PMA 1125 - FWS: The Undead…Live! Vampires on Stage

Spring. 3 credits. Letter grades only.

First-Year Writing Seminar.

A. Stratford.

Vampires are everywhere. This course hunts the dangerous and subversive figure of the vampire across the pages and stages of a wide range of plays: A haunting coming-of-age story, a raucous comedy about murderous lesbian secretaries, a melodrama about marital virtue, and a theatrical exploration of political revolution, amongst others. Students will be asked to consider why vampires emerge in particular historical and contemporary moments, and what cultural anxieties they articulate, as well as how the vampire is constructed, appropriated, and performed for theatre audiences. By engaging with course texts, students will develop strategies for attentive reading and thoughtful writing. Assignments ranging from reviews to research papers will focus on critical thinking, preparation, clear prose, and papers structured around well-supported claims.. (FWS)