Syllabus

Sixteenth Century Literature: From More to Marlowe

Syllabus

Regular Session 

 

Instructor Contact Information

E.: Allyna_Ward@

Course Description

Literary works in sixteenth century England were rarely, if at all, created in isolation from the political, social and cultural world. The period is marked by tumultuous shifts in philosophy, religion and politics that impacted the way texts were produced and consumed. These include the birth of Renaissance Humanism, the Protestant Reformation, the introduction of the first English Bible, the development of what we now call literary criticism, and the reigns of two very powerful and influential female regents in Mary and Elizabeth Tudor. Most importantly, Tudor England was defined by the rhetoric of the Protestant reformers who identified a return to stability in the new Protestant settlement. Reformation texts sought to identify the present with a stable golden past, while also promoting new values that gave meaning and purpose to the new generation of English Protestants. From Thomas More to Christopher Marlowe, writers engaged with these topical events and situations to create a wealth of material for English readers and theatre-goers. This course is designed to provide a survey of poems, prose and plays that materially reflect – and contribute to – the various transformations in philosophy, religion and politics that defined sixteenth century Englishness.

 

Course Objectives

The aim of this course is twofold: firstly, you shall increase your understanding of early modern English literature by examining a range of texts, including a non-Shakespearean corpus of prose, poetry and dramatic works; secondly, you shall be introduced to a variety of approaches to early modern literature – authorial, generic, historical and thematic – that will provide you with new ways for reading and understanding the texts produced in this period.    

Blog

I have created a class blog where I will post recommended reading, seminar questions and the topics for assignments:  http://earlymodernseminars16c.blogspot.com

Weekly Course Outline

Semester One

Texts and Contexts [Weeks 1-6]

Lecture:            Sixteenth Century Humanism

Seminar:            Thomas More, Utopia [I]

Seminar:            Thomas More, Utopia [II]

Lecture:            Literatures of the Reformation

Seminar:            The English Bible & John Foxe - Anne Askew

Seminar:            Richard Robinson, The Rewarde of Wickedneese
                          Helen of Troy

                         Medea 

Lecture:             Edmund Spenser

Seminar:            Edmund Spenser, Shepherd’s Calendar [I]

Seminar:            Edmund Spenser, Shepherd’s Calendar [II]

Lecture:             The New World

Seminar:            Thomas Hariot, Report on the New Found Land of Virginia [I]

Seminar:            Thomas Hariot, Report on the New Found Land of Virginia [II]

Poetic Theory and Practice [Weeks 7-12]

Lecture:             Early Modern Verse

Seminar:            Thomas Wyatt & Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey

Lecture:             Early Modern Literary Criticism

Seminar:            Philip Sidney, Defense of Poesie [I]

Seminar:            Philip Sidney, Defense of Poesie [II]

Seminar:            George Puttenham, The Art of English Poesie [I]

Seminar:            George Puttenham, The Art of English Poesie [II]

Lecture:             The Petrarchan Tradition

Seminar:            Philip Sidney, Astrophil and Stella [I]

Seminar:            Philip Sidney, Astrophil and Stella [II]

Lecture:             The Epic

Seminar:            Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene Book I

Seminar:            Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene Book II

Seminar:            Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene Book III

Semester Two

Early English Prose [Weeks 1-3]

Lecture:             Early Modern Prose Fictions

Lecture:             The University Wits

Seminar:             Thomas Nashe, The Unfortunate Traveller [I]

Seminar:             Thomas Nashe, The Unfortunate Traveller [II]

Seminar:             Robert Greene, Pandosto, The Triumph of Time

Seminar:             John Lyly, Euphues, The Anatomy of Wit

Mid-Tudor Drama: Conventions and Traditions [Weeks 4-5]

Lecture:             Mid-Tudor Drama: Conventions and Traditions

Seminar:             John Lyly, Sappho and Phao

Seminar:             John Lyly, Campaspe

Seminar:             Christopher Marlowe, Dido, Queen of Carthage

Mid-Tudor Drama: Comedy [Weeks 6-8]

Lecture:            Mid-Tudor Drama: Comedy

Seminar:            John Lyly, Endymion

Seminar:            Robert Greene, Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay

Seminar:            Robert Greene, Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay

Mid-Tudor Drama: Tragedy [Weeks 8-12]

Lecture:            Mid-Tudor Drama: Tragedy

Seminar:            Thomas Kyd, The Spanish Tragedy

Lecture:            Christopher Marlowe

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, Edward II

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, Dr Faustus [I]

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, Dr Faustus [II]

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine, I

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine, II

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, The Massacre at Paris 

Seminar:               Christopher Marlowe, The Jew of Malta