This course aims to help students improve their writing skills, taking a particular type of music as its central material. The goal of the course is to help students prepare for academic writing, develop analytical skills appropriate to the subject matter, and receive an introduction to college-level research papers. Depending on the topic the course may include a section of one to two hours for further listening to musical examples in a group setting.

From musical jokes in The Taming of the Shrew to magical songs in The Tempest, Shakespeare’s plays abound with music. Composers and filmmakers have also used Shakespeare as a source of inspiration, writing operas, musicals, and ballets and creating films that blend Shakespeare’s own use of music with contemporary songs. In this course, we will explore the use of music in Shakespeare's plays, from the original stagings to modern productions, and their various adaptations, including opera, ballet, musical theatre, and ‘90’s films. We will focus on four plays – The Taming of the Shrew, The Tempest, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet – and music by composers including Verdi, Prokofiev, Cole Porter, and Leonard Bernstein. We will also explore films such as 10 Things I Hate About You, Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, and Throne of Blood, and how they adapt and modernize Shakespeare through music. The simultaneous goal of this course is to help students prepare for academic writing and receive an introduction to college-level research papers. To that end, students will practice skills related to research, navigating library resources, creating a bibliography, formulating a thesis, outlining and drafting an essay, and revising their own and peers’ writing. There will be weekly writing assignments and two shorter essay projects. The class will end with a medium-sized research essay demonstrating proficiency in analysis, research, and writing.

Requisites

• UC Entry Level Writing Requirement and 1A or equivalent.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills