Welcome to the Jungle: Narrating and Constructing the Rainforest

You wanna rumble in my jungle
I'll take you on
(Robyn “Konichiwa Bitches”)
 

Everybody has an idea what the jungle is like: lush plants, a copious number of vines, the sounds of birds and monkeys piercing the misty air, indigenous tribes in loincloths, and the constant danger of poisonous snakes and predatory felines.
In this course, a new approach to the jungle shall be attempted, namely trying to figure out whether the jungle can be more than the mere backdrop for anthropological studies and animal hunters. Especially the construction of the jungle in fiction and real-life events is in the focus and together we will consider how the jungle with all its facets is narrated and what this means for author, reader and (fictitious) protagonists.

A keen interest in theoretical approaches and the application of the same is expected as well as active participation.
This course is highly recommended for students who have attended the course “Welcome to the Jungle: Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Books”.

A list of required reading will be made available during the first session.

Credits will be awarded on the basis of either:

• a term paper
• a written exam
• an oral presentation
• ‘Aktive Teilnahme’

Personal attendance during the first session is required to maintain enrolment status.
Please direct all your inquiries about vacancies to britlit.fragen.fk15tu-dortmundde.