British Literature

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British Literature
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Course Description

• Aims
• 1. To provide the learners with a brief outline
  of the history of British literature up to the
  first half of the 20th century
• 2. To introduce learners to the imaginative use
  of English and to help them towards an
  appreciation of literary language and literature

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Course Description

• Aims
• 3. To consolidate and extend the learners
  knowledge and fluency in English through
  interaction with literary texts

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Course Description

• Aims
• 4. To further develop the learners ability to
  recognize and express emotional and moral
  attitudes on a higher level than about daily
  occurrences so as to facilitate their
  communication with educated native speakers

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Course Description

• Aims
• 5. To prepare the learners for the study of
  literature in English at a higher level and to
  help them develop interest in and, hopefully, the
  habit of,reading extensively.

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• Teaching methods
• lectures on the related historical and cultural
  background
• textual study
• class discussion or presentation
• reading assignment before each class
• group work
• individual research work for the term paper

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• Textbooks
• 1. Wang Hong. 2000. English Literature Reading
  and Appreciation. Guangzhou South China Science
  and Engineering University Press.
• 2. ---.2006.20th-century British Literature.
  Wuhan Wuhan University Press.
• 3. Frankenstein (provided by the teacher)
• Jane Eyre

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• Reference Books
• Baldick, Chris. 2000. Oxford Concise Dictionary
  of Literary Terms. Shanghai Shanghai Foreign
  Language Education Press.
• Zhang, Boxiang.1997-98. British Literature, a
  Coursebook. Vol.1-3. Wuhan Wuhan Uni. Press.
• ???,??.2002.?????????.???????????.

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Assessment

• Assessment
• General performance
• (including term paper. Exercises, quiz,
  presentation) 50
• Final examination 50

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Term Paper Requirements

• TitleBeginning of English Novel
• (concise and concrete)
• Research Question(s)
• Why did English novel come into
• being in the 18th century?/ In what
• way is English novel a middle-class
• literature? (i.e. the questions the paper is
  supposed to answer)

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• Tentative Conclusion
• As British middle class became the main stay
  of the society, it needed a literature of their
  own to tell of their life and express their
  concern, a literature which was easy enough for
  them to read, whose story and heroes were
  familiar enough for their recognition, and whose
  language was graceful and content morally sound
  enough for their education.

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• Outline
• I. Historical background Political, economic,
  social status quo, in which middle class held a
  predominant position
• II. The need of Enlightenment/education so
  that the middle class could meet its leading role
  in the coming years purpose, means and contents
  of the education

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Outline

• III. Major features of English novel of the
  time realist, didactic, polished language and
  graceful style, etc. to model after the classics
  of the aristocrats
• IV. Conclusion (refer to tentative
  answers novel was a bourgeois product
  prediction of its future development)

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• Works Cited
• e.g.1. Ishiguro, Kazuo. The Remains of the Day.
  London Faber and Faber,1989.
• ?,?. ????.??(??). ???????.
• e.g. 2. Smith, David. My University Days.
  College Composition. John Powell, ed. NY Harvard
  University Press, 2003.18-29.
  ????????????????????? ???????ed (s)

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• Citation
• e.g.1 ---xxx( Ishiguro 87)?
• ???????????????
• ?The following quotations of the book will be
  thereafter in page number only.
• e.g. 2 ---xxx (89)
• ????,????5?????????,????5???,????,??????

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• Requirements
• 1.write the paper only after the proposal
  oked
• 2.title in size 3, bold subtitle size 4,
  bold body size small 4
• 3.1st page the proposal, followed by the paper
  and Works Cited
• 4.word account 1000-1500 printed out
• 5. never plagiarize!!!

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1
2 Intro. to the course lecture reading assignment
3 Medieval Age lecture and discussion the same
4 Renaissance (1) Introduction lecture and discussion
5 Renaissance (2) Drama Shakespeare lecture and discussion
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1.If canceled, this weeks class should
accordingly go to the next week
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6 Renaissance (3) Poetry Prose Sonnet 18 Of Studies discussion National holiday1
7 Revo. Restoration Miltons Paradise Lost lecture and discussion
8 Enlightenment (1) Jonathan Swift lecture and discussion
9 Enlightenment (2) Pope Thomas Gray discussion
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10 Romanticism (1) William Wordsworth lecture and discussion
11 Romanticism (2) Keats Shelley discussion
12 Victorian Age Novels and Poetry lecture
13 Workshop on Novels (1) discussion and presentation
14 Workshop on Novels (2) discussion and presentation term paper due by Nov.28
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15 20th century Introduction term paper due by December 2
16 Short fiction discussion
17 Revision
18 Final exam
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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 18th-century
• Gullivers Travels Jonathan Swift social
  satire/fantasy/ Part I, II, and IV interesting
  language difficulty .
• Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe an account of the
  process of the building of the British Empire in
  the 18th century diary-like detailed description
  and narration language difficulty .
  

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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 19th-century
• Frankenstein Mary Shelley the 1st
  science-fiction exploring the formation of human
  nature and relation between human life and
  science important literary resource to todays
  filming industry language difficulty , small.
  

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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 19th-century
• Pride and PrejudiceJane Austen about womens
  life (marriage) in late 18th century very good
  writing, esp. the dialogues language difficulty
  .
• David Copperfield Charles Dickens
  semi-autographical good description of childs
  inner world and the character portrait language
  Difficulty .

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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 19th-century
• Great Expectations Charles Dickens about moral
  corruption and loss of innocence and honesty in
  growing up the Cinderella pattern in structure
  language Dif a bit too long.
• Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte a poor, plain
  governess struggling for self-dignity and
  personal happiness language dif .

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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 19th-century
• Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte one of the best
  novels in the world a presentation of the most
  primitive, natural, powerful, touching as well as
  the most destructive love human beings are
  capable of language dif .

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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 19th-century
• Silas Marner George Eliot a religious fable
  about religion of humanity language dif
  small.
• Tess of DUrbervilles Thomas Hardy tragic fate
  of a pure young peasant woman at the time of
  capitalist invasion into the country in the
  19th-century England language dif .

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Recommended Novels for Reading (British)

• 20th-century
• Sons and Lovers D.H. Lawrence Oedipus Complex
  the study of man-woman relations language dif
  .
• The Fifth Child Doris Lessing about distortion
  or horror of human nature/ a human-born monster
  Language dif , small.

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Homework

• Reference Questions for Unit 1
• 1. Who were the earliest settlers of
  Britton/England? What do you know about them
  (home, language, belief, life style)?
• 2. What are the 3 conquests? What effects
  they had upon the nation?
• 3. Ideologically what is the most
  significant change in peoples spiritual life?

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Homework

• Reference Questions for Unit 1
• 4. How was the nation developed politically or
  what changes were there in the form of the social
  structure?
• 5. In terms of literature, what influence had
  the French upon England?

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Homework

• Reference Questions for Unit 1
• 6. How many languages were spoken during the
  French reign? How do you understand modern
  English as a language?
• 7. What was the essence of Christian doctrine
  preached at the time? Was there any ignoble
  reason behind it?

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Homework

• Reference Questions for Unit 1
• 8. Why was the Middle Ages known as the Dark
  Ages?
• 9. What was the form of literature at the
  time? What features does it have?

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Homework

• Reference Questions for Unit 1
• 10. What are the 3 periods/stages of Chaucers
  literary career?
• 11. In what way do we call Chaucers
  Canterbury Tales the first work of English
  literature?
• 12. What is image of the nun? Is she favorably
  and admirably or satirically portrayed? What
  figures of speech are used?