SPN 411 - Cervantes & the Origins of the Spanish Narrative

1 course unit

The focus of the course on the development of the Spanish narrative by Miguel de Cervantes will alternate between the novel Don Quijote and Cervantes’ exemplary tales. During semesters focusing on Don Quijote, one of the greatest and most humorous books ever written, students will examine the work as an emblem of artistic and social modernity in the West and as a multi-faceted cultural icon central to the humanities, exploring issues such as the nature of reality and illusion, heroism, humor, adventure, freedom and self-fulfillment, racial tolerance, love, the consequences of reading, metafiction, games, and truth. During alternate semesters, when the focus is on the rich tradition of short stories in early modern Spain, students will investigate the transition from an oral to a written culture and the importance of printing as a driver for this and other significant cultural changes. Students will explore the problem of Spanish national identity through the emerging imperial processes of political and cultural exclusion, contextualizing the act of narrating and of reading fiction as they explore the didactic, comic, critical, and satirical roles of the exemplary tales. Class is conducted in Spanish.
Prerequisite(s): SPN 304 - Advanced Spanish Conversation & Composition .
Meets general academic requirement HU.