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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "EN 245-1"
COURSE NAME: "Shakespeare"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2026
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Livia Sacchetti
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: TTH 10:00 AM 11:15 AM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: Prerequisite: EN 110 with a grade of C or above
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course is a general introduction to Shakespeare’s plays and an in-depth study of a selection of his work. Through the close reading of the plays selected for the course, students will analyze a theatrical text, will contextualize it in the historical and political environment of the Elizabethan age, and will assess Shakespeare’s cultural inheritance. This is a reading and writing intensive course. Students in 200-level literature classes are required to produce 4-5,000 words of critical writing.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Through a close reading of five key plays students will explore Shakespeare’s relationship with dramatic form, learning to identify the foundations and evolution of Shakespearean drama and the Shakespearean tragedy, as well as his experimentation with form. Each play will be introduced and contextualized through pointed lectures, and then discussed in detail in a Socratic seminar. The plays span the arc of Shakespeare’s career and offer precious insights into the evolution of Shakespeare’s conceptualization of theater, the human experience, and the potential for art to subvert human shortcomings. The changes in Shakespeare's creation of a microcosm and conceptualization of the nature of chaos offer a subtle and often startling contemporary portrayal of modernity. In this course, students will explore Shakespeare's reshaping of the tragedy specifically; they will evaluate Shakespeare's exploration of the psyche as the territory for the central tragic conflict and its implications in terms of heroism, action, and cathartic ending.

A selection of short critical readings will complement the students' understanding of the plays and of the principles of dramatic form.

 

List of plays:

Much Ado About Nothing

Measure for Measure

Hamlet

Othello

King Lear
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Upon completion of this course students will have a strong understanding of the Shakespearean canon and a clear understanding of the development of his use of place as a foundational element in the creation of a microcosm. Students' critical competence will grow as a result; they will learn to develop an original argument orally and in their writing. Students will also develop a clear understanding of dramatic form and its sub-genres (tragedy, comedy, tragicomedy, and farce). They will hone their ability to evaluate the details shaping a text in a competent, accurate, and increasingly original manner. The three papers they will submit will allow them to develop a cogent argument by evaluating a specific textual feature in light of the text's larger conceptual underpinnings.
TEXTBOOK:
NONE
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
Class Participation and paper proposals 10%
First Essay1400-1600 words, two secondary sources required20%
Midterm examin-class analysis of a key extract20%
Second Essay1400-2000 words, research focus25%
Final Exam close-text analysis25%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Attendance in this course is mandatory; for excused absences, please refer to the Dean of Students' communications. Unexcused absences will affect your grade (class participation); active participation in class discussion will boost this grade. Leaving class for longer than 15 minutes will result in an absence unless this has been allowed by the Professor. You can have 2 unexcused absences without any impact.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

Week 1: Much Ado Acts I and II

  • Introduction to Shakespeare, genres and comedy 

Week 2: Much Ado Acts III and IV

  • Female tropes
  • Tragic core

Week 3: Much Ado Act V/ Measure for Measure

  • Female tropes
  • The 'dark comedies'
  • The shift to Jacobean England

Week 4: Measure for Measure

  • The 'dark comedies'
  • The shift to Jacobean England
  • Tragicomedy and structure

Week 5: Measure for Measure

  • The 'dark comedies'
  • The shift to Jacobean England

Week 6:  Hamlet Acts I and II

  • Nature of the tragedy
  • The Shakespearean tragedy
  • Hamlet's heroism

Week 7: Hamlet Acts III and IV

  • Hamlet's heroism
  • The role of soliloquies
  • Madness
  • Claudius's role

Week 8: Hamlet Act V

  • Ophelia's madness; Laertes's fall
  • Nature of the Catharsis

Week 9:Othello  Acts I, II 

    • Intimacy as a space for tragedy -- the Shakespearean tragic hero
    • Shakespearean notion of evil/ modernity
    • Desdemona's role
    • The Venetian setting and the Doge

    Week 10: Othello III and IV

    • The Temptation Scene: reshaping of the tragic conflict
    • Redefinition of action
    • The role of metadrama

    Week 11:  Othello Act V/ King Lear

    • The nature of nothing
    • Folly and wisdom/ a politics of opposites
    • The fool and Cordelia

    Week 12: King Lear  II, III

    • The collapse of form
    • Poor Tom and the Fool
    • Lear's madness

    Week 13: King Lear  IV, IV

    • The storm and the nature of the conflict
    • The elements
    • Mercy 

    Week 14: King Lear  V

    • The storm and the nature of the conflict
    • The elements
    • Mercy