Course Description
A study of important films about the American South and their perspectives on the history and culture of the region; the literary sources on which many of the films are based.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Graduate students will watch films in addition to those on the
undergraduate syllabus and will read additional secondary
materials and scholarship both on the source texts for the
films and on the films themselves. They will present to the
class a 15-20 minute oral report on a film not covered in class
that considers the film in the context of the themes and issues
of the course. This report will be an opportunity both for
critical and cultural interpretation and also teaching the
topic. One week after delivery of the report students will
submit a written version. By the end of the term graduate
students will propose and justify a topic for, and then
research and write, a 5000-word critical paper that will
investigate some dimension of the subjects, themes, issues, and
materials explored in the course. Students will be asked to
think of the paper as an intermediate step towards production
of a paper for delivery at a professional conference or for
publication.
Athena Title
Films about the American South
Undergraduate Prerequisite
Two 2000-level ENGL courses or (one 2000-level ENGL course and one 3000-level ENGL course) or (one 2000-level ENGL course and one 2000-level CMLT course)
Graduate Prerequisite
Permission of department
Semester Course Offered
Offered every year.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The course will provide students with an enhanced appreciation and understanding of the following: the relationship of literature and film; how to speak and write critically and analytically about literature and film; consistent with the English Department's recommendation on writing, this class will require at least twenty pages of written work, both high- and low-stakes, over the course of the semester. some important films about the American South and their sources, especially literary sources; how the history and culture of the American South are portrayed in literature and film, and how the South sometimes serves as a metaphor for issues extending well beyond regional boundaries; how race, class, gender, history, economics, religion, ideology, and other aspects, often less tangible and more abstract, of the human condition provide the substance of literature and film. Graduate students will be assigned to watch films in addition to those on the undergraduate syllabus and will read additional secondary materials and scholarship both on the source texts for the films and on the films themselves. They will present to the class a fifteen- to twenty-minute oral report on a film not covered in class will consider the film in the context of the themes and issues the course explores. This report will be an opportunity both for critical and cultural interpretation and also teaching the topic. One week following delivery of the report students will submit a written version. By the end of the term graduate students will propose and justify a topic for, and then research and write, a 5000-word critical paper that will investigate some dimension of the subjects, themes, issues, and materials explored in the course. Students will be asked to think of the paper as an intermediate step towards production of a paper for delivery at a professional conference or for publication. The paper will be assessed both on the quality and execution of its argument as well as on its suitability as a conference presentation or publication. Graduate students will be graded on the basis of the quality of their participation in the course, effectiveness of their writing, mastery of the vocabulary and concepts used in the discussion of literature and of film, reasonable knowledge of and familiarity with basic scholarship, and the maturity and depth of their thinking as evidenced in the final paper and other writing for the class.
Topical Outline
This course will cover a range of film types and categories. It might be organized chronologically, or thematically, or in some other fashion. The following list is an example of one approach to the course: Week 1: Introduction Week 2: Jezebel (1938) Week 3: Intruder in the Dust (1949); read the Faulkner novel Week 4: The Night of the Hunter (1955) Week 5: Baby Doll (1956); read the Williams screenplay Week 6: God’s Little Acre (1959; Paper 1 due; read the Caldwell novel Week 7: Nothing But a Man (1964) Week 8: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter (1968); read the McCullers novel Week 9: Nashville (1977) Week 10: Deliverance (1972); read the Dickey novel Week 11: 4 Little Girls (1997); Paper 2 Week 12: Wise Blood (1979) ; read the O’Connor novel Week 13: Eve’s Bayou (1997) Week 14: O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) Week 15: Junebug (2005) The class will include a final examination. Writing assignments: consistent with the English Department's recommendation on writing, this class will require at least twenty pages of written work, over the course of the semester. This might include weekly postings of 300 words each on a class web site discussion list, two formal papers, and an essay examination. Students will read the literary sources of at least some of the films. These might include the following: Erskine Caldwell, God’s Little Acre James Dickey, Deliverance William Faulkner, Intruder in the Dust Carson McCullers, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter Flannery O’Connor, Wise Blood Tennessee Williams, Baby Doll
Syllabus