Comparative Literature

The course examines main points of development in the Anglo-American short story tradition in the 19th and 20th centuries, drawing on central concepts from short fiction theory from Edgar Allan Poe to contemporary theorists. Beyond the much debated question of generic definition, the course takes a variety of approaches to the short story, including: considering the short story in literary history; the impact of modernism and impressionism; the postcolonial short story; varieties of style and narrative technique; and the representation of class, race, ethnicity, and gender in the short story.

This course explores cultures of the French-speaking countries of the south (Maghreb and sub-Saharan Africa), in their plural identities and their universes of reference, in order to better understand them. It studies literary texts and the analysis of films and audiovisual documentaries. Writers from these French-speaking countries accompany readers in discovering the other through literary strategies that prepare for the reception of difference. The course offers readings that will be like intercultural adventures in which the literary technique of the child narrator-character is decisive.

This course explores the ongoing negotiation of rights and responsibilities in the modern Western world as represented in both fiction and nonfiction works. It teaches how to evaluate and interpret texts using the standard conventions of literary analysis (a solid thesis statement, textual evidence, attribution of citations); identify and discuss strategies used in literary and rhetorical texts to comment upon and find meaning in the world; identify and discuss strategies that are used in literary and rhetorical texts to enact change in the world; and compare the discursive strategies used by thinkers from diverse disciplines to ask questions, interpret evidence, make arguments, and express emotions.

This class concentrates on the Latin American modern novel. The course analyzes and studies the relations between society and the works of Borges, Garcia Marquez, Vargas Llosa, and Isabel Allende.

This course in world literature introduces basic knowledge of literature, basic research methods, appreciation perspectives, and cutting-edge phenomena. Students read literature while considering genre, country, literature type and theme, select some classic works of contemporary world literature to analyze them in different research methods. The course selects representative works for analysis and research including selections from Europe, America, Latin America, and East Asia. Literary types include drama, novel, poem, film text, and genres include romanticism, realism, modernism, and postmodernism; topics include fate, love, war, and gender; other regions, types. Genres and motives of literature are briefly introduced.

This course focuses on understanding and analyzing the main changes and important aspects of American culture, society, politics, and history in terms of its influence on Japanese society.  Featuring Japanese academic writings, this course focuses on how Japanese academics have analyzed American cultural and literary topics. 

The first half of the semester features texts written before 1900 while the latter half focuses on stories published after 1900. The analysis of each text, along with its history and social context, fosters an understanding of several aspects of American society and culture.