Major Authors: Cather, Steinbeck, Faulkner
Major Authors introduces students to literary masters who write and contribute to your literary tradition. Our course will focus on three significant modern American authors: Willa Cather, John Steinbeck, and William Faulkner. In our study of them and their writings, we will use the fundamental tools of literary interpretation in the discussion, analysis, and evaluation of their representative literature. We will incorporate some principal interpretatative theories: formalism, psychological, gender studies, reader-response, new historicism, and ecocriticism. Each of these theories will provide specific insights into literary texts that invite analysis from different perspectives. We will also engage in thoughtful writing and dialogue to arrive at a richer understanding of our rich American literary tradition.