Admission requirements
A relevant BA degree. If in doubt, please contact the tutor.
This course can only be taken in combination with Situated Literatures I (Blok 1)!
Description
This course is an extension of the MA course “Situated Literatures” (5 EC), and intends to offer a detailed study and analytical reading of Ulysses by James Joyce (1882-1941), one of the most innovative and influential writers in English of the twentieth century. We will place his work in a historical, literary and theoretical context. Questions to be addressed among others will be: what are the major contributions of Joyce to the development of Modernism? How ‘European’ is Joyce? How much does Ulysses rely on Homer’s Odyssey?
Course objectives
Based on the assumption that participants have already acquired the basic skills for the analysis of literary texts, this course aims to extend these skills both in terms of textual analysis (close reading) and contextual approach (cultural-historical as well as theoretical). Students will be encouraged to share analytical and theoretical views on Ulysses in class discussion, and to focus research skills on a relevant subject of their own choice within the parameters of the course in the form of a final research paper.
Timetable
The timetable will be available by June 1st on the website
Mode of instruction
3-hour seminar per week.
Course Load
The course load is 140 hours:
21 hours of tutorial
80 hours of reading primary and secondary material
39 hours for research and writing of the research paper.
The hours above are an approximate calculation only. Some students read fast and write slow and vice versa.
Assessment method
Evaluation of this course will be on the basis of participation in class discussion (20%) + a written paper of ca. 5,000 words (80%).
Resit: final essay.
ResMa students that take this course will write a paper that reflects the demands of the Research Master. That is, they will have to formulate more complex and original research questions than the MA students, include a critical positioning towards the state of the art of its subject, and produce a longer paper (7000 words including bibliography instead of 5000 words).
Blackboard
Blackboard will be used to provide students with an overview of current affairs, as well as specific information about (components of) the course.
Reading list
James Joyce, Ulysses: Annotated Student’s Edition, with an introduction and notes by Declan Kiberd (Penguin)
Derek Attridge, ed., The Cambridge Companion to James Joyce (2nd edn)
Registration
Enrolment through uSis is mandatory. If you have any questions, please contact the departmental office, tel. 071 527 2251 or mail: ma-literarystudies@hum.leidenuniv.nl
When registering students of the MA Literary studies take priority. The deadline for registration is August 15. All other students should contact the Coordinator of studies: Mr. J. Donkers, MA, P.N. van Eyckhof 3, room 1.01b.
Contact details
Literary Studies student administration Van Wijkplaats 3, room 002. Tel. 071 527 2251 or mail.
Coordinator of studies: Mr. J. Donkers, MA, P.N. van Eyckhof 3, room 1.01b.
Remarks
It will be useful to have read or have basic knowledge of Joyce’s Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man before taking this class.