The course focuses on comparative reading of selected works of Czech and American modern fiction. This reading will cover the following themes: 1) Speaking of Europe, Speaking of America; 2) Speaking of War; 3) Speaking in a Minority voice; 4) Speaking of Women and 5) Speaking of Alienation.
In the first block, we will look at texts depicting “the other”, i.e. at images of Europe in American fiction, and images of the US and reflections of the American dream in Czech fiction. In the second block, we will study texts related to WWI and WWII and to involvement of America and Czechs in these conflicts. The third block, will deal with fiction of contemporary Afro-American and Native American writers and with perception of these texts in the Czech cultural milieu. Contemporary fiction by women and position of female writers in America and Czech cultures will be the topic of the fourth block. Finally, in the fifth block, the concept of alienation of a modern city dweller will be examined in both literatures.
The course consists of in-class lectures and discussions, film screenings and visits to course-theme-relevant exhibitions and art shows.

The following texts (or excerpts from them) are part of the reading list: Henry James: Daisy Miller, Franz Kafka: America, Karel Čapek: Hordubal, Josef Škvorecký: Engineer of Human Souls, Joseph Heller: Catch 22, Jaroslav Hašek: Good Soldier Švejk, Jan Drda: The Silent Barricade, Ernest Hemingway: Soldier’s Home, Gerald Vizenor: Landfill Meditations, Toni Morrison: The Bluest Eye, Alice Walker: In Search of Our Mothers’s Gardens, Eda Kriseová: Cast’s Lives, Franz Kafka: A Country Doctor, Herman Melville: Bartleby the Scrivener, Daniela Hodrová: Perun’s Day, Radoslav Nenadál: There Goes K. and following films will be screened: Brazil (T. Gilliam), Cremator (J. Herz) and Dead Man (J. Jarmusch).

Course requirements: active class participation, 2 tests and one term paper (10 pp.). Film screenings and visits exhibitions are an integral part of this course.

Class meets twice a week for total of 3 class hours per week.

Martina Moravcová

translator and literary theorist. Dr. Moravcová belongs to the youngest generation of Czech literary theorists. She has quite substantial pedagogical experience, part of which she has acquired as a Fulbright scholar at the Uni­versity of California at Berkeley (1996-97). Her scholarly interests in literature are accom­panied by translation work. Her translation activities have been recognized by the Union of Czech Translators award, 1994.