Course Information
SemesterCourse Unit CodeCourse Unit TitleT+P+LCreditNumber of ECTS CreditsLast Updated Date
4ETI 264British and American Culture and Literature3+0+03615.07.2026
Course Details
Language of Instruction English
Level of Course Unit Bachelor's Degree
Department / Program English Translation and Interpretation
Type of Program Formal Education
Type of Course Unit Elective
Course Delivery Method Face To Face
Objectives of the Course To be successful in this class, students will need to be able to:
1) demonstrate their familiarity with the terminology (i.e., different literary devices and terms) identified in the course;
2) come up with different interpretations of literary texts, demonstrating analytical as well as creative thinking;
3) explore the historical timeline of world literature and demonstrate their ability to recognize, identify, and communicate the role of contemporary historical influences and cultural biases in literary texts;
5) identify traditional and changing narrative techniques as well as themes and viewpoints in the making of literary texts.
Course Content This course is a survey of British and American Culture and Literature, encompassing the ancient, medieval, early modern, and modern literary periods as well as the different genres and modes of literary expression (e.g. epic, lyric, tragic, and especially different forms of narrative). We will cover a vast geography extending from the United Kingdom to the United States of America, looking at the milestones of literature throughout the ages in an attempt both to appreciate different modes of storytelling—which is at the basis of human efforts to understand and give meaning to their experience—and also to cover major historical as well as literary shifts and changes in ideas of “the individual” and “society”, and the values holding them together.
Course Methods and Techniques
Prerequisites and co-requisities None
Course Coordinator None
Name of Lecturers Asist Prof.Dr. YAKUT AKBAY
Assistants None
Work Placement(s) No

Recommended or Required Reading
Resources Nikita Brottman. High Theory, Low Culture. Anthony Easthope. A Critical and Cultural Theory Reader. John Fiske. Understanding Popular Culture. John Fiske. Reading the Popular. Stuart Hall and Tony Jefferson, eds. Resistance Through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in Post-war Britain. Dick Hebdige. Subculture: The Meaning of Style. John Storey. Cultural Theory and Popular Culture.

Course Category
Social Sciences %100

Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods
Activities are given in detail in the section of "Assessment Methods and Criteria" and "Workload Calculation"

Assessment Methods and Criteria
In-Term Studies Quantity Percentage
Mid-terms 1 % 40
Attendance 12 % 0
Final examination 1 % 60
Total
14
% 100

 
ECTS Allocated Based on Student Workload
Activities Quantity Duration Total Work Load
Course Duration 14 3 42
Hours for off-the-c.r.stud 2 10 20
Assignments 1 10 10
Presentation 6 10 60
Mid-terms 2 14 28
Final examination 1 20 20
Total Work Load   Number of ECTS Credits 6 180

 
Course Learning Outcomes: Upon the successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
NoLearning Outcomes
1 Differentiate different literary terms in usage and recognize different literary devices in the making of literary as well as non-literary texts;
2 Analyze and interpret literary as well as non-literary texts from multiple points of reference, incorporating into their interpretations historical, social, psychological, and textual and narrative aspects
3 Develop awareness of the scope and variety of works in world literature by reading the assigned literary works and completing the course requirements (exams, assignments, and term papers);
4 Understand works of literature as expressions of individual and human values in historical and social contexts by evaluating the importance of literary contextual issues in analysis sessions/discussions and written critical responses in exams;
5 Respond critically to works in the humanities by employing literary terminology and applying a critical approach to literature in analysis sessions/discussions and written critical responses in exams;

 
Weekly Detailed Course Contents
WeekTopicsStudy MaterialsMaterials
1 Introduction to the Course Handouts supplied by the lecturer
2 Introduction to Poetry Langston Hughes’ “Harlem”; Elizabeth Bishop’s “In the Waiting Room”; Emily Dickinson’s “We grow accustomed to the Dark” -Cuddon, J. A. (1999). The penguin dictionary of literary terms and literary theory. London: Penguin Books
3 Introduction to Poetry (continued) Introduction to Literary Terms: Theme, Imagery, Metaphor, Simile, Analogy, Hyperbole, Allusion, Oxymoron, Alliteration, Irony, Rhetorical Question, etc. Tony Harrison’s “Timer” and “Book Ends,” T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”; “The Naming of Cats” - Cuddon, J. A. (1999). The penguin dictionary of literary terms and literary theory. London: Penguin Books.
4 Introduction to the Lyric The Elegy, the Sonnet: Shakespeare’s sonnets (Sonnets #18 and #130); Emily Brontë’s “Remembrance”; Elizabeth Bishop’s “North Haven” - Cuddon, J. A. (1999). The penguin dictionary of literary terms and literary theory. London: Penguin Books.
5 Introduction to Drama Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons - Cuddon, J. A. (1999). The penguin dictionary of literary terms and literary theory. London: Penguin Books.
6 Stories, Storytelling, and Storytellers: the Narrative Narrative Literary Terms (continued): Setting, Plot, Characterization, Narrator, Protagonist, Antagonist, Static Character, Dynamic Character, Motivation, Conflict, Narrative Tension, Tone, Mood, Foreshadowing, Suspense.etc. Reading Narrative: Ernest Hemingway’s “The End of Something”; Short[est] Stories - Cuddon, J. A. (1999). The penguin dictionary of literary terms and literary theory. London: Penguin Books.
7 Medieval Literature and Culture Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales Wagner, H. (2021). A history of British, Irish and American literature: Third revised and enlarged edition. Trier: WVT (Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier).
8 Midterm
9 Early Modern Literature and Culture Shakespeare’s Macbeth
10 19th-Century Literature and Culture Story/Novel: Mary (Wollstonecraft Godwin) Shelley’s Frankenstein; Herman Melville’s Moby Dick -Wagner, H. (2021). A history of British, Irish and American literature: Third revised and enlarged edition. Trier: WVT (Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier).
11 19th-Century Literature and Culture (continued) Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield -Wagner, H. (2021). A history of British, Irish and American literature: Third revised and enlarged edition. Trier: WVT (Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier).
12 20th-Century Literature and Culture James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man; Virginia Woolf’s Orlando -Wagner, H. (2021). A history of British, Irish and American literature: Third revised and enlarged edition. Trier: WVT (Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier).
13 20th-Century Literature and Culture (continued) Readings: Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot; Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale -Wagner, H. (2021). A history of British, Irish and American literature: Third revised and enlarged edition. Trier: WVT (Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier).
14 21th-Century Literature and Culture Maggie Gee’s The White Family and The Flood -Wagner, H. (2021). A history of British, Irish and American literature: Third revised and enlarged edition. Trier: WVT (Wissenschaftlicher Verlag Trier).
15 Course Overview
16 Final Exam

 
Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes
P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10 P11 P12
All 1 5 5 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 5 5
C1 1 5 4 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 5 5
C2 1 4 5 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 5 5
C3 1 5 5 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 5 5
C4 1 5 5 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 5 5
C5 1 5 5 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 5 5

  Contribution: 1: Very Slight 2:Slight 3:Moderate 4:Significant 5:Very Significant