Literary History II
Professors Blair Hoxby, Denise Gigante
Winter, 2014-2015; Room 260–113;
T, Th 11:00-12:30
This course charts the growth of a robust literary tradition in English at a time when
when books began to be printed, circulated, and read with all the avidity of today’s
Twitterers for the latest Tweet. The difference, of course, lies in the notion of
aesthetic value and the quality of attention that it demands. Students who have taken
Literary History I will recall an era of social, political, and economic change that
resulted in a distinctively British culture, one that extended its reach to colonies
across the Atlantic and elsewhere. We pick up here with a panoramic vision of the
modern world to match the epic stories of the Ancients, namely John Milton’s
Paradise Lost. From there, we follow a literary trajectory into the satiric mode of the
Augustans, by way of Alexander Pope’s famous mock-epic of high society, and
beyond through William Blake’s illuminated “Bible of Hell.” We will study the great
Romantic poets, William Wordsworth and John Keats, who turned the Miltonic epic
inward to a deep chasm of subjectivity, and the beloved novelists Sir Walter Scott and
Jane Austen, who set the model for both epic-historical and domestic fiction. The
scope of romance, too, from the Middle Ages through Romanticism, will provide a
solid foundation for the period of Literary History III, when the novel rose to
preeminence as a form of imaginative expression and social-ideological critique.
Lectures will be one hour in length, followed by a half-hour discussion period.
Required Texts:
John Milton, Paradise Lost, ed. David Kastan (978-0872207332)
William Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (978-0486281223);
The First Book of Urizen (978-0486298016)
Jane Austen, Persuasion, ed. Deidre Lynch (978-0199535552)
Walter Scott, Rob Roy, ed. Ian Duncan (978-0199549887)
William Wordsworth, Selected Poetry, ed. Gill and Wu (978-0199536887)
John Keats, Selected Poetry, ed. Cook (978-0192834935)
W.J. Bate, From Classic to Romantic (Courseworks)
Week 1
1/6
1/8
Paradise Lost 1
Paradise Lost 2-3
Week 2
1/13
1/15
Paradise Lost 4-5
Paradise Lost 6
W.J. Bate, From Classic to Romantic, ch. 1 (by section)
Week 3
1/20
1/22
Paradise Lost 7-8
Paradise Lost 9
Week 4
1/27
1/29
Paradise Lost, 10
Paradise Lost, 11-12
W.J. Bate, From Classic to Romantic, ch. w (by section)
Week 5
2/3
2/5
Pope, Rape of the Lock (1-3)
Pope, Rape of the Lock (4–5)
2/6
First paper due (5 pp.)
Week 6
2/10
2/12
Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell
Blake, The First Book of Urizen
W.J. Bate, From Classic to Romantic, ch. 4 (by section)
Week 7
2/17
2/19
Wordsworth, The Prelude, 1-6 (excerpts)
Wordsworth, The Prelude, 7-13 (excerpts)
W.J. Bate, From Classic to Romantic, ch. 5 (by section)
2/24
2/26
Scott, Rob Roy (1st half)
Scott, Rob Roy (2nd half)
Week 8
Week 9
3/3
3/5
Austen, Persuasion, Vol. 1
Austen, Persuasion, Vol. 2
3/10
3/12
Keats, Hyperion
Keats, The Fall of Hyperion
W.J. Bate, From Classic to Romantic, ch. 6 (by section)
3/16
Second paper due (5 pp.)
Week 10
Requirements:
Attendance at lecture and active participation in section. (20%) No unexcused absences. If you have
to miss section due to illness, you must notify your TA in advance. For each lecture, you will
be asked to turn in a question or comment. Computers should be closed and stored, with
exceptions for compelling needs, and phones must be turned off during class.
Two five page papers, due on 2/6 and 3/16 at 5 pm. (20% each) Prompts will be distributed. If
you wish to write on a topic of your own devising, you may do so with prior approval.
One In-Class, Open-Book Final Examination. (40%) Three hours; room TBA. This exam will
reward students who have successfully considered how the texts we are reading -- from
Milton to Keats -- can be understood in relation to the historical narrative presented by W.J.
Bate in the critical reading. It will be slightly weighted toward the poetry and novels covered
in the second half of the course (from Blake), with connections to earlier texts, ideas, or
events. You will not be allowed internet access during the exam, your cell phones must be
turned off, and you must comply strictly with the university’s honor code.
Learning Goals
Knowledge and understanding of how texts fit together into a broader literary history and how
that literary history relates to concurrent political, social, and religious events.
Awareness of the major literary movements, terms, and forms of the period.
Reading skills: In this course you will continue to refine your ability to read and interpret
literature, sometimes in the context of literary history or the cultural conditions in which it
was produced or received. Reading well means not only that you can understand and
interpret a text but that you can read it aloud, clearly and with appropriate expression.
Writing skills: writing assignments are designed to develop your ability to articulate cogent
and original claims about a literary work or works, and to support those claims with
carefully-chosen evidence.
Special Accommodation
If you require any particular assistant related to this class, please speak to your professors,
TA, or course coordinator as soon as possible. If you have a letter from the Office of
Accessible Education, please provide this.