Literature & Composition 301: World Literature

World Literature explores how culture shapes storytelling across civilizations and centuries. Students begin in the ancient world with foundational texts from the Norton Anthology of World Literature — including Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, Beowulf, and Canterbury Tales — and then move into modern world literature that pushes beyond the British and American canon.

The entire class reads Night by Elie Wiesel and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. Students also choose an independent novel from a curated list of major works in Russian, French, and Scandinavian literature. Students analyze how an author’s cultural context shapes theme, narrative structure, and voice, and they build the skills to engage critically with literature from any tradition.

Authors and traditions covered include: Ancient and medieval epic poetry, Shakespeare’s contemporaries, Wiesel, Achebe, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekov, Ibsen, Flaubert — spanning classical, medieval, Russian, French, Scandinavian, and African literary traditions.

What’s included: Daily coach feedback at every stage of writing. Peer collaboration and independent analysis assignments. Multiple writing styles practiced throughout the year. Timed essays and fully revised papers. Scholastic Art & Writing Awards preparation. 

Literature and writing taught together in a single, full-credit English course. Includes daily coach engagement and peer interaction. How our classes work.