Course Outline

The turn of the twentieth century with its many revolutionary and ground-breaking insights in fields as diverse as psychoanalysis (Freud), evolutionary biology (Darwin), physics (Einstein), economy (Marx), or even language itself (Saussure), marks the onset of an age that has since reshaped the world and the people who live in it: the Modernist Age.

Exploring the relevant historical, cultural and intellectual contexts that give rise to Modernism and delving into the spirit of an age that is marked by war, social change, and cultural diversification, this seminar offers a comprehensive exploration of Modernist fiction through a critical examination of seminal works by Joseph Conrad, E.M. Forster, James Joyce, Katherine Mansfield, and Virginia Woolf. It centres on the intricate interplay between subjectivity, narratology, gender, sexuality, colonialism, religion, and (the limits of) language in a number of selected novels and short stories and, therefore, pays close attention to the many innovative narrative techniques, such as stream of consciousness writing, unreliable narration, or narrative fragmentation, that contemporary authors employ to represent their characters' ever-evolving consciousness, their identity formation and their inner thoughts and perceptions.

Throughout this seminar, students will actively engage in close reading, critical discussions, and independent research projects (i.e., presentations), in order to grasp the subtle complexities of Modernist fiction. By the end of the course, participants will possess the analytical tools to deal with the period's arguably most influential works, while also recognising their enduring significance in the shaping of literary history.

Please read and prepare the following texts:

Short Stories [will be made available]

Conrad, Joseph. "The Secret Sharer: An Episode from the Coast." 1910. Typhoon and Other Tales. Oxford: OUP, 2008. Print. 177-217. [ISBN: 978-0-19-953903-1]

Mansfield, Katherine. TBA. The Garden Party and Other Stories. London: Penguin, 2007. Print. [ISBN: 978-0141441801]

Woolf, Virginia. "The Mark on the Wall." 1917. Kew Gardens and Other Short Fiction. Oxford: OUP, 2022. 3-9. [ISBN: 978-0-19-883813-5]

Novellas and Novels [please get your own copy]

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness and Other Tales. 1899. Oxford: OUP, 2008. Print. [ISBN: 978-0-19-953601-6; please prepare Heart of Darkness]

Forster, E.M. Maurice. 1971 [1913/1914]. London: Penguin, 2005. Print. [ISBN: 978-0-14-144113-9]

Joyce, James. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. 1916. Oxford: OUP, 2008. Print [ISBN: 978-0-19-953644-3]

Woolf, Virginia. Mrs Dalloway. 1925. Oxford: OUP, 2008. Print. [ISBN: 978-0-19-953600-9]