Gender, Power and Authority
ENG 2313 – British Literature: Beginnings to 1800
Instructor: Kathryn Laity Office: 1050S Phone: 713.222.5372 Email:
MW 1.00-2.15 (CRN 10386) A622 Office Hours: W 3.00-4.00
MW 4.00-5.15 (CRN 10387) A622 M 5.15-6.15 or by appointment
REQUIRED TEXTS:
David Damrosch, et al., eds. The Longman Anthology of British Literature, Volume 1a,b,c
OBJECTIVES:
This course covers British literature from its earliest recorded texts through the eighteenth century—over a thousand years of literature! While we can’t expect to do more than sample texts from each period, we will trace the major literary trends and examine how the social and cultural histories affect the literature. While analyzing texts within their cultural contexts, we will utilize a variety of theoretical approaches to help develop further your critical reading, thinking, and writing skills. You will be expected to write essays that demonstrate your ability to read closely and analyze carefully, building upon and broadening your writing skills from (prerequisite) ENG 1302. 3 credit hours.
REQUIREMENTS:
500 points total
Active Participation & Daily Reading Quizzes: 100 points
Paper 1 — Critical Analysis: 100 points
Midterm Exam (essay and identifications): 100 points
Paper 2 — Comparative Analysis: 100 points
Final Exam (essay and identifications): 100 points
READINGS:
The readings will be challenging. While the Old English texts have been translated into Modern English, their syntax may nevertheless seem odd to you or difficult to follow. We will read some of the Middle English texts in the original language, which at first may strike you as impossible—but it can be done. Once you have completed these formidable texts, you will find readings in other classes much easier to negotiate because your reading strategies will have become much stronger.
WEBCT (http://uhdonline.uhd.edu):
Our daily assignments will be listed on the calendar of our WebCT home page. Additional information including reading assignments may also be posted there, so be prepared to check WebCT frequently.
GENERAL POLICIES:
· Active participation includes attendance; if you are not attending, you are not participating. Missing more than two classes will result in a grade penalty of 2% of your total grade for each successive absence. Active participation also includes being prepared for class.
· DROP DATES: Sep 3: Last day to drop w/o grade; Oct 27: Last day to withdraw
· Always bring the day’s reading to class with you. You may wish to refer to the text during our discussions or while you work on an in-class writing assignment or quiz.
· Papers are due at the beginning of class; late papers are penalized 10 pts/day.
· Electronic devices (cell phones, beepers, etc.) should be turned off or disabled during our class; it is rude to disrupt the class with beeps or ringing.
· Similarly, tardiness also disrupts the other students, and is unacceptable.
· Students with disabilities should register with Disabled Student Services (221-5227) and contact instructors in a timely manner to arrange for appropriate accommodations. UHD adheres to all federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities.
· All students are subject to university-wide policies set forth in the Catalog and Student Handbook.
· Plagiarism is the theft or appropriation of another person’s ideas or writing. You will be guilty of plagiarism if you do not properly cite the words of others in your paper, if you buy or borrow an essay, if you download information from the web and paste it into your paper, or if you copy information from your text verbatim on an exam. Plagiarism is a serious charge; not only will you receive a zero for the assignment, but it may lead to failing the course. Any incident of plagiarism will be entered into your permanent academic record; repeat incidents may result in expulsion from the University. Consult your student handbook for UHD’s Academic Honesty Policy, or go to: http://www.uhd.edu/about/hr/PS03A19.pdf
FIRST ASSIGNMENT (All future assignments are on our WebCT calendar):
Reading: Read carefully the introduction to the first volume of the Longman anthology, pp. 3-26 (if you do not yet have the text, there is a copy on WebCT) and read Part 1 of Beowulf, pp. 27-51. Make notes for yourself, tracking the ups and downs of British history during the Middle Ages. What characteristics typify this turbulent period? What sort of a place is this small island nation? What groups of people inhabit it? When? How do they see themselves? What do the included images (don’t forget the cover!) reveal about the nature of this changing culture? Come prepared to answer these questions in detail.
Exercise: Analyze the hand-out on Ælfric’s Colloquy; try to fill in as many of the answers as you can. Where you cannot guess the meaning of a word, try to label what part of speech it represents, whether noun, verb, pronoun, article, adjective, etc. Be as specific as possible; for example, if it is a verb, determine the person and number (how do you tell?). You will not get all the words, but you should be able to understand the structure of the answers.