ENGL 322T(S) Novel Arguments (W)
What does it mean to say that a novel has an argument-that, in other words, it advocates certain beliefs and offers reasons in support of them? We will examine this central question through close reading of European and American nineteenth-century novels by authors including Charles Dickens, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Gustave Flaubert, and Samuel Richardson. We will inquire into theoretical concerns about the meanings of fiction, among them: In what sense can fiction persuade? Are particular beliefs or principles "argued" by the form of the novel, even against an author's conscious wishes? To explore these questions, we will also read critical works exemplifying differing answers to the question of how the novel possesses arguments about issues such as class, industry, slavery, and consumer culture.
Format: tutorial. Requirements: Students will meet with the instructor in pairs for one hour each week. They will alternate between writing 5- to 7-page papers and commentaries on their partner's papers.
Prerequisite: a 100-level English course, except 150. Enrollment limit: 10 (expected: 10). Preference given to English majors.
(1700-1900)
Tutorial meetings to be arranged. T. DAVIS