British Literature from 1800, "The Mythmakers"

NOTE: Try to read as much of Part Two as you can, though I understand if you don't have time to finish it. Since we only have two days left, I want to read slightly larger chunks of the novel than we normally would. But again, I'm not worried about you finishing the book--just getting most of it ready before Thursday.  Remember the Final Exam Paper is in the post below this one if you lose your hard copy.  Answer two of the following: Q1: What do you think drew Julia to Winston in the first place? Is she truly in love with him, as the original note says? Are we meant to trust her words and motives, considering that she's clearly a very accomplished actor? Q2: For all his attraction to Julia, there are a few things that trouble Winston about her, namely that she takes no interest in history or anything about the Party that doesn't immediately relate to her. Why does this trouble him, and what might this say about the younger generation that grew up with the Party in char...

Eng 2653: British Lit from 1800 Final Exam Project: Judging a Book By Its Cover “A book cover demands our initial engagement with a work. You may not think a cover reflects your own thoughts of a book, but it evokes a response and inspires a reader’s imagination to begin building the world within the pages created by the author…A book cover is a key with which we open a world of storytelling…one page at a time, cover to cover.” ( Elda Rotor, Classic Penguins: Cover to Cover) This final exam is very simple: I want you to find new cover art for each of the 6 books in our class. The art can be come from the artists we discussed in class (or ones you wrote about in 3 of your papers), or can be something completely different, whether ancient or modern (or your own). However, instead of writing a paper about it, I want you to make a six-slide Powerpoint (or whatever visual aid you choose) that shows the work of art, lists the book and author, and contains a “book blurb” quote from the...

Try to at least get to Part Two of the book, and if possible, read to around Chapter 2. You'll have time to catch up on the weekend if you fall behind. The questions below will cover the entire book up until Part Two, Chapter 2, since we only touched on a few ideas in class today (Tuesday).  Don't forget that I'll accept the Time Machine/Klee papers as late as Thursday, but after that we have to press on!  Answer two of the following: Q1: Winston's 'friend,' Syme, is ecstatic about the evolution of Newspeak, since it's "the only language in the world whose vocabulary gets smaller every year" (Chapter V). Why is Newspeak obsessed with reducing the words and the range of expression available to its speakers? How does this show the relationship between language and culture in a devious way? Q2: One of Big Brother's greatest slogan's is, "Who controls the past...controls the future" (Chapter III). They call this "reality control,...

  Since we're a bit behind, I want you to go ahead and start 1984  for Tuesday's class, reading the first 7 or so chapters (or as much as you can). We will still write about a new work of art, but we'll do so in tandem with the novel, so as not to waste any more time! (only 4 days are left of the semester!!) But I won't give you any questions so you can just enjoy reading for a change.  Remember that your H.G. Wells & Klee Art & Lit papers are due on Tuesday if you want to (or have to) do them.  Also, I'll be giving you the Final Exam assignment on Thursday, so you'll definitely want to tune in for that!  More soon! 

Klee, Fugue in Red (1921) NOTE: Sadly, I have to CANCEL TUESDAY'S CLASS AS WELL, since my wife has to go to Norman for a minor procedure which will render her unable to drive home. So we'll have to pick this up NEXT Thursday. Sorry about this...but it gives you extra time to read and finish the questions! Don't forget, too, about the Art and Literature paper for Wells if you need to do it. Answer two of the following: Q1: Is the Time Traveler a reliable narrator? How might his own biases and beliefs color his narrative, particularly when describing the Eloi and the Morlocks? Is there anywhere we can tell that Wells might be critiquing the Traveler himself? Q2: In Marina Warner’s Introduction to the Penguin version of The Time Machine, she notes that in many of Wells’ fictions, “He show an almost anorexic fascination with feeding, hunger, and abstemiousness.” Why do you think Wells (and the Time Traveler), as a late Victorian, is so drawn to the idea of eating in the novel...

NOTE: This is a short work, so feel free to read as much as you like for Tuesday's class. But we can probably only tackle the first 6 chapters in class, so that's a comfortable place to get to for Tuesday's class.  Answer TWO of the following: Q1: Though this is a science fiction story about time travel, it also shares a lot in common with our first two works: Frankenstein and Sherlock Holmes . Where might we see the Victor or Holmes influence in these opening chapters? Also, what aspects of the storytelling might Wells have borrowed from his famous predecessors? Q2: In the future, the Time Traveller is constantly forming theories as to what created such a strange, forbidding world. As he notes, “For the first time I began to realize an odd consequence of the social effort in which we are at present engaged. And yet, come to think, it is a logical consequence enough…Things that are now mere dreams had become projects deliberately put in hand and carried forward. And the...

Sargent, Garden Study of the Vickers Children (1884)  Answer two of the following: Q1: In author and fairy-tale expert Jack Zipes' Introduction to the Penguin Classics edition of Peter Pan and Wendy , he writes that the work is "an anti-fairy tale that seeks to explicate mystery, whereas fairy tales simply display magic and mystery. It is a self-help book written by a doctoring author for those adults who have lost touch with their imagination and need to regain it through a re-introduction to children's imaginative play" (xxiii). Do you agree with this? Is it meant for the "Wendys" of the world who have grown up and forgotten Peter Pan and their long-lost days of flying? Though kids can like this book, can only adults love it? Q2: Why does Barrie try to humanize Cook and make him (almost) less of a villain in the late chapters of the book? Why is he so obsessed with "good form," and why does this make his life--and his death--somewhat tragic, at l...

Try to read through Chapter 13, "Do You Believe in Fairies?" for Thursday's class. And don't forget to think about your Art & Literature paper if you need to do it. The Sargent painting above, of The Pallieron Children, looks a lot like Peter and Wendy, don't you think?? The boy, especially, has that calculating, impressed-with-himself look of Peter Pan.  Answer two of the following: Q1: What do you find interesting in how Wendy, her brothers, and the Lost Boys play at being mothers and children? How might this be Barrie's own parody of the conventions of the Victorian family? Is it meant to satirize the children's unquestioning belief in these values, or the very values themselves?  Q2: Throughout the book, Barrie calls children "heartless," which might mean something different to him than to us. He says also that "Off we skip like the most heartless things in the world, which is what children are, but so attractive" (Chapter 11, 9...

Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose by John Singer Sargent  No questions over Break, but do start reading Peter Pan and get to at least around Chapter 6 for next-next Tuesday's class. We'll do an easy in-class writing over some aspect of the book. Here are some small ideas to look out for: * How does Barrie continue to long tradition of satirizing British society and its domestic rituals in this book?  * Like Alice, how does he also take a few digs at the traditional manner of educating the young in this book?  * How does Peter and Tinker Bell in particular differ from the many popular culture accounts of their character? Why might this be surprising to us? * What passages or characters have not dated as well as others? Would any parts be seen as racist or unacceptable today?  * Why is there more than a little touch of Alice in Wonderland in this book? How do we know that that Barrie definitely had Carroll's book in the back of his mind? * Though a relativley light-hearted b...

Remember that we'll be watching a short excerpt of Alice in Wonderland in class on Thursday, so we can decide in what ways the modern myth of Alice is different than the original (we might look at a few other examples as well).  Also, because I couldn't get the screen working today, here's the announcement for the play that two of your fellow students (and one professor, to remain nameless) will be starring in this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Remember that admission is free at the show starts at 7:30 in the Halley Brown Ford Arts Center--in the smaller black box theater, not on the mainstage (you'll see where it is when you get there). Here's the university's press release: https://www.ecok.edu/news/almost-maine-take-stage-ecu See you on Thursday! 

Magritte, The Portrait (1935) Sorry for the delay--I forgot to post these yesterday! But go ahead and try to finish the book for Tuesday since it's pretty short, and we'll have one more set of questions to round it out. On Thursday, we'll watch an excerpt from a recent adaptation of Alice in Wonderland  to discuss ideas associated with your Mid-Term Paper.  Answer two of the following: Q1: How subversive should we consider the book, especially as it consistently parodies monarchs (this is written under Queen Victoria, after all), moral poetry, social norms, education, and even the courts of law. Is this all just cheeky nonsense to amuse children? Or is it also aimed at getting a chuckle (or a gasp) from the adults reading it aloud to their sons and daughters? An example that might support this? Q2: How does Alice's approach to Wonderland change throughout the novel? As she grows in size, does she also 'grow' in other ways as well? Is there a hidden moral lesson ...

English 2653 Mid-Term Paper: The Original vs. the Myth INTRO: One of the most common statements a reader can make upon encountering Frankenstein, Sherlock Holmes¸ or Alice in Wonderland in the original is, “I didn’t know it was like this!” Even though both are iconic works of literature that have spawned dozens of ‘sequels’ in books, films, comics, and elsewhere, relatively few people experience the original—or know how it differs from its modern-day mythology. And yet, the book is what remains, and what we ultimately have to return to so we can understand who these characters are and why their stories so captivated their audiences’ imaginations. PROMPT: For this paper, I want you to explore the difference between the original and the myth with at least ONE of these works. To do this, consider what you knew, or thought you knew, about the work before you read it, and what surprised you, excited you, or confused (even annoyed) you about the real thing. Compare this to at least ONE...

For Thursday'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 for next week.  Answer TWO of the following: Q1: How might Alice in Wonderland be a satire of a Victorian childhood? 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 Wonderland ?  Q3: Writing about Magritte's painti...

REMEMBER, no questions this time around, since we'll have an in-class writing response over the two stories. Below are some ideas to consider for Thursday... * How do racial stereotypes and fears creep into these stories as well, esp. "The Speckled Band"? * What taboos do these stories uncover about the "civilized world" of English high society? What horrors are being conducted behind closed doors? Or under respectable professions? * Does Holmes follow a moral code like many superheroes in modern comics & film? Like Batman, does he refrain from killing his victims? Does he go too far? * How does Holmes' egotism get in the way of his work? Does Watson notice this? * Why does Holmes fear the country more than the city? What makes the country more dangerous and a greater nest of crime?  * What role do women play in these stories? Are they still mute victims, like Elizabeth in Frankenstein ? Or are they granted more agency (like Irene Adler)? 

Since time is pressing, we'll read three stories for Tuesday, but I'm not worried if you don't get all three read. Read as much as you can, but at least read two of them. Or read them all! :) We just don't have time to discuss each and every one, sadly. Answer TWO of the following:  Q1: In “The Five Orange Pips,” Watson recalls a list he once made (in an earlier Holmes novella, The Sign of Scarlet), of Holmes’ skills and defects, admitting that he knows only a little Botany, random Chemistry, but everything possible about criminal literature. We also see Holmes resorting to an encyclopedia to learn about the Klu Klux Klan. Is Watson (or Doyle) trying to demystify Holmes in these stories? Is he becoming more of a man and less of a myth?  Q2: In “The Red-Headed League,” Holmes tells Watson, “the more bizarre a thing is the less mysterious is proves to be. It is your commonplace, featureless crimes which are really puzzling, just as a commonplace face is the most difficu...

Answer two of the following for Thursday's class: Q1: Like Frankenstein , the Holmes stories all frame narratives related by Holmes’ assistant, Dr. Watson, who is telling them long after the fact (presumably, when Holmes is no longer around for new advenftures). Why do you think Doyle adopted this approach? Is it similar to the Walton-Frankenstein connection? Is Watson a kind of Walton? Or is there more to the frame narration? Q2: Both stories are about the dangers women in the late-19th century face while trying to be independent. While Irene Adler is much more aggressive and clever than Miss Sutherland, what makes each one especially vulnerable? Is Holmes sympathetic or oblivious to their situation? Q3: Iain Pears, a critic and mystery novelist, wrote of Sherlock Holmes that he “is the archetypal ‘new man’ of the Victorian age, a meritocrat, living solely off his brains, dislocated socially and scornful of the society in which he lives.” Where do we see this in the stories? W...

If you missed class today (Thursday) because of the icy roads, no big deal--I didn't count you absent. However, we did finish our discussion of Frankenstein (a lot of fun!) and will be moving ahead next week. See the post below this one for the revised schedule, barring any more snow/ice days!  For Tuesday, we'll do another in-class writing to a painting by the Norwegian painter, Edvard Munch, who complements some aspects of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories. The painting above is one of his famous ones, and might be a depiction of the streets of Holmes' London itself, "Evening on Karl Johan Street," though I won't be using that one in class on Tuesday. However, it might be one you decide to use in your Art & Literature Paper, should you chose to do it. For Thursday, we'll be reading the first two stories in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes , which are "A Scandal in Bohemia" and "A Case of Identity." So feel free to read ahead. I...

NOTE: Class seems to be on for Thursday (the 2nd), so come if you think you can safely make it. The roads should be okay in many places, but maybe not in your neck of the woods.  I've posted a revised schedule for the next few weeks so we can get back on track. The due date for the paper is the same, and only a few minor dates changed. So be sure to follow this schedule until Spring Break, at which point it the old schedule will resume. I'll assign the Mid-Term paper next week, so stay tuned!    R 2                   Shelley, Frankenstein, last chapters [rescheduled]    T 7                   Art Response #2: Edvard Munch  R 9                   Doyle, Sherlock Holmes TBA   14                 ...

NOTE: These questions will be due for Thursday instead, since we missed class this Tuesday. So if you haven't turned them yet, no worries. The questions are always due on the day we discuss a work, so if class is cancelled, it gets pushed back.  Answer two of the following:  Q1:Why do you think Victor is so unwilling to believe that the Creature could ever intend to kill Elizabeth? As he says, "if for one instant I had thought what might be the hellish intention of my fiendish adversary, I would rather have banished myself for ever from my native country, and wandered a miserable outcast over the earth" (185). Is he really this naive, or is this a narrative feint for Walton's approval? (or, did Walton add it himself)?  Q2: When Victor finds Elizabeth slain by the Creature, he “rushed toward her, and embraced her with ardour” (189). This is the only time he embraces her in the novel! Her also spends quite some time in describing her body as left flung lifelessly across...

  Since the weather looks iffy, I'll cancel today (Tuesday's) class and we'll reschedule everything for Thursday. The reading and in-class writing ideas are in the post below this one. You didn't have any questions due, so don't worry about missing work. Just be sure you're caught up on reading so we can hit the ground running on Thursday. We'll be a day behind, but I'll adjust the calendar to reflect that and post the revisions on the blog later. Enjoy the day, and see you on Thursday! 

Goya, A Way of Flying (etching, 1819) Since we have the weekend, I encourage you to read a little more of the book, and to help you do that, I won't give you any questions to answer. When you come to class next week, we'll have an in-class response based on some big idea that occurs in these chapters . Below are some ideas you might want to consider as you read, since we'll probably write about one of them (and that will count for your Tuesday Reading Response).  IDEAS TO CONSIDER (don't answer--we'll write about some of this on Tuesday):  * How is the Creature's education shaped by his reading in the cottager's hut? What other works might shape his future character? You might also consider why Shelley chose these specific works for the Creature to read (it's more than a coincidence)...and maybe Victor/Walton chose them, too? * How does Shelley make us empathize with the Creature, even as he commits murder and mayhem? Why might she try to make a murderer...

Witches' Sabbath by Goya  As always, try to read carefully and with detail rather than skimming to the end. Reading a book is never about the finish line, but what you find and encounter along the way. But try to get as close to page 118 as possible for our next class. Answer TWO of the following:  Q1: In Book 1, Chapter 7, Victor and Elizabeth interview Justine in prison, and learn of her false confession, made in danger of eternal torment. Why doesn't Victor, who knows the truth, tell the court what he knows? And why might this passage be consistent with other passages of abandonment in the novel? Q2: How does Elizabeth change over the course of these chapters? Victor notes that "She was no longer that happy creature," and that she had "become grave." Is it just the death of her loved ones that causes this change? As one of the few women in the novel, why might her character be significant to the novel, and not just a footnote? You might also consider w...

  INTRO: For each book we read, I’ll begin our discussion with an examination of a pivotal artist whose works I feel are in dialogue with the book in question. We will always do an in-class writing to get us thinking about the work, and then we’ll continue to use the artists’ work and ideas as a frame for our class discussions. Ideally, this will help you see the many of the themes of the novel visually, which will also remind you that different forms of art aren’t created in a vacuum. Writers are looking at paintings and listening to music and living in a world that continually inspires them. It quickly becomes a ‘chicken or the egg’ situation: who dreamed it up first? Who inspired whom? PROMPT: To help you explore the connections between literature and art, I want you to write THREE “Art and Literature” readings, based on ANY THREE of the novels in class. To do this, I want you to use a work from the artist we discuss in class to examine a specific passage in the book. This pap...

  NOTE: Try to read as much of the first FIVE chapters of Frankenstein for Tuesday's class. There's SO MUCH to discuss here, so we can't possibly be through it all. The questions below are a kind of 'wish list' of what I hope to discuss, and where you might focus your reading as you wade through the opening chapters. Use the questions as a kind of guide if you find yourself lost and aren't sure what to look for and/or think about. But you only have to answer any TWO of them. Bring them to class on Tuesday if possible, but you have until 5pm on Tuesday to turn them in.    Answer TWO of the following:  Q1: Most first-time readers of Frankenstein are surprised to find that the novel begins with a frame narrative: that of Walton, the arctic explorer, who is writing home to his sister, Mrs. Saville. Why do you think Shelley found this a necessary intro to the story? Why not simply open up with Frankenstein’s story? Also, why is a narrator like Walt...

 Welcome to the Course!  In this British literature survey, I want to focus on the literary myths authors created between 1800-1940 that have become a cultural shorthand on both sides of the pond. England was a virtual laboratory of new ideas in this era, giving birth to some of the most disturbing, provocative, and prophetic characters in the entire history of English literature (or any other!). From Frankenstein’s Monster to 1984’s Big Brother, we are constantly revisiting and re-writing these myths in an attempt to understand their attraction, or perhaps to exorcise their influence. Just think about how many songs and movies reference the books on this syllabus! What would pop culture be without Alice in Wonderland (Jefferson Airplane and The Matrix !), and where would the genre of True Crime be without Sherlock Holmes ? I think we can all agree we live in a better world thanks to these Victorian and Edwardian nightmares…so the question is, how did they dream them up? Wha...