Back
| Semester | fall semester 2007 |
| Course frequency | Irregular |
| Lecturers |
Werner Brönnimann (werner.broennimann@unibas.ch, Assessor)
Markus Marti-Cimitro (markus.marti@unibas.ch) |
| Content | While the seven deadly sins have lost their validity as a religious rule system in modernity, they arguably live on, having metamorphosed into diverse, sometimes rather discreet, social norms. As an example take sloth: laziness may no longer be considered a sin, but there are numerous social pressures that urge young and older individuals to forgo laid-back inactivity. It will be one of the course's tasks to examine why this should be so and to investigate the rhetoric and persuasion techniques that attempt to make people live their lives in what purports to be a desirable way. The seminar will therefore study gluttony, pride, envy, anger, sloth, greed, and lust both from a historical perspective (for example by reading texts by Langland and Chaucer) as well as from today's point of view, using materials from recent English and American writing as well as from sociological sources. Since the course is a cultural studies project it will attempt to synthesise further artistic expressions of the theme in art and film. |
| Learning objectives | Understanding the aims and methods of an interdisciplinary cultural studies project. Expanding students' knowledge of English and American literary history on the basis of a thematic focus. Training hermeneutic abilities. Enhancing awareness of critical approaches. |
| Bibliography | The texts will be made available to students in electronic form. |
| Admission requirements | Open to students who have successfully attended all literature courses on the introductory level and a 2nd Year Course. |
| Course application | Please register for this course by sending an email both to Markus.Marti[a]unibas.ch and to Werner.Broennimann[a]unibas.ch. You will receive a provisional programme and the reading material for the first session in the last week of the summer break. |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Modul English & American Literature (Master's degree subject: English) Modul Extending the View (Literary and Cultural Studies) (Bachelor's degree subject: Englisch) Modul Focusing on the Discipline (Literary and Cultural Studies) (Bachelor's degree subject: Englisch) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Students are expected to make one oral presentation, to write the minutes of one meeting, to contribute actively to classroom discussion and to attend the course regularly (i.e. no more than three missed meetings). Optional Seminararbeit. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | as often as necessary |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Englisches Seminar |