Course description

Modulo1: 3 credits. Creatures and Creators: A Paradise Lost.

Through an analysis of two classics, this module will deal with dilemmas of the human condition arising from the clash between Good and Evil. In both works rebellion on the part of the being created towards its creator initiates a series of events which lead to the punishment of human conceit. Milton’s epic poem (of which a selection of passages will be read) is inspired by the epic tradition of Homer and Virgil. Moving along diverse levels of interpretation (religious, political, philosophical, etc.) at its centre lies the author’s firm belief in human free will and responsibility and the divine means of its redemption. Two hundred years after its first publication, Frankenstein, besides being of great relevance to today’s society (particularly in connection with recent developments in the fields of genetic manipulation and artificial intelligence) provides the opportunity for a profound philosophical and moral reflection. The module will also consider re-writings of the novel including parodies and theatrical and film versions.

Module 2: 3 credits. The Expansion of the Conscience: Paradise Regained?

This module will explore the moral and philosophical implications that lie behind the rebellion of the poetic imagination against the dominance of rationalism and empiricism in the eighteenth century. William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell is at once a satirical retort to Emmanuel Swedonborg’s Heaven and Hell and a bold challenge to orthodox notions of good and evil. In its blend of satire and prophecy it remains one of Blake’s most extraordinary and disturbing works. In his final novel, Island, Aldous Huxley, definitely abandons the satirical and critical vein of his previous fictional works to represent his vision of a utopia in which Western science and rationality is reconciled with the cultural and philosophical traditions of the East.

The division of the course into two separate modules does not, of course, preclude the possibility of considering the intertextual connections of the works chosen. Therefore, students will be encouraged to reflect on the thematic convergences as well as the literary and ideological objectives behind their composition