BRITISH LITERATURE I: MEDIEVAL TO 1700
ENGLISH 240
Instructor:
Dr. Garrison | [email protected]
Office Hours: T & F 10:00am to Noon (or by appt.)
in MacAllister 303
Class:
TF | 2:00-3:50
MN 309
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course will introduce you to a range of literature before 1700, grounding that literature in the
historical, political, social, and linguistic contexts from which it emerged. Together, we will examine
divergent modes of cultural production that worked together in shaping early Britain. The readings and
other activities for this course are organized broadly around the idea of literature as a site of exchange.
This does not mean that we will only examine a single theme in the literature we study. Rather, the
course will ask you to think about literature as a site where many elements constantly interact, including
characters, cultures, words, meanings, writers, and readers. For our texts, we’ll look at works that depict
diverse forms of exchange or works that are involved in the exchange of ideas with other works. Such a
focus will help us examine the role of language and the arts in human interaction, whether in instances
of contact between two cultures or at the level of everyday exchanges. We will read drama, prose, and
poetry from authors with whom you may already be familiar (e.g., Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton) or
may be encountering for the first time. Lectures and assignments will focus on methods of literary
research and development of a critical vocabulary for successful literary scholarship.
The desired learning outcomes for this course include: 1) understanding how Anglophone language and
literature develop over time; (2) learning to interpret both the content and form of poetry, prose, and
drama by observant attention to textual detail; and (3) formulating a compelling argument about a
literary text.
REQUIRED TEXTS
1. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume B (9th edition)
2. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
3. Various texts via the course website
COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
Graded components for this course include two essays, participation, and three exams.
Essays
The first essay should be a minimum of five pages in length and will be an exercise in close reading. The
argument of this close-reading essay should be supported by minutely scrutinizing textual evidence from
the selected passage, as well as other information from the text in question as relevant.
The second essay should be a minimum of seven pages in length and will put forth an argument
supported by research into existing criticism. You will be asked to position your own argument in relation to
others that scholars have made about the text(s) you examine.
Students may wish to consult with the instructor well in advance of relevant due dates when planning
essays, selecting evidence, and forming arguments.
Class Participation
Being present is crucial to your success in this course! Please arrange to arrive on time and be prepared
to discuss the texts we’ve read. While it can be difficult to speak in front of other students, I expect
everyone to participate in class discussion. A good goal to set for yourself is to speak more than once
per class. There are a variety of ways to better prepare yourself to speak up during class. One way is to
highlight passages while you are doing the pre-reading and jot down questions/comments as you read.
Are there parts of the reading that you found interesting/objectionable/laudable? Think about how the
passages that you highlight fit into the larger themes of the author’s work and of this course.
Examinations
The examinations will take place during normal class hours. These exams will include identification
questions from the readings; terms and concepts from lectures; issues raised by students in class
discussion; memorizing a sonnet; and at least one short essay question.
Grading Criteria
Close-reading essay
Research essay
Participation
Three Exams
Grading Scale
100 – 93%
92 – 89%
88 – 83%
82 – 79%
78 – 70%
69 – 60%
59% and below
20%
30%
20%
30%
A
A/B
B
B/C
C
D
F
Policy Statements
Disabilities Statement: Students with documented disabilities who may need accommodations (or
any student considering obtaining documentation) should make an appointment with Ms. Martha
Bledsoe, Director of Services for Students with Disabilities, no later than the first week of class. She
can be reached by calling 262-524-7335 or via email at [email protected].
Academic Integrity: The Carroll University Academic Integrity Policy is located in your student
handbook. If a student violates this policy in any way, the instructor reserves the right to impose a
sanction of failure on the assignment/assessment or failure in the course. If you have questions
about appropriate citations, please ask.
Attendance Policy: This course is conducted as a seminar: you are expected to speak, listen and
contribute. Therefore, regular attendance is required. Your participation grade relies on regular
attendance. If you miss more than two weeks during the semester, you cannot pass the class. If you
are absent, be sure to get the notes from someone. You are responsible for obtaining missed
assignments and lecture notes from other students. Please also note that in order to be counted as
present, you need to adhere to reasonable standards of punctuality and decorum (no use of
electronic device for non-class purposes, no speaking when others are speaking, etc.).
Modifications to the syllabus: The instructor and the University reserve the right to modify,
amend, or change the syllabus (course requirements, grading policy, etc.) as the curriculum and/or
program require(s).
SCHEDULE OF READING AND WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
You are expected to read/complete the assignments ahead of time for the day on which they are listed.
For each text, you should read the related headnote and all footnotes. You will be notified of any
changes to this schedule both in class and via email.
DATE
ASSIGNMENT
Week 1
9/7: Course Overview: “This Sceptered Isle”
Week 2
9/11: Marie de France, “Lanval” (course website); Anon., “The Wanderer” (course website);
Tolkien and Auden receptions of “The Wanderer” (course website)
9/14: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (Parts 1 and 2)
Week 3
9/18: SGGK (Parts 3 and 4)
9/21: Chaucer, “To His Scribe Adam” & “Complaint to His Purse”; Chaucer, “The General
Prologue”
Week 4
9/25: Chaucer, “The Pardoner’s Prologue and Tale”
9/28: Malory, “The Poisoned Apple” from Morte Darthur (course website)
Week 5
10/2: The Secret of the Kells (in class)
10/5: The Secret of the Kells (in class)
First Essay Due on Friday (10/5) by 2:00pm
Week 6
Week 7
10/9: Read “Introduction to the Sixteenth Century”; Ascham, from The Schoolmaster;
Castiglione, from The Courtier
Exam #1
10/12: Class does not meet; post insights online about Elizabeth I, “Speech to the Troops at
Tilbury” & “The Doubt of Future Foes”
10/16: Class does not meet (Fall Break)
10/19: Herbert, “The Altar” and “Easter Wings”; Donne. Holy Sonnets 10 &14
Week 8
Week 9
10/23: Read “Renaissance Love and Desire”; Marlowe, “The Passionate Shepherd to His
Love”; Raleigh, “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd”; Donne, “The Bait”; Wyatt, “Whoso
List to Hunt” & “They Flee From Me”; Herrick, three “Julia” poems
10/26: Philips, “A Married State”; Donne, “The Flea”; Sidney, Sonnet 1 from Astrophil and
Stella; Barnfield, Sonnets 9 and 10 from Cynthia
10/30: Carew, “An Elegy Upon the Death of the Dean of Paul’s, Dr. John Donne”; Jonson,
“To John Donne”; Walton, “On the Life of John Donne”; Milton, “On Shakespeare”
11/2: William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, Act I & Sonnets 1, 20, and 130
Week 10
11/6: TN, Act II
11/9: TN, Act III
Week 11
11/13: TN, Act IV & V
Exam #2
11/16: Freud, “Transience” and “On Mourning and Melancholia” (course website); Burton,
“The Anatomy of Melancholy”; Donne, “A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning,” “Elegy 19:
To His Mistress Going to Bed”
Week 12
11/20: Butler, excerpt from Precarious Life: The Powers of Mourning and Violence (course
website); Milton, “Lycidas”; Shakespeare, “The Phoenix and Turtle” (course website)
11/23: Class does not meet (Thanksgiving)
Week 13
11/27: Marvell, Four “Mower” poems
11/30: Pepys, diary entries (course website)
Week 14
12/4: Milton, Paradise Lost, Book I, Lines 1-621
12/7: Milton, Paradise Lost, Book I, Lines 622-800
Exam #3
Week 15
12/11: Class Does Not Meet
Dec. 14 @
11:55 PM Second Essay Due