British Poetry of the Later Romantic Period
English 4/802
Fall 2011
Stephen C.
Behrendt
319 Andrews; 472-1806
office: 1230 - 200 TR
and by appointment
George Cruikshank, Victory at Peterloo, 1819
Information about this Course
Aim of the Course
Often called the “second generation,” they were, more properly, “later” Romantics: Byron, Shelley, Keats, Hemans and Landon especially. Their world-view and cultural mindset differed vastly from their predecessors’. They wrestled in life and art with disillusionment, alienation, and the crushing burden of bourgeois modernity, yet they never abandoned their fundamental idealism. By 1835 they were all gone, while Wordsworth, paradoxically, lived on and on until the month before Dickens published David Copperfield. Not yet Victorians, they grew up during the Napoleonic wars and witnessed the fantastic volatility of the Regency and the launch of the modern Industrial Establishment. Understanding how they responded is our subject and our challenge in coming to know these remarkable poets. My own (personal) aim is for us all actually to enjoy both this course and this poetry by discovering and exploring its surprisingly many resonances for us today in 2011.
My Approach to Teaching in this Course
I prefer a “conversational” classroom that revolves around engaged discussion. While I will do some brief lecturing to help to provide backgrounds and contexts, I will rely on you to be both ready and willing to talk about the assigned reading within broader historical, cultural, intellectual, political and economic contexts. My ideal classroom is a very interactive one, and I will try to make our classroom a congenial environment for each of you.
Requirements
Writing: You will write two exams (midterm and final), at least one of them written outside class (i.e., “take-home”). I will also require a research-based course project, which may take the form of a “paper” or an equivalent alternative (details will follow in a separate handout). I may ask also for some brief, informal in-class writing. Depending upon the nature of the in-class discussions, I may require some “reading notes” on each of the five primary authors.
Presentation: You will participate in a group presentation centered on one of our primary authors (details will follow).
Discussion: I expect (and will reward) engaged classroom discussion of our materials and their contexts.
Reading for the Course
Primary texts:
Mellor and Matlak, eds. British Literature 1780 - 1830
Carolee Erickson, Our Tempestuous Day
Recommended secondary text:
Curran, ed. The Cambridge Companion to British Romanticism, 2nd ed
Additional readings will be provided in PDF format on Blackboard or as class handouts
Grade Basis
Because so much of our daily work will revolve around discussion, I plan to consider that discussion – and your individual contributions to it – in a way that reflects how important I consider it to be to the successful functioning of this course. Your course grade will reflect your performance on your mid-term examination project, your individual research project, your final examination, and your class discussion. In terms of “borderline” grades, the quality and extent of your contributions to daily discussions will determine whether you rise above – or fall below – the borderline.
Discussion: c. 5 - 10 %
Mid-term examination project: c. 25%
Individual research project: c. 40 %
Final Examination: c. 25%
I use the following 10-point grade distribution on a 100-point scale:
96+ A+ 74-76 C
93-95 A 70-73 C-
90-92 A- 67-69 D+
87-89 B+ 64-66 D
84-86 B 60-63 D-
80-83 B- 0-59 F
77-79 C+
Course grades are based on the following requirements:
1. Regular attendance (see English Department attendance policy, below)
2. In-class discussion, activities and exercises: c. 5-10%
3. A formal Mid-term project (probably a directed essay or “working paper”): c. 25%
4. An individual research project: c. 40%
5. A Final Examination, written at the scheduled exam time: c. 25%
Department of English Policy on Class Attendance
“The Department of English expects students registered for English classes to attend all scheduled class meetings and to have a reasonable excuse for any absence. Instructors are expected to lower the grades of students who miss classes without reasonable excuses and to penalize any work turned in late because of such absences. Students who miss more than twenty percent of the scheduled class meetings of any course will ordinarily fail the course for that reason alone, except that (1) if absences occur before the Withdrawal Passing period ends, the student may receive a “W” grade, and (2) if the absences are excused by the instructor or approved UNL policy and a large majority of them occur after the work of the course has been substantially completed, the student may receive an Incomplete (“I”) grade. In both of these cases, it is assumed that the student meets the eligibility requirement stated in the Schedule of Classes. Members of the teaching staff may have more restrictive attendance policies than are here stated.”
You should know that I support this policy. I believe that, especially in a class like this one, the in-class work is a vital part of the overall course. Because of its interactive and unscripted nature, the in-class work cannot be “made up,” and if you choose to “blow off” the class attendance requirement, you will fail the course. Twenty percent of the “scheduled meetings” in a regular semester course equals six class periods; do keep that number in mind. I will.
Students with Disabilities
Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the instructor for a confidential discussion of their individual needs for academic accommodation. It is the policy of the University of Nebraska - Lincoln to provide flexible and individualized accommodation to students with documented disabilities that may affect their ability to fully participate in course activities or to meet course requirements. To receive accommodation services, students must be registered with the services for students with Disabilities (SSD) office, 132 Canfield Administration, 472-3787 voice or TTY.
Questions, Problems, Issues, etc.
If at any time you have questions about the course, my expectations, or your performance – as well as about anything else that may be relevant to our work as a class and/or your own individual work, goals, plans, or whatever – please feel free to speak with me privately. I will hold regular office hours at the announced times, but I am on campus most days until mid-afternoon and so we can generally arrange appointments at other mutually convenient times.