Handbook

How does literature represent the process of growing up? How do novels, films and other media shape our perceptions of youth, maturity and the ambiguous space between? Why is the “bildungsroman,” or novel of education, ever-present in our culture, and what makes it so central to the history of modern literature? This course provides a comprehensive introduction to the genre that we often colloquially refer to as the “coming-of-age story,” from its origins in the Romantic era to its most recent iterations in contemporary fiction and film. We will consider how new ideas about youth and education gave the genre its initial impetus but also how 20th and 21st century writers and filmmakers disrupted and critiqued the assumptions that informed the first bildungsromans. By studying a diverse selection of classic and contemporary texts alongside a range of key theoretical readings, you will acquire a thorough understanding of the bildungsroman as a genre and learn how narrative shapes our beliefs about youth, maturity and coming of age.