Literary Souths

If the seminar Literary 'Souths' were given a subtitle, it could either be 'A Literary Topos' or, indeed, 'Douglass – Chopin –Giono –Faulkner – Borges.' The reason for this specification is that 'South' is such a vast subject matter even just within the field of prose literature. For instance, 'The South' is a term commonly used to designate the region of south-eastern states in the United States, known notably for their clutching onto the institution of slavery in the era before 1861 and their clichéd notion of an 'old Europe' that would often include a form of semi-aristocratic structure in society. Yet there have been important discourses on a form of 'South' in numerous nations and literary traditions outside the United States, some of which are had recourse to in recent discourses regarding political and economic stability, frequently in skewed and derogatory, or racist, manner. In this seminar, we will be critically discussing primary texts from the 19th and early 20th century, analyzing notions of the 'South' in the United States, but also from other places where a connection to the US South can be established. Authors to be discussed include Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), Frederick Douglass (ca.1818-1895), Kate Chopin (1850-1904), Jean Giono (1895-1970), William Faulkner (1897-1962), and Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986), with a particular focus on Chopin and Faulkner. Most texts will be made available via Moodle, yet all participants are asked to purchase and start reading Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom! in the edition mentioned below, and bring the book along in the first week of term. All participants should be in possession of: Faulkner, William. Absalom, Absalom! Modern Library College Editions. New York: McGraw Hill. ISBN-13: 978-0-07-553657-4. Different editions of the novel can be used upon condition that the pagination is exactly the same as in the above-mentioned one. (This is the case, for instance, with ISBN 0-7011-0664-6, part of 'The Collected Works of William Faulkner,' which is available at Universitätsbibliothek Siegen.) Please note that all participants should start reading the novel at their earliest convenience, as it will have to be read in its entirety by week 9 of term. Seminar für Anglistik SL (3 LP): active participation; upload onto moodle of a set of research questions in preparation for an assigned seminar session, including a brief bibliography. PL (3 LP): research paper. Universität Siegen WiSe 2015/16 Dr. Etter Lukas