A survey of the major writers, works, and trends of the Polish literary tradition from the Middle Ages to the present. Special attention devoted to the Renaissance, the age of Romanticism, and the modern period. No knowledge of Polish required.

How do gender-fluid and non-human perspectives represent a direct threat to patriarchy and right-wing ideology? What’s the prize for encroaching on national traditions and standard identity models? We will try to answer these and other questions by diving deep into the literary worlds of Olga Tokarczuk - one of the most intriguing contemporary writers. Nobel laureate, yet a symbol of national treason and defiance; Tokarczuk speaks for the voiceless, marginalized and forgotten. In a sportive and intellectually stimulating environment you will be encouraged to engage in conversation on how literature shapes our sensitivity. Tokarczuk builds her captivating novels on the scaffolding of myth, magical realism and archetype. The anthropocentric frame of reference is constantly undermined by ecological concerns and non-human perspectives. Strong preference for the regional and trans-border characters makes up a unique brand of post-national and multidimensional identities. Interest in transgressions of all boundaries results in religious and artistic heresies. Reading Tokarczuk is a delightful act of defiance! Novels: Olga Tokarczuk: Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead. New York: Penguin, 2019 Olga Tokarczuk: The Books of Jacob. New York: Penguin, 2021 Olga Tokarczuk: Flights. New York: Penguin, 2018 Olga Tokarczuk: Primeval and Other Times. Prague: Twisted Spoon Press, 2010 Olga Tokarczuk: House of Day, House of Night. Northwestern University Press, 2003 Close reading of Olga Tokarczuk’s novels translated into English. Student engagement will be an integral component of this course. No Polish Language knowledge required. Additional credit (1 unit of independent studies) available for readings in Polish.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills