This course looks at selected works of literature with particular reference to their cultural contexts and thematic developments. Students will continue to practice writing critical essays.
|
| 603-103-MQ |
20th Century Themes: Displaced Persons |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
The 20th century brought change in many forms, and with change comes displacement. In this course we look at various works of literature from the 20th century that involve some form of displacement — be it physical, psychological, technological, social or cultural. While the main focus of the course will be the development of close readings and thematic interpretations of these texts, which will include poems, short stories and a novel, we will also consider the historical contexts out of which the texts were generated. In this way, the course helps us understand how 20th-century literature can be seen as both a response to displacement as well as an effort to find a new place in the challenging new world we find ourselves in now. (George Slobodzian)
The 20th century brought change in many forms, and with change comes displacement. In this course we look at various works of literature from the 20th century that involve some form of displacement — be it physical, psychological, technological, social or cultural. While the main focus of the course will be the development of close readings and thematic interpretations of these texts, which will include poems, short stories and a novel, we will also consider the historical contexts out of which the texts were generated. In this way, the course helps us understand how 20th century literature can be seen as both a response to displacement and an effort to find a new place in the challenging new world we find ourselves in now. (George Slobodzian) |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
21st Century Beowulf |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
With the rise of the “manosphere” and men’s rights movements, the question of what healthy masculinity looks like may be more pressing than ever. Is our only model of maleness tied to a drive towards dominance? Beyond traditional gender roles, what other spaces might exist for men in modern culture, and where does feminism stand on this? Starting with a modern English translation of a 14th-century Arthurian tale, this course will look at how ideals of masculinity have changed, or remained the same, across centuries. Through the character of a medieval knight—an idealized image of masculine strength, honour, and virtue—and through an exploration of how medieval writers and audiences may have viewed these ideals, we can gain insight into our own, modern views. Through historic and contemporary texts, through movies, class discussions, and written and oral assignments, we will explore how authors and readers have perceived these issues over time. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
21st Century Novels |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Reading a good novel is a life-expanding and life-enhancing experience. In this course we will read three, each with a different focus. Possibilities include aspects of Canadian Indigenous experience; life in the near future; Black American experience; and contemporary women's experience. Within these larger contexts, several themes appear: questions of love, family, humanity, technology, heroism, self-knowledge, sacrifice, betrayal, monsters, magic, responsibility, and more. As long-form fiction, novels allow us a sustained and often deeper access to identities and experiences we may otherwise never know. They also connect us more deeply to ourselves. This course has a significant reading load, because that’s how novels roll. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
21st Century Novels and Contexts |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will read three 21st-century novels alongside a range of non-fictional material contextualizing the subjects the novels explore. Though the different novels develop different themes, they all offer, as good novels do, a deep experience of other lives and situations. In doing so, the novels invite us to reflect on a range of human experiences, including our own. Themes explored (and occasionally overlapping) may include the Indigenous experience in Canada; the Black American experience; imagined futures, as explored in speculative fiction; and contemporary women's experience. Varied assignments will allow you to focus on the aspects of the novels that interest you most. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Abandoned Children in Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will consider a range of texts that feature abandoned children, including traditional fairy stories, excerpts from Victorian novels, various short stories and a contemporary novel. Through close analysis of these literary works, students will recognize the recurring motifs and conventions in the depiction of abandoned children. We will consider how different types of abandonment - such as physical, emotional, temporary, permanent - impact the position and purpose of the abandoned child in these texts. In particular, we will explore how authors use the abandoned child to critique social issues such as racism, poverty, and parenting. Students will also develop skills in literary analysis by examining techniques and devices used by authors, such as plot, setting, conflict, characterization, symbolism, metaphor, and various other common elements in literature. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Augustan Satire, 1660-1745 |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will examine themes of the satirists of the Augustan period. Through an examination of the work of Swift, Wycherley, and Pope, we will see how and why these satirists reacted with moral outrage to the encroaching of what has become the modern world, with its love of individualism, democracy, business, and science. The course will limit itself to the genre of satire in the period; so the study of that genre and its history, as well as the study of the broader historical period and the cultural context these authors were writing in, will be our concern. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Banned Books |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Book censorship has been and continues to be a contentious issue in the literary world, raising questions of governmental control over literature and freedom of expression. Book banning usually occurs with political, religious or moral motives but, ironically, often has the effect of popularizing the text, causing people to go to great lengths to seek it out for its forbidden wisdom or pleasure (Eve's apple comes to mind). In this course, we will be looking at "challenged" modern and contemporary literature, including poetry, graphic novels, and literature for children and young adults, in order to address questions of censorship and the way banned or challenged texts have shaped and continue to shape our social and literary landscape. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Being Blitzed: British Literature of World War II |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course explores the various representations of the Second World War in British literature. While the focus falls on the literature of the blitz, many other thematic preoccupations (borders, propaganda, patriotism, love, the domestic and the foreign, the public and the private, reconstruction and damage) emerge that speak to the wide variety of writings and perspectives on the war. The Second World War was the most momentous set of events in the twentieth century, and inspired a wealth of writing: factual and fictional texts that explore an immense range of experiences. In addition to conveying different aspects of the war’s actuality, these works also raise important questions about the relation of art to life, the relationship between the individual and the nation or state, the role of women in otherwise male-dominated narratives of war, and about politics and culture. Course readings include poems, stories, essays, radio broadcasts, documentary/feature films, and a short novel. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Book Club |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course looks at selected works of contemporary literature from a student-directed perspective. Although students will examine texts with reference to their cultural contexts and thematic developments, the goal of the course is to have open discussions of the books based on the students’ initial responses and thoughts about the readings, and then have them work toward an understanding of the books as literature. Major assessments will be based on critical analyses of the texts. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Borders & Frames: Migration and Displacement in Graphic Narrative |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
How do comics tell the stories of those who cross borders, flee violence, or search for home? This course explores the powerful intersection of visual storytelling and human movement, examining how graphic narratives—memoirs, reportage, and fictionalized accounts—depict the lived experiences of migration and displacement. From refugee journeys and asylum struggles to the politics of borders and identity, students will engage with diverse works by artists from across the globe who use the comic form to challenge dominant narratives, humanize statistics, and amplify marginalized voices. Through close readings, critical discussions, and visual analysis, we will investigate how image and text work together to represent trauma, resilience, and belonging. This course invites students to think across disciplines—literature, human rights, political geography, and visual culture—while asking, What can graphic narratives reveal about the global condition of displacement? |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Complicity: Memory, History, Narrative |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Dangerous Desire: Love, Loss, and Loneliness |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course uses critical theory and fictional stories to investigate what drives people's behaviours and shapes their psychology. We read fictional stories that raise thematic issues such as capitalism, sex and death in conjunction with scholarly texts that explain Marxist, Freudian and Lacanian methods of analysis. The application of Marxist, Freudia, and Lacanian literary theory informs our close reading of Canadian and English literature and guides our interpretation of underlying, figurative meaning. Using these social and psychoanalytic literary theories, we examine what motivates people to make seemingly irrational and self-destructive decisions despite the damaging consequences—whether these motivations come from desire externally rooted in preexisting social structures or are internally rooted in the unconscious. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Deceptive Desire |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course uses critical theory and fictional stories to investigate what drives people's behaviours and shapes their psychology. We read fictional stories that raise thematic issues such as capitalism, sex and death in conjunction with scholarly texts that explain Marxist, Freudian, and Lacanian methods of analysis. The application of Marxist, Freudian and Lacanian literary theory informs our close reading of Canadian and English literature, and guides our interpretation of underlying figurative meaning. Using these social and psychoanalytic literary theories, we examine what motivates people to make seemingly irrational and self-destructive decisions despite the damaging consequences—whether these motivations come from desire externally rooted in preexisting social structures or are internally rooted in the unconscious. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Encounters with Death |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will try to answer some questions we usually avoid considering. Why do we have to die? Does death give life meaning? How have attitudes about death changed over time? How do these attitudes relate to cultural context? Above all, how can reflecting on death help us to live better? We will address these and other questions through a close examination of an eclectic selection of texts representing diverse approaches to this grim topic: myth, allegory, satire, gallows humour, ratiocination, and others. Authors include John Milton, Edgar Allan Poe, John Donne, Emily Dickinson, Donald Barthelme, Sylvia Plath, Leo Tolstoy, and Amy Hempel. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Faery Loves & Lais |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course explores one of literature's oldest themes: the erotic encounter between humans and otherworldly beings. Beginning with the Breton lai, a short narrative poem spread by 12th-century minstrels, we'll investigate the rich tradition of fairy lovers in literature. Rooted in Celtic myth, these lais introduce supernatural beings with magical powers. Female fairy lovers are typically young, beautiful, and richly dressed, capable of helping or seducing humans. Male fairy lovers often appear as knights in red armor, riding magical white horses impossibly fast on land and underwater. We'll first examine anonymous lais from early storytellers, then study three literary lais by Marie de France. The course culminates with a modern exploration of the fairy lover theme through Graham Joyce's novel Some Kind of Fairy Tale, which follows Tara, a 16-year-old who returns home after 20 years, claiming abduction by a handsome fairy man and challenging her family's understanding of reality. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Family Dramas |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Family Dramas will explore contemporary plays written in or translated into English that have as their primary focus family in all its various forms. Dark themes such as the corrosive effect of secrets, the potentially suffocating burden of parental expectations and the soul-destroying effect of emotional and physical violence will mingle alongside the more hopeful, though often quite complicated, themes of loving parental sacrifice and familial affection. Playwrights are from different countries and are of varying races, ethnicities and genders so we can appreciate differences and overlapping concerns. All of these plays are critically acclaimed and have enjoyed long runs and, in some cases, adaptation into film. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Family Dramas: From Ancient Greek to Now |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
Jealously, justice, revenge, hubris and fate — in other words, the world of Ancient Greek drama. This course will pair Sophocles and Euripides' seminal Ancient Greek plays with modern and contemporary adaptations to see how the concerns of those who came before us echo in our world today. Our reading of each Greek play will be followed by the adaptation, allowing us a framework for understanding the enduring themes in more current contexts. (Alyson Grant)
Jealousy, justice, revenge, hubris, and fate — in other words, the world of Ancient Greek drama. This course will pair the seminal Ancient Greek plays of Sophocles and Euripides with modern and contemporary adaptations to see how the concerns of those who came before us echo in our world today. Our reading of each Greek play will be followed by the adaptation, allowing us a framework for understanding the enduring themes in more current contexts. (Alyson Grant) |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Family in Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The concept of a family is a difficult thing to define. According to the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, family is “a group of people related by blood, legal or common-law marriage, or adoption” (500). Throughout the semester, we will examine the difficult concept of the family as it is practiced in North America. To do so, we will analyze various narratives (both written and visual) to see how such an apparently simple concept is represented. Our goal is to understand how, in narrative form and through literary analysis, concepts of family are interrogated and how we, as readers, respond to the issues raised in the texts we will examine. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Gender and Utopia |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will read various science fiction texts (novels and short stories) that share the goal of analyzing and re-imagining the role of gender in society. We will take as a starting point the feminist assumption that gender is socially constructed and that the meaning of sexual differences is never natural, essential, or self-evident, but is always a matter of (social) interpretation. We will be particularly interested in later writers of science fiction who, beginning in the 1960s, interrogate and challenge the male dominance of earlier examples of the genre and their (mis)representations of women and other sexual nonconformists including gay or bisexual men and women and transgender individuals. Key authors include Ursula K. LeGuin, James Tiptree Jr., Joanna Russ, Samuel R. Delany, Octavia Butler, and John Varley, among others. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Gender Issues in Drama |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines the various gender issues that are addressed in four or five highly acclaimed plays that challenge gender role constructs and stereotyping. Plays will be selected from the modern and contemporary periods and students will be encouraged to explore their historical and social contexts. The class will read aloud from the plays and act out a scene in a group. Attendance at a relevant play is mandatory as well as a written review of it. Personal opinions and insights are welcome. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Go to Hell! |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
How do you get there? What’s it like? What’ll you do there? Who (or what) will you meet? Luckily, we don’t have to go through Hell to find out: we can look into (among others) prose translations of Homer’s Odyssey, Virgil’s Aenead, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, and the poetry of Dante’s Inferno. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Gods and Monsters |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Gods and monsters haunt our collective psyche—and thus our art and literature. The enduring fascination we have with these creatures, monstrous or glorious, stems from how much they speak to our own nature—the parts we are most proud—and most wary—of investigating. The core aim of the class is to investigate and analyze stories about monsters, gods and mythology as jumping-off points to ponder, analyze, and discuss current issues and what they - and our enduring love for them - can tell us about ourselves and the world we live in. Students will read stories and plays by Shelley, Stoker, Dear, Barker, Green, and Buehlman. The class is heavily built around group work and creative projects. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Grief, Loss, and Magic |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
“‘Tis better to have loved and lost/Than never to have loved at all.” (Tennyson) “Between grief and nothing, I will take grief.” (Faulkner) Losing something or someone important, and grieving that loss is a universal, unavoidable and formative human experience. The map of a lifetime can be traced through the intricate series of losses, small and big: we can lose other people, we can lose ideals, relationships, friendships, countries, identity, youth, dignity, freedom, beliefs, and all kinds of metaphoric battles. How do we deal with this? How do we grieve, do we talk about it, and how do we talk about it? What is it that allows Tennyson and Faulkner to proclaim the above confidently? What kinds of magic are humans capable of conjuring (and turning into a reality) in order to make sense of their losses? In this class, we’ll speculate on these and other questions with the help of a novella, a few short stories and poems, and a couple of films. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Heroism and Culture |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course emphasizes the study and consideration of the literary, cultural and human significance of selected works of the Western and non-Western literary traditions from Antiquity to Modern period. An important goal of the class is to promote an understanding of the works in their cultural, historical and political contexts and of the enduring human values which unite the different literary traditions. As we move through the texts, we will pay particular attention to the question of the kinds of values that these foundational works were meant to instill in their audiences. We will consider what, for each culture, constitutes the exemplary person, often known as the “hero” or “heroine,” and what each work has to say about human nature and ethics, gender issues, and the ‘Other.’ The format of the course will include class discussions, short lectures, group work, writing assignments and essays, reading quizzes, and film screening. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Ibsen and Pinter |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will explore six plays by two very important yet very different figures in the history of world theatre: Henrik Ibsen, a Scandinavian dramatist whose works were produced in the mid- to late nineteenth century, and Harold Pinter, a renowned British playwright of the mid- to late twentieth century. Special emphasis will be devoted to the authors' choice of subjects, themes and range of dramatic styles (realism, naturalism, symbolism, theatre of the absurd) and to the social and philosophical climate in which their works were created. The written work in the course will be focused on giving clear expression to our personal reactions to these plays. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Indigenous Perspectives |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines contemporary Indigenous literature from Canada. Some of the themes in this course include colonial assimilation, storytelling, the role of women, queer theory, identity politics, and healing. This course serves as a solid introduction to contemporary Native literature through its range of authors from various communities. Colonization and the development of subsequent trauma will be critiqued throughout the course. We will take a closer look at the complexity of identity and belonging through the work of various Indigenous authors in various literary genres. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Law and Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Law and literature are not rival activities; they are complementary and often preoccupied with the same subjects: human lives and the human heart. In a court of law, lawyers and witnesses typically tell stories that captivate juries and judges. They frame their arguments, or what has happened to them, narratively, very much as a short story writer or a novelist would. Similarly, short stories, novels, plays, and at times poems urge us to think about and arbitrate social and internal conflict. In this course, we will look at the ways in which the law is often literary and appeals to our need to hear stories and feel emotions, as well as to our sense of what is right. We will also study the manner in which literature, in turn, asks us to think as prosecutors, judges, and jurors as we weigh and “cross-examine” the storytelling found in literary texts. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Literary Themes |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Literature and Shell Shock |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This class investigates how the “self” is constructed in works of autofiction. Autofiction — “autobiographical fiction” (AF) — is a genre blending the author’s perspective on real events with fiction, blurring the line between the two. Some authors treat AF as a safe way to explore memoir without having to claim that their works are 100% true; others use the blurring of the two parent genres to critique the way claims of “objectivity” are deployed socially to uplift certain perspectives while erasing others. We will begin by familiarizing ourselves with the genre by reading theoretical excerpts and authors’ perspectives on autofictional writing. Next, we will use this knowledge to study works of AF in both short story and novel form, comparing the different “selves” depicted through each author-narrator. Apart from analytical assignments (quizzes, discussion questions, essays), evaluation for the course will involve personal reflection in the form of journals and creative works. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Literature and Tourism |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
What do reading and travel have in common, and in what ways have tourism and literature been influenced by each other? Considering these questions through a selection of literary works that explore the role of travel and tourism in the modern world. We will trace how tourism has been represented in literature from E. M. Forster’s 1908 satire of English tourists abroad in A Room with a View to Yun-Ko-eun’s recent speculative novel The Disaster Tourist and discuss topics such as the enlightening and disorienting effects of travel, the meaning of authenticity, the legacy of colonialism, and the future of tourism in a time of climate crisis. By using discussions, group work, and in-class writing activities to deepen our understanding of the texts, students will explore what can be learned from thinking about literature and tourism together and consider what it means to be a conscientious reader, writer, and traveller in an age of rapid globalization and unprecedented mobility. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Love, Loss, and Loneliness |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course explores various ways people respond to disappointment and tragedy. Oftentimes, these reactions are self-destructive and irrational — at least from an outsider’s limited perspective. Through analysis of texts by authors from Canada, the United States, and England, we investigate motivations for harmful behaviours and choices that lead to detrimentally influencing interpersonal relationships. We read texts that address matters of the heart and the body while exploring thematic issues of solitude, heartache, and death. We start by asking general questions such as, do we control our desires or do our desires control us? And progress to more precise interrogations such as, what compels people to maintain damaging relationships despite the consequences? And, of course, we propose answers to our questions. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Material Culture in Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will employ some of the tools of material culture analysis to examine literary representations of “the stuff of everyday life,” including domestic spaces, products and practices, clothing, toys, or other everyday goods. We will note how material objects are used to mediate relationships and convey social meaning. In other words, we will consider how “material culture makes culture material.” Students will write a 1000-word essay developing from their study of a category of material culture represented in one or more texts to be studied in the course. Students will also be responsible for an oral presentation, and will write a “Biography of a Thing” essay incorporating findings from secondary research and based on an interview with a relative. One assignment may be linked to an exhibition at the McCord Museum or the Canadian Centre for Architecture. Material Culture in Literature is listed as part of 海角涩区's Women’s/Gender Studies Certificate. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Metamorphosis in Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Webster’s Dictionary defines “metamorphosis” as “a transformation, as by magic or sorcery” or as “a marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function.” As we will see, writers and artists throughout the centuries have been fascinated by the theme of physical and psychological change. Beginning with the ancient Roman poet Ovid’s collection of poems, written in 1 C.E. and entitled the Metamorphoses, we will analyze how this recurring theme is explored in Shakespeare’s Othello, Shaw’s Pygmalion, Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Kafka’s The Metamorphosis. Towards the end of term, we will read Neil LaBute’s play The Shape of Things, which is the culmination of our course’s theme since it includes many references and allusions to the transformations explored in the works above. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Migrations |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course explores migration and its repercussions as a recurring theme in contemporary literature. Course readings revolve around ideas of displacement, refuge, alienation, re-invention and belonging, as well as home, family, tradition and language. The course involves brief lectures and discussion in the online forum. Students will write about the class texts and do a final assignment inspired by their own life experience. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Moby Dick and the Buddhist Tradition |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Modern Love |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will look at portrayals of romantic love in contemporary short fiction. Each writer on the syllabus takes a unique approach to defining love and exploring it through language. Inevitably, their explorations intersect with questions of identity, power, societal expectations, collective fantasies, and individual psychologies. Students are expected to participate regularly in group work and class discussions, as well as completing in-class writing exercises and reading quizzes. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Nature and the Four Seasons |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Nuturing Nature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will be examining literature that focuses on the environment and the complicated relationship between humans and the natural world. While nature has sustained humanity, we have not given back, leading to the current environmental crises we are experiencing. Most of the works we read will be from the twentieth century onwards, but we will take the occasional look back in time. We will be reading some poems, short stories and a novel, but most of the readings will be selections from memoirs and essays. The writers – people like Alice Munro, T.C. Boyle, Richard Powers, Hope Jahren, Roger Deakin, Bill McGibben, J. B. MacKinnon, Elizabeth Kolbert, Jonathan Franzen – will take us through gardens, dirt, trees, forests, waterways and wild places. We will be introduced to travellers, conservationists, ecoterrorists, loggers and people like ourselves. Through these landscapes, literary and real, we will come to understand some of the major challenges facing the earth today. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Reality and Authentic Human Being in the Works of Philip K. Dick |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This class will study literary works by author Philip K. Dick, seeking to understand the relevance of his dystopic and post-apocalyptic worlds to our own. Adapted into no fewer than fifteen feature-length films (including Blade Runner 2049 by Montreal’s Denis Villeneuve), PKD’s body of work has had a monumental influence on modern culture—even if the author himself was not alive to see it. To navigate the multitude of themes explored in his writing, our class will begin with the topics PKD considered central to his writing: “What is reality?” and “What constitutes the authentic human being?” From these two questions alone, PKD provoked reflection on the meaning of empathy, the importance of community, the potential harm of artificial intelligence, the dangers associated with control of information, the serious threats of both authoritarianism and nuclear apocalypse, the value of caring for marginalized peoples, and even the existence of God, religion, and life after death." |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Remember the humans? Posthumanism and Sci-Fi |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Remember the Humans? Posthumanism in Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Humans are very good at placing our own concerns above those of other life forms. Indeed, seeing ourselves as the apex of the species hierarchy has caused untold damage to our planet, to other species, and even to our fellow humans. Increasingly, scientists and philosophers are grappling with the possibility of a posthuman future in which humans are transformed, displaced from our positions as Lords of the Earth, or simply gone altogether. Of course, Speculative Fiction has been exploring these possibilities for decades through storytelling. Sci-Fi gives us imagined futures that help us to reconsider our place in the universe. And maybe that’s a good thing! In this course, we will look through the portal of fiction into a multiverse of posthuman worlds. We will explore short stories, novels, graphic texts, films and podcasts, and use active learning, discussion, and creative and analytical writing to experiment with imagining the implications of our own displacement. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Shakespearean Conversions |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
What experiences in life change us forever? Are we changed in a moment of recognition, or slowly, imperceptibly, little-by-little and day-by-day? Because of the volatile religious reformations of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, these questions about conversion, identity, and an individual’s place in the community became central cultural anxieties and concerns, and these concerns have remained at the centre of western culture even to today. Taking “conversion” as our theme, in this course we will examine how Shakespeare, writing at the height of the Reformation, engages with ideas about conversion in his poetry and plays, thereby bringing conversion into the imaginative realm of myth and theatre. We will study Shakespeare’s plays and narrative poems first in their historical and cultural contexts, and more broadly, we will consider how modern performances of his art, on film, stage, and even in the classroom, offer living opportunities for secularized forms of conversion. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Southern Stories: Themes in Fiction of the American South |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Journey through the rich and often haunting landscapes of the American South in this exploration of fiction, autobiography and film. We’ll examine how Southern writers and filmmakers portray the region’s distinct dialects, oral traditions, and cultural history—from slavery and segregation to social movements and the emergence of diverse, intersectional “Souths” that challenge the idea of a single Southern identity. These include Souths that are urban, queer, undead, activist, Indigenous, and surreal. We'll explore themes such as the burden of the past, family and community ties, systemic racism, violence, religious faith, humour, and the gothic and grotesque. The course also introduces key literary techniques—stream of consciousness, shifting points of view, unreliable narrators, allegory, irony, horror, fragmentation, and juxtaposition—as ways of expressing deep connections to, and questions about, identity, memory, and the shifting Southern landscape. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Southern Stories: Themes in Literature of the American South |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Journey through the rich and often haunting landscapes of the American South in this exploration of fiction, autobiography, and film. We’ll examine how Southern writers and filmmakers portray the region’s distinct dialects, oral traditions, and cultural history—from slavery and segregation to social movements and the emergence of diverse, intersectional “Souths” that challenge the idea of a single Southern identity. These include Souths that are urban, queer, undead, activist, Indigenous, and surreal. We'll explore themes such as the burden of the past, family and community ties, systemic racism, violence, religious faith, humour, and the gothic and grotesque. The course also introduces key literary techniques—stream of consciousness, shifting points of view, unreliable narrators, allegory, irony, horror, fragmentation, and juxtaposition—as ways of expressing deep connections to, and questions about, identity, memory, and the shifting Southern landscape. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Sports, Literature, and Culture |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Text and Trail |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Descriptions for Course: |
A story is a kind of path. In American fiction, characters often figure on real or metaphorical trails. This course will consider some of the innovative ways in which American authors have presented the path as a central motif in their writing — and also how the textual tracks that these authors have laid down as narratives allow us to better understand how and who we are. (Sabine Leger)
A story is a kind of path, and fictional characters often figure on real or metaphorical trails. This course will consider some of the innovative ways in which writers have presented the path as a central motif in their work—and also how the textual tracks that these authors have laid down as narrative allow us better to understand who and what we are. (Sabine Leger) |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Black Canadian Experience |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Although Black Canadians are often considered to be only recent immigrants, we have been here since the early colonial era, contributing to the fabric of Canada. This thematic course shares works reflective of the Canadian experience of those of African and Afro-Caribbean descent since that time. It seeks to engage with history as well as art in genres as varied as poetry, biography, the novel, and documentary and fictional films. Topics to be covered include slavery, the world wars, postwar immigration, the 1968 Congress of Black Writers, and the 1969 Sir George Williams Protest. The objective is to give students an appreciation of Canadian citizenship from this perspective. Among the authors who works will be studied are Suzette Mayr, Cecil Foster, and H. Nigel Thomas. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Drama of Ibsen and Strindberg |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will explore six plays by two very important yet very different figures in the history of world theatre: Henrik Ibsen, a Scandinavian dramatist whose works were produced in the mid-to-late nineteenth century, and Harold Pinter, a renowned British playwright of the mid-to-late twentieth century. Special emphasis will be devoted to their authors' choice of subjects, themes and range of dramatic styles (realism, naturalism, symbolism, theatre of the absurd) and to the social and philosophical climate in which their works were created. The written work in the course will be focused on giving clear expression to our personal reactions to these plays. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Green Fuse |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
“Ecopoetics” is the study of literature from an ecological perspective, questioning how nature is represented in literary art and what values that representation embodies. In this course, we study Canadian nature poetry, from the Eighteenth to the Twenty-first century, with an eye sensitive to those concerns that inform our “green age.” |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Immigrant Experience |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines short fiction, essays, and novels depicting the experiences of immigrants. We will focus on contemporary fiction exploring the lives of newcomers from places such as Latin America, South-East Asia, and the former Soviet Union. The course pursues questions of cultural adaptation, generational conflict, marginalization, racism, and the abiding dreams of political freedom and economic success in a new society. It necessarily involves some consideration of the history of immigration patterns — the forces that have induced or obliged people to migrate, the nature of the societies they leave behind, the policies and attitudes that greet them in their new countries. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Individual |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course is an introduction to psychological character reading through fiction and non-fiction, film and television. Starting with the theories of Carl Jung, we will learn about the Hero Journey, the anti-hero and the development of personality and traits. Readings could include short stories by George Saunders and a novel or memoir of coming of age. Screenings could include Pinocchio (1940), Taxi Driver (1975), The Master (2012), or the series Severance (2022-25). |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Magic of Art |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Confronted with the transitory nature of their existence, humans have always looked for ways to transcend their physical and metaphysical limitations. One of the oldest and most consistent human activities that takes us out of this existential confinement is art. Creating and witnessing art allows us to connect with something deep within us and to reach out into the wider world, dead or alive. How does art invest us with an almost superhuman power to reimagine or reinvent reality, make sense of our own and other lives, and get glimpses into what’s usually inaccessible or unknown to us? In its function of connecting, transcending, awing and fulfilling, could art be seen as a secular equivalent of religion? We will examine these and related questions in a few stories, poems and essays. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The New Entity: The Second Coming |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Is there already an alien intelligence among us, restructuring how we learn, reshaping our society, and reshaping our conception of the self? Is the landscape of our work and how we assign value shifting under our feet? How will artificial intelligence change the world and humanity? Like ancient navigators reading the signs of the coming weather in the sky or modern seismologists measuring the likelihood of an earthquake, in this class we will glean what we can from novels, poems, movies, and television about what might happen soon. Together we will look at the work of social historians, economists, and journalists as they project the impact AI will have on society. This constellation of texts charts the possibilities of how AI might reconfigure both society and notions of a human soul. We may be left with more questions than answers, but the process will help clarify what makes us human. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Past: Memory, History and Narrative |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines the complex and often fraught interplay between memory and narrative, particularly in the face of traumatic historical and personal events. How do we use memory to revisit and reconstruct the past, especially that which is difficult to face? How do we use narrative to understand but also evade these histories, both individual and collective? Looking at the work of such writers as Kazuo Ishiguro, W.G. Sebald, Colson Whitehead, Nona Fernandez, and Mariana Enriquez, we will pose these questions alongside specific historical milieus and events, from the Holocaust to post-World War II Japan, from the Jim Crow South to the Dirty War and “disappeared” of South America. In these texts, the past is never past, and the characters and narrators we encounter both retreat within and turn away from their own memories, in some cases grappling with their own complicity and guilt, in others finding moments of reckoning and even defiance. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Quest Pattern |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will look at various European texts in English translation to trace a well-known theme in literature, that of the hero's transformative quest for a transcendent goal after having left his or her community of origin and undergone a difficult initiation. Different quests will be examined and the quest pattern will become the template for analysis. The class format will consist of brief lectures, followed by work done in class. The goal of the course will be to develop student analytical autonomy. Films will occasionally be shown. Throughout the semester, a great deal of emphasis will be placed on the writing of sound and intelligent essays and on proper citation rules. Strong note-taking skills are vital to this class. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Red and the Black |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Often considered among the greatest novels ever written, The Red and the Black — the one major book we’ll read -- is a phenomenal introduction to the art and themes of the novel and the works of one of the world’s great writers, French novelist Stendhal. It's the story of a young man making his way in the world in early-19th century France; there's some love, there's some tragedy. The novel is a brick – 500 pages (approx.). Students should be prepared for a reading challenge. But if you put in the effort, it becomes a page-turner, and reading it can be a memorable life experience. We will read the novel in English translation, but students will be encouraged to read at least some excerpts in French (this course thus complements those courses that prepare students for the French Exit Test). |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
The Uncanny |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Themes in Autobiographical Writing |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will read excerpts from various twentieth-century American autobiographies and memoirs, and we will discuss them in connection to works of autobiographical fiction by the same authors. Students will continue to learn how to write effective interpretive essays. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Themes in Children's Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Themes in Children's Literature (with New School) |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In this course, we will read a wide range of texts, from fairy tales to contemporary children’s literary texts. In addition, through discussion and writing, students will develop skills in 1) thinking about and responding to children’s literature, 2) articulating their personal views and values, and 3) making a formal analysis of literary texts. Students will also have the opportunity to experiment with writing about their own experience as children and writing their own texts for children. A variety of methods will be used to engage students in critical reading, discussion and writing. Included among these methods will be short lectures, video presentations and discussion, small group and class discussions of readings, and individual and group writing projects and oral presentations. Students should be prepared to work in small groups. Some writing assignments will be completed during class time. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Themes in Literary Horror – Monsters Within: Evil in the Ordinary |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Themes in Literary Horror explores the enduring connection between horror literature and the fears, anxieties, and fascinations of society. Through novels, short stories, poetry, film, and autobiographical writing, students will examine how horror evolves across genres and historical moments. From gothic classics to contemporary psychological narratives, this course investigates how horror reflects cultural concerns such as identity, morality, power, and the unknown. What do monsters, hauntings and grotesque transformations say about society and readers of horror literature? By analyzing recurring themes such as isolation, madness, the supernatural, and body horror, students will gain insight into both the literary techniques that define the genre and the social commentary embedded within it. Critical reading, discussion and writing assignments will encourage students to question how horror responds to, resists, or reinforces dominant ideologies. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Themes in Shakespeare |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The course will explore aspects of theme in Shakespeare’s As You Like It (comedy),Othello (tragedy) and The Tempest (romance). We will study the plays in the historical context of their production/staging and with a view to understanding their enduring appeal. Historical background texts and other useful sources will be made available online. In this course we will read and discuss literature critically, closely, and sensitively and learn to develop effective spoken and written arguments. The course will include instruction in the revision and editing of texts. All major assignments will adhere to MLA guidelines re. format, references, and presentation |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Themes in Victorian Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Britain is often referred to as the first modern society, and indeed, it saw the rise of many things that we now consider ‘modern,’ and along with that, many of the problems we now associate with the modern world. In this course, we will read one of the greatest novels from the period, Great Expectations (1861), by its most famous novelist, Charles Dickens, and use it as a way of analyzing the people of the era’s ideas on issues like the status of women in society, the rise of the machine and industrialization, the problem of rampant urbanization, the destruction of the natural environment and the treatment of the poor and the ‘other.’ |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Time Travel in Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Although predominantly considered a theme of science fiction, the concept of time travel has popularity beyond the issues surrounding the scientific possibility of travelling in time itself, made theoretically possible by Einstein. Since time affects everyone, a wide spectrum of authors has explored what it might mean to travel in time, be it to the past or the future. But time travel is far more than simply about poking into the past to change something undesirable or popping into the future to have a peek at where things might be going. The device of travelling in time is more about the present and how we feel about it, usually that something could — and sometimes should — be changed to make life better. This course will explore how time travel — and time itself — is explored in a variety of texts. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Utopia / Dystopia |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course examines the theme of utopia/dystopia in literature and its evolution and metamorphosis into fantasy, science fiction and political satire. Beginning with Thomas More’s Utopia, we will consider what the word 'utopia’ means and look at some short fiction it has inspired from writers such as H.G. Wells, Joanna Russ, and others. We will then cross over the line to dystopia, utopia’s dark and cynical underside, and consider two longer contemporary works: George Orwell’s 1984 and Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle. At the conclusion of the course, students will try to determine why this theme resonates with many writers and provides inspiration for the building of fantastic imaginary worlds that are ultimately an extension of our own living dreams, while also unearthing nightmares that most immediately reveal our fear of our own time and place in history. Major works studied include 1984 and Cat’s Cradle. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Voices Across Contemporary Quebecois Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course aims to initiate students to contemporary Quebecois literature. We will discuss how the literature we read (two novels and a few short stories) reflects the current realities of Quebecois society. Two threads that will run through all the texts we read are community and identity. How does the intersection of identity, language, and community inform our particular realities in Quebec? How can reading Quebecois literature give us greater insight into ourselves and those we pass on the street every day? A special feature of this course is that we will engage in frequent collaborative activities with students from a French course with a similar theme, titled "Voix croisées dans la littérature québécoise contemporaine.” The aim is opening ourselves to as many varied perspectives as possible. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Windrush: Caribbean British Literature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
Windrush refers to the postwar generation of Caribbean people arriving in the United Kingdom. Beginning in 1948 and lasting until 1971, these migrants, who arrived as British subjects from part of the empire, would go on to make a huge impression on their new country. Their descendants now run into the fourth generation, and whether in sport, media, or the arts, have changed the U.K. and its idea of itself. This course will look at history, autobiography, and literature (poetry, short story and novel) to come to an understanding of this key element of 20th and 21st century Britain. Among the focuses that arise are identity, race, politics and gender. This course is part of the Women and Gender Studies Certificate. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Woman with Agency |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
To have agency is to be able to exert some control over one’s life: to be an active subject rather than a passive object. Women in patriarchal societies have historically been denied equal agency to that of men and still face barriers to fully realizing their goals for themselves, particularly if other factors such as racial prejudice, ableism, ageism, class discrimination, homophobia, and/or transphobia are involved. In this course students will explore a number of themes related to women asserting their agency, often against norms of their times and places. Novels, essays, and short stories by a diversity of women and nonbinary authors (included because they were assigned female at birth and discuss that experience) are among the course's required works. The relevance of historical and cultural context will be considered in our discussion of works in the course. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Words of Love: On Literary Depictions of Love |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
“Love” is among the most malleable words in the English language. We encounter the word on a near daily basis, but its definition is impossible to pin down. Love is at once universal and transcendent, and deeply personal and historical. This course, through the careful investigation of a range of texts from different genres and historical periods, asks you to contemplate diverse literary depictions of love and their consequences. We will consider the medieval romance and courtly love, the fairy tale and true love, queer literature and forbidden love. Students will be encouraged to understand, appreciate, and analyze works of literature, and to write critically about these works by developing their own ideas in the form of a literary essay. Class time will be divided between lectures, class discussions, group work, and in-class assignments. Assignments include reading quizzes, in-class brainstorming and writing exercises, homework (esp. reading), and major essays. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Writing About Nature |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
The description for this course is not available at this time.
Please check with the Program Coordinator. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Writing the Great War |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
This course will examine how the First World War (1914-1918) transformed Western society and played a significant role in shaping the culture, values, and geography of the modern world. After a brief introduction to the concept of warfare, students will move to an examination of the Great War’s literature—primarily poetry and excerpts from memoirs. The class will focus on how soldiers responded to the physical and psychological trauma of the War but will also examine writing by non-combatants to see how the effects of the War were felt well beyond its battlefields. |
|
| 603-103-MQ |
Year Zero: Writing Around Punk Rock 1976-1978 |
2 - 2 - 3 |
60 |
|
| Description for Course: |
In the 1970’s Britain was a bleak place for many, especially for the young. Unemployment was high, there seemed to be no hope. Your choices, particularly if you were of the working class, were largely (and perhaps stereotypically), unemployment, the army or a factory job; at least, so it seemed to many. This is the framework of Punk Rock, a musical movement and, in Britain particularly, a social movement as well. This course will explore a variety of writing around this movement. Starting with 1976 (and a little before) and moving to 1978 (and a little after) we will investigate a selection of lyrics, videos, essays, journalism, biography and other fiction and nonfiction work in an attempt to define the movement and examine the resonance which is still felt to this day. Topics to be covered (amongst others) deal with questions of class, income equality, educational opportunities, race, gender discrimination, lgbqia2+ inclusion, and DIY philosophy. |
|
|
|
