern horror classics as Psycho and Rosemary’s Baby to the postmodern gothic of Jennifer Egan and the comic book and TV series, The Walking Dead. We will explore how gothic tropes are used to interrogate America’s past (e.g., the legacy of Puritanism, slavery, and Native American oppression) and express contemporary cultural anxieties. We will consider issues of reception and literary value by probing the affective responses that gothic texts elicit and by examining critical attitudes toward the genre. Finally, we will ask how gothic narratives change when they find expression in different forms (short stories, novels, graphic novels) and media (film, TV, video games).
Category:
Area:
Period:
Historical Requirement:
C
2
3
NA
Requirements:
Fall Term Essay (7‐8 pages): 30% Winter Term Essay (7‐8 pages): 30% Seminar presentation: 15% Year‐end test: 15% Participation: 10% Reading List:
Joyce Carol Oates, ed. American Gothic Tales (Plume)
Henry James, The Turn of the Screw (Dover Thrift) Richard Matheson, I Am Legend (Mass Market) Shirley Jackson, Haunting of Hill House (Penguin Classics)
Robert Bloch, Psycho (Overlook) Ira Levin, Rosemary’s Baby (Pegasus)
James Dickey, Deliverance (Delta) Stephen King, The Shining (Anchor) Toni Morrison, Beloved (Vintage) Jennifer Egan, The Keep (Anchor) Robert Kirkman, The Walking Dead, 1: Days Gone Bye (Image Comics)
In addition, students will be responsible for Psycho (dir. Hitchcock) and The Shining (dir. Kubrick). The films will be screened in class and are also available in Scott’s Sound and Moving Image Library.
Open To:
Yr4 H