English 514-001:  Elizabethan Literature (Spring 2014), 3 credits

TR 2:00-3:15, Owens 210

Professor's Information

• Name:  Dr. Matthew Fike
• Office:  Bancroft 258 (803-323-4575)
• Departmental Office:  Bancroft 250 (323-2171)
• Office Hours:  MTWR, 3:30-4:30; and by appt.
• E-mail:  fikem@winthrop.edu
• Website:  http://faculty.winthrop.edu/fikem

 

 

Note:  This syllabus is for both undergraduates and graduate students.  Divisions within some of the following sections are clearly marked with boldfaced headings.

 

 

Course Description

 

English 514—offered for graduate and undergraduate credit and centered on three main figures:  Edmund Spenser, Christopher Marlowe, and William Shakespeare—surveys poetry, prose narratives, drama, and critical theory of the Elizabethan period (1558-1603).  The requirements include a midterm examination to be written in class, response papers, a longer researched essay, a final examination, attendance, and participation.  The course will operate almost exclusively on the basis of small- and large-group discussion. ENGL 203 is a prerequisite.

 

General Education Goals for Undergraduates

You can find more on the touchstone program at http://www.winthrop.edu/touchstone/default.aspx?id=31829. The Touchstone Program is Winthrop University’s distinctive approach to general education.  CRTW 201 helps students make progress toward several of their goals (italicized) in the Touchstone Program. 

Goal One: To communicate clearly and effectively in standard English.
Goal Two: To acquire and appreciate quantitative skills.
Goal Three: To use critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and a variety of research methods.
Goal Four: To recognize and appreciate human diversity (both past and present) as well as the diversity of ideas, institutions, philosophies, moral codes, and ethical principles.
Goal Five: To understand scientific knowledge in terms of its methods or acquisition, its specific quantitative nature, and its dynamic and contingent character.
Goal Six: To understand aesthetic values, the creative process, and the interconnectedness of the literary, visual, and performing arts throughout the history of civilization.
Goal Seven: To examine values, attitudes, beliefs, and habits which define the nature and quality of life.

See a complete listing of course goals for the Department of English at http://www.winthrop.edu/cas/english/default.aspx?id=20751.

 

 

Learning Outcomes for Undergraduates

 

We will . . .

• Analyze masterpieces of Elizabethan literature selected from a range of authors.
• Identify the variety of genres, styles, and themes at work in this period.
• Discuss the relationship between Elizabethan literature and history.
• Promote learning through class discussion.
• Demonstrate the ability to read critically and to write analytically about literature through successful completion of tests and papers.
• Produce a research paper in multiple stages, including on-line research (MLA Bibliography and other databases).

Objectives and Outcomes for Graduate Students Within the content knowledge area, students will demonstrate knowledge of various forms of written texts, major periods in the history of English, American, and world literatures, and the standard terminology of literary analysis. Also, students will demonstrate knowledge of professional standards of grammar and mechanics, scholarly reference methodology and tools, and various critical approaches to literary analysis.   Graduate Students:  Student Objectives: Content Knowledge. The student will demonstrate knowledge of: various forms of written texts (including fiction, poetry, drama, essay, and other literary genres) major periods in the history of English, American, and world literature in terms of cultural contexts, styles, dominant genres, language, and subject matter major similarities and differences among British, American, and other national literatures professional standards of grammar, mechanics, and usage accepted in the scholarly community standard reference tools, methods, and forms of documentation used in scholarly research the standard terminology of literary analysis used in scholarly writing various critical perspectives such as the formalist, structuralist, and post-structuralist approaches the English language, including its structure, grammar, vocabulary, and historical development writers from different cultural, ethnic, and minority backgrounds   Graduate Students:  Student Objectives: Skills in Analysis, Writing, and Communication. The student will: present orally the findings of research and critical analysis demonstrate the correct use of standard reference tools, the proper handling of primary and secondary sources, and proper documentation of all sources write research papers and critical analyses on appropriate topics from language, literature, or pedagogy demonstrate a publishable level of critical, creative, or pedagogical materials sustain a high standard of written expression in lengthy critical or creative works (including but not limited to theses) demonstrate synthesizing skills through a comprehensive final examination

 

Texts

 

Available at the bookstore: 

• Harmon and Holman, A Handbook to Literature, any ed., optional
• Lamson and Smith, The Golden Hind:  An Anthology of Elizabethan Prose and Poetry
• Marlowe, Dr. Faustus
• Marlowe, Edward II
• Maclean and Prescott, Edmund Spenser's Poetry, 3rd ed.
• Woods, The Poems of Aemilia Lanyer

On reserve at the library:

• Bartlett, The Poems of George Chapman (PR 2450 .P6 1962)
• Lamson and Smith, Renaissance England (PR 1125 .L3 1956a): The Golden Hind is a subset of this anthology.

 

Acquire on your own:

• An edition of Shakespeare containing the Sonnets and Venus and Adonis (the material should be available on line).
• A Bible, any modern English translation.

 

 

Course Requirements for Undergraduates (a.k.a. Student Learning Activities)

• 20% - Response Papers:  4 are required; each is 5 points; response papers are revisable if submitted not later than one week before the due date; minimum length:  2-4 pages apiece
  • The first should be a proposal dealing with one or more topics. A fishing expedition. Look ahead. Check out the topics on the website. Spend time thinking about what you want to do.
  • The second should be either a refined/augmented proposal or ideally a New Critical paper (like the second assignment in ENGL 305).
  • The third should be an annotated bibliography (10-15 critical sources minimum)
  • The fourth should be a draft of your research paper.
• 20% - Research paper, final draft; minimums:  8 pages minimum (7 critical/secondary sources minimum; see Notes below)
• 20% - Midterm examination to be written in class (open books and notes; and you will have the question in advance)
• 20% - Final examination (open books and notes; and you will have the question in advance)
• 20% - Class presence:
  • Half will be for attendance. More than 3 absences will cost you 3 points per absence.
  • Half will be for participation (presentations, discussion) for full credit, you will need to speak up more than once per day.
• Grading scale:  A, 95-100; A-, 90-94; B+, 87-89; B, 83-86; B-, 80-82; C+, 77-79; C, 73-76; C-, 70-72; D+, 67-69; D, 63-66; D-, 60-62; F, 0-59. 

 

 

Course Requirements for Graduate Students (a.k.a. Student Learning Activities)

• The requirements are the same as for undergraduates; however, the term paper must be 12 pages minimum and use at least 10 critical/secondary sources.

 

 

Notes on Requirements

 

• "Secondary sources" means articles and books written by literary critics about your paper's primary text.  Undergraduates must actually cite 7 such sources; graduate students must cite at least 10.  You are welcome to use other types of sources, but every undergraduate paper must cite at least 7 work of literary criticism; every graduate paper must cite at least 10.
• Participation in discussion is a crucial element of this class, and you are expected to speak up at every class meeting.  If you do not volunteer comments, I will encourage you to share your thoughts.  Obviously participation is hard to quantify, but the following scale will lend some structure:  frequent contributions will be worth 9-10 points (A); regular contributions, 8 (B); occasional contributions, 7 (C); few contributions, 6 (D); rare contributions, 5 (F); near to complete silence, 0-4.  The substance of your remarks may also be a factor when I assign class participation grades.
• I will give you the exam questions ahead of time so that you can prepare.  You may use books and notes, but you must finish within 5 minutes of the end of the class/examination period.
• You have the option to revise your response papers (but not your exams) provided that you submit your draft a week ahead of time.  Note that the fourth response paper is a draft of your researched essay.  Since there is an option to revise, there will be no rounding up at final grade time.  Revisions--with graded drafts--are due throughout the semester on specified dates. 
• You will be required to make mini-reports in class.  In such a case, you should prepare handouts for the rest of the class and bring enough copies for everyone. These reports will most likely be based on questions available on the Daily Handouts page of the course website.
• You are encouraged to find an editing partner in the class and to critique each other's work prior to submitting them.  You are likely to be required to work outside of class with a partner to prepare a response to a discussion question.

 

 

Other Course Policies

• Late work:  Under normal circumstances, the grade for your written work will be reduced by 1 point per day late.  In the event of paper-documented illness or death in the family, extensions will be given.  Excused late papers are due within one week of your return to class.
• E-submission:  I do not accept submissions over e-mail.  You must give me a paper copy, even though you are submitting a draft of the research paper to turnitin.com.
• Illness:  Save your absences for days when you are ill.  If you are ill, it is best not to come to class.  If you are coughing so loudly and frequently that you are disrupting class, or if you are sneezing or in any other way compromising others' health, I will ask you to leave.  So it is better to stay home on days when your health is poor.  Similarly, do not come to my office when you are sick, especially if you are coughing or sneezing.  I will ask you to come back another time.  Please self-isolate if you have a cold or the flu:  that is the university's preferred policy.
• Absences:  Such policies as appear in this bullet point should not be necessary in a graduate course; nevertheless, here they are in case we need them.  You should attend all class sessions and be a few minutes early so that we can start right on time.  If you miss more than 3 classes, your participation grade will go down 3 points per absence.  If you miss 7 classes (25% of the class meetings) or plagiarize a paper, the result will be an automatic F for the course.  Three tardies equal an absence. Regarding the final examination, there will be no accommodations for travel plans.

 

Format for Papers 

• Word-processed double-spaced papers are required. 

• Only black print will be acceptable. 

• Print only on one side of the page and do not use the "draft" function on your computer:  give me a good-looking, easy-to-read copy. 

• The margins should be 1¼ inch.  Use a ragged right margin. This document has a ragged (uneven) right margin.

• If you use MS Word, the font you must use is called Courier New, 12-point, which you are reading right now--this whole section is in the required font.  It is NOT called Courier.

• Put your name and course number at the top of page one, number your pages, give your paper a title, underline your thesis statement like this, and boldface your topic sentences like this.  Note:  The introduction and conclusion do not contain topic sentences. 

• Staple your pages together ½ inch from the upper left corner; make sure that the staple is at a 45-degree angle ½ inch from the corner; do not use paper clips or bend the pages over at the top.  Absolutely do not bend and tear the corners of your pages! 

• Use the MLA format in the Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage (this means that you must have parenthetical citations and a list of work(s) cited at the end of every paper.  I may ask you to redo a paper if it is not in the proper format. 

• You are required to bring large blue books for in-class examinations and to write only with a blue or black ballpoint pen.  You may NOT use your own paper when you write the examinations!

 

 

Departmental Policies and Procedures

"Unless your professor specifies otherwise on her or his syllabus, the following policies and procedures apply for all courses offered by the Department of English (CRTW, ENGL, ENGE, and WRIT)."  --Department of English