E 344L American Literature, Film, and Culture Between the World Wars Instructor: Kornhaber, D. Areas: Area V Unique #: 34638 Flags: n/a Semester: Fall 2010 Restrictions: n/a Cross‐lists: n/a Computer Instruction: N Prerequisites: Nine semester hours of coursework in English or rhetoric and writing. Description: From the Roaring Twenties to the Great Depression, the period in the United States between the First and Second World Wars was one of the most dynamic and turbulent of the twentieth century—as well as one of the most artistically influential. In this course, we will take a broad look at some of the major artistic figures and products of the age in the areas of literature, film, drama, and other avenues of popular culture like animation. Reading these works in light of the political and social dynamics of the era, we will investigate the various ways in which works in each medium celebrate, chronicle, and challenge both the prosperity of the immediate post‐war years and the turmoil of the depression decade that followed. Viewing them in both an artistic and a social context, we will study the rise of modernism in American literature and drama alongside and in light of the invention of a new filmic language in the pioneering use of cinematography, editing, and sound that marked the cinema of this period. Taken in total, we will aim to better understand the vibrant artistic experimentation and interchange that marked this unique epoch in American life. Major topics to be considered include the legacy of the First World War, the changing place of women, economic prosperity and economic ruin, mechanization and industrialization, political activism and ideology, and concepts of the modern. Texts: Author Title Publisher ©/ Ed. 1. Willa Cather My Antonia Simon & Schuster Adult 2004 2. George S. Kaufman and Edna Three Comedies Applause Theatre Book 2000 Ferber Publishers 3. F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby Simon & Schuster Adult 2004 4. Clifford Odets Waiting for Lefty and Other Plays Grove/Atlantic, Inc. 1994 5. Elmer Rice Elmer Rice: Three Plays: The Adding Machine, Hill and Wang 1965 Street Scene and Dream Girl 6. Sophie Treadwell Machinal Nick Hern Books 1995 7. Ernest Hemingway The Sun Also Rises Simon & Schuster Adult 2006 8. William Faulkner As I Lay Dying Knopf Doubleday 1991 Publishing Group 9. Eugene O'Neill Three Plays: Desire Under the Elms, Strange Knopf Doubleday 1995 Interlude, Mourning Becomes Electra Publishing Group 10. Nathaniel West Miss Lonelyhearts & The Day of the Locust New Directions 2009 Publishing Corporation 11. Thornton WIlder The Skin of Our Teeth Harper Perennial 2003 Modern Classics 12. Irwin Shaw Bury the Dead Dramatists Play 2002 Service, Incorporated Requirements & Grading: Attendance and participation: 10%, Two close‐reading exercises: 10% + 10%, Midterm (short answers / essay questions): 35%, Final exam (short answers / essay questions) OR final paper: 35% Schedule: Date Main Topic(s) Assignments TH 8/26 Introduction TU 8/31 My Antonia (1 of 2) TH 9/2 My Antonia (2 of 2) TU 9/7 Sunrise (1 of 2) TH 9/9 Sunrise (2 of 2) TU 9/14 Wings TH 9/16 The Adding Machine TU 9/21 Modern Times (1 of 2) TH 9/23 Modern Times (2 of 2) TU 9/28 Machinal First Close Reading Assignment Due TH 9/30 The Great Gatsby (1 of 2) TU 10/5 The Great Gatsby (2 of 2) TH 10/7 City Lights (1 of 2) TU 10/12 City Lights (2 of 2) TH 10/14 Dinner at Eight TU 10/19 ‐‐‐ Midterm TH 10/21 The Sun Also Rises (1 of 2) TU 10/26 The Sun Also Rises (2 of 2) TH 10/28 The Public Enemy TU 11/2 Waiting for Lefty TH 11/4 The Roaring Twenties TU 11/9 As I Lay Dying (1 of 2) Second Close Reading Assignment Due TH 11/11 As I Lay Dying (2 of 2) TU 11/16 Strange Interlude TH 11/18 42nd Street TU 11/23 Miss Lonelyhearts TH 11/25 THANKSGIVING – No Class TU 11/29 The Skin of Our Teeth TH 12/2 The Magnificent Ambersons M 12/10 ‐‐‐ Final Exam or Final Paper Due Policies: Honor Code: The core values of The University of Texas at Austin are learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the university is expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect toward peers and community. Academic Integrity: Any work submitted by a student in this course for academic credit will be the student's own work. For additional information on Academic Integrity, see http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs/acadint.php. Documented Disability Statement: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact Services for Students with Disabilities at 471‐6259 (voice) or 232‐2937 (video phone) or http://www.utexas.edu/diversity/ddce/ssd. Religious Holy Days: By UT Austin policy, you must notify me of your pending absence at least fourteen days prior to the date of observance of a religious holy day. If you must miss a class, an examination, a work assignment, or a project in order to observe a religious holy day, I will give you an opportunity to complete the missed work within a reasonable time after the absence. Web Site: n/a Instructors: Donna Kornhaber .