ENGL 333(S) Nineteenth-Century British Novel
A study of major works from what is often considered the Golden Age of the
novel. A central concern of the course will be the elusive nature of literary
realism. How do novelists of the period understand and work with the widespread
assumption that fiction should be about, and in some sense like, real life?
How, and to what extent, do they integrate their own creative vision with
a commitment to social realism and a belief in the novelist's moral
responsibility to society? There will be a particular focus on those
High-Victorian novels, such as Bleak House and Middlemarch, that aspire to
encompass the whole society by uniting a vision of the shape and workings
of that society with a focus on the inward experience of individual characters.
Requirements: heavy reading load; flexible writing requirement: options include
short papers, journal, midterm and final exams, and a 12- to 15-page final
paper.
Prerequisite: a 100-level English course, except 150 (formerly 103). Enrollment
limited to 30. (1800-1900)