Monday, August 3, 2009

Last Chance! ENGL 367W, Fall 2009

If you still need to complete your "W" requirement, are looking for an English elective, or just enjoy reading novels, consider taking ENGL 367W (Eighteenth-Century British Literature II) in Fall 2009. This course will soon be canceled if enrollment does not increase! Please take this opportunity to study one of the most fascinating periods in our discipline, as taught by the award-winning Prof. Marilyn Francus. A description is posted below.

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Seduction. Revolution. Scandal. Horror. Bankruptcy.

Welcome to eighteenth-century Britain.

In English 367W we will examine British culture through the narrative lens of the novel, the dominant literary genre of the period. In a period defined by the American and French revolutions, increased urbanization and industrialization, the establishment of charitable institutions, and food riots, the novels show just how conscious the nation was of its accomplishments and failures. Eighteenth-century novels focus on issues of class - the fantasies of upward mobility as well as the anxieties of downward mobility. The eighteenth-century British novel is also characterized by discussions of gender, as definitions of sexuality, masculinity, and femininity are subject to debate. These novels range from romance (Pamela and Evelina) to gothic horror (The Castle of Otranto) to scandal literature (Fanny Hill) to social satire (Castle Rackrent) to comic adventure (Tom Jones) - as variable and expansive as the nation itself.

Primary Texts:

Samuel Richardson, Pamela
Henry Fielding, Tom Jones
John Cleland, Fanny Hill
Horace Walpole, The Castle of Otranto
Frances Burney, Evelina
Maria Edgeworth, Castle Rackrent

This course fulfills the University’s “W” requirement, and elective requirements for the English major and minor.

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