So, is the book always better than the movie? What’s involved in turning
books into movies? And what does a study of the process reveal about the differences
between these two narrative forms?
Such questions will be at the heart of this course. To sharpen and focus our
discussion, we’ll consider three works that have all been adapted more
than once: William Shakespeare’s Hamlet (1600); Jane Austen’s Pride
and Prejudice (1813); and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness (1900) — and
yes, in that last case we’ll be looking at Apocalypse Now (1979).
As we consider each example, we’ll try to figure out which elements of
the work can simply be transferred to film — and which need, somehow,
to be translated or adapted for the screen. In the case of Austen, for example,
it’s easy
to see that much of the dialogue can be lifted directly from the book. But,
what about the distinctive and delightful voice of the narrator? Must that
voice get lost in translation? Or is there some way of bringing it into the
movie?
To sharpen our sense of the challenges involved in adaptation, we’ll
end the week by asking ourselves how we might adapt a contemporary classic
like Alice Munro’s brilliant short story, “Runaway.” The
fact that Munro’s story has yet to be taken up by the movies may free
us to consider some exciting possibilities.
This course is designed for teachers of both literature and film, and it should
be of use to novice teachers as well as grizzled veterans. The main business
(and chief pleasure) of the course will be reading and discussion. The reading
load is fairly heavy, and it will be best if you can polish off the novels
(and the movies) before arriving on campus. The major assignment will be a
couple of oral reports, one rather short (about three to five minutes long),
the other a bit longer (about ten to fifteen minutes long).
Instructor: Timothy Spurgin, associate professor of English
and the Bonnie Glidden Buchanan Professor of English Literature