"However, I am cheered by a vital awareness of WORLD LITERATURE
as of a single huge heart, beating out the cares and troubles of our world,
albeit presented and perceived differently in each of its corners."
--Aleksandr Isaevich Solzhenitsyn, 1970 Nobel Prize in Literature
URL: http://www.nobel.se/literature/laureates/1970/solzhenitsyn-lecture.html

Discipline of Comparative Literature - University of New Brunswick (Saint John)


Comparative Literature

Comparative Literature is the Discipline of studying literature internationally across national borders,cultures,time periods, languages,and genres as well as across the boundaries between literature and other arts and those between various disciplines Due to its interdisciplinary nature, Comparative Literature is often tied to translation studies, sociology, critical theory, cultural studies, and history. This field thus primarily investigates the potential relationships and similarities which may exist between the literature of diverse cultures as well as between literature and other artforms.

Minor in Comparative Literature

The minor in Comparative Literature will require WLIT 2501 (3 ch) and WLIT 2502 ; in addition, students must complete 6 ch from group A and 12 ch at the upper level from group B for a total of 24 ch. A grade of C or better is required in all courses for successful completion of the minor.

Required Course Title Credits
WLIT2501 The Western Literary Tradition (3 ch)
WLIT2502 The Non-Western Literary Traditions (3 ch)


Group A:(choose 6 ch) Course Title Credits
FR1203 Communicating in French I (3 ch)
FR1204 Communicating in French II (3 ch)
FR1304 French for Immersion Students I (3 ch)
FR2203 Communicating in French III (3 ch)
FR2204 Communicating in French IV (3 ch)
FR2304 French for Immersion Students II (3 ch)
GER 1003 Basic German (3 ch)
GER 1004 Improving Basic German (3 ch)
SPAN1203 Introductory Spanish (3 ch)
SPAN1204 Introductory Spanish II (3 ch)
SPAN2203 Intermediate Spanish I (3 ch)
SPAN2204 Intermediate Spanish II (3 ch)


Group B:(choose 12 ch) Course Title Credits
WLIT3314 European Romanticism (3 ch)
WLIT3315 Nineteenth-Century Literature (3 ch)
WLIT3725 Literature and/as Philosophy (3 ch)
WLIT3901 Studies in Comparative Literature (3 ch)
ENGL3601 Literary Theory (3 ch)
ENGL3705 Literature of West Indies, Africa, and India (3 ch)
ENGL3812 Postmodern Literature (3 ch)
ENG3903 Development of Western Drama (3 ch)
FR3514 Communication and Literary Form (3 ch)
FR3524 Contemporary French African and Caribbean Literature (3 ch)
FR3614 18th C French Authors (3 ch)
FR3615 19th C French Authors (3 ch)
FR3616 20th C French Authors (3 ch)
FR3704 Language of Cinema and Literature (3 ch)
PHI3075 Philosophies of Art (3 ch)
PHI3110 Contemporary Philosophy (3 ch)
SPAN3007 Fundamentals of Spanish Language and Culture (3 ch)
SPAN3974 Contemporary Spanish-American Prose Fiction (3 ch)

WLIT 2501 is the first introductory course required for the Minor in Comparative Literature; the second course, WLIT 2502: The Non-Western Literary Tradition, will be offered in the second term. In addition, WLIT 2501 and 2502 may be counted towards an English Honours, Majors or Minor programme.

WORLD LITERATURE

For upper-level courses, the prerequisites are: WLIT 2501 and WLIT 2502; or permission of the instructor.

WLIT 2501 The Western Literary Tradition 3 ch (3C)
This course is an introduction to the discipline of Comparative Literature, and to the Western literary tradition. Students will read representative works of imaginative literature in a variety of genres from different cultures and historical periods.

WLIT 2502 The Non-Western Literary Tradition 3 ch (3C)
This course is an introduction to the discipline of Comparative Literature, and to the Eastern literary tradition. Students will read representative works of imaginative literature in a variety of genres from different cultures and historical periods.

WLIT 3314 European Romanticism 3 ch (3C)
A study of the literature, art, and music of the period 1770-1850 in Europe. Major themes may include individualism, Romantic heroism, revolution, folklore, childhood and nature.

WLIT 3315 Nineteenth-Century Literature 3 ch (3C)
The development of Western literature, philosophy, and aesthetics during the second half of the nineteenth century, in the context of literary, philosophical, aesthetic, and social movements. Authors studied may include: Baudelaire, Sand, Mallarme, Rachilde, Marx, Tolstoy, Nietzsche, Ibsen, Dostoevsky, Strindberg, Freud.

WLIT 3725 Literature and/as Philosophy 3 ch (3C)
Through the study of specific authors, this course will be an examination of the manner in which these two humanities disciplines interact, enhance and mutually inform dialectical, analytic, and imaginative forms of thought. Authors and their texts may include de Beauvoir, Camus, Dostoevsky, Kundera, de Sade, Sartre, Tolstoy, Wollstonecraft.

WLIT 3901 Studies in Comparative Literature 3 ch (3S)
An upper-level seminar on a specified topic. Please consult the discipline.

Independent study courses, and courses from other disciplines as electives, are also available on consultation with the coordinator of the Minor in Comparative Literature.

In any given year, students may consult the Discipline Coordinator of Comparative Literature for additional courses which may be considered toward the fulfilment of group B.

For more information, please see Dr. S. Maier in HH 112 or feel free to contact her at smaier@unbsj.ca !

Other Resources Related to Comparative Literature

Past Nobel Laureates in Literature

Link to Past Nobel Prize Winners in Literature

Webpages related to Comparative Literature

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