ENG4351 – America in the Fifties and Sixties (Literature and Civilization)

Schedule, syllabus and examination date

Course content

The course attempts to give the students a relatively comprehensive introduction to an exciting 20-year period which is still highly significant for our understanding of American society and politics today. The course will emphasize the way the two decades differ from each other, but a point will also be made to show how important conditions for the development of the “turbulent sixties” were already present in the “tranquillized fifties” in embryonic form. The teaching aims to coordinate as well as possible the presentation of the political and social realities of the period with the selected literary texts.

Learning outcome

The course tries to give students an insight into an extremely important period in American history, which has also provided many of the most important premises for our understanding of the contemporary American scene. An attempt will also be made to develop the students’ critical and analytical abilities in their meeting with the literary texts and historical events of this seminal period. An important secondary objective in this connection will be the development of the students’ written and oral command of English.

Admission

Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.

If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.

Prerequisites

Formal prerequisite knowledge

The student must have been accepted into the master's degree program in literary studies, North America area studies or the teacher education program (LAP).

Recommended previous knowledge

The course assumes a good proficiency in written and oral English

Teaching

The course is taught throughout the semester with 2 hours per week, 28 hours in all. There is a mid-term break (one week in autumn term, two weeks in spring term) during which the students are expected to prepare obligatory assignments (see below) and otherwise study on their own. The students are supposed to attend the course regularly.

Examination

Term paper (10 standard pages) on a given subject, in either literature or civilization by choice (50%), and a two-hour classroom exam at the end of the term in the discipline not chosen for the term paper (50%). Marks are given on a scale from A to E for pass and F for fail.

Facts about this course

Credits
10
Teaching
Autumn 2007
Examination
Autumn 2007
Teaching language
English