English 202L: British Literature: 1800 to the Present

Lectures: Tues. and Thurs., 1:00-2:18

Evans Lab 1008

Recitations: Fridays, 9:30-10:18; 10:30-11:18; 11:30-12:18

Professor A. Garcha

garcha.2@osu.edu

Office hours: Wed. 1:00-3:00 and by appointment

Recitation leaders:

C. Gubernatis, K. Oestreich, T. Pettella

This course will introduce students to the major movements in British literature since the end of the eighteenth century. We will read works from authors who have played dominant roles in shaping the English literary tradition; these authors include William Wordsworth, Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf, and Salman Rushdie. In lecture, we will learn how the works we read reflect the larger movements in British literature and how those works and movements relate to England’s dramatic social and political transformations over the last two hundred years. In recitation sections, students will discuss the reading in more detail and will have a chance to explore their own ideas about it. The exams and written assignments will test students’ knowledge and comprehension of the readings as well as the lecture material; students will be expected to express their ideas clearly and precisely in their writing.

Texts:

The Norton Anthology of English Literature, Volume 2 (7^th or 8^th Edition); available at campus-area bookstores.

Charles Dickens, “The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain”; available on Electronic Reserves through the Library.

Syllabus: (page numbers from The Norton Anthology, 7^th Edition; and the 8^th Edition):

Tues., Jan. 3: Introduction: Course logistics – English literary history – How to read a poem. William Blake, “Introduction” (43; 81).

Romanticism and the Age of Revolution

Thurs., Jan. 5: Blake: Revolutionary Poetics: Samuel Johnson, “The Ant” (handout); “The Romantic Period” (1-17; 1-16); William Blake, from Songs of Innocence, “The Ecchoing Green” (43; 82), “The Lamb” (45; 83), “Nurse’s Song” (48; 86), “Holy Thursday” (47; 86), “The Divine Image” (47; 85), “Infant Joy” (48; 87); from Songs of Experience, “Holy Thursday” (51; 90), “Nurse’s Song” (52; 90), “The Tyger” (54; 92), “London” (56; 94), “The Human Abstract” (57; 95), “Infant Sorrow” (57; 95).

Friday, Jan. 6: Recitation

Tues., Jan. 10: Wordsworth: The Idea of Nature: William Wordsworth, “We are Seven” (224; 248), “Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey” (235; 258), from Preface to Lyrical Ballads, “The Subject and Language of Poetry” (239-246; 263-269).

Thurs., Jan. 12: Wordsworth: The Self in the World: Wordsworth, “Ode: Intimations of Immortality” (286; 306);“Strange fits of passion have I known” (251;274); “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” (284-85; 305).

Friday, Jan. 13: Recitation

Tues., Jan. 17: The Poetics of Ambition and Isolation: Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” (422-439; 430-446), “Kubla Khan” (439; 446).

Thurs., Jan. 19: Romantic Individualism: George Gordon, Lord Byron, Manfred (at least through Act 1 [588-598; 635-645]).

Fri., Jan. 20: Recitation

Tues., Jan. 24: George Gordon, Lord Byron, Manfred (complete; 588-621; 635-668).

The Victorian Age and the “Withering of the Individual”

Thurs., Jan. 26: Women’s Work I: The Victorian Age (1043-48; 979-984); Elizabeth Gaskell, “The Old Nurse’s Story” (1319-1335; 1222-1236).

Fri., Jan. 27: Recitation: First In-class Writing Assignment

Tues., Jan. 31: Women’s Work II: Elizabeth Barrett Browning, “[The Feminine Education of Aurora Leigh]” (1180-1186; 1092-1097); Christina Rossetti, “In an Artist’s Studio” (1586; 1463), “Goblin Market” (1589-1601; 1466-1478).

Thurs., Feb. 2: The Pressure of the Real: Charles Dickens, “A Visit to Newgate” (1335-1345; 1239-1248); “The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain” (electronic reserves).

Fri., Feb. 3: Recitation

Tues., Feb. 7: Charles Dickens, “The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain.”

Thurs., Feb. 9: Victorian Culture, Dismal and Otherwise: Robert Browning, “Fra Lippo Lippi” (1373-1382; 1271-1280); Matthew Arnold, “Dover Beach” (1492; 1368); Thomas Hardy, “Hap” (1934; 1868); “The Darkling Thrush” (1937; 1871), “The Convergence of the Twain” (1945; 1878).

Fri., Feb. 10: Recitation

Tues., Feb. 14: Midterm

Modernism: The Triumph of Art

Thurs., Feb. 16: The Idea of the Modern: The Twentieth Century (1897-1913; 1827-1847); Wilfred Owen, “Anthem for Doomed Youth” (2066-67; 1971), “Dulce et Decorum Est” (2069; 1974); T. S. Eliot, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” (2364-67; 2289-2293); “The Hollow Men” (2383-86; 2309-2312).

Fri., Feb. 17: Recitation

Tues., Feb. 21: Yeats and Irish Nationalism: W. B. Yeats, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree” (2092; 2025), “The Second Coming” (2106; 2036), “Sailing to Byzantium” (2109; 2046), “Leda and the Swan” (2110; 2039), “Under Ben Bulben” (2121; 2047);

Thurs., Feb. 23: Modernist Narrative I: Virginia Woolf, from “A Sketch of the Past” [Moments of Being and Non-Being] (2218-26; 2155-2163); James Joyce, “Araby” (2236-40; 2168-2172).

Fri., Feb. 24: Recitation

Tues., Feb. 28: Modernist Narrative II: James Joyce, “The Dead” (2240-68; 2172-2200)

Toward the Present: The Problem of Community

Thurs., March 2: Performing Postmodernity: Harold Pinter, The Dumb Waiter (2594-2616; 2601-2622)

Fri., March 3: Recitation: Second In-class Writing Assignment

Tues., March 7: England in the World: V. S. Naipaul, “One Out of Many” (2722-2745; 2730-2752)

Thurs., March 9: Magic, Realism, Empire: Salman Rushdie, “The Prophet’s Hair” (2843-2852; 2863-2868).

Fri., March 10: Recitation

Tues., March 14, 11:30 AM - 1:18 PM: Final Exam
Course Policies:

Grades: Final grades will be determined by the student’s performance on two in-class writing assignments, a midterm exam, and a final exam as well as his or her participation and attendance in recitation section.

Each student is graded by the recitation leader, whose decision is final.

In-class assignments (30% of grade): Two in-class assignments will be held in recitation on January 27 and March 3; each will be worth 15% of your grade. You will be given a choice of two essay topics on which to write, and you will be allowed to use your book.

Midterm exam (30% of grade): There will be a midterm examination on Tuesday, Feb. 14. The midterm will cover the literature of the 19^th Century and will include passage identifications and short answer questions.

Final exam (30% of grade): There will be a final exam on Tuesday, March 14. The final will cover the literature of the 20^th Century and will include passage identifications and short answer questions.

Recitation (10% of grade): You will be graded based on your performance in recitation, which may be assessed by quizzes, discussion, and exercises, in any combination, at the discretion of the recitation leader.

Attendance: Because of the large scope of the class and the number and complexity of the texts we will be covering, it is imperative that you attend each lecture faithfully, with book in hand, and that you participate fully in each recitation. Attendance in recitation is mandatory: each unexcused absence in recitation will bring down your final grade by one full grade (i.e., from A to B).

Missed Assignments and Exams: We will not be able to accommodate students’ requests to take the in-class assignments or the exams on a different date. If you miss the midterm or final, you will be required to write a 15-page essay on a topic of our choosing to make up the grade. There will be no make-up assignments for the in-class essays, except in the case of dire emergencies that are fully documented and explained by a doctor’s note.

Cheating and Plagiarism: We will be vigilant in spotting instances of cheating and plagiarism. Cheating and plagiarism include, but are not limited to, copying another student’s answers or ideas during an exam; using another student’s work in order to complete an assignment; and submitting essays or assignments, or portions of essays or assignments, written by other people as one’s own. All cases of suspected cheating or plagiarism, in accordance with university rules, will be reported to the Committee on Academic Misconduct.

The Office for Disability Services, located in 150 Pomerene Hall, offers services for students with documented disabilities. Contact the ODS at 2-3307.