Sr. Seminar: Oscar Wilde

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

In this seminar, we will read Wilde’s work in several genres--poetry, narrative, non-fiction prose, drama, essays, and letters--analyzing his notions of art, gender, sexuality, nation, religion, and literary style. We will consider how the texts construct a literary persona and how that persona interacts with and challenges Wilde’s contemporary culture as well as our own. How does Wilde produce--and undermine--our notion of “Wilde”? In addition to reading Wilde’s own literature, the class will also read extensive contextual works, including other nineteenth-century literary texts, the transcripts of the trials, as well as recent critical, theoretical, and literary accounts of Wilde’s work and life. Students will take active responsibility for leading seminar discussions, and they will write both shorter and longer works of independent research and analysis. **NB: Students who have taken this course under a previous course number (e.g. ENGL 363) are not eligible to enroll in this course.**