LS 679 - Literary Biography

(3.00 cr.)

Looks at biography as a literary art form, while examining the role biography plays not only in understanding the significant accomplishments of certain individuals, but in illuminating the times in which they lived. Has biography changed over the decades? Are biographies ever entirely unbiased? Are popular biographies invariably less accurate than academic ones? What privacy rights do public figures retain? These are some of the questions this seminar addresses as it looks at biographical writings about such figures as Madame Curie, Thomas Jefferson, Ulysses Grant, Mohandas Gandhi and Coco Chanel. Students are also asked to write a biographical essay about a public, artistic or historical figure of their own choice.