Kommentar |
Paratexts – book covers, prefaces, movie trailers and advertisements, music videos and album artwork – have often been neglected by scholars because they do not belong to the literary work or cultural artefact “proper.” But that is precisely why we should pay attention to them: much more than simple marketing tools, they offer readers, viewers, and consumers historically and culturally contingent “frames and filters” (Gray) for the interpretation of specific artworks and cultural products. This seminar offers you an introduction to the theories of para- and intertextuality before we move on to analyzing concrete examples from literature and theme parks. In the last part of the seminar, students will get a chance to develop their own research project, based on material of their choice. |