EKIS4004 Shakespeare Now! (5 op)

This course focuses on the ways in which Shakespeare features in contemporary culture. Besides reading and discussing Shakespeare’s original work, we acquaint ourselves with contemporary representations of Shakespeare’s production against the backdrop of Renaissance society, culture, values and theatrical traditions. Besides an original text by Shakespeare, we study for example film, music, graphic novels, fan fiction, digital appropriations, the new Finnish Shakespeare translations and pay attention to Shakespeare’s language.

On completing the course the students:

• Have knowledge about Shakespeare’s time, life, works and theatrical traditions
• See Shakespeare’s present role in a global transnational perspective
• Understand the role of power, global commercial media and transmediality in the dissemination of Shakespeare
• Are familiar with the conceptual pair high and low in the Shakespearian context
• Can relate critically to the processes of canonisation.

A list of literature provided at the beginning of the course.