CMPL 441 - Plague Narratives: Narratology and Immunology

FC ARHU CD WINT

4 credits
This interdisciplinary course examines chronicles of the Black Death, the Great Plague of 1665, and modern plagues from the perspectives of science and literature. For each period, medical and religious beliefs of the time will be examined in parallel with modern germ theory, immunology, and an understanding of infectious diseases such as cholera, bubonic plague, and COVID-19. Humans die like any other species during a pandemic, without respect for rank. Does the recording of the catastrophe preserve human dignity and distinction? At the conclusion of the course, in response to the present pandemic, students will write their own plague narratives. Taught in English.

Prerequisites: two 300-level courses beyond 301.

This course is cross-listed with FREN-441