SYLLABUS FOR E434 BRITISH NOVEL TO 1900
CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY, SPRING 2004
COURSE INFORMATION. E434: British Novel to 1900. Instructor: Alfred J. Drake, Ph.D. Office: Classroom. Office Hours: Thurs. 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. Email: ajdrake_at_ajdrake.com.
REQUIRED TEXTS AT CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY BOOKSTORE
Richardson, Samuel. Pamela. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2001. ISBN: 0192829602.
Fielding, Henry. Joseph Andrews/Shamela. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1999. ISBN: 019283343X.
Austen, Jane. Emma. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2003. ISBN: 0192802372.
Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. 2nd Ed. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2001. ISBN: 0192839659.
Dickens, Charles. Great Expectations. New York: Penguin, 2003. ISBN: 0141439564.
Trollope, Anthony. Barchester Towers. New York: Penguin, 1993. ISBN: 0140432035.
Hardy, Thomas. Tess of the Durbervilles. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1998. ISBN: 0192833626.
COURSE RATIONALE AND ACTIVITIES
FOCUS AND OBJECTIVES. The novel is a broad genre that runs from shorter novellas to the kind of “loose, baggy monsters” (as Henry James called them) written by Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky, with less-sprawling realist texts balancing out those extremes. We will study seven important English novels, beginning with Richardson’s Pamela (1740) and ending with Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles (1891). We will examine some of the major theories about the novel’s development as a genre (with particular reference to Ian Watt, Mikhail Bakhtin, and Michael McKeon), attend to the strategies of narration in each novel, and think through the distinctions to be made among fiction, poetry, and drama. Ultimately, we will consider the significance of our novels as pieces of writing engaged with the nature and value of the individual as well as with the great collective social and political forces that shaped their times.
ACTIVITIES. In class, there will be a mix of lectures, whole-class and smaller-group discussion, occasional quizzes, an essay, and a final exam. I encourage questions and comments—class sessions improve when students take an active part. Outside class, do the assigned readings before the relevant discussion dates, complete your journal sets as outlined below, and start planning and drafting your essay early. In literary studies, the aim is to read and discuss actively and thereby to develop your own voice in response to the texts you read. Insightful interpretation and the ability to make compelling connections are central goals. The essay, discussions, and journal-keeping should combine to help you work towards these goals.
HOW YOUR PERFORMANCE WILL BE EVALUATED
JOURNAL REQUIREMENT: Keep an informal journal of your thoughts as you read through each of the novels on our syllabus. Since there is no midterm, the journal will be 30% of your grade. See instructions online. (30% of course grade)
ESSAY REQUIREMENT. A 7-10 page paper will be due at the end of the semester. See essay instructions page. (35% of course grade)
FINAL EXAM REQUIREMENT. There will be an in-class final exam, which is open-book and open-note. See exam instructions page. (35% of course grade)
SCHEDULE: WORKS DISCUSSED ON FOLLOWING DATES
WEEK 1
02/05. Course Introduction.
WEEK 2
02/12. Richardson’s Pamela.
WEEK 3
02/19. Richardson’s Pamela.
WEEK 4
02/26. Fielding’s Joseph Andrews/Shamela.
WEEK 5
03/04. Fielding’s Joseph Andrews/Shamela. No class this week. I have a prior engagement, so please keep reading and we will discuss the assigned text next week.
WEEK 6
03/11. Austen’s Emma. (Film, Discussion.) Journals due in class or by email.
WEEK 7
03/18. Austen’s Emma. (Film, Discussion.)
WEEK 8
03/25. Bronte’s Jane Eyre. (Film, Discussion.)
WEEK 9
04/01. Bronte’s Jane Eyre. (Film, Discussion)
WEEK 10
04/08. Spring break, no classes.
WEEK 11
04/15. Dickens’s Great Expectations. Journals due by email or in class.
WEEK 12
04/22. Trollope’s Barchester Towers.
WEEK 13
04/29. Trollope’s Barchester Towers.
WEEK 14
05/06. Hardy’s Tess of the Durbervilles. (Film, Discussion.)
WEEK 15
05/13. Hardy’s Tess of the Durbervilles. (Film, Discussion.)
FINALS WEEK
05/12 – 05/22. Final exam in class, books and notes allowed. Journals also due in class or by email.