THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY

Dr. R.-J. Frontain

English 4342-20540

Office: Irby 118 B

English 5342-20630

Office Hours: MWF 1-2 p.m. TTH 1:30 - 2:30 p.m.

Irby 316

COURSE DESCRIPTION

A survey of English non-dramatic literature from the accession of James I to the conclusion of the Interregnum, with emphasis placed upon the conflicting claims of interiority and communal authority, of religious revelation and scientific examination, as well as upon conflicting biblical and classical models for government and self-examination. In addition to the regularly scheduled class meetings, students will be invited to take part in a series of social gatherings at which some of the women writers of the period-- in particular Aemilia Lanyer, Lady Mary Wroth, and Margaret Cavendish -- will be discussed.

TEXT

The Broadview Anthology of Seventeenth-Century Verse and Prose, ed. Alan Rudrum et al (Broadview, 2000)

SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS AND ASSIGNMENTS

R 21 Aug. Introduction to Course

T 26 Aug. John Donne, Songs and Sonnets and Elegies

R 28 Aug. "

T 2 Sept. John Donne, Divine Poems

R 4 Sept. "

T 9 Sept. John Donne, Devotions upon Emergent Occasions

R 11 Sept. " "Second Prebend Sermon"

T 16 Sept. George Herbert

R 18 Sept. "

T 23 Sept. Richard Crashaw

R 25 Sept. EXAMINATION #1

T 30 Sept. Henry Vaughan

R 2 Oct. Thomas Traherne

T 7 Oct. Ben Jonson

R 9 Oct. "

T 14 Oct. "

R 16 Oct. "

T 21 Oct. FALL BREAK

R 22 Oct. Robert Herrick

T 28 Oct. "

R 30 Oct. EXAMINATION #2

T 4 Nov. Thomas Carew

R 6 Nov. Andrew Marvell

T 11 Nov. "

R 13 Nov. "

T 18 Nov. Sir Francis Bacon, Essays

R 20 Nov. " "Aphorisms"

RESEARCH PAPER DUE IN CLASS

T 25 Nov. Robert Burton

R 27 Nov. THANKSGIVING RECESS

T 2 Dec. Sir Thomas Browne, Religio Medici

R 4 Dec. " Hydriotaphia (Urn Burial)

R 11 Dec. (2-4 p.m.) FINAL EXAMINATION

OBSERVATIONS

1. The literature of the early seventeenth century is rich, complex, engaged and deeply engaging. Keep in mind that if a reading assignment seems to resist your effort, its difficulty may be deliberate. Persevere, for writers like Donne, Bacon and Browne richly reward the reader’s investment of effort. Like Sir Thomas, a committed reader can only take delight in an "o altitudo!".

2. Aphra Behn is now said to be the first professional woman writer in England, allowing the eighteenth century to culminate quite naturally in the mastery of the novel by writers like Jane Austen and Frances Burney. This means that the early seventeenth century is the last historical period when women were entering but still not easily accepted within the public world of letters. Only in the last twenty years or so has criticism begun to make informed appreciations of the accomplishments of seventeenth century English women writers, allowing student researchers an extraordinary opportunity for reading and study. In order to supplement the "canon" summarized by the UCA English department’s M.A. Reading List, the research paper assignment this semester will concern the wealth of early seventeenth century women authors whose own canons are just being edited and explored. Papers (7 typewritten pages for undergraduates, employing a minimum of three secondary sources; 12-15 typewritten pages for graduate students, employing a minimum of seven secondary sources; both being careful to follow MLA documentation procedures) will treat one of the women writers from our period in our textbook: Mary Sidney Herbert, Countess of Pembroke; Aemilia Lanyer; Lady Margaret Hoby; Lady Mary Worth; Lady Eleanor Davies; Anne Clifford; Margaret Fell; Lucy Hutchinson; Dorothy Osborne; or Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle. Informal group meetings will be scheduled to discuss discoveries and problems as students explore these writers.

3. The final grade will be computed as follows: Examination #1 (20%), Examination #2 (20%), Final Examination (25%), and Paper (35%). The significant percentage assigned the term paper indicates how major an effort in research, interpretation, and composition it should be.