This course explores the ways that modern literature is grounded in the act of reinventing -- or reclaiming, or redirecting -- earlier stories, themes, rhythms, grievances, and passions. We read and interrogate major works in genres ranging from drama to poetry, fiction, essay, and memoir (mostly written in English), asking how each author rethinks earlier works—and reinvents the known world. Then we ask how we might, in turn, illuminate, reimagine, or subvert these literary works. Weekly full-course meetings alternate lectures and panels (which will include students); student-led section meetings engage in discussion and close reading. Assignments include creative and analytical writing. Authors may include Jane Austen, James Baldwin, Aimé Césaire, Emily Dickinson, Mohsin Hamid, Margo Jefferson, William Shakespeare, Walt Whitman, and Virginia Woolf.