Semester One: Weekly Schedule

NB: All lecture slides will be available via the Booth Online site for this course.

1 7^th Century Literature Schedule: Semester One

Tuesdays 5:30-8:30 weekly

In our first meeting I will provide you with an introduction to the course and how we will proceed during the first semester. You will benefit from knowing about the most prevalent aspects of the period and the secondary reading assignments are designed to help you prepare for engaging with 17th century literature and culture.

The suggested secondary reading will help you to understand the primary readings. Selections from Smith and Kishlansky are the only authors of secondary texts you are required to read. Both of these are on short-loan in the library.

  

Before class on September 13^th please read about James’ religious settlement (Smith, pp. 29-50) and the social and political background of the period (Kishlansky pp. 6-64). I would like you to come to class prepared to discuss these texts.

Throughout the course you may be asked to write an in class paper for five minutes about the set reading(s). To prepare for these I strongly encourage you to **always** read the texts and take notes.

Sept. 13:   Plenary Lecture on 17th century literature and culture

 Time for discussion of set readings (Kishlansky and Smith)

                 Lecture: John Donne, Ben Jonson & Stuart Poets

Sept. 20:  Class Discussion:  You should try to read the  entire selection of Donne's religious poems from the Norton collection. We will spend a good portion of our discussion time on Satire 3 and the Holy Sonnets. Also read the Ben Jonson poems on pages 83-96 and Thomas Carew’s poems on pages 295-317 in the Norton. Please pick one poem from each author that particularly interested you.

        

Lecture: Women and Poetry in the 17^th Century

        

Sept. 27:  Class Discussion: The poems by Mary Wroth, Aemilia Lanyer and

Anne Bradstreet in the Norton.

Secondary Reading: Please pick one of these articles from the Norton to read and be prepared to discuss in class: 1) Ann Baynes Coiro, “Writing in Service: Sexual Politics and Class Position in the Poetry of Aemilia Lanyer and Ben Jonson and 2) Eavan Boland, “Finding Anne Bradstreet”. 

                 
              Lecture: Milton, Politics and Poetry
              
               *Analysis of one of the set readings due.

Oct. 4:    Class Discussion: Milton’s poems, including the sonnet sequence, in the Norton pp. 379-403.

               

Lecture: Ben Jonson: Poetry & the Stuart Masque

 

Oct. 11:   Class Discussion: The Black Masque and Pleasure Reconciled to Virtue by Ben Jonson 
                Performance of Milton's A Masque Performed at Luldlow Castle
                *Analysis of one of the set readings due.

               

Oct. 18:  Lecture: Stuart Politics and the Stage World

              Class Discussion: Volpone, by Ben Jonson
              *Please also read Jonas A. Barish's essay, "The Double Plot in Volpone" (pp. 399-411) in the Criticism section of your Norton edition of Jonson's plays. 

               

Oct. 25:  Class Discussion:  The Alchemist, by Ben Jonson

                
              Lecture: John Webster & Comedy
*rewrite one of Milton's sonnets or one of the songs from Jonson's masques into a modern dialect of your choice.
 *            

Nov. 1:    Class Discussion: A Cure for A Cuckold

               Lecture: Stuart Tragedy

Nov. 8:    Class Discussion: The White Devil and The Dutchess of Malfi
  *Respond to one of the (Webster) discussion questions in light of these two plays. Prepare a short seminar paper to share with the class.
               

Nov. 15:  Lecture: Thomas Middleton and the Genre of Political Satire

       Class Discussion:  A Game at Chess

Nov. 22:  Class Discussion: Women beware Women and The Changeling.
                *'Dream Cast': Write an annotated dream cast of characters for your film version of one of the plays we have read this semester.

      

Nov. 29:  Lecture: Women and Writing in the 17th century

               Class Discussion:  Elizabeth Cary, The Tragedy of Miriam.

Dec. 6:    Lecture: Civil War

Class Discussion: section in Smith (pp. 105-64) and Kishlansky (pp. 134-86). You should write a summary of the texts to share with the class.
*Essay 1 due.  Please submit this assignment via the essay dropbox on the course site. The dropbox will close at 11:30pm.