ENGL3002: From Serial Reading to Binge Watching

In 1841, New Yorkers eagerly lined the docks, waiting for the final chapters of Charles Dickens’s The Old Curiosity Shop to arrive from across the Atlantic. In the age of video streaming, we wait just as impatiently for the next episode or series to drop. Humans have an insatiable appetite for stories and sometimes we just can’t get enough of a fictional world and its characters. We want the sequel, the next chapter, the next episode, the next series. 

This course investigates three different forms of media that have been used for serial storytelling: the Victorian serialized novel, the podcast, and the streaming video series. We’ll consider how each medium shapes the way stories are told in a unique way, and we’ll discuss questions such as: What makes serial storytelling so addictive? How do technological advances shape the newest forms of serial storytelling? How do audiences and fandoms influence the production of new stories? Can stories function as a unifying force bringing diverse audiences together? How do we determine the labor value of these modes of entertainment, and are creativity and performance being adequately valued and paid?  

Students will reflect, research, and tell stories using different media. The class will make connections between the fictional narratives we consume and the unfolding narrative of current events, as well as the narratives we tell about our own lives. In line with the university’s mission “Next lives here,” students will speculate about the future manifestations of serial storytelling.