ENGL 205 - Readings in Critical Method

An engagement with the diverse set of critical reading practices now arrayed under the heading “English.” Surveys the most prominent schools of recent theory and their antecedents, covering topics such as: New Criticism, Marxism, the Frankfurt School, psychoanalysis, feminism, structuralism, deconstruction, queer theory, cultural studies, and postcolonial theory. Emphasis on the strategies of reading, interpretation, and social critique these modes of thought enable. Depending on the topic, texts may include essays by Plato, Kant, Hegel, Marx, Freud, Benjamin, Adorno, Barthes, Kristeva, Cixous, Derrida, de Man, Foucault, Jameson, Deleuze, Butler, Gilroy, Spivak, Said, Agamben, Badiou. Works of literature, film, and visual performance art also introduced. No prior exposure to theory is required or assumed, but a previous English course at Macalester is strongly recommended. Alternate years. (4 Credits)