HCST Curriculum

A college-level course where students deepen their understanding of literature through the close reading of complex texts. The course focuses on critical analysis, exploring structure, style, and themes, and requires intensive writing to develop analytical skills.

This senior-level course examines canonical works of literature that have shaped cultural and literary history. Students will engage in in-depth analysis, discussion, and writing, exploring the enduring themes and artistic merits of these masterpieces.

This course analyzes rock and roll (along with its related genres like folk, punk, and hip-hop) as a vital form of 20th and 21st-century literature. Moving beyond the music, students will treat lyrics as poetry, examining the work of influential singer-songwriters—from Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell to Kendrick Lamar—as contemporary authors. The class will apply formal literary analysis to explore narrative structure in songs and concept albums, the use of poetic devices like metaphor and allusion, and the evolution of major themes such as rebellion, alienation, love, and social protest. By placing these "texts" within their historical and cultural contexts, this course validates popular music as a powerful and legitimate medium for storytelling.

This course treats film as a modern form of literature, teaching students to "read" and analyze movies with the same critical rigor used for novels and plays. Students will explore how core literary elements—such as narrative structure, theme, character development, and symbolism—are translated into a visual medium. The curriculum focuses on analyzing cinematographic techniques (like camera angles, lighting, and editing) as the "literary devices" of filmmaking, examining how these choices shape the audience's understanding and emotional response to the story.

This course provides a hands-on introduction to the craft of imaginative writing, focusing on genres like fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Students will move beyond traditional academic essays to explore the core elements of storytelling, including plot, character development, dialogue, imagery, and voice. A significant portion of the class will be conducted as a supportive workshop, where students share their original compositions and learn to provide and receive constructive peer feedback. By reading and analyzing the techniques of established authors, students will experiment with different styles and build a portfolio of polished, original pieces.

This course explores the power of the Gothic and Horror genres to reflect cultural anxieties, both on the page and on the screen. Students will trace the evolution of the genre from its literary origins in works by authors like Poe and Shelley to its modern expression in film. The curriculum focuses on analyzing how literary devices such as suspense, foreshadowing, and the uncanny are translated into cinematic techniques like lighting, sound design, and camera angles. By examining recurring themes of the monstrous, the unknown, and the forbidden, students will critically analyze how horror serves as a powerful medium for exploring the darker side of human nature and society.