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Eng. 497 03

 

Spring 2003                                                                 Dr. Sharon Wilson

Phone: 351-2985                                                         Mich. L 18

Fax: 351-3378                                                             TTh 9:50-10:50; W 12:50-1:50,

E-mail: sharon.wilson@unco.edu                                   By appt. 2:50-3:50

Website: www.asccsa.unco.edu/faculty/swilson

 

 

ENGLISH 497: Senior Seminar

 

 

MYTH, FAIRY TALES, AND OTHER FOLKLORE IN CONTEMPORARY

 

WOMEN’S LITERATURE SYLLABUS

 

“HK” below stands for Hallett and Karasek.  See Table of Contents

Hamilton: See Contents and Index.  Where myths appear more than once, review them subsequently.

 

I  Jan.        14   T    Syllabus.  Professor at conference. HK Cinderella, Damsels: Read Preface, Intro., the Grimms’ “Ashputtle,” Jacobs’ “Cap o’ Rushes,” Perrault’s"Cinderella," Grimms’"Rapunzel"

 

16   Th  Sexton’s Transformations: "Cinderella," "Rapunzel"

 

 

II                     21   T   HK Villains and Girls: Perrault's "Bluebeard,” “Mr. Fox.”

Handouts or rec. text, "Fitcher's Bird," The Grimms' "The Robber Bridegroom"

 

23   Th   Atwood's The Robber Bridegroom, Brief Paper 1

 

 

III              28   T The Robber Bridegroom-- Great Goddess handout, Hamilton: Demeter, Persephone, Medusa, Jason, Perseus (hero), Harpies; rec. HK: “The Three Little Pigs,” “The Story of the Three Little Pigs”; Isis myth; Grimms’ “The Girl Without Hands”

.

 

30   Th.  The Robber Bridegroom Seminar:                  Oral:

 

 

IV Feb        4   T    Atwood’s visual art, “Hesitations Outside the Door” handout;    Carter’s “The Bloody Chamber,” Sexton’s “The Girl Without Hands”

                       

6   Th Memoirs of a Survivor and Cosmic Egg creation myth handouts, Hamilton creation myth “The Gods,” Goddess myth. Brief Paper 2

 

 

V                     11   T               “    

 

                        13   Th             “  Seminar:                Oral:

 

 

VI                    18   T   Medusa myth in Hamilton and handout poems by Plath, Sarton, Bogan

 

20  Th  Leda myth in Hamilton, Beckian Fritz Goldberg’s “Leda” and Yeats’ “Leda and the Swan” handouts

           

 

VII                   25   T   The Beet Queen, Brief Paper 3

 

27   Th “  Hamilton: Demeter-Persephone, Hercules, Jason, Atalanta (hero); Sita myth handout, “Cinderella,” and rec. “Thumbelina,” Native American.

 

 

VIII   Mar        4    T               “  Seminar:                                Oral:

 

 

6        Th  HK: Grimms’ and Sexton’s “Little Red Cap,” Carter’s The Bloody Chamber: “The Company of Wolves”

Rec.:  Carter’s “The Werewolf,” “Wolf Alice”

 

 

IX                    11   T   Hamilton and Atwood’s "Orpheus" handout

 

13      Th  Ferre’s “The Poisoned Story” and “Cinderella”

 

 

X                     18   T               Spring Break

 

                        20   Th                         “

 

 

XI              25   T   Ferre: “Sleeping Beauty”; HK: Intro., Perrault's "The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood" and Grimms' "Brier Rose"; Rec. Andersen’s “The Red Shoes”

 

                        27   Th    “  and Sexton "Briar Rose”

 

 

XII  April           1   T   Ferre's "The Youngest Doll".  Rec. "Wassilissa”

 

  3  Th   Morrison’s Beloved, Brief Paper 4

        MYTH OR FAIRY TALE DUE

 

XIII                   8   T                           “  The Isis, Tree of Life, and other Goddess myths;

                                                                        “Sleeping Beauty”

 

10   Th “ Seminar:                     Oral:

 

 

 

XIV          15   T   Hamilton: Narcissus myth; HK Damsels: "Beauty and the Beast,” “Snow White” 

 

16   Th  Mad Shadows, Brief Paper 5

 

 

XV                  22   T   Mad Shadows: “Cinderella," "Beauty and the Beast,” and “Snow White"   RESEARCH PAPER DUE

 

            23   Th   “  Seminar:                  Oral:

 

 

XVI                 29   T   Sexton’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” and Other readings in The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories, Transformations, and The Youngest Doll.

 

 May       1   Th Leda myth in Hamilton, Beckian Fritz Goldberg’s “Leda,” and Yeats’ “Leda and the Swan”

 

 

XVII                9   F    10:45-1:15 Final Period:  Film

 

             

If students wish, a film may be substituted for a few of the short readings.                                  

 

Rec.: the Grimms’ and Sexton’s "The White Snake," “The Waste Land,” poems in the Norton Anthology, and essays in HK.