Literary History 3: 1789-1914

Course goals

1. Students gain knowledge of and insight into the relationship between society and literature in different parts of the world in the long nineteenth century (1789-1914)
2. Students learn to read nineteenth-century texts from different parts of the world, place them in their historical context and use elementary narratological and other literary concepts to analyse them, and present this in writing and orally
3. Students gain knowledge of relevant online sources, learn to work with relevant search engines and to reflect on this, and get to know the basic principles of copyright

Content

In Literary History 3 we will discuss literatures from different parts of the world from 1789 (the beginning of the French Revolution) to 1914 (the beginning of the First World War). Three different angles are used to study changes and developments in literature and society in this period:

1. from a material perspective we consider how literature changes as a medium for communication, including developments in the production and distribution of books.
2. from a formal perspective we look at new forms and genres of writing, including the continuing development of the novel as a dominant cultural form.
3. from a thematic perspective we analyse how literary expression is influenced by social changes.

These three angles will guide the choice of primary texts and theoretical debates to be discussed and this selection can change year-on-year.

Additional information

Please note: the time slot shown here is not yet final and may still be modified until the 3rd Wednesday in September. 

This course has priority rules and a waiting list. Your enrolment is guaranteed if you are:

• a student in the BA Literary Studies.
• a student in the BA TCS enrolled in the hoofdrichting Moderne letterkunde.
• an exchange student who meets the course’s entry requirements.

In all other situations, you will be placed on a waiting list if you enrol in this course. For any remaining slots in the course, lots are drawn among the students on the waiting list.  


This course is equivalent to:
Eurolit 3: 1789-1914 (LI2V17001)

If you have already completed this course, you may not take Literary History 3 due to too much overlap in content.