SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY EDWARDSVILLE
SPRING SEMESTER 2012
English 208-001 W 18:00-20:50 PH 2406
course instructor: Mary Steible, PH 3228, ext. 2889--office hours: MW 13:30-15:00 e-mail: marysteible@me.com
course rental texts: Norton Anthology of English Literature Volume I, 8th ed.
course description: survey of Early British Literatre
course purpose: to learn to read and write critically about early British literary texts
course assignments:
course work: English 208 is SIUE English's survey of English Literature, c. 7th-18th centuries. In this course, our focus will be upon the way that cultural beliefs in the "otherworldly" are represented, interpreted, politicized, propagandized, or popularized through English literature. Your course goals include becoming familiar with the earliest of Anglo literature through its first 1,000 years, the visions and ideas of its writers, the cultural temper that shaped those ideas over a time when belief systems were melding and merging and as is often the case, the source of chronic social disruptions.
course assessment: Written work will be graded upon the level of critical thinking that you engage in your responses, as well as upon your composition skills (English 102 is pre-requisite for this course).
grading scale:
| A+ | 100 | C+ | 78-79 | |
| A | 95-99 | C | 74-77 | |
| A- | 90-94 | C- | 70-73 | |
| B+ | 88-89 | D+ | 68-69 | |
| B | 84-87 | D | 64-67 | |
| B- | 80-83 | D- | 60-63 |
course attendance: You must attend this class. Absences in excess of one day are subject to grade penalties, excused or unexcused.Each day missed after one day's absence will incur a loss of 5 points from your course GPA. If you are absent more than two times before the close of week ten of classes, I will drop you from the course to avoid giving you a failing grade. After week ten, however, I cannot drop you. If you know that you will need to miss more than two classes, please DO NOT take this course and session. The English Department offers English 208 on a fairly regular basis.
course learning environment: Students invest much time, effort, and money in their college education. They have a right to learn in an environment free from distractions. Please keep i-phones, PDAs, and cell phones turned off and out of sight, portable tunes and headsets turned off, and DVD players and portable games at home. Laptops: not allowed. Snacking: not allowed in classrooms at SIUE. Texting: don't even think about it. Ditto gaming.
university policies on student rights and responsibilities: Links to university policies on the student conduct code, the student academic code,class attendance, plagiarism, and civility are provided here. Your being a responsible and interested student is critical to your success in my classroom. Thus, I expect you to read all linked codes and policies and subsequently follow them.
university services for students: Please visit Disability Support Services or call 650-3726 for needs not being met in this classroom environment.
COURSE CALENDAR: Reading and Test Schedule
note: all assigned texts must be read BEFORE class.
| WEEK ONE | |
| Jan 11 | introduction to course; "The Wanderer," 111-13; selections from British legends, 115-128 |
| WEEK TWO | |
| Jan 18 | Beowulf, 29-100 |
| WEEK THREE | |
| Jan 25 | Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, 160-213 |
| WEEK FOUR | |
| Feb 01 | General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, 218-38 |
| WEEK FIVE | |
| Feb 08 | The Miller's Prologue and Tale, 239-55 |
| WEEK SIX | |
| Feb 15 | The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale, 256-84 |
| WEEK SEVEN | |
| Feb 22 | The Pardoner's Prologue and Tale, 284-97 |
| WEEK EIGHT | |
| Feb 29 | midterm exam (first hour)selections from Piers Plowman, 331-67 |
| WEEK NINE | |
| Mar 07 | spring break |
| WEEK TEN | |
| Mar 14 | Second Shepherd's Play, 407-35 |
| WEEK ELEVEN | |
| Mar 21 | selections from Malory's More d'Arthur438-56 |
| WEEK TWELVE | |
| Mar 28 | selections on writing of the reformation, 616-41 |
| WEEK THIRTEEN | |
| Apr 04 | The Faerie Queene, Book I, , 714-857 |
| WEEK FOURTEEN | |
| Apr 11 | Doctor Faustus, 1022-57 |
| WEEK FIFTEEN | |
| Apr 18 | selections from George Herbert, 1607-25 |
| WEEK SIXTEEN | |
| Apr 25 | selections from John Locke, 2828-33 |
COURSE TASKS
All assignments additional to the in-class schedule, all exercises, tasks, homework, or any other information pertinent to this course will be housed and/or communicated to you through Blackboard course features and tools. Weekly, I will announce course tasks under "announcements" and copy them to you in SIUE's e-mail. It will be your responsibility to access Blackboard to check announcements and to access SIUE e-mail to check messages for this course. I expect you to attend class, to complete all assigned tasks on time, and to come to class prepared to participate in discussions, take notes, and be a good neighbor to your classmates. If you have questions, PLEASE ASK.
Final Exam: 02 May, 18:30-20:10