ENGL160D2

Monsters are cool--but they're also interesting, and also sometimes deeply problematic. The category of the \"non-human\" (or, more broadly, \"the Other\") raises key questions about human identity, human values, and the cultural boundaries we construct to cordon off the horrific, the weird, the frightening, the monstrous, or the non-human. As a result, we won't focus simply on particular monster-types like the zombie, the vampire, or the cyborg. Instead, we'll look at the monster-figure in literature and film as a key indicator of cultural history: the symbolic carrier of cultural values, problems, and ideological tensions. These cultural issues can include things like political dissension, systems of religious belief, social order and disorder, human nature, or distinctions of race/class/gender. As we'll see, monsters often become symbols in the cultural, political, and intellectual clashes that mark Western history. In order to better understand our cultural roots, then, we have to come to terms with the historical and ideological tensions behind those clashes. In this course, we'll demonstrate that through well-organized analytical arguments that present strong textual evidence and display critical thinking.

GE - T1-TRAD (Tier 1 Traditions and Cultures), GEED - EPHUM (Gen Ed: EP Humanist)