|
Date
|
Assignment
|
Focus
|
| September 4 |
Richard
II
|
1.2.1-41; 1.4.20-52; 2.1.31-66, 95-210; 2.3.83-147 |
| 9 |
|
3.2;3.3;
3.4.29-66; 4.1.107-318;5.5.31-66 |
| 11 |
I Henry IV
|
1.2; 1.3.130-210; 2.2; 2.4.363-465; 3.2.1-161 |
| 16 |
|
4.1.94-123; 4.2.11-79; 5.1.83-140; 5.3.30-61 |
| 18 |
II Henry IV
|
1.1.137-210; 1.2.53-242; 2.1.22-128; 3.1; 4.1.30-158 ;4.5;5.2; 5.5 |
| 23 |
Exam/Paper |
|
| 25 |
Midsummer Night's
Dream
|
1.1.22-251; 2.1.60-268; 2.2.27-156 |
| 30 |
|
3.1.131-95; 3.2.88-344; 4.1.45-217; 5.1.1-27 |
| October 2 |
As You Like
It
|
1.1.1-161; 1.2.1-53, 201-76;1.3.39-136; 2.1; 2.7.12-44 |
| 7 |
|
3.2.289-419; 3.3; 3.5.35-82; 4.1.63-205; 4.3.73-180 |
| 9 |
No Class |
|
| 14 |
Measure for
Measure
|
1.2; 1.3.19-54; 2.1.202-44; 2.2.110-86 |
| 16 |
|
2.4.87-186; 3.1.1-150; 5.1.360-452 |
| 23 |
Exam/Paper |
|
| 28 |
Hamlet
|
1.2.1-159; 1.3.5-50, 90-135; 1.4.39-91; 1.5 |
| 30 |
|
2.2.156-216, 265-80, 488-544; 3. 1 |
| November 4 |
|
3.2.55-392; 3.3.36-98; 3.4.9-217; 4.3.1-52 |
| 6 |
|
4.4; 4.5.98-213; 4.7.105-92; 5.1; 5.2.4-66,204-381 |
| 11 |
Exam/Paper |
|
| 13 |
King Lear
|
1.1.36-192; 1.2.1-22,104-33; 1.4.93-194,254-306 |
| 18 |
|
2.3; 2.4; 3.1; 3.2; 3.4; 3.7.55-108 |
| 20 |
|
4.1; 4.2.26-82; 4.6.33-187; 4.7.45-78 |
| 25 |
|
5.2.; 5.3 |
| December 2 |
Tempest
|
1.1; 1.2.242-502; 2.1.143-68; 2.2.114-85 |
| 4 |
|
3.1; 3.2; 4.1.1-56;5.1 |
| 8 |
Take Home Final |
|
GOALS:
This course is designed to introduce you to the often demanding texts of Shakespeare's plays, their major genres (history, comedy, tragedy, and romance), and their themes of state, subject, and family. Shakespeare's literary career spans an increasingly troubled age that experienced the emergence of the absolutist state and the deconsecration of the monarch, the construction of the subject (both political and psychological), and the interrogation of the patriarchal control of sexuality. The lectures will suggest how Shakespeare reflects and contributes to these momentous changes at the dawn of the modern world.
FORMAT:
This is a lecture course. The lectures assume no previous knowledge of Shakespeare or his times and are designed to illuminate the texts of the plays. They focus closely upon the text and shall treat a few scenes or passages in detail; these focal passages are listed on the syllabus and must be studied in detail before each lecture. The course web site (see below) presents essential background material for the plays; students are responsible for and will be tested on its contents. Although the lectures assume no specific familiarity with Shakespeare, they do assume that you can read and understand Shakespeare's often demanding language and that you are comfortable analyzing poetry.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Please bring the text of the play to class. You are expected to have read each play before the first lecture devoted to it and have carefully studied the focal passages before each lecture; in addition you are expected to have read the materials in the Contexts sections of the web site. Attendance is required, and more than three unexcused absences are grounds for dismissal from the course. You are expected to arrive for class on time and to stay until the lecture is over. Arriving late or leaving early is disruptive and discourteous to your fellow students. Students who repeatedly disrupt class will be dismissed from the course.
EVALUATIONS:
Three exams and one take-home final are scheduled. Each student must take two of the scheduled exams during the semester and the final, and each shall count for 20% of your grade. In addition, each student must submit a paper of at least 1500 words. Paper topics will be posted on the course web site; click on the exam/paper link to find them. Students whose last names begin with the letters A through G must submit their papers instead of taking the exam on September 23; H though Q, instead of taking the exam on October 23; R through Z, instead of taking the exam on November 11. All students must complete the take-home final. The paper shall count for 40% of your grade. Your paper must develop a critical argument and demonstrate your mastery of Shakespeare's language by citing and analyzing passages from the plays; plot summary will not be accepted. (For a discussion and example, please consult
Advice to Paper Writers.) Extensions shall be granted only at the written request of your class dean. All missed work must be made up within one week. You must complete all written assignments to receive credit for the course. Using other people's words or ideas without attribution is, of course, plagiarism, and the Honor Code requires that any suspicions be reported. If you are unsure about how to attribute ideas you have borrowed, please ask me.
WEB SITE:
English 205 has its own web site:
http://engl205.01.courses.wesleyan.edu. The site will contain the course syllabus (including paper topics), a discussion of Shakespeare's dramatic theater, and a separate Contexts section for the histories, comedies, tragedies, and romances containing documents and images from Shakespeare's age and essays introducing them. The contexts sections have been designed to help you understand the lectures and write your papers by providing essential background materials. You are responsible for the contents of these sections and will be tested on them. In addition, you must consult the web site when writing your paper.
TEXTS:
I have ordered individual editions of the plays from the Pelican Shakespeare series and I prefer that you use these texts instead of a single-volume Shakespeare; individual plays are a lot easier to carry to class, and there are sometimes substantial differences between different editions of the same play. If you have any questions about the texts, please ask me.
TEACHING ASSISTANTS:
A crack staff of dedicated and talented TAs will offer review sessions and provide help with your papers.
