ENG 405/505: Chaucer
Spring 2011
T TH 2:00P - 3:20P Minne' Hall 109
Dr. Andrew Higl
Office: Minne 320
Phone: 507-457-5527
Email: ahigl@winona.edu
Office Hours: MWF 9:00-11:00; TTH 12:00-2:00
Course Description: Chaucer may be the most entertaining and thought- provoking writer you will
ever encounter. However, Chaucer is not the easiest writer to read. In this course, we will work to
become better readers of Chaucer’s works, hopefully enjoying those especially humorous and
entertaining moments, but also tackling Chaucer’s language, delving into the potential meanings of
his work, and understanding his historically distant cultural environment.
This course is an introduction to some of the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, including and especially
the Canterbury Tales. Chaucer is the most influential Middle English poet and is generally regarded
as one of the most important writers in the English tradition. We will read Chaucer’s literary works
in a variety of ways in order to better grasp the nuances of Middle English, the cultural context of
fourteenth-century England, and the textual condition of Chaucer’s work. These multifarious
approaches will allow us to engage with the linguistic content of his work closely, look at the
material conditions and variations in Chaucer’s work broadly, and explore the cultural and historical
context of his work directly.
Our Goals
We will work towards…
1. Developing as readers of Chaucer’s Middle English.
2. Enriching our understanding of the culture and cultural productions of Fourteenth-Century England.
3. Learning to read the historically distant texts of Chaucer in a way that enlightens our understanding of the past and
explores Chaucer’s relevance in the present.
Texts
Print:
The Riverside Chaucer
Palgrave Literary Dictionary of Chaucer
Online:
The Canterbury Tales: Fifteenth-Century Continuations and Additions
(http://www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/teams/bowers.htm)
Six Ecclesiastical Satires
(http://www.lib.rochester.edu/CAMELOT/teams/dean2.htm)
Robin Hood and Other Outlaw Tales
(http://www.lib.rochester.edu/CAMELOT/TEAMS/gamint.htm)
Cambridge Companion to Chaucer
(see D2L)
Other online materials (handouts) and links via our course site
Assignments
Various Assignments: Various weekly multi-modal activities, which will ask you to engage with Chaucer's texts both critically
and creatively. Brief descriptions are below. More details will be provided in advance. These activities will ask you to engage
closely with Middle English, historical context, and scholarly criticism.
Final Project: A final paper of about 10-15 pages for which you will research and closely analyze a particular aspect of the
Tales. Details will be forthcoming.
Exams: There will be a midterm and a final consisting of some short answers, fill-ins, and passage identification. I will let you
know the format and scope of the tests well in advance of the test dates.
Daily Discussion/Reflection: For each class (except exam days) I expect you to write a paragraph about the reading for that
day. Your paragraph should include an element of reflection and propose a point for discussion that we might take up in
class. Your point of reflection might be simply a statement of synthesis or a gut reaction to the reading. Your discussion point
must be specific to the text, but it should be something that opens up an issue of interpretation. Your paragraph must be
posted to d2l five hours before class.
Quizzes: I only use quizzes if I notice a lack of class participation. If everyone participates online and in the classroom,
surprise reading quizzes may be avoided.
Commitment Grade
The commitment grade is like a participation grade except a little different. The commitment grade is based on several
things. (1) It is based on your attendance. This means that you should attend class. If you have more than three unexcused
absences, your commitment grade will be reduced. If you have a chronic attendance problem, this will not only affect your
commitment grade, but it will likely hurt your grade for the whole course. Simply, show up to class! Excused absences are
fine and will not hurt your grade. Please communicate with me. If I suspect that you are simply skipping class regularly, I
reserve the right to reduce your grade for the course by one grade (i.e A becomes B). (2) I expect you to be prepared. This
part of the grade is based on coming to class prepared to answer questions related to the assigned reading for that day and
with printed copies of the readings handy for reference. (3) Please post comments to any discussion points I post on the
blog. You are not expected to have something to add to every post, but an active engagement with the blog will certainly
help boost your commitment grade.
In general commitment means being prepared to ask thoughtful questions that help me and other members of the class
understand what we don't yet understand. lt doesn't mean perfect mastery of the material on the first try. In other words:
PLEASE don't hesitate to ask and ask again when you are puzzled!
Grade Breakdown
Commitment 15%
Midterm 20%
Activities 20%
Final Paper 25%
Final 20%
90-100%--A
80-90%--B
70-80%--C
60-70%--D
<60%--F
Unexcused late assignments (final drafts) will receive a deduction of 5% each day they are late. (i.e. 90% becomes 85%). PLEASE
COMMUNICATE WITH ME IF YOU NEED MORE TIME!
I will not accept any plagiarized assignments. Using another person’s words or ideas without attribution is plagiarism. No credit will
be given for plagiarized work. If you borrow an idea or quote from another author, you must cite where you found the material.
Sources must be cited in handouts as well as in formal papers. I don't mind what form of citation you use as long as your citations
allow your reader to find your source easily. If you need help with creating citations or finding sources, please see me and I will be
glad to help. You will receive no credit for the assignment and repeat offenses may result in an F for the course.
Reading Schedule
(Readings from the Cambridge Companion assigned and TBA)
Week 1 (Jan 11, 13)
T
Intro to Chaucer—life, legend, lore
Textual History of Chaucer (Caxton, de Worde, Thynne, Speght)
Th
Influences on and Influences of Chaucer (Boethius, Boccaccio, Spenser, Shakespeare, Dryden, etc.); Intro to Middle
English
The Parliament of Fowles
Read the Introduction to the Riverside xv-xlvii
Activity: Translate 20 lines with paragraph explaining choices
Week 2 (Jan 18, 20)
T
House of Fame
Middle English ideas of authorship
Th
Introduction to the Tales
General Prologue
Cambridge Companion Reading (CC): “The social and literary scene in England;”
Activity: Middle English word investigation (due)
Week 3 (Jan 25, 27)
T
Finish the GP
Knight’s Tale
CC: Canterbury Tales
Th
Knight’s Tale
Cambridge Companion Reading (CC): “Literary Structures in Chaucer;” “Chaucer's Style.”
Activity: ME pronunciation; audio files online (due)
Week 4 (Feb 1, 3)
T
Miller’s Tale
CC: Canterbury Tales II
Th
Reeve’s Tale
Week 5 (Feb 8, 10)
T
Cook’s fragment
Tale of Gamelyn (in Robin Hood and Other Outlaw Tales)
The Cook’s Tale in Manuscript Bodley 686
See also the four-line conclusion (found in two mss) in the intro to the Bodley 686 text
Activity: Propose and share an ending for the Cook (due)
Th
Man of Law
Contextual Reading: Read the letter of the Goodman of Paris and compare and contrast in class
Week 6 (Feb 15, 17)
T
Wife of Bath (w/ alternate beginnings—see d2l)
Th
Friar
Summoner
Activity: Source study of some part of the Wife’s Prologue due
Week 7 (Feb 22, 24)
T
Merchant
Th
Midterm
Week 8 (March 1, 3)
T
Intro to reading manuscripts
Squire
Th
Activity: Paleography and Codicology exercise; practice transcribing and
describing manuscripts
Week 9 (March 15, 17)
T
Franklin
Physician
Th
Pardoner
CC: Canterbury Tales III
Activity: Pose and begin to research an historical question (i.e. Christianity and Judaism based on the Prioress's
Tale);
Week 10 (March 22, 24)
T
Melibee and Thopas
Th
Prioress
Contextual Reading: “Why I Can't Be a Nun” in Six Ecclesiastical Satires and the “Ballad of Hugh of Lincoln”
Week 11 (March 29, 31)
T
Monk
Reflection paper
Th
Activity: workshop historical discoveries in small groups; annotated bibliography
Week 12 (April 5, 7)
T
Nun's Priest
CC: Canterbury Tales IV
Th
Second Nun
Activity: Compare with other examples of hagiography
Week 13 (April 12, 14)
T
Parson extracts
Retraction
Activity: present preliminary thesis or project question
Th
Spurious Links
Activity: Design your own CT with links and tale orders. Form a user-created link and new contextual relationship
between two tales and tellers.
Week 14 (Apr 19, 21)
T
Prologue to the Siege of Thebes
Canterbury Interlude
Th
Beryn
Week 15 (April 26, 28)
T
Plowman's Tale
Ploughman's Tale
Th
Final Exam
Chaucer for the 21st century! (BBC retold)
Final Project