Freud
and the Literary Imagination
German 390/Comp. Lit. 396B/
CHID 498G/Engl 363B/Euro 490A
Autumn Quarter 2008
Website: http://courses.washington.edu/freudlit
Instructor: Professor Richard Gray
Office: Denny Hall
341
Office Hours: W
11:30-12:30; F 12:30-1:20, and by appt.
Tel.: 206-543-1752
(voice)
e-mail: woyzeck@u.washington.edu
Teaching
Assistant: Brook Rosini
(barosini@u.washington.edu) Office: Denny Hall 351C
Office
Hours: T 10:30-11:20; Th 8:30-9:20.
Heidi-Marie Clemens (heidimc@u.washington.edu) Office:
Denny Hall 351C
Office
Hours: W/Th 11:30-12:30, and by appt.
Elisabeth Cnobloch (cnobloch@u.washington.edu) Office:
Denny Hall 253
Office
Hours: M 9:30-10:30; Th 11:30-12:30, and by appt.
Sabine Noellgen (noellgen@u.washington.edu) Office:
Denny Hall 236
Office
Hours: T 10:30-11:20; Th 8:30-9:20.
Freud,
Sigmund. The Freud Reader.
Ed. Peter Gay. (Norton) (on 2-hour reserve in OUGL)
Freud, Sigmund.
Writings on Art and Literature.
Ed. Neil Hertz. (Stanford)
Schnitzler,
Arthur. Plays and Stories.
Ed. Egon Schwarz. (Continuum) (on 2-hour reserve in OUGL)
Kafka, Franz. The
Complete Stories.
(Schocken) (on 2-hour reserve in OUGL)
Musil, Robert.
Selected Writings.
Ed. Burton Pike. (Continuum) (on 2-hour reserve in OUGL)
Mann, Thomas. Death
in Venice and Seven Other Stories.
(Vintage) (on 2-hour reserve in OUGL)
Bachmann,
Ingeborg. The Book of Franza and Requiem for Fanny Goldman. (Northwestern) (on 2-hour reserve in
OUGL)
Xerox Reader:
Available at Ave. Copy Shop, 4141 University Way
Optional
Background Reading: Henk de Berg, Freud's Theory and Its Use in Literary and
Cultural Studies
Rochester: Camden House, 2003) (on 2-hour reserve in OUGL)
This course
examines a set of central themes that emerge from Sigmund Freud's theories of
the dream, the nature of literary creativity, the operation of the human
psyche, and the substance of human culture. We will take as our starting point
the hypothesis that Freud conceives the psyche as a kind of writing machine, an
"author" that produces fictional narratives that share many
properties with the prose fiction generated by creative writers. For this
reason, our focus throughout the quarter will be restricted to prose
narratives. The course will concentrate on literature produced in the wake of
Freud's theories, that is, on texts that consciously or unconsciously develop
Freudian ideas. The class is structured around a set of themes that will be
developed on the basis of paired readings: in each case we will examine a text
or excerpt from Freud's psychological works in conjunction with the reading of
a literary text that exemplifies the issue or issues highlighted in Freud's
theory.
Course
Requirements:
1)
Regular class attendance (both lecture and discussion section).
2)
Short
writing assignments for
discussion sessions: Prior to discussion sessions, you will be given a sheet
with a series of study questions.
Write a brief (100-150 words) essay or position paper on any one topic from the list.
3)
Active participation in discussion sections.
4)
One 7-8 pp.
(ca. 2000 word) Mid-Term Paper.
Topic: A Freudian Analysis of Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis (in: The Complete Stories, 89-139). This paper should concentrate
on a specific Freudian problematic as exemplified in Kafka's tale. Mid-term
papers can (but need
not be) re-written. The original grade and that of the re-write will be
averaged to obtain the composite grade for this assignment.
5)
One 7-8 pp.
(ca 2000 word) Final Paper
on a specific Freudian problematic as exemplified in a literary or cinematic
narrative of the student's own choosing. The paper should pursue an analysis
based on a specific Freudian theme—preferably one from the second half of
the quarter. Paper topics should be discussed ahead of time with the Instructor
or your discussion leader.
Grading:
Class
Participation 15%
Short Writing
Assignments 15%
Mid-Term Paper 35%
Final Paper 35%
Note: Reading assignments should be prepared prior
to the class meeting on
the day for which they are listed.
WEEK ONE
Sept. 24: Introduction:
Why Freud?
Theme 1: The Psyche as Writing Machine; Dreams as
Texts
Sept. 25: Discussion: Organization of
Groups; Opening Thoughts
Sept. 26: The
Unconscious and Dreams: "A Note on the Mystic Writing-Pad" (Course
Reader); Freud on Dream Theory, Freud Reader, 129-172.
[Recommended background reading: de Berg, Freud's Theory, 17-30.]
WEEK TWO
Sept. 29: Freud on Dream Theory: Freud
Reader, 129-172 (cont.).
Oct. 1: Schnitzler,
Lieutenant Gustl, in:
Plays and Stories,
pp. 249-79.
Oct. 2: Discussion:
The "Truth" of Dreams; The Lies of Gustl
Oct. 3: Schnitzler,
Lieutenant Gustl, in:
Plays and Stories,
pp. 249-79 (cont.).
WEEK THREE
Theme 2: Freud's
Understanding of Literary Creativity
Oct.
6: Freud,
"Creative Writers and Day-Dreaming," Freud Reader, 436-443.
Oct.
8: Freud,
"The Theme of the Three Caskets," Writings on Art and Literature, 109-121.
Oct.
9: Discussion:
The "Unconscious" as the Source of Artistic Creativity.
Oct.
10: Kafka, "A
Country Doctor," Complete Stories, 220-225.
WEEK FOUR
Oct. 13: Kafka,
"A Country Doctor," Complete Stories, 220-225 (concluding remarks).
Theme 3: The Oedipus
Complex
Oct. 15: Freud
on the Oedipus Complex, Freud Reader, 640-645; "The Dissolution of the Oedipus
Complex," Freud Reader,
661-666.
[Recommended background reading: de Berg, Freud's Theory, 73-91.]
Oct. 16: Discussion: Understanding Oedipus
Oct. 17: Freud
on the Oedipus Complex, Freud Reader, 640-645; "The Dissolution of the Oedipus
Complex," Freud Reader,
661-666 (cont.).
WEEK FIVE
Oct. 20: Kafka,
"The Judgment," Complete Stories, 77-88.
Oct. 22: Kafka,
"The Judgment," Complete Stories, 77-88 (cont.).
Oct. 23: Discussion:
Oedipal Revolt in Kafka's "Judgment"
Theme
4: Eros and Thanatos: The Union of Love and Death
Oct. 24: Freud,
Civilization and Its Discontents,
Freud Reader,
722-772.
[Recommended
background reading: de Berg, Freud's Theory, 49-69.]
WEEK SIX
Oct. 27: Freud,
Civilization and Its Discontents,
Freud Reader, 722-772
(cont.).
[Recommended background reading: de Berg, Freud's Theory, 109-132.]
Oct. 29: Screening,
Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice.
Oct. 30: Writing
Workshop: Kafka's "Metamorphosis"
Oct. 31: Screening,
Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice.
Friday, Oct 31:
Mid-Term Paper Due
WEEK SEVEN
Nov. 3: Mann,
Death in Venice, in: Death
in Venice and Seven Other Stories,
pp. 3-73.
Nov. 5: Mann,
Death in Venice, in: Death
in Venice and Seven Other Stories,
pp. 3-73 (cont.).
Nov. 6: Discussion:
Eros and Thanatos: The Union of Love and Death
Theme 5: Repression and Social (Dis)order
Nov. 7: Musil,
Young Torless, in: Selected
Writings, 1-175.
WEEK EIGHT
Nov. 10: Musil,
Young Torless, in: Selected
Writings, 1-175 (cont.).
Nov. 12: Musil,
Young Torless, in: Selected
Writings, 1-175 (cont.).
[Nov. 12: Re-Writes of Mid-Term Papers Due, for
those who choose this option.]
Nov. 13: Discussion:
Sexuality, Repression, Civilization
Theme 6: The Uncanny and the Literary Fantastic
Nov. 14: Freud,
"The Uncanny," Writings on Art and Literature, 193-233.
[Recommended background reading: de Berg, Freud's Theory, 96-108.]
WEEK NINE
Nov. 17: Freud,
"The Uncanny," Writings on Art and Literature, 193-233 (cont.); Hofmannsthal, "A
Tale of the Cavalry" (Reader).
Nov. 19: Hofmannsthal,
"A Tale of the Cavalry" (cont.)
Nov. 20: Discussion:
The Uncanny as Literary Technique
Theme
7: Freud and Women: Neurosis and
Sexuality
Nov. 21: Freud,
"Aetiology of Hysteria," Freud Reader, 96-111; "Fragments of an Analysis
of a Case of Hysteria (Dora)," Freud Reader, 177-206; 220-239.
WEEK TEN
Nov. 24: Freud,
"Aetiology of Hysteria," Freud Reader, 96-111; "Fragments of an Analysis
of a Case of Hysteria (Dora)," Freud Reader, 177-206; 220-239 (cont.).
Nov. 26: Bachmann,
The Book of Franza.
[Thanksgiving
Holiday]
WEEK ELEVEN
Dec. 1: Bachmann,
The Book of Franza
(cont.).
Dec. 3: Bachmann,
The Book of Franza
(cont.).
Dec. 4: Discussion:
Freud's Male Bias?
Dec. 5: Bachmann,
The Book of Franza
(cont.). Concluding Thoughts
Final Papers Due:
Mon., Dec. 8, 10 AM, Denny Hall 341
(or submitted as e-mail attachment to your discussion
leader).