Major Author Seminar I

Course Description

A critical study of the work of a single author, such as Jane Austen, Walt Whitman, Charles Dickens, William Faulkner, Jack London. Special attention given to biography, culture, and literary context.

Learning Outcomes

• Synthesize biographical and historical background with literary analysis of an author’s works.
• Evaluate the complexities of canon formation in terms of the author’s major status.
• Analyze and evaluate a broad range of primary documents written by the author, including essays, letters, and minor writings, as well as major writings.
• Analyze, evaluate, and integrate a broad range of secondary writings about the author, including reviews, biography, webliography, films, and the full spectrum of criticism.
• Write a scholarly argument of publishable quality that synthesizes relevant biography, history, and criticism with an original interpretation of one or more of the author’s works.