The Marriage of Heaven and Hell: English Poetry from Milton to Blake
English 441
TuTh 8-9:15 am
Vilas 4008
Office Hours Tu 9:30-10:30, Th 12:30-1:30
Professor Robin Valenza
[email protected]
HCW 6177
Course Description
William Blake famously called John Milton “a poet of the devil‟s party without knowing it.” Blake
meant this as a compliment. Milton‟s dazzling portrayal of the darkly luminous, rebellious Satan,
the archangel who briefly severed the great chain of being, exemplified a guiding principle of
Blake‟s poetry: one “must create a system or be enslav‟d by another[„s].” In Blake‟s hands, the
theodicy of Paradise Lost, Milton‟s attempt to “justify the ways of God to men,” became a riotous
cosmogony, a tumultuous and unorthodox story of the origin and development of the universe.
This course examines the long shadow Milton cast over the poetry of the century that
succeeded him. Much as the poets of the period did, this class takes Milton as its tutor, but
then seeks to reach beyond the master, noting how Milton‟s influence gets away from him,
producing a century of very different poetic challenges to Miltonic verse.
Course books
Fairer & Gerard, eds., Eighteenth-Century Poetry: An Annotated Anthology,
Blackwell, ISBN: 1405113197.
Milton, Paradise Lost, Norton, ISBN: 0393924289.
Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, Dover, ISBN: 0486281221.
Blake, The Book of Urizen, Dover, ISBN: 0486298019.
How to read
Whether you are reading from a course book or from an online source, it’s important to
engage with the lines of poetry. Speak them aloud. Write notes in the margins. Identify
patterns. Ask questions. Bring your notes and questions to class to spark discussion. This
means that you will need to print out all the online sources so that you can take notes
directly on the poems and use them in class. It is a requirement of the course that you
have personally-annotated print copies of each reading with you at each class
session.
The Classroom Contract
The success of our time together depends on your intellectual presence, curiosity, and
openness, and these three qualities meet one another most productively in the classroom
itself.
Regular attendance and active, lively participation are essential except in cases of religious
observance, illness, or catastrophic happening of truly epic proportions. Attendance will be
taken at every class session.
The instructor reserves the right to implement more draconian policies about absenteeism
during the semester if it becomes a problem, but she would rather believe that, together,
we can avoid this sort of disaster.
In short, come to class.
You don’t want to live your later years wishing you’d gotten more out of your education, an
all-too-common regret; I do not want to be punitive about attendance, an all-too-pedestrian
use of our brief time together.
A genuinely great university education depends on the engaged participation of every
member of a class. Your energy, in turn, inspires the instructor and other students to
greater intellectual heights, and these benefits will redound to you a thousand-fold. Eight
am is early, but life holds plenty of time in which to sleep.
That said, if you are legitimately ill, please stay home and take care of yourself so that you
may recover as quickly as possible and be back in full force ASAP.
I am open to the possibility of participation by Skype for emergencies.
Please put your phones in silent mode during class; ringing phones break up the
momentum of a class, a crime against your fellow travelers on the intellectual journey we
are taking together.
Written work
Class members will write an argumentative essay, a midterm exam, a longer project, and a
final exam. Details will follow as the deadlines draw nearer. All due dates need to be
strictly observed so that fairness will prevail. I return papers quickly so that my responses
arrive while your work is still fresh in your mind. Late papers are NOT accepted unless an
extension is granted in advance in writing; a late penalty may apply. If, before the deadline,
you do not have a written confirmation that a late paper will be accepted, it will not be.
Essay 1 (~1000 words), due
electronically
September 28 by 6 pm
20%
Midterm, October 20 .
Students my opt to take an inclass midterm or write a
longer essay and turn it in at
the start of class.
Project, due Monday, Dec 14
This project will be a
substantial (although not
necessarily full) adaptation of
part of one or more of the
works on the syllabus to a
different context or medium.
This assignment may be done
individually or in groups.
Final Exam, December 23.
Students may choose between
taking an in-class essay exam
during the university’s
assigned exam period or may
write a 1500-word paper
submitted electronically by 2
pm, Dec 23.
Attendance and Participation
15%
32%
25%
8%
Citation
Plagiarism is a form of academic misconduct in which one uses “the words or ideas of
others without giving credit. You should know the principles of plagiarism and the correct
rules for citing sources. In general, if your paper implies that you are the originator of
words or ideas, they must in fact be your own.” (“Student Advocacy & Judicial Affairs,”
students.wisc.edu/saja/misconduct/UWS14.html). A useful reference is the Writing
Center’s “Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources,” available at
http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/QuotingSources.html. In this course, you may use any
of the standard methods of citation (MLA, Chicago, etc)
Plagiarism works against a student’s own interest in many ways. Papers are often made
stronger by citation of other sources because citation helps to establish evidence, authority,
and an awareness of the other scholarship on your topic Although not all of the writing for
this course described as a “research paper,” research using scholarly sources and proper
citation of them is encouraged. Please do take full advantage of the libraries on campus,
and the scholarly resources that the library makes available through its website.
Special Circumstances
If there are circumstances that may affect your performance in this class, please let me
know as soon as possible so that we may work together to develop strategies for adapting
assignments to meet both your needs and the requirements of the course. The McBurney
Disability Resource Center (263-2741) provides resources for students with disabilities.
You will need to provide documentation of disability to them in order to receive official
university services and accommodations. For more information, please see
http://www.mcburney.wisc.edu/ (from which this course’s disability policy is drawn)
Reading schedule
September 2009
S
M
T
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
W
1
Classes
begin
T
3
F
4
S
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Week 1
Introduction
Week 2
Paradise Lost
Tuesday
Thursday
Week 3
Paradise Lost
Tuesday
Thursday
Book 1 (all)
Book 2 (all) + the argument at beginning of book 3
Book 4, the argument + lines 110 (begins with Satan speaking)
through line 357 + lines 444 (begins with Adam speaking) through
line 535 , Book 5, the argument, lines 600-907.
Book 9 (all) + the arguments for books 10, 11, and 12
Week 4
Poetry directed toward the Choice of Life
Tuesday
Milton, L’Allegro, Il Penseroso*1
Poems followed by a footnote mark do not appear in the course books. Several of these
poems are provided at the end of this document; for the rest, I have given links to scholarly
online editions. Please print out copies of these poems for reading and annotating.
1 L’Allegro
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/reading_room/l%27allegro/index.shtml
Il Penseroso http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/reading_room/penseroso/index.shtml
Thursday
Pompfret, The Choice
Philips, The Splendid Shilling
Egerton, The Liberty
Johnson, The Vanity of Human Wishes
Leapor, An Epistle to a Lady
October 2009
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
1
2
3
Week 5
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 5
Poetry of Feeling
Tuesday
Egerton, To One Who Said I must not Love
Gray, Sonnet on the Death of Richard West
Watts, Man Frail and God Eternal *
Psalm 90.1-5, King James Bible*
Wright, To An Infant Expiring The Second Day Of Its Birth*
Thursday
Swift, Verses on the Death of Dr Swift
Gray, Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat, Drowned in a
Tub of Goldfishes
Smart, My Cat Jeffrey
Finch, The Spleen
Week 6
Poetry of the Country and the City
Tuesday
John Gay, Trivia: Or, the Art of Walking the Streets of
London
Swift, A Description of the Morning
Swift, A Description of a City Shower
Johnson, London
Thursday
Yearsley, Clifton Hill
Dyer, Grongar Hill
Week 7
Descriptive Poetry
Tuesday
Thomson, Summer, first 2/32
Thursday
Thomson, Summer, final 1/33
Cowper, The Task, book 1
Week 8
Poetry of Contemplation and Resistance
Tuesday
Midterm
Thursday
Akenside, The Pleasures of Imagination, book 1
More, Slavery4
Week 9
Poetry of Work
Tuesday
Collier, The Woman’s Labour
Duck, The Thresher’s Labour
Thursday
Leapor, Crumble-Hall
Dyer, The Fleece
“Summer” (Please note that the poem “Summer” is divided over two pdf files. The break
between the files does not correspond to the break in your reading. You’ll need both files
to do Tuesday’s reading. Thursday’s reading is at the end of the second file.)
https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/valenza/web/Eng441.2009/ThomsonIntroSummer1.pdf
https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/valenza/web/Eng441.2009/ThomsonSummer.pdf
3 See above.
4 https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/valenza/web/Eng441.2009/HannahMoreSlavery.pdf
2
November 2009
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Thanksgiving
27
28
29
30
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
Week 13
Week 14
Week 10
Graveyard School Poetry
Tuesday
Gray, Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College
Gray, Elegy written in a Country Churchyard
Thursday
Parnell, The Night-Piece
Young, Night Thoughts5
Week 11
Poetry of the Nation
Tuesday
Pope, Windsor Forest
Thomson, Rule Britannia6
The British Grenadiers*
John Scott, Ode XIII*
Thursday
Goldsmith, The Deserted Village
Crabbe, The Village
Week 12
The Unfortunate Lady
Tuesday
5
6
Swift, The Lady’s Dressing Room
Swift, A Beautiful Young Nymph Going to Bed
Pope, An Epistle To a Lady
Montagu, The Dean’s Provocation for Writing the Lady’s Dressing
Room*
Link forthcoming.
“Rule Britannia,” http://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/poem/2209.html
The Gentleman's Study, In Answer To The Lady's Dressing-room7
Thursday
Montagu, Saturday. The Small-Pox. Flavia.
Fowke, The Innocent Inconstant
Week 13
Poetic Vocation
Tuesday
Pope, An Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot
Collins, Ode on the Poetical Character
Milton, Paradise Lost, Book 3 lines 1-55
Thursday
Mlton, Lycidas*8
Burns, The Vision
December 2009
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
1
2
3
4
5
Week 14
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Last day
of class
16
Exams
begin
18
19
20
21
22
Exams
end
24
25
26
Week 15
Week 16
Week 17
Week 14
Tuesday
Thursday
Week 15
Tuesday
Thursday
Milton, Paradise Lost, the Argument to book 6
Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (all)
Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (all)
Milton, Paradise Lost, Book 7, the Argument to book 7
Blake, The Book of Urizen (all)
Week 16
Review
Final Exam, 23 December, Wednesday.
7
8
https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/valenza/web/Eng441.2009/GentlemansStudy.pdf
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/reading_room/lycidas/index.shtml
Isaac Watts (1674-1748)
Man Frail and God Eternal
1 Our God, our help in ages past,
2 Our hope for years to come,
3 Our shelter from the stormy blast,
4 And our eternal home.
5 Under the shadow of thy throne
6 Thy Saints have dwelt secure;
7 Sufficient is thine arm alone,
8 And our defence is sure.
9 Before the hills in order stood,
10 Or earth receiv'd her frame,
11 From everlasting thou art God,
12 To endless years the same.
13 Thy word commands our flesh to dust,
14 "Return, ye sons of men:"
15 All nations rose from earth at first,
16 And turn to earth again.
17 A thousand ages in thy sight
18 Are like an ev'ning gone;
19 Short as the watch that ends the night,
20 Before the rising sun.
21 The busy tribes of flesh and blood,
22 With all their lives and cares,
23 Are carry'd downwards by the flood,
24 And lost in following years.
25 Time, like an ever-rolling stream,
26 Bears all his sons away;
27 They fly, forgotten, as a dream
28 Dies at the op'ning day.
29 Like flow'ry fields the nations stand,
30 Pleas'd with the morning light:
31 The flow'rs beneath the mower's hand
32 Lie with'ring ere 'tis night.
33 Our God, our help in ages past,
34 Our hope for years to come,
35 Be thou our guard while troubles last,
36 And our eternal home.
Notes
1] Our: O (John Wesley's revision, 1738). See The English Hymnal with Tunes (London
[1906]), no. 450, p. 595
13] This stanza was first omitted by the Episcopal church in the 1871 Hymnal (see The
Hymnal 1982 Companion, ed. Raymond Glover [New York: ChurchHymnal Corp., 1994], III,
679-80).
33] Our: O (Wesley's revision).
Online text copyright © 2009, Ian Lancashire (the Department of English) and the
University of Toronto.
Published by the Web Development Group, Information Technology Services, University of
Toronto Libraries.
Original text: I. Watts, The Psalms of David (London: S. Burton, E. Kent, and J. Lister, 1805),
pp. 231-32. BS 1440 W3 1805 Trinity College Library.
First publication date: 1719
Psalm 90, verses 1-5, King James Bible
God's Eternity and Man's Transitoriness
A Prayer of Moses the man of God.
1
2
3
4
5
LORD, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world,
even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.
Thou turnest man to destruction;
and sayest, Return, ye children of men.
For a thousand years in thy sight
are but as yesterday when it is past, 2 Pet. 3.8
and as a watch in the night.
Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep:
in the morning they are like grass which groweth up.
The British Grenadiers
Some talk of Alexander, and some of Hercules,
Of Conon and Lysander, and some Miltiades;
But of all the world’s brave heroes there’d none that can compare
With a tow, row, row, row, row to the British Grenadiers;
But of all the world’s brave heroes there’d none that can compare
With a tow, row, row, row, row to the British Grenadiers.
None of these ancient heroes e’er saw a cannon ball,
Nor knew the force of powder to slay their foes with all,
But our brave boys do know it and banish all their fears,
Sing tow, row row row , row row row,
For the British Grenadiers.
When e’er we are commanded to storm the palisades,
Our leaders march with fuses, and we with hand grenades;
We throw them from the glacis about the enemies’ ears,
Sing tow, row row row , row row row,
For the British Grenadiers.
The God of War was pleased and great Bellona smiles,
To see these noble heroes of our British Isles;
And all the Gods celestial, descending from their spheres,
Beheld with admiration the British Grenadiers.
Then let us crown a Bumper and drink a health to those
Who carry Caps and Pouches and wear the louped Clothes;
May they and their Commanders live happy all their Years,
With a tow row row row row, the British grenadiers
From The
musical
miscellany: a
select collection
of Scots, English
and Irish songs,
set to music.
Title: The Dean's provocation for writing the lady's
dressing-room. A poem.
Author: Montagu, Mary Wortley, Lady (16891762)
Imprint:
London : printed for T. Cooper, 1734.