English 111 - Winter, 2013

Medieval Literature

Class Information

Instructor: Smith, Kendra
Time: TR 10:30-11:50
Location: 118 Olson

Description

This course will survey major texts in the literary tradition of the English Middle Ages. We will cover the Anglo-Saxon period and the late Middle Ages, and students will gain some basic reading skills in both Old English and Middle English. Readings for the course will feature a variety of different genres, including narrative and lyric poetry; visionary texts; dramatic texts; historiography; and romance and quest literature, including Arthurian legend. This class offers the opportunity to read all these texts with ample contextual background to inform students’ understanding of the literature. Students will encounter the literary texts alongside important developments in artistic and intellectual culture during the period.

Grading

The factors which will determine the final grade include quizzes (15%); the first paper (15%); the second paper and proposal (25%); the midterm (15%) and final exam (20%); and participation (10%).

Texts

The Broadview Anthology of British Literature: Volume I, Joseph Black, ed.