Fortunes, Failures, and Frauds: Business Stories

3 credits

In our economic, political, and personal lives, business stories exercise an extraordinary influence. This course examines the ways narratives shape commercial life, within ourselves and our communities. Spanning genres and national traditions from the nineteenth century to the present, the course addresses questions of ethics, value, and identity in novels, plays, films, and nonfiction prose. We read texts that focus on recent periods of commercial exuberance and economic crisis, technological innovation and identity-based tension. And we explore how literary arts and film have responded to the powerful ideologies and practices of modern capitalism in both collaborative and critical ways. Note: Students who took the class under the number ENGL4100 may not repeat the course under the new number.