Course Description
Never before has a work of fantasy literature, with giants, wraiths and dragons been so successfully televised, attracting a far broader and more durable base of viewers than fantasy literature and films have in the past. What accounts for the success of the Game of Thrones TV series and Song of Ice and Fire books? This course examines the ways in which George R R Martin’s works draw not just on major themes in drama and literature but on key literary works and historical episodes like the Spanish Reconquista and the life of English King Richard III.
The course is not merely an analysis of Game of Thrones. Rather, it is an interdisciplinary course that uses the books and TV series as a jumping-off point for acquainting students with major episodes, issues and themes in the disciplines of Literature, Film Studies and History.
Difficulty Level
This course is an introductory course. Students require no prior knowledge or experience with the disciplines of history, literature or religious studies. Assigned reading will vary considerably by week based on the kind of material assigned; some weeks will feature reduced or no assigned reading because students will be expected to watch films or television episodes.
Texts
At the beginning of the course, students will receive a series of Dropbox links to download each of the videos and readings we will be discussing. This includes episodes of the TV series and two of the books as well as maps, book chapters, articles and other video content.
Class Schedule
We will be meeting twice a week on Zoom at 4:00pm Pacific Time, on Mondays and Thursdays. Participants will also be subscribed to a Google group and a Facebook group to carry on discussion outside of class time. In all, the class will have thirteen episodes.
| Class | Subject | Optional Reading |
| Thursday,
April 16th |
JRR Tolkien, the GI Bill and the misdescription of modern fantasy | Parker, Hope in the Age of Nazg |
| Monday,
April 20th |
Film Adaptation: Are the two Game of Thrones series separate works of art? | Kaufman/Jonze, Adaptation
Kaufman/Jonze, Being John Malkovich |
| Thursday,
April 23rd |
A Brief History of Europe and the Middle East since 1000 BCE – Part I | Martin, Game of Thrones, Appendix
Martin, Dance with Dragons, Appendix Monmouth, History of the Kings of Britain, chapters 1, 2, 4 |
| Monday, April 27th | A Brief History of Europe and the Middle East since 1000 BCE
– Part II |
Same |
| Thursday,
April 30th |
Literary Genre: Legacies of Romance, Patternism, Epic, Pulp and Fantasy | Howard, The Hyborean Age
Howard, Frost Giant’s Daughter Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, TBA |
| Monday,
April 4th |
Building Westeros: the Medieval Heptarchies | HBO, Game of Thrones 1.1
Shakespeare, Richard III, Act 1-2 Maps |
| Thursday,
May 7th |
Imagining the Starks: The Wars of the Roses and Britain’s Celtic Past | Shakespeare, Richard III, Act 3-5
Martin, Game of Thrones, Prologue, Bran 1, Catelyn 1-2, Eddard 1, Jon 1 |
| Monday, May 11th | Imagining King’s Landing: Florence, Contantinople and London | HBO, Game of Thrones 2.9
Norwich, History of Byzantium III, TBA |
| Thursday,
May 14th |
Imagining the East: Sindbad’s World and the Magian Heritage | Martin, Game of Thrones, Danaerys 1-5 |
| Monday,
May 18th |
The Politics of Vendetta and Hospitality: from Lot to the present | TBA |
| Thursday,
May 21st |
Gender and sexuality in Game of Thrones: modern or universal ideas? | Martin, Game of Thrones, Arya 1-4, Sansa 1-4 |
| Monday,
May 25th |
Slavery, Orientalism and the limits of George R. R. Martin’s Anthropological imagination | Martin, Dance with Dragons, Danaerys 1-6 |
| Thursday,
May 28th |
Material culture, science, magic and physics in Westeros | TBA |
Registration
Individuals who have already paid fees for the summer intensives may convert those fees to registrations for this course. Similarly, those who have received a discount on Los Altos intensives as a Patreon benefit pay apply that to this course. Those wishing to register may register for the whole course for $150 or for as many individual classes as they wish for $12.50 a piece. Registration fees can be paid using Stripe, below, or by using our Paypal account (info@losaltos.ca); Canadians can pay using Interac e-transfer to donate@losaltos.ca. If you are not using Stripe to register, make sure your Paypal or Interac payment is accompanied by an explanatory e-mail to info@losaltos.ca.
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