Historical survey of literature in English: Beginnings through Milton.

What is the English literary tradition? Where did it come from? What are its distinctive habits, questions, styles, obsessions? This course will answer these and other questions by focusing on five key writers from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance: the anonymous Beowulf poet; Geoffrey Chaucer; Christopher Marlowe; John Donne; and John Milton. We will start with the idea that the English literary tradition is a set of interrelated texts and problems that recur over the course of several centuries. Some of these relationships are formal; we will pay special attention to the genres, techniques, and styles that poets use to create their works. Some of these relationships are linguistic; students will learn to read Middle English (out loud, too!) and explore the significance of linguistic change as the Middle Ages becomes the Renaissance. Other relationships are historical; we will explore not only the pressure of contemporary events on literature, but also literature's role in creating both historical continuity and change over time. And some of these relationships are cultural, as poets reflect upon, seek to change, furiously criticize, or happily embrace a variety of human behaviors, from religious practices to love relationships to debates about gender to death and dying. Students will write 2 papers and take midterm and final exams.

Credit Restrictions

Students will receive no credit for ENGLISH 45A after completing ENGLISH 46A.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills