About This Course

Literature is a fundamental module designed for first-year undergraduate (L1) students. This course aims to transform students from passive readers into active interpreters capable of analyzing literary texts, understanding their narrative structures, and evaluating their stylistic elements. Special attention is given to the historical and cultural evolution of English literature across major historical periods, including the transformative Middle English literature period.

General Objectives

The main objectives of this course are to:

• Introduce students to literature as an academic discipline and highlight its cultural value.
• Equip students with the primary methodological tools needed to read and analyze literary works effectively.
• Develop critical thinking, text decoding, and comparative analysis skills.

Specific Objectives

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Differentiate between core literary genres (poetry, prose, and drama) and structural devices.
• Apply basic text analysis frameworks to historical classical literary works.
• Analyze how historical, linguistic, and societal shifts impact English literary production.

Targeted Competences

• Cognitive Competence: Mastery of literary vocabulary, critical concepts, and historical periods of British literature.
• Analytical Competence: Ability to identify major themes, underlying symbols, and stylistic patterns in any text.
• Methodological Competence: Crafting structured, well-argued, and academic literary analysis essays.

Prerequisites

To follow this course successfully, students should have a basic familiarity with:

• General proficiency in written and spoken English expression.
• Basic reading comprehension skills and elementary concepts (such as author, text, and story).
• A broad general awareness of historical time periods.

Assessment Methods

• Continuous Assessment (TD): Based on active class participation, short responses, and regular written assignments (40%).
• Final Examination: A comprehensive end-of-semester exam testing both theoretical knowledge and text analysis skills (60%).

Course Instructor

Dr. Latifa Ziane Bouziane
Lecturer at Université de Blida 2, specializing in English literature modules, text analysis, and literary critique for undergraduate studies.
Contact: l.zianebouziane@univ-blida2.dz

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Who is this course designed for?

Answer: This course is designed specifically for First-Year (L1) students in the Department of English, Faculty of Letters and Languages.

Question: What is the main focus of this syllabus?

Answer: The main focus is training students to move past simple reading for entertainment and toward uncovering how literature reflects human history and sociopolitical values.