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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "EN 335"
COURSE NAME: "Literature and Psychoanalysis"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Fall 2024
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Carlos Dews
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: MW 6:00 PM 7:15 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: Prerequisites: EN110 with a grade of C or higher.
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course examines the influence of psychoanalysis on writers, literary theorists, and literary critics. Students will read the work of a selected group of writers, explore the influence of psychoanalysis on those writers’ work, and consider the subsequent psychoanalytically informed criticism of that work. Finally, students will assess the current state of psychoanalytical literary criticism and the cultural legacy of psychoanalysis. The writers and psychoanalytic approaches studied may vary.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
The first iteration of the course will consider the influence of psychoanalysis on Modernist writers such as D. H. Lawrence, James Joyce, T.S. Eliot, Virginia Woolf, and Djuna Barnes, and the way these writers have been interpreted by psychoanalytic literary critics. Students will first be introduced to the foundations of Freudian psychoanalysis and its influence on Modernism and Modernist writers.  Students will then read a major work from each of five significant Modernist writers, will study the influence of psychoanalysis on these authors’ work, and analyze psychoanalytical interpretations of the texts. During the course students will write a mid-term and a term paper as well as response essays or have quizzes on each of the works of literature read.  There will also be a comprehensive final examination. 
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
At the conclusion of this course students will be familiar with the influence psychoanalysis had on the work of important Modernist writers, will be familiar with the basic principles of psychoanalysis, and know how psychoanalytic literary criticism has been used to interpret Modernist writers.  Students will have written critically about the writers read during the term and will also be familiar with their lives and work. 
TEXTBOOK:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberCommentsFormatLocal BookstoreOnline Purchase
To the LighthouseVirginia WoolfOxford World Classics9780199536610 This book will be available at the Almost Corner Bookshop.Hard CopyAlmost Corner Bookshop 
NightwoodDjuna BarnesNew Directions9780811216715 This book will be available at the Almost Corner Bookshop.Hard CopyAlmost Corner Bookshop 
The Waste LandT. S. EliotFaber & Faber9780571097128 This book will be available at the Almost Corner Bookshop.Hard CopyAlmost Corner Bookshop 
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young ManJames JoyceOxford World Classics9780199536443 This book will be available at the Almost Corner Bookshop.Hard CopyAlmost Corner Bookshop 
Sons and LoversD. H. LawrenceOxford World Classics0780199538881 This book will be available at the Almost Corner Bookshop.Hard CopyAlmost Corner Bookshop 
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
Mid-term Paper1500-2000 words, due during Week 8 of the term20
Term Paper 3000-4000 words, due during Week 15 of the term25%
Final ExaminationComprehensive Final Examination. 25%
Reading Quizzes or Brief Response Essaysfive total, 400-500 words each25%
Participation 5%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS AND EXAMINATION POLICY
You cannot make-up a major exam (midterm or final) without the permission of the Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Office will grant such permission only when the absence was caused by a serious impediment, such as a documented illness, hospitalization or death in the immediate family (in which you must attend the funeral) or other situations of similar gravity. Absences due to other meaningful conflicts, such as job interviews, family celebrations, travel difficulties, student misunderstandings or personal convenience, will not be excused. Students who will be absent from a major exam must notify the Dean’s Office prior to that exam. Absences from class due to the observance of a religious holiday will normally be excused. Individual students who will have to miss class to observe a religious holiday should notify the instructor by the end of the Add/Drop period to make prior arrangements for making up any work that will be missed.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

This is an example schedule.  See the Moodle course page for the actual schedule.

 

SCHEDULE 

 

Week 1  

Introduction to Psychoanalysis and Modernism 

Required reading: 

Freud, Sigmund, and James Strachey. New Introductory Lectures on Psycho-Analysis and Other Works (1932-1936). Vintage, 2001. 

Freud, Sigmund.  “Creative Writers and Daydreaming.” Literature and Psychoanalysis.  Edited by Edith Kurzweil and William Phillips.  Columbia UP, 1983. 24-28. 

Pick, Daniel. Psychoanalysis: A Very Short Introduction. First ed., Oxford University Press, 2015. 

 

Week 2  

Introduction to Psychoanalytic Literary Criticism and Modernism 

Required reading: 

Farrell, John. “Psychoanalysis and Modernism.” British Literature in Transition, 1920–1940: Futility and Anarchy, edited by Charles Ferrall and Dougal McNeill, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2018, pp. 125–142. 

 

Week 3  

D. H. Lawrence’s Life, Work, and the Influence of Psychoanalysis 

Required Readings: 

Lawrence, D. H. Sons and Lovers. Reading Quiz or Brief Response Essay 

Schwartz, Murray M. “D. H. Lawrence and Psychoanalysis: An Introduction.” The D.H. Lawrence Review, vol. 10, no. 3, 1977, pp. 215–22. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44233579. Accessed 12 Dec. 2023. 

 

Week 4  

D. H. Lawrence’s Sons and Lovers and Psychoanalytic Readings of Lawrence 

Required Readings: 

Turner, John. “Sons and Lovers: Triangles of Antagonism” D.H. Lawrence and Psychoanalysis. Routledge, 2020. 

 

Week 5  

James Joyce’s Life, Work, and the Influence of Psychoanalysis 

Required Readings: 

Joyce, James. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Reading Quiz or Brief Response Essay 

Rabaté, Jean-Michel.  “James Joyce, or the Literary Symptom of Psychoanalysis.” The Bloomsbury Handbook to Literature and Psychoanalysis. Edited by Jeremy Tambling.  Bloomsbury, 2023. 243-254. 

 

Week 6 

Jame Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Psychoanalytic Readings of Joyce 

Required Readings: 

Ellmann, Maud. “The Name and the Scar: Identity in The Odyssey and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.  The Nets of Modernism: Henry James, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, and Sigmund Freud. Cambridge University Press, 2010. 129-150 

 

Week 7  

T. S. Eliot’s Life, Work, and the Influence of Psychoanalysis 

Required Readings: 

Eliot, T. S. The Waste Land. Reading Quiz or Brief Response Essay 

Harris, Amanda Jeremin. “T.S. Eliot's Mental Hygiene.” Journal of Modern Literature, vol. 29, no. 4, 2006, pp. 44–56. 

 

Week 8  

T. S. Eliot’s The Waste Land and Psychoanalytic Readings of Eliot 

Mid-term Paper Due 

Required Readings: 

Endo, Fuhito.  “Excess, Trauma, and Negativity in Eliot and Lawrence.” The Bloomsbury Handbook to Literature and Psychoanalysis. Edited by Jeremy Tambling.  Bloomsbury, 2023. 219-230. 

 

Week 9  

Virginia Woolf’s Life, Work, and the Influence of Psychoanalysis 

Required Readings: 

Woolf, Virginia. To the Lighthouse. Reading Quiz or Brief Response Essay 

Ferrer, Daniel. “To the Lighthouse.” Psychoanalytic Literary Criticism. Edited by Maud Ellman. Routledge, 2013. 

 

Week 10  

Virginia’s Woolf’s To the Lighthouse and Psychoanalytic Readings of Woolf 

Required Readings: 

Salam, Sonia, et al. "A Psychoanalytical Reading of Mrs. Ramsay in 'To the Lighthouse' in Relation to Virginia Woolf’s Personal Life." Vol. 6, no. 1, 2022, https://doi.org/10.47264/idea.lassij/6.1.16. 

 

Week 11  

Djuana Barnes’s Life, Work, and the Influence of Psychoanalysis 

Required Readings:  

Barnes, Djuna. Nightwood. Reading Quiz or Brief Response Essay2 

Coffman, Chris.  “Psychoanalysis and Queer Sexualities:  Djuna Barnes’ Nightwood.” The Bloomsbury Handbook to Literature and Psychoanalysis. Edited by Jeremy Tambling.  Bloomsbury, 2023. 323-340. 

 

Week 12  

Djuana Barnes’s Nightwood and Psychoanalytic Readings of Barnes 

Required Readings: 

Shelden, Ashley T. "1. Lesbian Fantasy: Psychoanalysis, the Legacy of Modernist Love, and Djuna Barnes’s Nightwood". Unmaking Love: The Contemporary Novel and the Impossibility of Union, New York Chichester, West Sussex: Columbia University Press, 2017, pp. 28-56. https://doi.org/10.7312/shel17822-003 

 

Week 13  

Modernism and Psychoanalysis: A Reassessment 

Required Readings: 

Brenkman, John. “Freud the Modernist.”  The Mind of Modernism.  Edited by Mark S. Micale.  Stanford UP, 2004. 172-196. 

 

Week 14  

The Legacy of Psychoanalytic Criticism 

Required Readings: 

Tambling, Jeremy, editor. “Literature: The Other of Psychoanalysis.” The Bloomsbury Handbook to Literature and Psychoanalysis. Bloomsbury Academic, 2023. 

Term Paper Due 

 

Week 15  

Final Examination