AJL25053 Walt Whitman

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2024
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 6 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
doc. Michael Matthew Kaylor, PhD. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. Michael Matthew Kaylor, PhD.
Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Tomáš Hanzálek
Supplier department: Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Tue 18:00–19:40 G25, except Mon 18. 11. to Sun 24. 11.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 18 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 15/18, only registered: 1/18
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 18 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
This course will examine the various canonical, stylistic, socio-cultural, and other issues surrounding the cardinal American poet, Walt Whitman. It will include discussions of his life and writings, placing both within the context of American 19th-century personality formulation, identity, and poetry.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, students will be able to critically evaluate the canonical, stylistic, socio-cultural, and other issues surrounding a writer such as Walt Whitman, discuss the writings of others with sensitivity and appreciation, and have a greater understanding of the contexts of American 19th-century poetry.
Syllabus
  • The schedule is as follows: Week 1: Introduction. Week 2: Read "The Sleepers," in Walt Whitman, LEAVES OF GRASS: COMPREHENSIVE READER’S EDITION, edited by Harold W. Blodgett and Sculley Bradley (New York: New York University Press, 1965), pp. 424-433. Weeks 3-5: Read "Preface" to LEAVES OF GRASS, 1855 (CRE, 709-729) and "Song of Myself" (CRE, 28-89). Weeks 6-7: Read "Children of Adam" (CRE, 90-111) and "Calamus" (CRE, 112-136). Weeks 8-9: Read "Sea-Drift" (CRE, 246-263), "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry" (CRE, 159-165), "Passage to India" (CRE, 411-421), and "Prayer of Columbus" (CRE, 421-423). Weeks 10-12: Read "Drum-Taps" (CRE, 279-327) and "Memories of President Lincoln" (CRE, 328-339). Weeks 13-14: Read "Autumn Rivulets" (CRE, 356-402) and "Songs of Parting" (CRE, 488-506).
Literature
  • Bowers, Fredson, edited, WHITMAN’S MANUSCRIPTS: "LEAVES OF GRASS" (1860): A PARALLEL TEXT (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1955)
  • Kummings, Donald D. A COMPANION TO WALT WHITMAN (Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009)
  • Moon, Michael, DISSEMINATING WHITMAN: REVISION AND CORPOREALITY IN "LEAVES OF GRASS" (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1991)
  • Murphy, Francis, edited, WALT WHITMAN: A CRITICAL ANTHOLOGY (Baltimore, MD: Penguin, 1969)
  • Fone, Byrne R. S., MASCULINE LANDSCAPES: WALT WHITMAN AND THE HOMOEROTIC TEXT (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1992)
  • Hindus, Milton, edited, WALT WHITMAN (London: Routledge, 1997)
  • Martin, Robert K., edited, THE CONTINUING PRESENCE OF WALT WHITMAN: THE LIFE AFTER THE LIFE (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1992)
  • Whitman, Walt, LEAVES OF GRASS: COMPREHENSIVE READER’S EDITION, edited by Harold W. Blodgett and Sculley Bradley (New York: New York University Press, 1965)
  • Price, Kenneth M., edited, WALT WHITMAN: THE CONTEMPORARY REVIEWS (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996)
  • Greenspan, Ezra, edited, THE CAMBRIDGE COMPANION TO WALT WHITMAN (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995)
  • Brasher, Thomas L., edited, WALT WHITMAN: THE EARLY POEMS AND THE FICTION (New York: New York University Press, 1963)
Teaching methods
Seminars, 1½ hours per week.
Assessment methods
For credit, students will be expected to write an essay (10 pages, typed, double-spaced). It should have a well-crafted thesis, should be scholarly in tone, and should endeavor to support all claims textually through the materials engaged during this course. Final grades will be divided in the following proportion: 20% for attendance and class participation; 80% for the essay.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught only once.
Information on course enrolment limitations: Předmět si nemohou zapsat studenti Bc. studia AJ
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2020, Autumn 2022.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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