ENG 234 - Topics in British Literature

Institution:

University of New England

Subject:

English

Description:

This course will provide students the opportunity to explore a variety of introductory topics in literature. A description of the specific topic offered will be posted prior to the registration period. Summer 2009: Stealing Shakespeare Shakespeare is broadly celebrated for the originality of his imagination and yet, like all other playwrights of his time, he frequently "stole" characters and plotlines from previous literary works (in polite society this sort of thing is better known as ¿adaptation). And since the Renaissance, other playwrights and filmmakers have returned the favor: by stealing from him. In this course we will study both ends of the game: we will read some of the narratives that later appeared in one of Shakespeare's plays, and we will view several films that adapted Shakespearean characters for different dramatic ends. There are three course units: (1) "High School Drama" examines what happens when a director translates one of the plays into the language of teenaged angst; (2) "Tragedies in the Global Imagination" samples three prominent international filmmakers (from Japan, Russia and India) and examines how they have reworked some of the high tragedies; and (3) "American Terrains," which shows us how Shakespeare's plays look when they are reshaped for a distinctly American landscape, such as the Wild West. Members of the class will also attend a live performance of The Taming of the Shrew in downtown Portland's free "Shakespeare in the Park," produced by the Fenix Theatre Company. Fall 2009: British Children's Literature When did a child become a Child? Who was the Harry Potter of the Victorian Age? Why did Peter Pan not want to grow up? This course focuses on nineteenth century literature both about and for children. We will begin by defining the Romantic child through Rousseau's pedagogical book Emile and Wordsworth's poetry, then divide the course into the main genres of children's literature in the 1800s: moral lessons of the early century, fantasy worlds of the Golden Age of children's literature, school stories, adventure tales, and the nostalgic stories of the early 20th century. We will address questions of how our understanding of childhood developed in the nineteenth century, when children became a market for commercial interests, and how the literature contributed to the gendered socialization of good girls and imperial boys. Fall 2010: Arthurian Legend This course focuses on the various historical and literary legends that have accumulated around the figure of King Arthur and other knights of the Round Table. We will cover a broad range of literary genres, including medieval romance, narrative poetry, and contemporary fiction. The course begins with T. H. White¿s "The Once and Future King", a work read widely among young adults, and then reach back to works of the medieval era, such as "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" and Thomas Malory¿s "Morte d¿Arthur," to examine the origins of the these tales. The course then moves forward through several literary periods, covering works such as Alfred Lord Tennyson¿s "Idylls of the King", Mark Twain¿s "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur¿s Court," and a contemporary feminist revision of the tales in Marion Zimmer Bradley¿s "The Mists of Avalon". Each text balances a range of cultural values in a distinctive way, including the following: the codes of chivalry and masculine martial virtue; the conventions of courtly love; the tensions of sustaining Christian virtues within warrior culture; the fraught position of power occupied by women in Arthurian narrative; the allure and perils of magical knowledge; and the development of British national identity. Students will also have the opportunity research how the narratives of Arthur and his court have been adapted in visual and popular culture, including the lush paintings of the pre-Raphaelites; films such as "The Sword in the Stone," "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and "The Fisher King"; the musical "Camelot"; or contemporary fantasy literature. The course is suitable for non-majors and will also introduce English majors to many of the writing and interpretive conventions they will find useful in subsequent literature courses.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

09/01/2006 - 09/01/2007 

Institution Website:

www.une.edu/

Phone Number:

(207) 283-0171

Regional Accreditation:

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

Calendar System:

Semester

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