Scribes, Book Worms, and Bibliomaniacs: The Thrall of the Book
ENGL 355
Fall 2020 not offered
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| Course Cluster and Certificates: Social, Cultural, and Critical Theory Certificate, Writing Certificate |
Even in the age of electronic and audiobooks one still hears book lovers exclaim on the unique sensation of "holding the physical book," the smell of its pages, and the pleasures (or transgressions) of being able to write notes in one's own physical copy. Loving books thus amounts to more than reading text, it often involves a relationship with the physical objects of books. The course has a two-pronged focus: the history of the evolution of the book as medium and the literature on the creation, collecting, and circulation of books. This means that we will be tracing the evolutions of reading and writing as technologies on the one hand, reading literary representations of this evolution on the other. Our discussions of bibliomania and the preservation impulse of archivists and book collectors will be accompanied by practical exercises with physical books in Special Collections. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA ENGL |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (CSCT)(ENGL) |
Major Readings:
"A NARRATIVE OF THE MOST REMARKABLE PARTICULARS IN THE LIFE OF JAMES ALBERT UKAWSAW GRONNIOSAW by Ukawsaw Gronniosaw,
MEETINGS WITH REMARKABLE MANUSCRIPTS by Christopher Hamel(2017) (Excerpt)
""THE LIBRARY OF BABEL,"" and ¿THE BOOK OF SAND"" by Jorge Louis Borges,
BOUVARD ET PÉCUCHET (1881) by Gustave Flaubert,
BIBLIOMANIA; OR BOOK MADNESS (1811) by Thomas Frognall Dibdin (excerpts)
PEOPLE OF THE BOOK (2008) by Geraldine Brooks,
ZONG (2011) by M. NourbeSe Philip
THE INTUITIONIST by Colson Whitehead
THE BOOK OF COLLATERAL DAMAGE by Sinan Antoon
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Examinations and Assignments:
Two short Library assignments (4-5pp); one in-class presentation, presentation paper (5pp), and one longer research assignment (12pp.) |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
This course fulfills the Theory requirement and contributes to the Theory & Literary Forms concentration of the English major.
Class of 2023 and beyond: This course fulfills the Theory, Literary History 2, and World Literature requirements of the English major. |
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