Chinua Achebe (African), Charlotte Perkins Gilman (American), Moliere (French), Chikamatsu Monzaemon (Japanese), Alifa Rifaat (Egyptian), Jonathan Swift (Irish), Leo Tolstoy (Russian), and Lu Xun (Chinese): what do these famous authors have in common? All have written masterpieces of world literature of the seventeenth century and beyond. In this survey course, students will read and analyze their enduring works, examine the cultural and historical contexts, conduct original research, make oral presentations, and write essays of literary criticism.