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English 387AH: Reading Buffy the Vampire SlayerW 6:00-8:45PM (CL 417)Jes BattisContact: jes.battis@uregina.ca / Office AH 366 [Monday 11:00-12:00; Wednesday 3:30-4:30]“Every age embraces the vampire it needs.” - Nina Auerbach, Our Vampires, Ourselves.Course DescriptionWe will examine Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a multi-media text which both celebrates and critiques the horror genre. By focusing on specific episodes and story-arcs, we will analyze the show’s place within what has become the booming industry of “fantasy television,” and explore how it approaches a variety of social issues. We will also discuss the study of popular culture in general and its place within academia. Students are expected to screen episodes of Buffy on their own, and must come to class prepared for discussion. There will also be additional critical readings, available online. Certain episodes (such as “Once More with Feeling”) will be screened in-class. By the end of the course, students should be able to discuss Buffy within the context of multiple genres. We will also explore its relationship to cult television, the serial narrative, merchandise, and fanfiction. Course TextsStoker, Bram. Dracula. Broadview, 1992.Whedon, Joss. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Complete Series*Wilcox, Rhonda. Why Buffy Matters: The Art of Television. I.B. Tauris, 2005.* It is the responsibility of each student to screen the episodes under discussion. Buffy the Vampire Slayer can be streamed via Netflix, or purchased though iTunes. It is also available through the Regina Public Library. Course ScheduleTBR = To Be ReadSept 6: Introductions; Vampires and Popular Culture Sept 13: “Welcome to the Hellmouth” (1.01); Witch” (1.03); “Prophecy Girl” (1.12) TBR: Rhonda Wilcox. Introduction to Why Buffy Matters Whedon, AV Club interview [UR Courses] Sept 20: “School Hard” (2.03); “Halloween” (2.06). “Innocence” (2.14); “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered” (2.16) TBR: Wilcox, Chapter 7. “Time, Love, and Loss in ‘Surprise/Innocence.’” Spicer, “Spike’s Hybridized Gender” [UR Courses] Sept 27: “Passion” (2.17); “Becoming Part 1” (2.21); “Becoming Part 2” (2.22). “Band Candy” (3.06) Oct 4: “D?pplegangland” (3.16); “The Zeppo” (3.13); “Graduation Day Part 1” (3.21) and “Graduation Day Part 2” (3.22). TBR: Wilcox, Chapter 8. “Xander, Laugher, and ‘The Zeppo.’”Short Essay Due Oct 11: “The Freshman” (4.01); “Pangs” (4.08); “Hush” (4.10). TBR: Wilcox, Chapter 9. “Power, Silence, and Fear in ‘Hush.’” Métis in Space podcast: “Pangs” [UR Courses] Oct 18: “Who Are You?” (4.16); “Superstar” (4.17). Screening and discussion of “Restless” (4.22). TBR: Wilcox, Chapter 10. “T.S. Eliot Comes to Television: ‘Restless.’” Oct 25: “Buffy vs. Dracula” (5.01); “Family” (5.06); “Fool For Love” (5.07) TBR: First half of Dracula [including Broadview Introduction] Nov 1: TBR: Second half of Dracula Giorgio, “Vampiric Affinities” [UR Courses] Dracula Review Due Nov 8: Finishing up Dracula Screening and discussion of “The Body” (5.16) TBR: Wilcox, Chapter 11: “’They’re Going to Find a Body.’” Nov 15: “The Weight of the World “ (5.21); “The Gift (5.22). Screening and discussion: “Once More with Feeling” (6.07). TBR: Wilcox, Chapter 12: “Singing and Dancing and Burning and Dying.” Nov 22: “Tabula Rasa” (6.08 ); “Seeing Red” (6.19); “Grave” (6.22) and “Beneath You” (7.02) TBR: Em McAvan. “’I Think I’m Kinda Gay’: Willow Rosenberg and the Absent/Present Bisexual” [UR Courses] Nov 29: “Selfless” (7.05); “Conversations with Dead People” (7.07); “Storyteller” (7.16); “Chosen” (7.22). Research Essay Due Assignment BreakdownShort Essay [5-6 pages]: 20%Research Essay [8-10 pages]: 35%Final Exam [Take Home]: 35% Review of Dracula [2-3 pages]: 5%Participation: 5% Short Essay [4-6 pages + bibliography]Develop an argument about a few key episodes (or one significant episode that you intend to discuss in detail.) You should support your discussion with quoted material from the episode(s), as well as 2 scholarly sources which address your topic in some way. You must also include a properly formatted MLA-style bibliography. Review of Dracula [2-3 pages + bibliography]Write a literary review of Bram Stoker’s Dracula [consult literary reviews to get a sense of how this style works.] Discuss quoted material from the novel, and include 2 scholarly sources which address Dracula, vampire mythology, and/or Victorian culture in some way. Think of this review as a mini-essay that focuses on Dracula and various contexts as a novel. You can talk about your favorite (or least favorite) scenes, with textual evidence. You must also include a properly formatted MLA-style bibliography. Research Essay [8-10 pages]The research essay may develop an idea that you’ve previously discussed [in your short essay or Dracula review] or you can embrace an entirely new topic for this assignment. Your discussion must include 1) quoted material from your primary source; 2) 3-4 scholarly sources which address your topic; 3) a properly formatted MLA-style bibliography. About a week before the research essay is due, I’ll ask you to email me a brief description of your topic + potential bibliography [this will count towards your participation mark and ensure that the research essay is on-track and focused]. Previously on BuffyNo previous knowledge of the show is required for you to participate in this course. You should not hesitate to join class discussion, even if you are watching the show for the first time. The goal of this course is to discuss Buffy from a number of perspectives, and the reactions/readings of first-time viewers are as important as those of more ‘seasoned’ viewers. You are not required to watch the entire series. We will often touch upon episodes that fall outside of the scheduled viewing, and experiencing the series in its entirety will be helpful (and enjoyable), but the majority of our discussion will concentrate on the episodes listed above. Spoiler AlertWhen dealing with a text that spans 103 hours, it is impossible to shield the class from spoilers. Certain plot details, which would have been spoilery in 1997, have now become part of basic discussion around the show. The critical readings contain spoilers. The only way to reduce spoilerage is to focus our discussion on the scheduled viewing. If we’re talking about Season 2, then comments on Season 7 are going to seem out-of-context. Spoilers are unavoidable, but we can do our best to minimize them, wherever possible. Citation of BuffyIn your bibliography, you should cite the show like this:Whedon, Joss. Director. Buffy the Vampire Slayer. 1997-2003. When quoting dialogue:In “The Zeppo,” Cordelia tells Xander: “Boy, of all the humiliations you’ve had that I’ve witnessed, that was the latest” (3.13). [Season (3) followed by episode (13)]. ................
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