INTC1032 ; Ancient Egyptian Literature

Abstract

We will be surveying 2000 years of literature from ancient Egypt, centering around three major interrelated questions: how much a traditional society can change, and in what ways, over the course of such a long time, the role of literature in negotiating change in a traditional society, and the relationship between an individual and the greater society within a hierarchical and highly structured society. Our study will consist mostly of closely reading the texts – stories, poems, instructions, magical spells, and other texts – with the historical and social contexts in mind. We will be introduced to some of the ways in which modern literary criticism can illuminate literature from so long ago, and also encounter the world of ancient Egypt through class trips to the Brooklyn Museum and/or the Metropolitan Museum, both of which have world-class Egyptian departments.