As the critic Tim Corrigan has written, "the history of the relationship between film and literature is a history of ambivalence, confrontation, and mutual dependence." In order to explore some of the best works of English and American literature while aiming to examine the human experience, this course will look at major canonical texts of the 19th and 20th century in relation to their film adaptations. With an emphasis on learning to read literature critically and gaining an appreciation of genre, we will scrutinize conventions of literature that may be altered, shaped, and redefined by film.

We will inspect a range of literary genres including the novesl, novellas, short stories and plays. Students will be reading texts by Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Oscar Wilde, Joseph Conrad, E.M. Forester, Samuel Beckett, Kazuo Ishiguro, Jonathan Nolan and a few theoretical texts that will be used to generate critical analysis and discussion so that students can attain a better understanding of the ways in which literature influences, rewrites, examines, and contradicts film. Course evaluation requirements include a rigorous reading schedule, weekly writing responses, student presentations, in-class participation responsibilities, and a midterm and final paper.