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Department Representative
Marie Lathers
Guilford 103
216-368-8983
Major
A major in World Literature requires 34 hours distributed as follows:
• One of these sequences:
o WLIT 211-212
o WLIT 290-291
o ENGL 255-256
• 202 or the equivalent in a modern language taught at Case
• 24 hours of literature electives of which at least 21 hours must be at the 300 level or above including four 300-level courses in French, German, Japanese, or Spanish.
Minor
A World Literature minor requires five WLIT courses (15 hours) at the 200 and 300 level, including at least one of the following sequences: WLIT211-212, WLIT 290-291, ENGL 255-256.
Humanities Sequence
One of the following sequences (WLIT 2110212, WLIT 290-201 or ENGL 255-256) plus one 300-level literature course chosen from WLIT, ENGL, FRCH, GRMN, or SPAN (9 hours).
Honors
The Departmental Honors program is for specially talented and dedicated majors. Students who qualify receive their degrees "with Honors in Modern Languages and Literatures." A registration form for students electing Honors in Modern Languages and Literatures is available in the departmental office. Requirements for Honors in Modern Languages and Literatures are:
• a grade point average of at least 3.5 in the major;
• an honors thesis (six semester hours of WLIT 399 beyond the 34 hours required for the major).
The thesis, devoted to the investigation of a literary, linguistic, or cultural topic, must be read and approved by two readers and will be accepted for honors only if it achieves a grade of B or better.
World Literature Course Descriptions
Undergraduate
WLIT 190. Introduction to World Lit (3)
An introduction to one or more theoretical approaches to literature, combined with practical applications.
WLIT 211. Great Books: Middle Ages to 1600 (3)
St. Augustine; concentration on Dante and major texts of the Renaissance, such as Boccaccio, Machiavelli, Rabelais, Erasmus, and Montaigne.
WLIT 212. Great Books: 1600 to Present (3)
Readings of major authors, such as Behn, Voltaire, Goethe, and selected writers and thinkers from the 17th century to the present.
WLIT 215. Japanese Popular Culture (3)
This course highlights salient aspects of modern Japanese popular culture as expressed in animation, comics and literature. The works examined include films by Hayao Miyazaki, writings by Kenji Miyazawa and Banana Yoshimoto. The course introduces students to essential aspects of modern Japanese popular culture and sensibility. Cross-listed as JAPN 215.
WLIT 228. Theater History I (3)
Prereq: THTR 123 and THTR 124.
WLIT 229. Theater History II (3)
Modern periods in Western theater history, from the sixteenth century to the turn of the twentieth. The course investigates materials, texts, and artifacts of theaters from the Renaissance to the Modern era. Cross-listed as THTR 229.
WLIT 230. Asian Cinema and Drama (3)
Introduction to major Asian film directors and major traditional theatrical schools of India, Java/Bali, China and Japan. Focus on the influence of traditional dramatic forms on contemporary film directors. Development of skills in cross-cultural analysis and World aesthetics. Cross-listed as ASIA 230.
WLIT 240. Modern Japanese Literature in Translation (3)
(See JAPN 240.) Cross-listed as JAPN 240.
WLIT 241. Classical Japanese Literature in Translation (3)
Readings, in English translation, of classical Japanese poetry, essays, narratives, and drama to illustrate essential aspects of Japanese culture and sensibility before the Meiji Restoration (1868). Lectures explore the sociohistorical contexts and the character of major literary genres; discussions focus on interpreting the central images of human value within each period. Japanese sensibilities compared/contrasted with those of Western and other cultures. Cross-listed as JAPN 241.
WLIT 275. Postcolonial Francophone Literature (3)
Study of literary and cinematic works from the postcolonial Francophone world. Includes examination of the issue of identity (individual, cultural, national) and of the ways these works negotiate their respective cultural and colonial legacies. May include writers such as Beyala, ben Jelloun, Conde, Ba, Cesaire, and Khatibi.
WLIT 290. Masterpieces of Continental Fiction (3)
Major works of fiction from the 19th century and earlier. Cross-listed as ENGL 290.
WLIT 291. Masterpieces of Modern Fiction (3)
Major works of fiction of the 20th century. Cross-listed as ENGL 291.
WLIT 300. Turning-points in Modern Culture (3)
Focus on major west European cities as catalysts and reflectors of cultural and historical change; in-depth study of theory and practice using literature, music, painting, and philosophy: e.g., Vienna at the Turn of the Century; Berlin and the Weimar Republic; Paris at the Turn of the Century.
WLIT 314. Love Poetry from Sappho to Shakespeare (3)
Introduction to the love poetry of ancient Greece and Rome and its impact on the later European tradition in such poets as Petrarch, Chaucer, and Shakespeare. Readings will focus especially on questions of generic convention, audience expectation, and the social setting of love poetry in the different ages under consideration. No knowledge of the original languages required. Cross-listed as CLSC 314.
WLIT 315. Utopia and Utopianism (3)
Sir Thomas More's Utopia (1515) inaugurated a literacy genre depicting the ideal community. This class traces this genre from More to recent science fiction (Piercy, Calvino, Butler), pausing to consider the writings of the "Utopian socialists" (Saint Simon, Fourier).
WLIT 330. Studies in Fiction: The Novella (3)
Development of the novella since Boccaccio and Cervantes; emphasis on 19th and 20th century German and Russian authors (Goethe, Mann, Kafka, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov, and others); some French, Spanish, and Italian novellas. Taught in English, with additional instruction for students reading texts in the original language.
WLIT 338. Trends in Recent Fiction (3)
Readings, in English translation, of contemporary fiction from around the world; analysis and comparison of recent literary trends in various national settings.
WLIT 341. Japanese Women Writers (3)
Contributions of women writers to the literature of pre-modern and modern Japan; investigations of how their works exemplify and diverge from "mainstream" literary practices. Emphasis on the social and cultural contexts of the texts. Cross-listed as JAPN 341.
WLIT 361. Modern Japanese Novels and the West (3)
Comparing a selection of modern Japanese novels with their western counterparts, this course will clarify Japan's premodern sensibility and its transformation after the Meiji Restoration (1868). Comparisons will focus on a group of interrelated themes such as modernity/modernism, alienation, innocence, death, male-female relationships, and Nature. All readings are in English translation. No prior training in Japanese language or culture required.
WLIT 368A. Introduction to Film Studies (3)
(See ENGL 368A.) Cross-listed as ENGL 368A.
WLIT 368C. Topics in Film (3)
Individual topics in film, such as a particular national cinema, images of women in film, film comedy, New Wave film, literature and film. Maximum 12 credits. Prereq: ENGL 150. Cross-listed as ENGL 368C.
WLIT 371. Philosophy and Literature (3)
Affinities and tensions between philosophy and literature and issues that arise in their interface. Topics include: philosophical use of literary devices; literary use of philosophical ideas; literary philosophy and philosophical literature; and hermeneutics of literature and philosophy. Readings in philosophy and literature from both traditional and contemporary sources. Team-taught by faculty of the philosophy and literature departments. Cross-listed as PHIL 370.
WLIT 390. Topics in World Lit (3)
In-depth examination of specific critical and literary theories and of their relevance for literature and culture studies. Authors, works and instructor may vary.
WLIT 399. Independent Studies (1-3)
For qualified students with special interests and commitments that are not fully addressed in regular courses. Directed readings and meetings with instructor as arranged. Prereq: Consent of department.
Graduate
WLIT 430. Studies in Fiction: The Novella (3)
(See WLIT 330.)
WLIT 438. Trends in Recent Fiction (3)
(See WLIT 338.)
WLIT 490. Topics in World Lit (3)
In-depth examination of specific critical and literary theories and of their relevance for literature and culture studies. Authors, works and instructor may vary.
WLIT 590. Seminar in World Literature (3)
World study of at least two cultures or literary traditions. Topics vary depending on student and instructor interests; may include French and American film, Spanish and French postcolonial literature, French and British romanticism. Taught in English. Prereq: Graduate standing.
WLIT 595. Independent Studies (1-3)
For qualified graduate students with special interests and commitments that are not fully addressed in regular courses. Directed readings and meetings. Prereq: Graduate standing. Coreq: Consent of department.
WLIT 601. Independent Study (1-18)
Prereq: Consent of department.
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