SLO | EN

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.

  • red. prof. dr. VICTOR KENNEDY, prof. ang.

  • Written examination: 50
  • Coursework: 40
  • In-class participation: 10

  • : 15
  • : 15
  • : 60

  • English
  • English

  • ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE - 2nd