ENGL 6707

Theory and Method

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2023-2024.

This course juxtaposes selected significant theoretical concepts and ensuing critical methodologies from the mid-twentieth century to the current moment, including poststructuralism, marxist theory, critical race theory, gender theory, new materialism, and eco-criticism. We will engage with major conceptual statements, as well as illustrative and symptomatic methods of critique. Thus, the course will include reflection on the nature, status, and impact of critique itself, as a signal of the place of humanistic inquiry in intellectual, ethical, and political contexts. Theoretical readings will include statements by Jacques Derrida, Fredric Jameson, Judith Butler, Stephen Greenblatt, Cornel West, Jane Bennett, and Ursula Heise. Explorations of method will offer opportunities for students to test concepts in relation to their own critical practice, and to project a theoretical rationale for their experience as critics.

When Offered Fall or Spring.

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