British Literature to 1600

ENGL 3523: The Early English Renaissance (Spring 2020)

Anonymous — Thu, 17 Oct 2019 14:59:03 +0000

ENGL 3523: The Early English Renaissance (Spring 2020) Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 10/17/2019 - 08:59

The term “Renaissance” means “rebirth.” But rebirth of what? In this class, we’ll look at the new ways in which English writers began to explore familiar questions about the nature of desire, the limits of power, and the relation of individuals to structures of community, family and faith. How might emergent forms like the public stage play or the epyllion - an imitation of sexy Classical myths - allow writers to work through these questions, while simultaneously reinventing what literature is and does? Reading and thinking together, we’ll encounter girls disguised as boys, sonnets about animals, and men who fall in love with statues. Believe it or not, this is the stuff that shaped English literature.

Taught by Dr. Dianne Mitchell.

Requisites: Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors) only.
Additional Information: Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities
Departmental Category: British Literature to 1660

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ENGL 4023/5023: Intermediate Old English II - Beowulf (Spring 2020)

Anonymous — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 20:15:33 +0000

ENGL 4023/5023: Intermediate Old English II - Beowulf (Spring 2020) Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 10/14/2019 - 14:15

Beowulf is much stranger, sadder, and more timely than you think. Experience the poem in its original language, using the skills built in Introduction to Old English (Engl 4003/5003)! Students will produce daily translations, and seminar-style class discussions will involve both linguistic and literary aspects of this enigmatic poem.

Reading List: Beowulf

Taught by Dr. Tiffany Beechy.

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ENGL 3583: Milton (Spring 2020)

Anonymous — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 20:00:33 +0000

ENGL 3583: Milton (Spring 2020) Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 10/14/2019 - 14:00

One of England’s greatest writers and most radical thinkers, Milton wrote during a turbulent time. His writing speaks to crises of personal and political liberty that can feel oddly familiar - and equally divisive - in our own moment. Reading and working together, we'll try to get to grips with Milton's innovative forms, including an epic poem - Paradise Lost - that rejects the bondage of rhyme. Along the way, we'll ask some of the big questions: Do we have free will? What is the nature of evil? And how do angels have sex, anyway?

Reading List: John Milton, Paradise Lost

Taught by Dr. Dianne Mitchell.

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ENGL 4013-001: Intermediate Old English I (Spring 2019)

Anonymous — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 18:46:16 +0000

ENGL 4013-001: Intermediate Old English I (Spring 2019) Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 10/03/2018 - 12:46

Professor Tiffany Beechy

This course is the payoff for having learned the grammar of Old English in Introduction to Old English (which is the prerequisite for the course unless you see me for permission)! You will continue to develop your skills in Old English reading and translation as you read shorter canonical texts in verse and prose, such as riddles, charms, and shorter poems such as The Dream of the Rood and The Seafarer. Students will produce idiomatic translations for every class, write short assignments considering the literary aspects of the works, and write either a final exam or a final paper. Students will also memorize and present a short section of verse in the original language, which they have the option of presenting at the spring Medieval Poetry Night! In addition, students will be introduced to manuscript work using online interfaces. Graduate students will read and present on secondary scholarship and produce original research.

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ENGL 3563-001: Shakespeare (Spring 2019)

Anonymous — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 18:43:54 +0000

ENGL 3563-001: Shakespeare (Spring 2019) Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 10/03/2018 - 12:43

Shakespeare's poetry and drama.

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ENGL 4003-001: Introduction to Old English

Anonymous — Thu, 16 Aug 2018 17:33:54 +0000

ENGL 4003-001: Introduction to Old English Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 08/16/2018 - 11:33

Professor Tiffany Beechy

Hwæt! English looked a lot different 1000 years ago. Although it sounds “old,” the history of our language has everything to do with how we use English today. Old English and Anglo-Saxon culture are the bases for Tolkien’s Middle Earth, and they are also often used in modern nationalist movements. Learn how to think about “origins” in accurate ways that honor the past without living in it. This course provides an introduction to Old English, the ancient ancestor of Modern English (as Latin is the ancient ancestor of Spanish and Italian, distinct from both). The focus of the course is on reading knowledge through grammar study and translation, and to a lesser extent on pronunciation. The course will provide basic parsing and translation skills and an introduction to the history, culture, and literature of early medieval Britain, as well as an introduction to the history of the English Language. Did you know that the word glamor comes from grammar? You will see why! Old English is a sequence, and Intermediate Old English I (Engl 4013) will be offered in the spring.

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ENGL 3553-001: Geoffrey Chaucer

Anonymous — Thu, 16 Aug 2018 17:30:06 +0000

ENGL 3553-001: Geoffrey Chaucer Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 08/16/2018 - 11:30

Professor Katie Little

People have been reading Chaucer’s poetry for over 600 years now. Such long-lasting popularity has in part to do with the great variety of his writings. There’s a lot to like (and dislike): deeply moving tragedies, racy stories, philosophical meditations on the meaning of truth, and mocking diatribes against certain types of people. There’s also a great variety in opinions about him: he has been described as a bumbler and the father of English poetry, as deeply religious and mostly secular, as a traditionalist and an innovator. This course will ask who is Chaucer now? We will begin by familiarizing ourselves with his life, times, and his somewhat foreign language (Middle English) and then read some of his dream visions and a selection of stories from his Canterbury Tales. No previous knowledge of medieval literature is expected or required. This course will be an introduction to Chaucer’s poetry and to how to write and talk about literature more generally.

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ENGL 3533-001: The Renaissance in England, 1600-1700

Anonymous — Thu, 16 Aug 2018 17:26:22 +0000

ENGL 3533-001: The Renaissance in England, 1600-1700 Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 08/16/2018 - 11:26

Melanie Lo

The seventeenth century in England was a maelstrom of revolution and historical change, from terrorism and civil war to the rise of the English empire and the beginnings of science. This tumultuous era produced some of the most daring and revolutionary literature that England has ever seen. This course surveys major works in seventeenth-century English literature from Macbeth to Paradise Lost and beyond, including works by Ben Jonson, John Webster, John Donne, Thomas Hobbes, Andrew Marvell, Margaret Cavendish, Aphra Behn, and more. We will study a number of historical developments crucial to understanding literature of the period, including religious controversy; monarchy and democratic theory; gender and the changing status of women; slavery and the growth of empire; and the beginnings of modern science. Finally, we will consider how seventeenth-century literature pops up in contemporary pop culture, from V for Vendetta to Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials. Course requirements will include weekly discussion posts, two papers, and two exams.

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