General and Comparative Literature : Methods and Practices

Teacher(s)

Chiroux Adrien (compensates Sábado Novau Marta); Sábado Novau Marta;

Language

French

Prerequisites

This course completes the introduction to European literature begun in course LFIAL 1130, which is a prerequisite.

Main themes

Based on a specific theme, which may change from year to year, this course introduces students to the comparative study of literature. The study of literary works will be put into perspective by a cross-disciplinary approach to literature: the aim will be to link literature with other arts and disciplines. In addition, this course also emphasises literary analysis and the interpretation of texts through the comparative study (essay, commentary) of works. By comparing texts with one another, this course introduces students to a reading that invites a more off-centre view.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

By the end of this unit, students will be able to :   In practical terms, this course focuses on the comparative method in the study of literary works. Through this systematic introduction to the discipline, the student acquires the tools for reading it, and in particular learns to draft written works based on comparative argumentation (comparative commentary, comparative essay).  In terms of content, students will be able to understand how the world's literatures feed off each other to form a dynamic, unified and diverse network. Each student's specific literary training will be enriched by the establishment of a broad framework, involving several languages, countries, arts and disciplines.  Other AAs:  1.5 ; 2.6 ; 3.5 ; 4.3 ; 5.6

Content

Whilst the figure of the double has a long history that can be traced back to Antiquity, it underwent particularly interesting developments in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Western literature. This year, this Comparative Literature course will focus on this period and on the multiple transformations of the figure of the double.

Through the analysis and comparison of texts including Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “William Wilson” (1839), as well as Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Double (1846), Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886), Rebecca West’s The Return of the Soldier (1918), André Baillon’s Un homme si simple (1925), and Hermann Hesse’s Steppenwolf (1927), students will be encouraged to draw connections between works from different periods, traditions and contexts in order to identify both the continuities and the transformations of the figure of the double, as well as the themes it helps to explore. 

Alongside a reflection on the evolution of this figure, the course will explore different moments of Western literature, including the emergence of fantastic literature and modernism, as well as the influence of the First World War and psychoanalysis on representations of identity and subjectivity. At the heart of the comparative literature, this approach will thus encourage students to move beyond the isolated study of individual works to foster dialogue between them and reveal certain affinities, tensions and developments that their juxtaposition brings to light. 

The course will conclude with a brief exploration of some contemporary reinterpretations of the double in other artistic media. This will enable us to observe the persistence of this motif, but also to examine its relevance today in a world where identities (and reality) are constantly multiplying, taking on new forms and reproducing themselves, from social media to digital avatars and artificial intelligence.

Teaching methods

This course will combine lectures and literary interpretation where students will be asked to discuss the texts.

Evaluation methods

75% – As part of the lecture workload (cours magistral) : an in-class exam including a multiple-choice questionnaire on the works read for the course, as well as open-ended questions on concepts, quotations and text extracts covered, directly or indirectly in class.

25% – As part of the practical work (TP): a comparative analysis to be completed in class, based on extracts from the works studied for the course.

Both activities are compulsory for the course to be passed. An overall average of at least 10/20 is required. If one of the activities has a grade lower than 8/20, the student will be required to retake the relevant activity.

Please note: Generative Artificial Intelligence may not be used in this course, including for linguistic correction. Its use will be considered an instance of cheating.

Bibliography

Lectures obligatoires :

• Edgard Allan Poe, « William Wilson », Nouvelles histoires extraordinaires (trad. Charles Baudelaire), Paris, LGF, « Le Livre de Poche », 1972.
  
• Robert Louis Stevenson, L’Étrange cas du Dr Jekyll et Mr Hyde et autres récits fantastiques (trad. Jean-Pierre Naugrette), Paris, LGF, « Le Livre de Poche », 2000.
  
• Fédor Dostoïevski, Le Double (trad. Gustave Aucouturier), Paris, Gallimard, « Folio classique », 1980.
  [Extraits ou entièreté : à définir].
  
• Rebecca West, Le Retour du soldat (trad. Simone Arous), Paris, LGF, « Le Livre de Poche », 2023.
  
• André Baillon, Un homme si simple, Bruxelles, Espace Nord, 2020.
  [Attention, il est possible que cette œuvre soit remplacée par une autre : le choix définitif sera communiqué au premier cours].
  
• Hermann Hesse, Le Loup des steppes (trad. Alexandra Cade), Paris, LGF, « Le Livre de Poche », 1975.
  
• Ainsi que les différents extraits d’œuvres (littéraires et théoriques) que l’enseignant mettra à disposition des étudiant·es sur Moodle.
  

Nota bene :

• Il est suggéré d’acquérir les éditions mentionnées ci-dessus pour faciliter les échanges en cours. D’autres éditions sont toutefois possibles.
  
• Les étudiant·es sont toutefois encouragé·es à lire les œuvres en langue originale, s’ils ou elles le souhaitent.
  

Teaching materials

• Les diaporamas des cours et des TP, les lectures obligatoires, les autres textes littéraires et théoriques mis à disposition sur Moodle.

Faculty or entity

> FIAL