This course is intended to provide students with the conceptual knowledge and methodological tools required to understand, analyse and interpret the intertextual dialogue that a cinematic adaptation establishes with its literary source. Students will learn how to look at films as narrative texts and as cultural constructs which present or represent a story for an audience. This will entail the study of the different ways in which films and texts interact with the ideological context of any historical period, as well as the particular way in which the differences (additions, omissions and alterations) in a film adaptation (hypertext) are the consequences, on the one hand, of a separate and independet artistic process of creation, and, on the other hand, of a socio-cultural, political and economic context that often differs significantly from that in which the literary source (hypotext)was produced.



The first part of the course is designed to provide students with a background of critical theory and a basic knowledge of the evoution, main genres and conventions of cinema and its relation and discrepancies with various literary genres and those narrative strategies and rhetorical devices that are specific to the literary text (see Units 1 and 2 below).



During the second part of the course, students will apply the theoretical and methological knowledge acquired in the first part to a selection of literary texts and their respective film adaptations (see Units 3-6 below).



By the end of the course, students should:



1. Be able to understand and define a wide range of terms related to the epistemological apparatus that supports the comparative analysis of literary hypotexts and film hypertexts.

2. Be able to systematically apply the methodology required to carry out in-depth comparative analyses of literary and filmic texts.

3. Be able to analyze and identify the formal and structural components of a narrative text, whether literary or filmic, so as to reach interpretative conclusions.

4. Be able to understand and elaborate on the socio-cultural, historical and ideological phenomena that motivate, influence or inscribe the artistic choices that separate the hypertext from the hypotext.

5. Approach each individual text as a work of art per se, while also turning the process of comparative analysis into an exercise in critical thinking.

6. Have improved their oral skills in English during group work and in-class discussions, as well as their essay-writing skills.

7. Have improved their critical thinking skills.

8. Have improved their team-working skills.

This subject belongs to the Fundamentos de Literatura Inglesa Module. Specifically it contributes to the achievement of module competences

M04CM01- To understand the English language and to use it properly through the reading of different literary texts.

M04CM02- To analyze literature written in English, exploring the interaction of the literary texts with the cultural and historical context in English- speaking countries.

M04CM03- To understand, analyze and interpret critically literature in English, using adequate text analysis techniques and to transmit and discuss it in groups and individually.

M04CM04- To understand the role of literature in the creation of personal and collective ideas related to fields of general interest, such as history, social relations or gender.





Final achievement of the module competences above entails the fulfillment of the degree competences



- G001 To be able to produce and understand any type of oral and written text in English.

- G002 To know the history, civilization and culture of the English-speaking countries.

- G004 To understand, analyse and interpret English literature and to be able to evaluate critically texts and documents in English.

- G006 To be able to understand the main ideas of complex texts in a second language and to express oneself with fluency both orally and in writing in that language.

- G007 To be able to relate the specific knowledge of the degree with other areas and disciplines and to transmit that knowledge in further studies in order to favour conciliatory and tolerant attitudes towards multilingual and multicultural diversity

- G008 To be able to work autonomously and in teams, making use of the techniques and tools acquired.

- G009 To be able to transmit the knowledge acquired in different academic contexts to be used in diverse professional contexts

Part I: Theoretical framework



Unit 1: Definition of Cinema



1.1.Cinema as art

1.2.Cinema as cultural production

1.3.Film Studies

1.3.1.Multimodality

1.3.2.Main filmic conventions

1.3.3.Cinematic genres

1.3.4.Brief overview of the history of cinema in English



Unit 2: Adaptation Studies



2.1.Hypotext vs.Hypertext:

2.1.1.Logophilia and Iconophobia

2.1.2.Re-thinking the need for 'fidelity'

2.2.Transtextuality and Intertextuality

2.3.Narratology: basic concepts

2.4. Verbal vs. non-verbal narrative techniques

2.4.1.Adapting time

2.4.2.Adapting characters

2.4.3.Adapting space

2.4.4.Adadpting the plot

2.4.5.Adapting the narrative voice

2.4.6.Adapting genre

2.5.Comparative analysis of literary and cinematic texts: methodology



Part II: Comparative analysis and interpretation of literary hypotexts and cinematic hypertexts



Unit 3: Gothic fiction



3.1.The genre:

3.1.1.Defintion

3.1.2.Evolution

3.1.3.Main Conventions

3.2.Texts:

3.2.1. The literary hypotext: Bram Stoker’s Dracula

3.2.2. First Adaptation: F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu

3.3.3. Second Adaptation: Tod Browning’s Dracula

3.4.4. Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula



Unit 4: Science Fiction and Action



4.1.The genre:

4.1.1.Defintion

4.1.2.Evolution

4.1.3.Main Conventions

4.2.Texts:

4.2.1. The literary hypotext: Philip K. Dick’s “We Can Remember it for you "Wholesale"



4.2.2. Adaptation: Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall



Unit 5: Drama



5.1.The genre:

5.1.1.Defintion

5.1.2.Evolution

5.1.3.Main Conventions

5.2.Texts:

5.2.1. The literary hypotext:Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness

5.2.2. The Adaptation: Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now



Unit 6: Comedy



6.1.The genre:

6.1.1.Defintion

6.1.2.Evolution

6.1.3.Main Conventions

6.2.Texts:

6.2.1. The literary hypotext: Truman Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s

6.2.2. Blake Edwards’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s

During the first 5 weeks of the course, each session will be divided into a series of theoretical and practical increments: during a theoretical increment, the instructor will introduce a concept, convention or narrative device, and during the subsequent practical increment, students will be divided in smaller groups and will work on identifying and comparing the use of said device, concept or convention in a literary excerpt and the equivalent scene in a film adaptation. Each group will upload their comparative analysis on a forum (via Egela) and a general discussion will follow, before proceeding to the next theoretical section of the class.



From week 6-15, the instructor will introduce a specific genre at the beginning of each unit and the rest of session for that unit will be designed around a series of tasks that aim at applying the contents covered in the theoretical part of the course on a number of literary hypotexts and their respective adaptations (see above). Students will work in small groups on each task and will then share the results of their work with the whole class, engaging in meaningful debates moderated by the instructor.



Individual work will consist in carrying out various tasks online and at home in order to produce a portfolio by the end of the course. This part of independent work will be graded and is worth 50% of the final mark. Students will also revise and study the content covered each week in preparation for the final exam. Students will be able to request appointments with the instructor to receive feedback on their individual work at every stage of the process. Close reading and analysis of each of the texts using the appropriate terminology is expected.

• Continuous Assessment System
• Final Assessment System
• Tools and qualification percentages:
  • Written test to be taken (%): 50
  • Portfolio (%): 50

The type of assessment is mixed. Students will be assessed according to their performance in the following testing tasks:

Individual portfolio (50%), final written exam (50%)



Students who do not wish to be subjected to mixed/continuous assessment are encouraged to become acquainted with ‘Normativa de la Facultad de Letras sobre la evaluación de la Enseñanza-Aprendizaje: Evaluación Final’ which can be found in the following URL.

http://www.ehu.eus/documents/1690128/1967605/norm_fac_letras_eval_final.pdf



The final grade for this course will be formulated based on the following: 50% individual portfolio (each student will carry out several tasks online and independently); 50% written exam (theoretical questions plus a comparative analysis of an excerpt from a literary text and one of its filmic adaptations).



Final exam for non-continuous assessment students: those students who have requested non-continuous assessment will have to sit for a final exam comprising the theoretical background of the subject, a commentary based upon any of the films seen during class sessions and a commentary based on a literary text and its adaptation, neither of which will have been discussed in class.



The consequence of plagiarism (in the portfolio) and/or cheating during the final exam is failing the course as a whole. In other words, if you plagiarise any parts of your portfolio, or try to cheat in any way during the the final exam, you will immediately score a 0 as your FINAL MARK.



Withdrawal from Continuous or Mixed Assessment: All students have the right to be evaluated according to the final evaluation procedure independently of whether or not they have participated in the continuous or mixed assessment module. In order to do so, they must write the instructor responsible for the course expressing their desire to withdraw from the continuous/mixed assessment. For quadmestral courses students can do so within the first 9 weeks of the course, according to the academic calendar of their centre.

Withdrawal from an exam call: Withdrawal from a call will be assessed as “no grade reported” [no presentado/a].

1. In the case of continuous or mixed assessment, all students can withdraw from a call until at least one month before the date of the end of the teaching schedule of the corresponding course. This withdrawal must be submitted in writing to the instructor responsible for the course.

2. In the case of final assessment, not sitting the exam on the official date of the exam qualifies as an automatic withdrawal from the corresponding call.

The mark will be based on a written exam (50%), and an individual portfolio(50%). Students who have passed the individual portfolio in the previous call will not have to submit a second one. Likewise, students who have passed the final exam in the first call will not have to sit it again.





Students who have chosen the non-mixed assessment will sit the same type of final exam as they did for the first call. In this case, no parts of the final mark will be carried over from the first call.



The consequence of plagiarism (in the portfolio) and/or cheating during the final exam is failing the course as a whole. In other words, if you plagiarise any parts of your portfolio, or try to cheat in any way during either the final exam, you will immediately score a 0 as your FINAL MARK.



The new regulation about assessment can be found at the following link:

http://www.ehu.eus/es/web/estudiosdegrado-gradukoikasketak/ebaluaziorako-arautegia

Students will be provided with a handout of the compulsory reading material, which will be downloadable from Egela.

Students will also be provided with a list of compulsory film adaptations. Even though the instructor will play clips of each film in class, students will be expected to watch each of the films on the list in its entirety as part of their homework in preparation for the final exam and in order to be able to fully participate during in-class discussions and group work.

Basic bibliography

The list of compulsory reading materials will include a selection of excerpts from the critical sources, as well as from the following literary texts:



Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. 1813

Capote, Truman. Breakfast at Tiffany's. 1958.

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. 1899.

Dick, Philip K. We Can Remember It for You Wholesale. 1966.

Dick, Philip K. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. 1968.

Du Maurier, Daphne. Rebecca. 1938.

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. 1850.

Matheson, Richard. I Am Legend. 1954.

Proulx, Annie. Brokeback Mountain. 1997.

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 1818.

Stoker, Bram. Dracula. 1897.

Tolkien, J.R.R. The Hobbit, 1937.

Walker, Alice. The Color Purple. 1986.

Wharton, Edith. The Age of Innocence. 1920.

In-depth bibliography

Butler, Andrew M. Film Studies. Pocket Essentials, 2005
Dixon,W.W. and Foster, G.A. A Short History of Film. Rutgers: University Press, 2008
Kuhn, Annette and Guy Westwell. A Dictionary of Film Studies. Oxford UP, 2012.
Puckett, Kent. Narrative Theory: A Critical Introduction. Cambridge UP, 2016.
Shklovsky, Victor. Literature and Cinematography. London: 2008 (Russia:, 1923)
Stam, Robert and Raengo, Alessandra (eds.) A Companion to Literature and Film. Blackwell, 2004
Tarkovsky, Andrei. Sculpting in Time. University of Texas Press, 1981
Thompson, K. and Bordwell, David. Film History: An Introduction. University of Wisconsin, 2003