2Wed-2C-5b: Five Classic Short Stories
Class | Registration opens 1/19/26 10:00 AM
We all know the saying that you cannot step into the same river twice. Similarly, you cannot “step into” the same story twice. Reading great literature is an experience, and that experience changes as we notice more and our insights deepen. In that spirit, participants in this class will examine together five examples of enduring short fiction written in the twentieth century. Authors will include Lu Xun, Susan Glaspell, James Baldwin, Philip Roth, and Nadine Gordimer. Focus will be on what a story conveys to us both at the moment of reading and upon reflection and on how it accomplishes these effects. Especially salient to our analysis will be how each author’s use of narrative point of view (e.g., first-person, omniscient, limited omniscient, reliable vs. unreliable) influences readers’ shifting responses. We will also consider the historical contexts for composition with emphasis on the cultural tensions that influenced each author. Interesting comparisons and contrasts among the stories will inevitably emerge, along with reflections on how these stories resonate with our current social and political conditions.
The format of the class will be guided discussion based largely on questions that I will supply in advance. Preparation time will be approximately 90 minutes each week.
Books and Other Resources:
The following texts will be shared as pdfs or in other digital form:
Susan Glaspell, “A Jury of Her Peers” (from Every Week, 1917)
Lu Xun, “The New Year’s Sacrifice” (from Oriental Magazine, 1924)
James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues,” (from The Partisan Review,1957)
Philip Roth, “Defender of the Faith” (from The New Yorker, 1959)
Nadine Gordimer, “Once Upon a Time” (from Salmagundi, 1989)
Arlene Wilner
I am a retired Professor of English. My dissertation was on eighteenth-century British novels, but over the decades I have taught a wide range of courses in literature, writing, grammar, and rhetoric. For many years, I team-taught interdisciplinary honors seminars with colleagues from various departments (Psychology, Sociology, Biology, etc.). My publications (mostly literary criticism) have appeared in various academic journals and as book chapters; my book on reading in college was published in 2020. Following my retirement from full-time work, I have continued to challenge myself by teaching first-year writing courses. Participating in LLAIC courses for the past several years has been a joy. This is my first time as a LLAIC instructor.