I know we are all surveyed to death, but I would very much appreciate your (anonymous) feedback on the class this semester. If you could take a few moments to fill out this quick “exit survey,” I’d be grateful, thank you! Exit Survey for Literary Theory and Criticism II

Stephen Best and Sharon Marcus, “Surface Reading: An Introduction,” Representations, 108.1 (Fall 2009) Sharon Marcus, Between Women: Friendship, Desire, and Marriage in Victorian England (Princeton UP, 2007) Heather Love, “Close but not Deep: Literary Ethics and the Descriptive Turn,” New Literary History 41 (2010) Franco Moretti, Distant Reading (Verso, 2013) American Vandal, Season 8, Episode 14, “The Empire of Criticism I“: Around 25 minute mark, with Beci Carver (And just in case you’re curious…my video essay on the form and “sensuous immediacies” of contemporary television, and a short piece on The Leftovers as a response to suspicious or “forensic” viewing practices, from Post45…)

A quick note to say that everyone who posted a proposal to the blog should have received a reply to me…And anyone who turned in a paper copy, I will have written feedback back to you tomorrow. I’ll also be in my office directly after class as usual, so if you have questions, dilemmas, doubts, please feel free to drop by to talk them through. See you tomorrow!

Once again, I’ll invite you this week to share a (relatively brief) passage from one of this week’s readings, one that you’d particularly like to bring forward for discussion. I’ll ask everyone to comment on their choice in Thursday’s class, but you’re welcome to share a few thoughts here, as well.

In place of a weekly question, I’d like to invite you to share a single (relatively brief) passage from one of the readings which you’d be especially interested to discuss in class. You’re welcome to share some provisional thoughts about your choice, or to comment on the selection when we meet on Thursday.

On National Culture- Fanon

Please share a one-paragraph proposal for your final paper, including a working title and the texts/theorists from the class that you envision working most closely with.

Please post your question about this week’s reading/s as a comment below.

I hope everyone is able to enjoy a restorative break this week. For anyone looking for some viewing and recommendations, I point you to this list of Fredric Jameson’s “favorite films and writers,” published by Verso Books in honor of what would have been his 91st birthday today. Also in the wake of our discussion on Marxist Criticism, I wanted to share this episode of The Dig podcast on “Stuart Hall’s Marxism,” featuring Michael Denning—it’s a great, in-depth discussion on Hall’s approach to Marxist theory, which also happens to feature some fascinating insights into his writing process! Looking ahead to Week 11, I’ll be starting a thread for everyone to…