PROSPECTUS FOR 01:510:255 “Dracula: Facts & Fictions”
Spring Semester 2014
CONTACT INFORMATION
> Instructor: Stephen W. Reinert (Professor)
> Meeting Times: M/TH, 2nd Period (9:50-11:10 AM)
> Meeting Place: College Avenue Campus, Murray Hall, Room 212
> Instructor's Email: [email protected]
> Instructor's Office: Van Dyck Hall, Room 218, College Avenue Campus
> Office Hours: by arrangement, and always available by Skype
THEMES & OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE
Everyone's heard of "Dracula" and knows who he was (or is!), right? Well ... While it's true that "Dracula" — aka "Vlad III Dracula" and "Vlad the Impaler" — are household words throughout the planet, surprisingly few have any detailed comprehension of his life and times, or comprehend how and why this particular historical figure came to be the most celebrated vampire in history. Throughout this class we'll track those themes, and our guiding aims will be to understand: (1) "what exactly happened" in the course of Dracula's life, and three reigns as prince (voivod) of Wallachia (1448; 1456-62; 1476); (2) how serious historians can (and sometimes cannot!) uncover and interpret the life and career of "The Impaler" on the basis of surviving narratives, documents, pictures, and monuments; (3) how and why contemporaries of Vlad Dracula launched a project of vilifying his character and deeds, in the early decades of the printed book; (4) to what extent Vlad Dracula was known and remembered from the late 15th century down to the 1890s, when Bram Stoker was writing his famous novel ultimately entitled Dracula; (5) how, and with what sources, Stoker constructed his version of Dracula, and why this image became and remains the standard popular notion of Dracula throughout the world; (6) how modern historians developed a credible reconstruction of Vlad III's life and career, from the 19th century to the present; (7) how Dracula evolved as an icon of 20th century popular culture, particularly in the media of film and the novel.
Such will be the key ingredients for this Spring 2014 course, and at the end you'll hopefully have learned basic techniques for dissecting famous historical images, sifting and evaluating historical evidence, and establishing the difference between "historical facts" and "inspired fictions." You'll also have developed a sound beginning understanding of the dynamics of Balkan and early Ottoman political and military history, at the dawn of the early modern period. And, best of all, you'll be able to discourse about Dracula with such sophistication ... you'll be the dazzling star of any Halloween party!
CLASSROOM ETIQUETTE & OTHER EXPECTATIONS
This is not an online course. You must plan on coming to class and interacting with both the professor and fellow students. It’s a great, time-honored learning technique!
Students should be in their seats at the time the class begins and should remain there until the class is over. Laptop computers are permitted only for the purpose of taking notes and discussing assigned readings; other electronic devices may not be used in the classroom.
Cheating on tests or plagiarizing materials in any assigned work is unacceptable academic behavior and will be treated as the serious offenses they are.
BOOKS & READINGS
Many of the assigned readings and study resources will be provided in PDF files on a Sakai site for the course. Students will need to access the following works, hard copies of which are available at the Rutgers University Bookstore (Barnes & Noble):
> Bruce A. McClelland, Slayers and their Vampires: A Cultural History of Killing the Dead (2006). ISBN 0-472-06923-3.
> Raymond T. McNally and Radu Florescu, In Search of Dracula: The History of Dracula and Vampires, rev. ed. (1994). ISBN 0-395-65783-0.
> David Skal, Hollywood Gothic, rev. ed. (2004). ISBN 0-571-21158-5. Kindle edition available.
> Stoker, Bram, Dracula, Edited with an introduction and notes by Maurice Hindle, Preface by Christopher Frayling, revised edition (2003). ISBN 978- 0141439846. Kindle edition available.
> Kostova, Elizabeth, The Historian: A Novel (2005). ISBN 0-316-07063- 7. Kindle edition available. STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE
In terms of teaching/learning format, this course will combine lecture, discussions of assigned readings, viewing of selected films with follow-up analysis, and small group projects and presentations. In terms of content, we will proceed through the following key themes or "modules" in our classroom meetings:
Module 1: Images of Dracula & Overview of His Career
Module 2: Career of Dracula's Father, Vlad II Dracul, ca. 1395-1447
Module 3: Career of Vlad III Dracula, 1448-1462
Module 4: The Demonization of Dracula & His Final Reign, 1462-76
Module 5: Vlad the Vampire? Medieval & Early Modern Vampires
Module 6: Dracula in European Historiography, 17th-19th Centuries
Module 7: Bram Stoker's Dracula
Module 8: The Earliest Dracula Films: F. W. Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922) & Tod Browning's Dracula (1931)
Module 9: A Dracula Novel with a History Slant: Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian
READING ASSIGNMENTS
Required reading and other assignments for each module are entered in the Resources Folder of the Sakai site, under the relevant module Folder. Registered students will be able to access the Sakai site when the course begins in January, 2014.
REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING
Students are expected to come to sessions having completed the readings, and any other assignments connected with the plan of the day (e.g., group project presentations). Regular attendance is expected. Assessment will be based on:
(1) In-class Exam #1, based on material covered in first half of the course;
(2) In-class Exam #2, based on material covered in second half of the course;
(3) Group project comparing themes in Bram Stoker's Dracula with parallels in Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian.
These three components, along with consideration of attendance pattern, will form the basis of your grade. Each exam is worth 40%, and the discussion component will be weighted 20%.
TIMETABLE FOR MODULES
The timetable for readings will be conveyed in class, as we proceed through the key themes. In general, students are advised to work through all readings outlined in a particular model, no matter where we happen to be in classroom presentation and discussion. Course progress and anticipated schedule of coverage is also entered in the Sakai site Schedule Tool, on the home page of this course site.
TIMETABLE FOR EXAMS, EXAM REVIEWS, & RETAKES
The exam dates will be provided on the syllabus posted in January 2014, at the start of the course.