UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
COURSE: HE313, Chaucer and his Age, Section 5001
INSTRUCTOR: Professor Michael P. Parker (mparker@usna.edu)
Home phone: (410) 263-5680
Office: Room 209 Sampson - (410) 293-6211
OFFICE HOURS: MWF 346; T 23456. Please use the sign-up sheet outside my office.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
To gain a broad objective knowledge of the literature and culture of the European Middle Ages;
To develop techniques of research and criticism that can be applied to the literature of any
period; and
To hone the students’ writing ability, helping each member of the class to refine a clear yet
distinctive style.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Three short (5- to 6-page) papers
A longer paper (10-12 pages) OR a weekly journal on the readings
One oral presentation
A final examination
COURSE POLICIES:
1. Grades and Grading:
Short papers
Longer paper/journal
Oral presentation
Final examination
TOTAL
45%
25%
15%
15%
____
100%
I reserve the right to raise or lower the final grade by one letter on the basis of class participation.
2. Plagiarism and Collaboration:
All work submitted should be the student’s own. For a definition of plagiarism and examples of
what constitutes it, consult Andrea Lunsford, The Everyday Writer, 2nd ed., pp. 109-22.
Students should not collaborate on assignments unless I specifically authorize them to do so.
3. Late Papers:
Assignments should be submitted on time. If, for some unavoidable reason, you do not have
your paper on the given day, I expect you to tell me about it BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE
CLASSROOM and arrange to submit it promptly. If you fail to inform me that you have not
submitted your paper or if you fail to meet a rescheduled deadline, I will deduct at least ten
points from your grade.
4. Extra Instruction:
Extra instruction is available as needed or as requested. All students should sign up for an
introductory appointment with me no later than Friday, 12 September.
5. Key to Numerical Grading Systems:
100 - 90 = A
89 - 80 = B
79 - 70 = C
69 - 60 = D
59 - 0 = F
4 = cool
3
2
1
0 = cold
(This system used on journals and oral
presentations)
Students must be thoroughly prepared for class, i.e., they must have read the assignment
carefully and have the proper books with them. Failure to do so will result in a lower grade for
the course. Students must complete all written and oral assignments to earn a passing final
grade.
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UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
HE313, Chaucer and his Age
Mr. Parker
Texts
Michael Alexander, trans., The Earliest English Poems, 3rd ed.
Beowulf, trans. Seamus Heaney
Giovanni Boccaccio, The Decameron, trans. W. H. McWilliams
Geoffrey Chaucer, The Riverside Chaucer, ed. Larry D. Benson
Chrétien de Troyes, Arthurian Romances, trans. William W. Kibler
Sir Thomas Malory, Malory: The Morte Darthur, ed. Derek Brewer
Njal’s Saga, trans. and ed. Robert Cook
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, and Patience, trans. Marie Borroff
Recitation Schedule
W 20 Aug
Introduction to course
F 22 Aug
Michael Alexander, The Earliest English Poems, ix-xxvi and “Caedmon’s
Hymn,” pp. 5-6; Robert Cook, Njal’s Saga, pp. 3-61
M 25 Aug
Alexander, “The Wanderer,” “The Seafarer,” and other elegies, pp. 40-62;
Cook, Njal’s Saga, pp. vii-xli; 61-112
W 27 Aug
Alexander, “Deor” and “Widsith,” pp. 8-20; “Brunanburh,” pp. 95-98; Cook,
Njal’s Saga, pp. 112-67
F
29 Aug
Alexander, “The Dream of the Rood,” pp. 83-91; Cook, Njal’s Saga, pp. 168-233
M
1 Sep
Labor Day - HOLIDAY
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W
3 Sep
Alexander, “The Battle of Maldon,” pp. 99-111; Riddles, pp. 67-76; Cook,
Njal’s Saga, pp. 234-310
F
5 Sep
Seamus Heaney, trans., Beowulf, pp. Introduction, ix-xxxi; 2-43 (last break)
M
8 Sep
Heaney, Beowulf, pp. 43-87 (break)
W
10 Sep
Heaney, Beowulf, pp. 87-149 (last break)
F
12 Sep
Heaney, Beowulf, pp. 149-213
M
15 Sep
Chrétien de Troyes, Arthurian Romances, pp. 1-22 and Yvain, pp. 295-325
W
17 Sep
Chrétien de Troyes, Yvain, pp. 326-80
F
19 Sep
Chrétien de Troyes, The Knight of the Cart, pp. 207-58
M
22 Sep
Chrétien de Troyes, The Knight of the Cart, pp. 258-94
W
24 Sep
Marie Borroff, trans., Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, pp. 3-14; Part I, pp. 1526
F
26 Sep
Borroff, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Parts II and III, pp. 11-42
M 29 Sep
Borroff, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Part IV, pp. 62-74; Pearl, Parts I-III,
pp. 111-130
W
1 Oct
Borroff, Pearl, Parts IV-XX, pp. 130-61
F
3 Oct
Sir Thomas Malory, The Morte Darthur, Introduction, pp. 1-12 and 35-37; Book
VII, pp. 43-99
M
6 Oct
Malory, The Morte Darthur, Introduction, pp. 12-35; Book VIII, pp. 100-58
W
8 Oct
Geoffrey Chaucer, The Riverside Chaucer, Introduction, pp. xi-xxix
F 10 Oct
Chaucer, Introduction, pp. xxix-xlii; The Parliament of Fowls, pp. 383-88
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M 13 Oct
Columbus Day - HOLIDAY
W 15 Oct
Chaucer, Introduction, pp. xlii-xlvii; The Parliament of Fowls, pp. 389-94
F 17 Oct
Mid-Semester Correction; Chaucerian Pronunciation
M 20 Oct
Chaucer, The Book of the Duchess, pp. 329-39
W 22 Oct
The Book of the Duchess, pp. 339-46
F 24 Oct
Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales, General Prologue, pp. 23-30
M 27 Oct
The Canterbury Tales, General Prologue, pp. 30-36
W 29 Oct
The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale, pp. 37-50
F 31 Oct
The Canterbury Tales, The Knight’s Tale, pp. 50-66
M
3 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Miller’s Prologue and Tale, pp. 66-78
W
5 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Reeve’s Tale and the Cook’s Tale, pp. 78-86
F
7 Nov
Giovanni Boccaccio, The Decameron, pp. 1-66; 192-99; 677-82
M 10 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Wife of Bath’s Prologue, pp. 105-16
W 12 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Wife of Bath’s Tale, pp. 116-22
F
The Canterbury Tales, The Clerk’s Tale, pp. 137-53
14 Nov
M 17 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Merchant’s Tale, pp. 153-68
M 19 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Franklin’s Tale, pp. 178-89
F 21 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Physician’s Tale and the Pardoner’s Tale, pp. 190-202
M 24 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Prioress’s Tale, pp. 209-12
W 26 Nov
The Canterbury Tales, The Tale of Sir Thopas and Melibee, pp. 212-19
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F 28 Nov
Thanksgiving Friday - HOLIDAY
M
1 Dec
The Canterbury Tales, The Nun’s Priest’s Tale, pp. 252-61
W
3 Dec
The Canterbury Tales, The Manciple’s Prologue and Tale and the Parson’s
Prologue, pp. 282-88; The Retraction, p. 328
F
5 Dec
Wrap-Up
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF PAPER DUE DATES:
Wednesday, 10 September
Wednesday, 8 October
Wednesday, 12 November
Wednesday, 26 November (Long Paper)
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