Objectives and competences
The objective of this course is to instil in the students an understanding of song lyrics as a genre of poetic literature and the ability to analyse and discuss lyrics and their relationship to music.
Content (Syllabus outline)
• Poetry.
• Song lyrics.
• Sound effects: prosody, rhythm, metrics.
• Poetic effects in music: melody, harmony, rhythm.
• Story/plot in song lyrics.
• Themes in melody and poetry.
• Genres and popular/folk songs, poetic ballads, opera librettos.
Learning and teaching methods
• lectures (explanation and clarification with final discussion),
• lab work (auditory and articulatory; analysis of sounds in spoken texts, phonemic transcription of written texts).
Intended learning outcomes - knowledge and understanding
On completion of this course the student will be able to
• distinguish between colloquial speech/dialects and Standard English (in song lyrics and poetic ballads),
• master English prosody and metrics,
• identify how literary techniques such as stress, repetition, intonation and form affect meaning,
• explore theoretical issues by analysing song lyrics using aspects of literary theory ( e.g., close reading, reader-response theory, Marxist/Feminist theory)
• master the basics of acoustic phonetics.
Intended learning outcomes - transferable/key skills and other attributes
• Knowledge of the basic principles of poetry and song lyrics in English.
• Development of vocabulary and pronunciation of English as a foreign language.
• Language learning at higher levels of grammar (i.e. identifying errors in colloquial song lyrics).
• Practicing translation skills (by translating English lyrics into Slovene and vice-versa).
Readings
• Marcus, G. 2005: Mystery Train: images of America in rock ‘n roll music, Faber & Faber.
• Lakoff, G. & M. Turner. 1989: More Than Cool Reason: a field guide to poetic metaphor, Chicago UP.
• Hollander, J. 1961: The Untuning of the Sky, PrincetonUniversity Press, NJ.
• Palmer, R. 1981: Deep Blues, Viking Press, New York.
Prerequisits
Attendance of 80% and regular completion of coursework are required for taking the exam.
Additional information on implementation and assessment • written exam
• class attendance
• active class participation
