Emotions, Texts, and Subtexts

Catalog description

Emotions, Texts, and Subtexts (3) Literary texts hone our emotional intelligence by giving us imaginative access to the interiority of other human beings, giving us a chance to see the world from perspectives sometimes markedly different from our own. This course analyzes representations of emotion in literature and film in light of both historical and contemporary theories, including the science of emotions. Students investigate the extent to which emotions are shaped by societal attitudes as well as new technologies and consider the implications of our findings. They also explore the ethics of emotions and best practices in communicating them. Literary texts are read in conjunction with theoretical texts that inform one another. Building on this foundation in literature and theory, students gain a fuller and clearer understanding of the complexity of our modern emotional lives. Crosslist: LIT-482.