This seminar stems from my, however anecdotal, observation that students
find it difficult to engage with literary characters in a meaningful
way. With Hollywood style characters, which reflect a market aiming at
immersion and identification, dominating our world, it is difficult to
explore literary characters in a way that does justice to their
literariness. Instead of using kitchen sink psychology, we will probe
into methods and theories that help us engage with the complexity of a
fictional character. However, complexity for us will not simply mean a
complicated backstory and numerous psychological and emotional issues.
For us, complexity will primarily entail the aesthetic dimension of the
character created: What are the conditions for experiencing the
character? What prevents us from identifying and sympathizing on an
aesthetic level? We will work our way backwards in history, beginning
with characters created and animated today, the expressionist movement
of the 1920 (arguably the last experimental phase with respect to
characters), and ending on medieval prose texts and morality plays that
depict types rather than characters.
For guidance, we will consult recent scholarship in the field, e.g.:
Lina Varotsi. Conceptualisation and Exposition: A Theory of Character Construction. London: Routledge, 2019.
Simon Palfrey and Tiffany Stern. Shakespeare in Parts. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
R. Turner and D. Thalmann. The Elastic Surface Layer Model for Animated Character Construction. Tokyo, New York: Springer-Verlag, 1993.
The aim of this seminar is that we jointly arrive at an overall theory
and useful methods for engaging with literary characters in a meaningful
way.
- Dozent/in: Felix Sprang