Second-year of study B.A. proseminars (2BA PRO) for summer term 2024–2025 (Full-time programmes)

What is this list?

This is a list of proseminars we intend to launch in the summer term (February–June) in some of our full-time B.A. programmes whose second year of study is the academic year 2024–2025. This list is intended for:

1. Students at the Faculty of English who are about to enter the second term of the second year of their full-time B.A. programme: this is your reference point before your enrolment into proseminars;
2. Candidates for our full-time programmes: this list gives you a snapshot of what proseminars were on offer for the study cycle that started a year earlier, that is in 2023.

How to navigate the list?

The list is sorted by name of the teacher. The format is the following: title of the proseminar, the name of the teacher, information on which programme(s) the proseminar is for, and the description of the proseminar.

Which proseminar is for whom?

The programmes in the list and their abbrieviations are:

• English Philology (Filologia angielska) — FA
• English-Celtic Philology (Filologia angielsko-celtycka) — FAC
• English Linguistics: Theories, Interfaces, Technologies — ELTIT
• English Studies: Literature and Culture — ESLC

Note: The expression target programme(s) is used to signal for which study programme (FA, FAC, ELTIT, ESLC) a given course is primarily offered (which differs between the courses on this page); students in ELTIT are offered a course which is exclusive to ELTIT but may also select a course in in which ELTIT is listed among other programmes; ESLC are offered three courses which are exclusive to ESLC but may select select a course in in which ESLC is listed among other programmes.

The programmes in Dutch Studies (Studia niderlandystyczne) and in English and Chinese Studies (Filologia angielsko-chińska) are not covered by this list.

The language of exclusion and inclusion: An introduction to Critical Discourse Studies

dr Samuel Bennett

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

You have probably all seen hate speech language on TikTok, Facebook or IG, or seen it on the news, you have perhaps even experienced it yourself.

This pro-seminar is aimed at students who are interested in how language is used (and abused) in politics, society, the media and in our own private interactions.

It introduces students the field of Critical Discourse Studies. We start from a view that there is a relationship between language and society - each impacts upon the other – and that language use cannot be understood without looking at social inequalities (power inequalities, gender relations, race, class, etc.)

Students taking this pro-seminar will look at the relationship between language and inequalities and their consequences, including:

• How people are constructed negatively or positively through language
• How social media shapes current public debates and communication
• How we justify and legitimise our arguments
• Whose voices are heard, whose are silenced and how this can be challenged

During the course we delve into current issues in the UK, the US, Poland and the wider world, including: National identity, migration, climate change, the rise of the far-right, and LGBTQ rights.

Metaphor and/in the Social World

dr Tomasz Dyrmo

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

Metaphors are everywhere – or, at least, we happen to find in many unexpected places. But wait, can we really find a metaphor? Isn’t it just an abstract figure of speech? Or is it?

This seminar will show you that metaphors are literally everywhere: in language, pictures, gestures, art, and even architecture. They influence the way we think and the decisions we make, often in subtle, almost imperceptible ways. You may think there is no particular reason why most horrible things in horror movies happen when you take a lift downstairs (Silent Hill, anyone?). It may seem almost unbelievable, but if you ask people to step out of a square drawn on the pavement, they tend to have more creative ideas – they do think outside of the box. In other words, we think metaphorically. If you are interested in understanding how this happens, join the seminar!

Metaphor in language, society and culture

prof. UAM dr hab. Małgorzata Fabiszak

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

In literary stylistics metaphor is seen as poetic ornament which makes the text more refined. In cognitive linguistics metaphor is considered a mental process, by means of which we understand abstract concepts. For example, when we say John fell in love, we use the same linguistic expression as in John fell in the abyss. By doing so, we create or express similarity between the abstract concept of love and the concrete concept of abyss. As a result we conceptualise love as a container into which one may fall. In this image the feeling of love is compared to a dangerous loss of control over once life.

In this proseminar we will learn about metaphors used in political discourse, in constructing social relations and in understanding emotions. We will look at the use of conceptual metaphor across different modalities: language, visual mode, commemorative landscapes and others. We will read foundational texts by Lakoff, Johnson, Turner, Kovecses and more recent ones by Forceville, El Rafaie and others.

To receive credit students need to fulfill the following requirements:

1. to participate in in-class task and post notes from these tasks on the Moodle platform at the end of the class
2. prepare a presentation based on an academic article about metaphor.

Language for User Experience

mgr Mirela Jaśkowiec

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

User Experience (UX) is a discipline that emerged from the field of human-computer interaction. It is focusing not only on the usability of digital systems but also on the needs, expectations, and emotions of users navigating online platforms. This seminar will introduce the foundations of UX and explore language-specific challenges, such as ensuring accessibility for users with diverse linguistic backgrounds.

We will examine how search engines and algorithms function, along with discussing some strategies for designing digital experiences that are understandable, usable, and enjoyable. Using agile methodologies and online tools, students will solve tasks focused on designing and testing for UX writing, which will form the basis for a passing grade.

Artificial Intelligence in English Language Teaching

dr Mateusz Jekiel

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

This proseminar delves into the transformative role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in English Language Teaching (ELT). In a rapidly evolving digital age, it is essential for educators to stay informed about technological advancements and their practical classroom applications.

By the end of this proseminar, participants will be able to:

• understand the fundamental principles of AI and its relevance to ELT,
• explore various AI tools and technologies applicable to ELT,
• assess the effectiveness of AI-enhanced teaching methods,
• identify strategies for integrating AI into teaching practices.

The proseminar will cover the following topics:

• an introduction to AI, including its history, evolution, and current use cases,
• practical applications of AI in ELT, featuring examples of AI-powered language learning apps, platforms, and resources,
• discussions of the ethical implications and considerations of using AI in education,
• an exploration of future trends and innovations in AI for ELT.

This proseminar is designed for future English language teachers and anyone interested in engaging technology to elevate their teaching practices and improve student learning outcomes.

Writing Systems of the World

prof. UAM dr Ronald Kim

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

What do ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, Chinese characters, Arabic calligraphy, and English pronunciation dictionaries have in common? They are all products of humanity’s ongoing quest to represent speech using a principled system of symbols, or writing.

Since its invention some 5000 years ago, writing systems have taken on many different forms at different times and in different places, under different political and social conditions. This course will survey some of the most important writing systems of the ancient and modern world; follow the exciting intellectual journey of decipherment of long-forgotten scripts, including Egyptian hieroglyphics, cuneiform, and Linear B; and trace the evolution of writing across Europe, Asia, and the rest of the globe from ancient to modern times. We will also examine the linguistic principles that have guided the development of writing systems, with special emphasis on the role of phonetics, phonology, word formation, and semantics and the revolutionary invention(s) of the alphabet. Finally, we will discuss the role of conquest, trade, religion, and political ideology in the spread of rival writing systems, and the practical and symbolic value of scripts in the era of globalization.

Bibliography

• Gnanadesikan, Amalia E. 2009. The Writing Revolution: Cuneiform to the Internet. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
• Robinson, Andrew. 2009. Writing and Script: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press.
• Rogers, Henry. 2005. Writing Systems: A Linguistic Approach. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell.

Coming to grips with Beowulf: Rereading, deconstructing, reevaluating

dr Jacek Olesiejko

Target programme: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

Beowulf is one of the earliest poems in English. It is preserved in a single copy in a manuscript to which scholars refer as the Nowell Codex in Cotton Vitellius A.vx. This manuscript is a medieval book of monsters and wonders, a liber monstrorum, as it features three other texts about monsters: (1) The Passion of Christopher, a giant human-being with the head of a dog tormented by an evil king, (2) The Wonders of the East, a text about monsters that comes with illustrations of wondrous beings inhabiting distant places, (3) The Letter of Alexander the Great, in which the legendary king describes wonders of India. The aim of the seminar is to read Beowulf in a way that is provocative and not traditional against other texts about monsters, but not only. The lecturer will provide different contexts and theories to discuss different aspects of the poem, for example, gender studies, feminism, ecofeminism, men’s studies, ecocriticism, monster studies, heroic tradition and others. These contexts and intellectual frameworks will make it possible to read one of the earliest English poems in a fresh way and argue its ongoing relevance. The seminar will also involve discussing movie adaptations and some selections from nontraditional translations of the poem as well as comparing Beowulf to other literary works (canonical and noncanonical). Students are thus invited to bring their own experience and try to figure out new perspectives on the poem. The final grade requirements: (1) presentation and moderating class discussion; (2) active participation.

In this seminar students will be required to read Beowulf in a modernised version (transl. by Seamus Heaney, provided by the lecturer) alongside some other minor Old English poems and prose (also in translation). Knowledge of Old English is thus not required.

What’s special about specialized translation?

dr Magdalena Perdek

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

The overarching question of this proseminar is: What makes a given text and its translation specialized? The operative word here is “specialized”. While some scholars distinguish between specialized (i.e., field-specific – medical, legal, technical, scientific, business etc.) and non-specialized translation (sometimes referred to as “general”), one might wonder whether such distinction makes sense. After all, (very) special skills are needed to translate all types of texts: a clinical report on the treatment of hepatoblastoma, legal opinion of promissory estoppel or 50-page contract on power distribution, specifications of a new AI-supported app, marketing tag lines, but also politicians’ mumbo jumbo, tourist brochures, Mickiewicz’s alexandrine in Pan Tadeusz, (more or less sophisticated) jokes in Friends, The Office or Abbott Elementary, raunchy dialogues or descriptions in Fifty Shades of Gray, politically incorrect wisecracks of stand-up comedians, or the intricate language of Olga Tokarczuk’s novels.

In this proseminar we will look at samples of Polish and English texts from different fields and genres and will assess their “specialization”. We will discuss the role of specialized terminology in such texts as well as different approaches, strategies and skills necessary to successfully transfer the intended meaning of specialized texts.

Credits will be given based on participation in class discussions, critical reading of the assigned material, weekly pre-class preparation of short translations, occasional quizzes, and a presentation/written assignment on translating a selected text type.

Notice: You need to speak Polish at C1-C2 level to participate in this proseminar.

Bibliography

• Baker, Mona and Gabriella Saldanha (eds.). 2020. The Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies. 3rd edition.
• Harding, Sue-Ann and Ovidi Varboneli Cortes (eds.). 2018. The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Culture.
• Millan, Carmen and Francesca Bartrina (eds.). 2013. The Routledge Handbook of Translation Studies.

Canadian shorts (with a sprinkling of longjohns)

prof. UAM dr hab. Agnieszka Rzepa

Target programmes: FA and FAC

Note: this proseminar is also available as part of the AMU-PIE programme

The aim of the seminar is to familiarize students with Canadian literary tradition and major trajectories of change in Canadian literature from the second half of the 19^th to the first two decades of 21^st century. Special emphasis will fall on contemporary prose—primarily “shorts” (short stories, sketches, essays), and a few somewhat longer texts (primarily short novels or memoirs). Texts selected for discussion vary in genre, style, subject-matter and focus, allowing students to appreciate the diversity of contemporary Canadian literature and its cultural contexts. The contexts—cultural, social, literary—will be crucial during our discussions as we try to find best ways of approaching each text. Course work will include individual and group assignments, various (brief) written and oral activities, and—most importantly—active engagement with literary and critical texts in class.

Voices Across Generations: Irish Women Writers and their Works

prof. dr hab. Liliana Sikorska

Target programmes: FA and FAC

This seminar investigates the contributions of three generations of contemporary Irish women writers, tracing their evolution over the last decades of the 20th century and the first twenty years of the 21st century. The authors, whose work will be selected for further reading, have redefined Irish literature and explored themes of identity, family, gender, and power in a rapidly changing Ireland. Each of the generations tackles topics such as personal freedom in relation to societal expectations and Irish Catholicism. The pioneering voices of the 1980s and 1990s, included Edna O’Brien and Mary Morrissy, who broke barriers and laid the groundwork for modern Irish women’s literature. The second generation, represented by Anne Enright and Evelyn Conlon, traversed the intersection of the personal and the political in a globalized Ireland, broadening the thematic preoccupations of present-day literature. The youngest writers, including Louise O’Neil, Louise Nealon and Megan Nolan engage with contemporary issues including social media, mental health, and sexual politics. Their works resonate with millennial and Gen Z audiences. The goal of the seminar is to acquaint the students with the role of women writers in shaping Ireland’s cultural identity during moments of significant social and political change, including the marriage equality referendum. Our discussions will be based on short stories and excerpts from novels.

Researching foreign language learning and teaching

prof. UAM dr hab. Paweł Scheffler

Target programmes: FA, FAC, and ELTIT

This proseminar will explore methods and procedures in research on foreign language learning and teaching. We will examine quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research, along with specific procedures involved in these approaches. The course will cover the design of experimental, questionnaire, and interview studies, highlighting key concepts such as variables, significance testing, and thematic analysis. We will also address critical issues in contemporary research, including the research-practice divide, the influence of the mother tongue, and the role of motivation in foreign language instruction. Credits will be awarded based on a semester test.

Bibliography

• Brown, J.D. 1988. Understanding Research in Second Language Learning. Cambridge: CUP.
• Canrinus, E.T., Scheffler, P., and Baranowska, K. 2024. Locating motivation for English as a foreign language over time: The influence of school location and type. SAGE Open 14/2: 1-13.
• Creswell, J.W. 2009. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. Los Angeles: Sage.
• Scheffler, P., Baranowska, K and Loewen, S. 2024. By word of mouth: The case for teacher-to-teacher research dialogue. ELT Journal.
• Scheffler, P., Domińska, A. 2018. “Own-language use in teaching English to preschool children” ELT Journal 72/4: 374-383.

European Modernist Drama: Beginnings

Timothy Williams, PhD.

Target programmes: FA and FAC

The first two decades of the twentieth century represent a transitional stage in European drama between 19th century realism and the avant-garde. This course invites students to explore a sample of the rich variety of plays from the period. Students will also work together in groups to prepare a scene to perform during the final meeting.

1. Week 1: Introduction
2. Week 2: Oedipus Rex, Everyman; “Teaching Oedipus Rex” (Stephen A. Reid, 1968); Aristotle’s Poetics (excerpt)
3. Week 3: Salome (Wilde, 1893); Kołakowski, “Salome, or All Men are Human”; The Crystal Spider (Rachilde, 1892)
4. Week 4: La Ronde (Schnitzler, 1897); King Ubu (Jarry, 1896)
5. Week 5: When We Dead Awaken (Ibsen, 1899); Easter (Strindberg, 1901)
6. Week 6: Sacred Blood (Gippius, 1900); Cathleen Ni Houlihan (Yeats & Gregory, 1903)
7. Week 7: Riders of the Sea (Synge, 1904); Wavering Traces (Shiguré, 1911)
8. Week 8: The Lower Depths (Gorky, 1902); A Puppet Show (Blok, 1906)
9. Week 9: The Stranger (Blok, 1907); The Blue Bird (Maeterlinck, 1908)
10. Week 10: Cassandra (Ukrainka, 1907); Helen of Sparta (Verhaeren, 1912)
11. Week 11: A Man’s World (Crothers, 1911); The Green Ring (Gippius, 1914)
12. Week 12: At the Hawk's Well (Yeats, 1916); Pygmalion (Shaw, 1915)
13. Weeks 13-15: Scene work: preparation & presentation