Introductory Topics in Literature
Topic: 'That's so Meta': Reading and Writing About Reading and Writing
Class Information
Instructor: Wallis, Wally
CRN: 76937
Time: TR 1:40-3:00
Location: 1128 Hart
Description
In the field of psychology, the term "metacognition" points to the "[a]wareness and understanding of one's own thought processes" (OED). In literature, metacognition refers to a device whereby the process of a text's creation is laid bare or made apparent, often leading those experiencing the text to achieve a greater awareness of their own positions as readers and interpreters. Though prevalent across genres, time periods, and geographic locations, literary metacognition can take many forms and the reasons for its use are just as multifaceted. In our examination of this motif in poetry, fiction, and dramatic works (medieval to contemporary), we will explore the many reasons why texts engage in literary metacognition, whether it's to make the creative process an object of analysis; to test conventional boundaries (social, identity, genre); to draw attention to commonplace thinking and the spread of [mis]information; to comment on contemporary issues or concerns; or to highlight an affinity between the readers/interpreters of a text and the readers/interpreters within a text.
Grading
Short Paper (3-4 pages)
Long Paper (6-8 pages)
Final Exam
Participation
Texts
The Wife of Bath?s Prologue and Tale (ISBN: 978-0312111281), Geoffrey Chaucer
The Taming of the Shrew (ISBN: 9780743477574), William Shakespeare
Benito Cereno (ISBN: 9780486264738), Herman Melville
The Importance of Being Earnest (ISBN: 9780486264783), Oscar Wilde
The Passion (ISBN: 9780802135223), Jeanette Winterson
Course Reader