This course’s overall objective is to introduce you to the discipline of literary studies in English. On the one hand, it should enable you to become familiar with representative works of prose, poetry, and drama from various historical periods; on the other hand, it should offer you the opportunity to acquire the tools needed to read and write about these texts critically. The course promises to help you learn to recognize literary forms and stylistic devices, understand their importance, and to use critical terms and techniques accurately. It also offers substantial practice in the composition of formal, analytical essays. I invite you to join the intellectual community that this class will become in order to meet these objectives.

I will help you to achieve the course’s objectives in the following ways. First, I will ask you to read and think carefully about texts that I find particularly engaging; I have selected texts that I find interesting and that are representative of their historical period or genre. Second, I will provide instruction by conducting lectures and by making myself available for consultation in person, by email, and by telephone. Third, I will ask you to communicate your ideas about the texts you read to your classmates and me; I will provide a forum for the exchange of ideas by facilitating seminar discussions and setting written assignments designed to help you to develop and demonstrate your communication skills. Finally, I will assess the progress of your learning by evaluating your written assignments, providing you with feedback concerning the style and content of your writing.

You can help yourself and others to achieve this course’s objectives by participating in lectures and seminar discussions, by consulting me outside the classroom for clarification or to challenge yourself further, and by using discussions and written assignments to refine your analytical skills and demonstrate your ability to apply them.

I ultimately hope you find the texts studied during this course as engaging as I do, and that they may provide a strong foundation for the reading you do throughout your life. I also hope that this course will help you to improve your ability to communicate clearly and, above all, to think critically. [back to top]