British Literature from 1800, "The Mythmakers"

John Singer Sargent, Lady Agnew (1893)  Feel free to read the entire play (it's pretty short) for Tuesday, but we'll only discuss Acts One and Two. But be careful--the dialogue is suspiciously smooth and you can race over ten pages without really thinking about what you've read. Read slowly and really try to think about his little witticisms, and how seriously (or not) we're supposed to take them.  Answer TWO as usual: Q1: This is the first play we've read in class, even though the theater was huge throughout the 19th century, even though it produced very few great playrwights (Wilde being an exception). Why do you think this work--its story, characters, themes, etc.--is more suited to a play than, say, a novel or a short story? Why might it be beneficial to see it being acted in front of you on a stage?  Q2: One of the most repeated lines of dialogue, usually by Jack, is "Oh, that's nonsense!" How does Wilde use nonsense very similarly to the way Carr...

Remember that on Tuesday we're going to take the Mid-Term over the first three books. The Mid-Term will be a series of THREE questions, of which you have to respond to any TWO of them, by explaining the signfiicance of the passage to the novel and doing a brief close reading of the scene, to explore what makes this passage so unique and exciting. Here are some passages I intend to choose from, so you'll see at least three of these on the exam next week:  Thus the poor sufferer tried to comfort others and herself. She indeed gained the resignation she desired. But I, the true murderer, felt the never-dying worm alive in my bosom, which allowed of no hope or consolation. Elizabeth also wept, and was unhappy; but her’s also was the misery of innocence, which, like a cloud that passes over the fair moon, for a while hides, but cannot tarnish its brightness. Anguish and despair had penetrated into the core of my heart; I bore a hell within me, which nothing could extinguish. We sta...

  REVISED COURSE CALENDAR FOR WEEKS 8-16   Part 2: A Satire of Polite Society   WEEK EIGHT: October 5-9 Carroll, Alice in Wonderland , part 1 Carroll, Alice in Wonderland , part 2   WEEK NINE: October 12-16 Mid-Term Exam (in class) Context: The Mystery of Madame X/ Art Paper #3 due   WEEK TEN: October 19-23 Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest , part 1 Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest, part 2   Part 3: Journeys Off the Map   WEEK ELEVEN: October 26-30 Context: The Madness of Munch/ Art Paper #4 due Conrad, Heart of Darkness , part 1   WEEK TWELVE: November 2-6 Conrad, Heart of Darkness , part 2 Critical Readings about Conrad (handout)   WEEK THIRTEEN: November 9-13 Context: Burne-Jones’ Modern Myths/ Art Paper #5 due Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring , part 1   WEEK FOURTEEN: November 16-20 Tolkien, The...

For Tuesday's class, read at least through the "Pig and Pepper" Chapter (VI), though read more if you like. However, we're going to break this into two parts, so we'll finish the rest on Thursday.  Answer TWO of the following: Q1: How might Alice in Wonderland be a satire of a Victorian childhood, much as Austen satirized early 19th century womanhood? From what we read here, what might have been expected of young girls or children in the 1860's? What is Carroll specifically making fun of or parodying through Alice's adventures? Q2: When Carroll originally wrote the book for Alice Liddell (the daughter of a friend), he included his own illustrations throughout. When the book was properly published, the publisher insisted on more professional illustrations, and John Tenniel (a popular artist) was hired to provide illustrations throughout. Why are the illustrations as important as the text of the story? What do they add to the experience of reading Alice in W...

  Answer TWO of the following:  Q1: Why, after the slow lead-up to Darcy's final proposal, does Austen suddenly race through the subsequent marriages and get everyone settled in a single chapter, stopping only to include a brief letter from Lydia? In other words, why does she end with a telescope where many people would have preferred a microscopic approach? Q2: After meeting with Lady Catherine (see Q3), her mother asks her about their conversation, and the narrator reflects, "Elizabeth was forced to give into a little falsehood here; for to acknowledge the substance of their conversation was impossible" (Ch. XIV). Why does Lizzie continue to withhold information from her parents, even after berating herself earlier for not telling them about Wickham? Is this a testament to her pride, or her prejudice (against her parents)?  Q3:One of the greatest scenes in the book is the verbal duel between Elizabeth and Lady Catherine in Chapter XIV. In many ways, this scene illus...

Self-Portrait by Elizabeth Vigee Le Brun, 1790 For Thursday, start reading Vol.3, getting to or around Chapter 9. But again, if you fall short, you will still be able to contribute to the in-class writing.  Here are some general ideas to consider (you DON'T need to answer these): * Note Elizabeth’s reaction to arriving at Pemberley: what do you make her reaction to the feel of the place, and of the account of Darcy his housekeeper gives her? Is she dazzled by the sheer wealth and spectacle of the place, or something else? * How does Darcy signal a change in his attitude (if not his love) at their next meeting? How should Elizabeth and the reader ‘read’ this? * Think, too, about how letters continue to play an important role in the novel, even when we can’t literally read them. It’s possible that First Impressions was an epistolary novel before Jane Austen re-wrote it as Pride and Prejudice . So why might she have retained some of the letters, and/or their role in the plot? * ...