Course Syllabus

ENGL 2620 British Literature II

Course Description

The course focuses on the development of ideas, movement, and genres in British Literature from the Romantic era to the present.

Justification

A lower division survey of British literature is standard at most colleges and universities. This course will transfer as General Education, elective, or major credit. It fulfills General Education credit within the Humanities category (HU) and major requirements for English majors. The Humanities are a group of academic disciplines that study the many ways by which humans have attempted to understand themselves and their world. At Snow College, the Humanities focus on cultural traditions that are expressed largely through text or which have a strong textual component: languages, literature, and philosophy. The methods by which the Humanities study culture are at once analytical and interpretative, objective and subjective, historical and aesthetic.

General Education Outcomes

1. A student who completes the GE curriculum has a fundamental knowledge of human cultures and the natural world. An important goal of this course is to foster an appreciation of literature in general. After completing this course, students are prepared to recognize and enjoy literary works for intellectual as well as visceral reasons. Students read and discuss a selection of works by British literature texts from Romanticism to the present to understand its development. Quizzes, writing assignments, examinations, special projects, and class discussions will ask students to consider readings in a variety of contexts.
2. A student who completes the GE curriculum can read and research effectively within disciplines. Students read a variety of British texts and can be quizzed on content. Discussion questions, writing prompts, and writing assignments are designed to elicit constructive and critical responses (e.g. "What values or beliefs are transmitted through this piece of literature?" "What is the author trying to communicate through this piece of literature and what strategies does the author employ to accomplish that goal?")
3. A student who completes the GE curriculum can draw from multiple disciplines to address complex problems. Students will use insights from history, geography, economics, political science, and religious studies to understand the literature in the course. They will demonstrate this learning through written assignments, exams, and class discussion.
4. A student who completes the GE curriculum can reason analytically, critically, and creatively. Students are asked to critically evaluate rhetorical choices the author makes in order to understand and interpret the literature. Students are also asked to understand the development of ideas, movements, and genres in British Literature as reflected through texts. Students will demonstrate their ability to read and think critically about literature, understand its context, and interpret meaning through essay exams, papers, and class discussion.
5. A student who completes the GE curriculum can communicate effectively through writing and speaking. Students write on a regular basis demonstrating the validity of various theses in diverse writing assignments. Writing assignments are designed around the collaborative model and incorporate all elements of the writing process. Written assignments will be returned with suggestions for improving the student's writing skills.

General Education Knowledge Area Outcomes

1. Through the study of a selection of works of British literature from Romanticism to the present, students will examine a variety of philosophical questions about human thought and experience (i.e. individualism, national identity, and social inequities like class, race, gender, and sexuality). Class discussions, essays, and exams will allow students to demonstrate they are capable of articulating and comprehending ways that British writers and thinkers address various issues related to their experiences both specifically and more generally. Through the study of a selection of works of British literature from Romanticism to the present, students will examine a variety of philosophical questions about human thought and experience (i.e. individualism, national identity, and social inequities like class, race, gender, and sexuality). Class discussions, essays, and exams will allow students to demonstrate they are capable of articulating and comprehending ways that British writers and thinkers address various issues related to their experiences both specifically and more generally.
2. Understand how knowledge is created through the study of language systems, literature, and/or philosophy. Through the practice of close reading, students will understand how knowledge is created within the field of literature, particularly texts of the Romantic, Modern, and Contemporary period of British literature. Students will be able to understand how such things as history, audience, authorial choices in relation to the text, and personal biases impact the reading of a text. Students will be asked to demonstrate their ability to read closely on exams and in written assignments.
3. Understand cultural traditions within an historical context and make connections with the present. Students will understand cultural development in Britain from the Romantic period (1790s) to the present as presented through literature. They will also be able to discuss and write about representative works of British literature in historical context and be able to articulate connections with contemporary culture through class discussions, quizzes, written assignments, and exams.
4. Critically read and respond to primary texts (original, uninterpreted) from a Humanities’ perspective. Students will be able to read, interpret, analyze, and respond to a selection of texts pulled from British literary history. Reading strategies, journaling, discussion, and exams will allow students to demonstrate an ability to read critically in order to understand, explain, and evaluate literary texts.
5. Write effectively within the Humanities discipline to analyze and form critical and aesthetic judgments. Students will be able to write interpretive/analytic/argumentative papers that are supported through textual analysis. They will be given feedback from both the instructor and classmates on written drafts and then given an opportunity to revise. They will demonstrate ability in analysis and rewriting through papers and presentations. Students will also demonstrate ability to analyze and form valid judgements in papers, presentations, discussion, and exams.

Student Learning Outcomes

Course Content

Through lecture and class discussion, the course will cover a selection of literary works of British Literature from the Romantic, Victorian, and Modern eras, including poetry, fiction, drama, essays and criticism. Emphasis will be given to understanding major concepts of the periods as they are demonstrated by and discussed in the literature (i.e. individualism, empire, science and religion, national and linguistic identities, social inequalities such as class, race, gender, and sexuality). The course will focus on close reading, literary conventions, historical influences, contextual and textual analysis, interpretation, synthesis, critical thinking, and writing. The texts for the course will include texts to demonstrate the variety of voices and ideas present from Romanticism through Contemporary Anglophone literature.