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SFU
English Department Print
Culture Home Page
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English 808: Theoretical
Approaches to Print Culture, 1700-1900 This course is an introduction to a number of the theoretical approaches used in studies of print culture. It will be structured as two modules, organized by historical period and pertinent theoretical issues: The Eighteenth Century: The Author and the Reader in the Print Marketplace (taught by Betty Schellenberg) and The Nineteenth Century: Print, the Culture Circuit, and Imagined Communities (taught by Margaret Linley). Readings for each module will include both theoretical and primary texts. The course also incorporates workshops in library Special Collections and website design. Assignments will arise out of the two modules, and will conclude with student website presentations of one of the two module essays. While introducing students to the history of print culture, the course will also serve as an orientation to debates about the implications of the various theoretical approaches that can be adopted in print culture studies. We will be pursuing questions about what it means to study literature in terms of history, how specific forms of print media can be situated within particular fields of cultural production, and how specific cultural fields are themselves shaped by wider struggles over different forms of cultural and civic authority. REQUIRED TEXTS: Anderson, Benedict. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origins and Spread of Nationalism. Rev. ed. Verso, 1991. Crary, Jonathan. Techniques of the Observer: On Vision and Modernity in the Nineteenth Century. MIT, 1990. Siskin, Clifford. The Work of Writing: Literature and Social Change in Britain, 1700-1830. Johns Hopkins, 1998. NB: While we consider these texts important reference materials, and will be using substantial portions of each as course readings, the course will also use numerous handouts and online materials. REQUIREMENTS: 10% Preparation, attendance, participation 30% Three module seminar presentations (15% each) 40% Two seminar module papers (20% each) 20% Web site |
