123224 SE Literature Seminar / BA Paper / MA British/Irish/New English (2015S)

In this seminar we are going to analyse 5 celebrated novels for young adult readers which have won wide acclaim, have become bestsellers or have achieved cult status. We will deal with various genres: dystopia, fantasy fiction, historical novels cum adventure stories and an African story about crime and social conflict. In the discussion we will focus on questions of gender roles and political or social conflict, on the depiction of the societies described in the novels, on the ethical questions and moral dilemmas the protagonists face, but also on the narrative technique and the artful and suspenseful way in which the authors present the material. What responses do these texts elicit in the readers, how is sympathy manipulated and what values are promoted? We will not discuss in detail how these texts might be taught in the classroom, but they have all been marketed as young adult fiction and are likely to appeal to young readers, so that the course may also give you suggestions for reading material that can be recommended to young adults.