ENGL 453: English Novel of the 19th Century
Spring 2008
Professor Rosemary Jann
T/Th 12:00 - 1:15
Robinson A109

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In this course we will study novels written in England between the 1840's and 1902. Our major goal will be to develop a better understanding of the novel as a narrative form and of the relationships between fiction and its social contexts. The Victorian period was the great age of the novel, a distinctly middle-class form. At a time when the middle classes were rapidly increasing their political and economic status, the novel played an important role in constructing class and gender differences that were crucial to their claims for social and cultural power as well. Victorian novelists turned a keen and often satiric eye on the ways modern capitalism, individualism, and industrialization were reshaping traditional mores and personal relationships. They explored the ideological dilemmas of modern life and invented fictional solutions for such problems. Other required work will include 2 analytical essays, a midterm, and a take-home final examination.

Books ordered for this course are listed below in the order in which we will read them. You may use other editions if you have them, but since we will frequently be referring to specific passages in class, not having the same pagination as the books ordered for the course may cause problems for you in following class discussion.

Bronte, Emily. Wuthering Heights. Oxford World Classics. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780192833549.
Dickens, Charles. Hard Times. Penguin Classics. ISBN 978-0-14-143967-9.
Thackeray, William Makepeace. Vanity Fair. Oxford World Classics. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780192834430.
Eliot, George. Adam Bede. Penguin Classics. ISBN 978-0-14-043121-6.
Trollope, Anthony. The Warden. Oxford World Classics. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780192834089.
Hardy, Thomas. Tess of the D'Urbervilles. Oxford World Classics. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780192840691.
Conrad, Joseph and Rudyard Kipling. Heart of Darkness, the Man Who Would Be King, and Other Works on Empire. Ed. David Damrosch. A Longman Cultural Edition. Longman Press. ISBN 978-0-321-36467-8.

Course Requirements:
Central to the experience of reading Victorian fiction is the so-called "triple decker" novel: extended multi-plot works that create and explore a social universe in miniature. This course will require extensive reading: you should be prepared to cover 300 pages per week checked by regular reading quizzes. You will be required to write two 5- page analytical essays on assigned topics. There will be an in-class midterm and an in-class final examination.

I expect you to attend class regularly, to bring your copies of readings to class with you, and to be prepared to discuss the readings on the syllabus for that day's class. Since you can't participate if you aren't in class, more than 3 absences may lower your participation grade. Please silence cell phones and pagers at the start of class and refrain from instant messaging. I expect you to adhere to the GMU Honor code, which means that plagiarism or cheating in any form will not be tolerated. For a statement of what constitutes plagiarism, see this webpage: http://composition.gmu.edu/faculty/plagiarism.php. For a statement of the Honor Code, see http://www.gmu.edu/catalog/apolicies/.

25% Analytical Essay #1
25% Analytical Essay #2
15% Midterm
20% Final Examination
15% Participation, including reading quizzes

Important Dates:
Tuesday, Feb. 5: Last day to drop with no tuition penalty. Last day to add classes
Friday, Feb. 22: Last day to drop.
Friday, March 21: Last day for elective withdrawal.

Course Schedule

http://mason.gmu.edu/~rjann