Tuesdays 1-3 PM
March 25 through May 13, 2003
D.O.C. House
"Literature and Music" will study samples of works in which the two arts interact or influence each other; the juxtaposition may help define the individual qualities and limits of each. The coverage will be broad rather than deep, though some works will be examined in detail. The study will begin with song, the oldest and most familiar way in which literature and music are connected. Most of the examples will be from the Western "classical" tradition, and will include songs by Dowland, Schubert, Rorem, and others. Music and drama meet in opera; we will study Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream and Benjamin Britten's opera. Literature also penetrates music without sung words, especially "program" music such as Vivaldi's Seasons, and works by Mendelssohn, Dukas, and others. Movies also begin with a form of drama, the screenplay, and use music to enhance their effects; we will consider the "Sorcerer's Apprentice" section of "Fantasia," and Hitchcock's "Psycho." Finally, we will examine the thematic use of music and musicians in a play, Shaffer's Amadeus, and in selections from fiction. Outside reading will be light, but some listening will be advisable. The sessions will consist of some lectures and plenty of discussion.
Class is limited to 20 participants.
Edward Doughtie is Emeritus Professor of English at Rice University where he taught a similar course on literature and music. He earned degrees from Duke and Harvard, and has published Lyrics from English Airs and English Renaissance Song. He now lives in Strafford, Vermont, where he sings in the shower and plays the viola in amateur string quartets.
