Fearless Texts: Rethinking Writing in Don Quixote and Beyond

Catalog description

Miquel de Cervantes’ novel Don Quixote is a masterpiece of the Spanish Golden Age, as well as a window on the way in which writing can be fearless at any point in time, including our own. In a recent poll taken by 100 famous authors from 54 countries, Don Quixote was voted “the best book of all time.” In this class, we will devote the semester to reading this first modern novel as a literary experiment that gave us the first modern superhero and dared to connect real-life characters and circumstances to the world of literature. It was also a critique of contemporary politics and commentary on all of the current forms of writing during Cervantes’ time: novella de caballeria, novella sentimental, novella picaresque, novella pastoral, novella italianizante, and a variety of poetic forms. Through reading, discussion, writing assignments, in-class workshops, and site visits, we will bring this text alive as the fearless experiment that it was in its time. We will also consider the example that it provides for understanding the way in which various forms of writing that are common or emerging in today’s media system – from familiar print-based genres such as novels and short stories to digital experiments including digital poetry and VR apps – serve as vehicles for exploring and advancing new ideas today. This course is a learning community that combines ENG 120 and SPA 154 . Don Quixote and other assigned text originally written in Spanish will be available in translation. Students are not required to speak Spanish.