ENGLISH 481 Honors
Professor Russ Castronovo
7133 Helen C. White, 263-7467
Spring 2011
rcastronovo@wisc.edu
Office Hrs: 10:50-12:00 TR
Honors Seminar:
Aesthetics and Politics
How do people taste? What does it mean to have aesthetic taste? Are there political
dimensions to aesthetic experiences? This course begins with these fundamental questions as
a means of exploring the discourses of modern critical theory. The crossing of aesthetics and
politics is both vexed and highly charged, and we will explore readings on Marxism,
postmodernism, queer theory, semiotics, and cultural studies in order to gain critical
perspective on this conjunction. As we do so, we’ll be examining the ideologies of reading,
as we explore how “close reading” and other mode of critique correlate with various ethical
positions and types of political engagement.
At times the readings can be demanding, but we will approach them with an eye toward
collective struggle and shared investigation—which means that this is a course for students
who will commit to each day of the seminar. Expectations include thorough preparation,
spirited participation, and motivation to pursue independent research topics. As we look at
the relationship between literary and political form and move outward toward theorizing
mass culture, we will make ample room for students to generate their own areas of
exploration and expertise. The course emphasizes active participation and rigorously argued
assignments.
At its most fundamental level, this course strives to stir things up as opposed to producing a
single reading or answer. One might say that our failure to achieve consensus will be the
mark of our success, as we spend the semester sorting out different approaches,
experimenting with various methodologies, and critiquing texts that engage the complex
relationship of aesthetics and politics. The course thus emphasizes iconoclastic thinking,
which we will arrive at through spirited exchange, discussion, and a lot of writing. The class
does not operate by lecture; we are collectively responsible for its intellectual activities.
Required Texts:
Matthew Arnold, Culture and Anarchy
Don DeLillo, White Noise
Ian McEwan, Saturday
Plus: Course Reader (available via Learn@UW)
Reading
The reading in this class is steady and at times demanding as well as challenging. You are
expected to bring your texts to class each day and finish the reading before coming to class.
Short Response Papers--Throughout the semester students are to complete 4 short papers of
1-3 typed pages. With the exception of the first short paper, which has an assigned due date,
short papers can be handed in on any day but only one paper can be handed in during a
given week. No exceptions. Papers will only be accepted if they treat the reading(s) assigned
for that week, and do not merely repeat material covered in class. Nor should papers give a
summary of the text. You can consider these 4 papers as informal spaces where you can
explore, assess critically, or freely address issues in readings or class discussions. Use them
as an incubator for longer essays or simply as a space to present reactions, musings,
questions, disappointments, etc. about the readings or the ways in which we have—or have
not—been talking about the texts in our class discussions. However you proceed, close
critical examination of the text (a sentence, an image) is the only beginning to insightful
thinking. Think of these short papers as “thought experiments” for generating compelling
ideas. Definitive conclusions are not the goal of these short papers. Instead, you might treat
these short papers as initial drafts or meditations for the longer, more important essays. The
short papers can be handed in any week, but the decision is yours to choose which 4 to
complete.
E-Discussion Paragraphs
On a few occasions this semester, you will be asked to submit via email a paragraph that
assesses some aspect of the next class’s reading. What I suggest is a series of questions,
contestations, or provocations that problematizes the reading in ways that will lead to an
informed, lively, and intelligent class discussion. In order to give your colleagues an
opportunity to prepare, it is essential that you email copies of your paragraph at least 24
hours prior to our class meeting. Under no conditions, will late responses receive credit.
Please note: since several of you will be submitting these e-paragraphs for any given class, it
is fine for you to work collaboratively.
Essays
There are two essays for this course, a midterm essay of 5-7 pages and a final essay of 7-9
pages. Keep a copy of your work until it has been returned. Papers are graded on the
quality of ideas, coherence of thesis and argument, textual support for the argument, and
originality. No paper that is sloppily written will receive a higher grade for content than it
would receive for the quality of its prose. You are expected to proofread your work. Papers
are due on the dates indicated with one exception. If at any time prior to the due date you
bring a typed draft of at least 2 pages, then I will give you an extension. The intent is to
encourage you to revise your argument and writing. I'm willing to work with you at every
stage (brainstorming, ideas, sentence structure, argumentation, interpretation, revision) to
develop excellent essays. Please note that the final essay will be preceded by a prospectus to
be presented to the group as a whole.
Attendance
Mandatory. You are expected to attend all class meetings. Attendance is taken at the start
of class. Each of you brings a different—and equally important—perspective to the material.
You owe it to yourselves and to each other, more so than to me, to attend each class. Every
absence affects your participation grade. More than three unexcused absences will
result in a failing grade for the course. If you know you cannot make class for any reason,
you must notify me in advance, so that I can plan class accordingly.
Participation
This is a crucial element of this course. Students are encouraged to take an active part in
class meetings. Come prepared with questions, comments, insights, criticisms, and
observations. Many different voices circulate through the texts we'll be reading, and to best
understand these writings, we need many different voices to circulate (in harmony and
contention, clarity and puzzlement) through our classroom.
Academic Integrity
I encourage you to meet with your classmates outside of class to discuss the reading
assignments, bounce paper ideas off each other, read drafts, and prepare for exams.
Collaborative learning is a powerful tool. I do expect, however, that all the written work you
do for me in this course will be your own. As you may already know, there are an increasing
number of Internet sites for doing research. If you use information or ideas you have found
electronically, be sure to document and attribute your sources properly. If you have
questions regarding the documentation of sources—electronic or otherwise—please do not
hesitate to see me. I take seriously the University’s regulations encouraging academic
integrity.
Participation
Short Papers and E-paragraphs
Midterm Essay
Final Essay
9/3
15%
20%
25%
40%
Introduction
9/5
Immanuel Kant, “Analytic of the Beautiful” (from The Critique of Judgment) First
short paper due
9/10
Kant, “Analytic of the Beautiful”; William Carlos Williams, “Portrait of a Lady”
9/12
Matthew Arnold, Culture and Anarchy
9/17
Culture and Anarchy; Arnold, “The Function of Criticism at the Present Time”
9/19 Karl Marx, “The German Ideology”; Gil Scott Heron, “The Revolution Will Not Be
Televised”
9/24
Marx, “The German Ideology”; Siegfried Kracauer, “The Mass Ornament”
9/26
Ian McEwan, Saturday
10/1
Saturday; Matthew Arnold, “Dover Beach”
10/3
Walter Benjamin, “The Authors as Producer”
10/8
Walter Benjamin, “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”
10/10 Jean-Paul Sartre, What Is Literature?
10/15 Theodor Adorno, “Commitment”; Carolyn Forché, “The Colonel”
10/17 Theodor Adorno, “”Freudian Theory and the Pattern of Fascist Propaganda” Bring
Your Favorite Piece of Propaganda to School
10/22 Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer, “The Culture Industry”
10/24 Fredric Jameson, “Reification and Utopia in Mass Culture”
10/29 Frederic Jameson, “Postmodernism, or the Logic of Late Capitalism”
10/31 Don DeLillo, White Noise
11/5
White Noise
11/7
White Noise; Rem Koolhaus, “Junkspace”
11/12 Eve Sedgwick, “Paranoid Reading and Reparative Reading”
11/14 Michael Warner, “Uncritical Reading”
11/19 Edgar Allan Poe, “The Purloined Letter”
11/21 Stephen Best and Sharon Marcus, “Surface Reading”; Anne Anlin Cheng, “Skin,
Tattoos, and Susceptibility”
11/26 Rita Felski, The Uses of Literature or Lauren Berlant and Michael Warner, “Sex in
Public” [class decision]
11/28 Thanksgiving
12/3
Prospectus Day
12/5 Bruno Latour, “Why Has Critique Run out of Steam? From Matters of Fact to
Matters of Concern”
12/10 Immanuel Kant, “What Is Enlightenment”
12/13 Wrap Up