Teaching Literary Theory Using Film Adaptations in Bloomington, MN

This volume introduces ways to use film to ease the difficulty of introducing complex literary theories to students. By coupling works of literature with attendant films and with critical essays, the author provides instructors with accessible avenues for encouraging classroom discussion. Literary theories covered in depth are psychoanalytic criticism (
The Awakening
and film adaptations
The End of August
and
Grand Isle
), cultural criticism (
A Streetcar Named Desire
and its 1951 film version), and thematic criticism ("Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood" and the film adaptation
Splendor in the Grass
). Other theories are used to clarify and support those referred to above. The work then includes a survey of the image patterns into which film adaptation theories can be grouped and how these theories relate to traditional literary theory.