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GERM230
The Simple Life
GERM230 FA
Crosslistings: GELT230
Next Offered in 9899 FA
Beginning with the songs of shepherds in ancient Greece,
the genre of pastoral literature evolved side by side with
Western civilization, often idealizing the "simple life"
as a contrast to sophisticated urban life, which was
generally perceived as decadent. Related to this genre, but
not bound by its conventions, are narratives about, and
sometimes by, peasants, farmers, and other country folk who
experience nature at first hand as they carry on an
existence frequently characterized by unremitting physical
labor, material deprivation or scarcity, and geographical
limitation. In this course we will examine a wide selection
of such narratives, both fiction and non-fiction, to
discover the thematic and stylistic constants in portrayals
of rural life, and to determine what values inform these
narratives. Some attention will be given to the "blood and
soil literature" of the Nazis.
MAJOR READINGS
Wernher the Gardner, FARMER HELMBRECHT
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, selections from EMILE
Jeremias Gotthelf, THE BLACK SPIDER
Knut Hamsun, GROWTH OF THE SOIL
Ole Rolvaag, GIANTS IN THE EARTH
Laura Ingalls Wilder, FARMER BOY and THE LONG WINTER
Edith Wharton, ETHAN FROME
Clara Winston, THE CLOSEST KIN THERE IS
Donald Hall, STRING TOO SHORT TO BE SAVED
EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS
Weekly short papers; one final
project, which may be creative in nature.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS
Sophomores will
be admitted during the Drop/Add period if spaces are
available.
Unless preregistered students attend the first class meeting
or communicate directly with the instructor prior to the
first class, they will be dropped from the class list.
NOTE: Students must still submit a completed Drop/Add form
to the Registrar's Office.
COURSE FORMAT: Discussion Lecture
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Level: UG Credit: 1.00
Gen Ed Area & Dept: HA GERM
Prerequisites:
None
Last Updated on MAR-10-1997
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Copyright Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459