English 272
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of the quarter students will be able to
 Increase their understanding of the global human condition, today and over the last 350
years
 Demonstrate understanding and appreciation of landmark Western and Nonwestern texts
 Recognize similar and dissimilar values within works of varying cultures and periods
 Appreciate the abundance and diversity of literature within the Western tradition from the
Seventeenth to the Nineteenth Centuries
 Recognize the persistence of Nonwestern literary traditions during this period of European
colonial dominance
 Trace the emergence of a genuinely global literature during the Twentieth Century, The
Post-Colonial Era
 Appreciate the frequent mutual indebtedness of competing cultural groups
 Discuss patterns of influence and conflict within and between literary traditions
 Connect the literature studied to literary movements including Rationalism, Romanticism,
Realism, Modernism, Post-Colonialism, Post-Modernism
 Discuss civilly the depictions of race, religion, class and gender in the works studied
 Recognize the impact of racial bias on the literature and history of recent centuries and
acknowledge efforts to overcome racial bias
 Consider the global context of contemporary American culture and the impact of both the
world on America and America on the world
 Demonstrate responsibility for attendance, preparation for discussion of readings, and
regular completion of writing assignments
Course Outline
The following course outline is arranged thematically. Obviously, an instructor can opt for the
more traditional, chronological approach to World Literature (English 272) should he or she
chooses to do so. The reading selections are merely a suggested sample of possible works
arranged under themes that also could easily be replaced by an equally compelling topic.
Topic 1:Social and Cultural Criticism
Gulliver’s Travels, (Book Four)
Swift
Hedda Gabler
Ibsen
“The Guest”
Camus
Death and the King’s Horseman Soyinka Nigerian
Things Fall Apart
Achebe
English
Norwegian
French
Nigerian
Topic 2:Reconstructions of Tradition and History
“The Dead”
“Old Chief Mahlanga”
Joyce
Lessing
Irish
South African
“Death Constant Beyond Love
“Zaabalawi”
“Walker Brothers Cowboy”
Topic 3 :
Marquez
Mahfouz
Munro
Columbian
Egyptian
Canadian
Celebrating the Strengths of the Individual
Selected Poems
“The Swamp Dwellers”
“The Pyrotechnicist”
“The United Fruit Company”
Monkey
Keats
English
Soyinka Nigerian
Naipaul
Trinidadian
Neruda
Chilean
Wu Cheng-en Chinese
Topic 4:The Critique of Class
Tartuffe
The Death of Ivan Ilyich
“You Can’s Get Lost In Cape Town:
“Mercedes Benz 220 SL
“The Rooftop Dwellers”
Desai
Moliere
French
Tolstoy
Russian
Wicomb
South African
Ferre
Puerto Rican
Bengali
Topic 5:Women, Power, and the Global Community
“Yellow Woman”
“The Collection of Treasures”
“The Spring Storm”
“The Breast Giver”
Silko
Head
Yoko
Mahasweta
Native American
Botswanan
Japanese
Indian
It is clearly understood that whatever the structure of World Literature from 1650 to the
Present, selected works will include significant representations from the non-western world.