Research-oriented and designed for upper-division English majors. Intensive examination of critical approaches, literary theory, or a special topic in literary and cultural studies. Topics vary from semester to semester. Students should consult the department's "Announcement of Classes" for offerings well before the beginning of the semester.

This course will explore Shakespeare's artistic use of the formal resources of verse, especially meter, but also rhyme, alliteration and syntactic parallelism. We will consider what defines these forms; how they vary across genres; how they develop; how they shape performance; and most of all, what they contribute to the emotional power and beauty of Shakespeare’s works. In class discussions we will focus on three late great tragedies all from the same year -- King Lear, MacBeth and Antony and Cleopatra -- preceded by consideration of some Sonnets and passages from Hamlet, and followed by consideration of Cymbeline to cheer us up, perhaps. At the same time, the course is a research seminar, so students will pursue and share research on versification in any other works of Shakespeare they wish, culminating in a substantial research paper. No prior knowledge of any aspect of versification is required.

Book List:

Shakespeare, W.: The Riverside Shakespeare.

Shapiro, J.: The Year of Lear.

Repeat Rules