Course Syllabus

JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "EN 303H"
COURSE NAME: "The Victorian Novel (This is an honors course and carries 4 semester hours of credit; NB: Minimum 3.5 CUM GPA required)"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2014

SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Shannon Russell
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 and one previous English literature class
OFFICE HOURS:

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The literature produced during the reign of Queen Victoria is notable for its incredible vitality and range, but for many, this period is identified as the age of the novel. This course considers the development of that most popular and enduring genre. Through a reading of a selection of novels we will consider how Victorian writers manipulated the novel form to explore aspects of their world and themselves. In order to provide as rich a reading of these texts as possible, the course aims to consider the fiction within its own historical and cultural context. Topics considered will include the role of gender in these novels – the discussion of fallen and unfallen women and evolving ideas of the gentleman; Victorian race and cultural theories; imperialism and its evolutions; science; emerging definitions of the Victorian self, psychology, and subjectivity; and the manipulation of the gothic, sensation, and detective narrative forms. By the end of the course, students should be aware that the term Victorian has multiple meanings as viewed through the development of the novel over that long period from 1837 to 1901.

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
Students will read six novels including Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, Charles Dickens's Great Expectations, Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone, Arthur Morrison's A Child of the Jago, Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray. Students will also use material from an edition of contemporary Victorian writing entitled Criminals, Idiots, Women and Minors as part of a critical appartus that will help them engage with relevant issues which inform this fiction.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
By the end of the course, students will have read six influential Victorian novels and will be familiar with the historical moment out of which they emerged. They will also have been exposed to the vitality of the genre and the cultural and literary influences that helped to shape it, including oriental and biblical myths, detective fiction, the gothic novel, social realism/reportage and decadence as an aesthetic movement.

TEXTBOOK:

NONE

REQUIRED RESERVED READING:

NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:

NONE

GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:

Assignment	Guidelines	Weight
2 Essays of 8-10 pages	Essays should include academic research and conform to MLA standards.	50% (25% each)
Mid-term Exam		10%
Seminar Presentation	Seminars presentations are designed to enhance our historical understanding of the context of the novel studied. Students will be expected to do some research and to present a seminar on a specific topic to be assigned by the professor. Presentations should be limited to 15 minutes in length and may involve powerpoint presentations, short films or any other mode of communication. The important thing is to provide the class with relevant information and material so that our understanding of the Victorian novel, in general and in particular, evolves throughout the course. Seminars should be starting points for class discussions of each novel.	10%
Participation		10%
Final Exam		20%
Honors Assignment	Students who take the course for Honors must complete an extra assignment to be arranged between the professor and the student.	Pass/Fall (B+ standing is a pass)

-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 cou
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 is mandatory. At three absences the overall grade for the course will be reduced.

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

CLASS MEETINGS Spring 2014

Week 1

Tues. Jan. 14 Introduction to the Course and Requirements

View Simon Schama’s History of Britain: Victoria and Her Sisters PLEASE VIEW THIS EPISODE -- ON RESERVE in LIBRARY
Read: Jane Eyre Chapters 1-4 for Thursday

Optional background reading for essays, from Criminals, Idiots, Women and Minors (ON RESERVE in LIBRARY) Anna Brownwell Jameson's "The Milliners" and Margaret Oliphant's "The Condition of Women"; view of the governess in Harriet Martineau's "Female Industry"

Thurs. Jan. 16 Last Day to Add/Drop

Jane Eyre Chapters 1-4

Week 2

Assignment of Presentation Topics and Schedule

Tues. Jan. 21

Jane Eyre Chapter 5-15

Thurs. Jan. 23

Jane Eyre Chapter 16-26

Week 3

Tues. Jan. 28

Jane Eyre Chapters 27-33

1. Seminar: Phrenology and Victorian Racial/Cultural Theory Leigh Brown

Background reading: Selection from Criminals, Idiots, Women, and Minors Frances Power Cobbe "What Shall We Do with Our Old Maids" and " vs. Marriage" and "Wife Torture in England"

Due Today: Send me an email of your Works Cited page in proper MLA format for your forthcoming essay. In addition to the novel itself you should be citing at least 3-4 peer-reviewed academic sources from books and periodicals available on JSTOR or PROJECT MUSE.

Thurs. Jan. 30

Jane Eyre  Chapters 34-38

2. Seminar: Victorian Attitudes to Suttee and Suicide (See Victorian Web) Mary Yadgir

Week 4

Tues. Feb. 4

Great Expectations  Vol. 1 Chapters 1-9

Thurs. Feb. 6

READ Great Expectations  Vol. 1 Chapters 10-20

3. Seminar: Victorian Transportation of Convicts to Australia and the Case of George Barnwell    Kate Janas

Week 5

Tues. Feb. 11

Great Expectations  Vol. 2 Chapters 1-15

4. Seminar: Darwin's ideas of evolution and Samuel Smiles's philosophy of Self-Help: Can a gentleman be made? Kari Jensen

Thurs. Feb. 13 FIRST ESSAY DUE

Great Expectations Vol. 2 Chapters 16-20; Vol. 3 Chapters 1-7

Background reading: Selection from Criminals, Idiots, Women, and Minors Frances Power Cobbe's essay "Criminals, Idiots, Women and Minors"

Week 6
Tues. Feb. 18

Great Expectations   Volume 3 Chapters 8-20 and Appendix A: Original Ending

Thurs. Feb. 20 NO CLASS

Week 7

Tues. Feb. 25

MID-TERM EXAM

Thurs. Feb. 27

Wilkie Collins The Moonstone Prologue and First Period

WEEK 8

Tues. March 4
The Moonstone  First Period

5. Seminar: Constance Kent Roadhouse Murder Case of 1860 (Broadview Appendix B) and The Major Murry/Northumberland Street Case of 1861 (Broadview Appendix C)   Olivia Del Viscio

Thurs. March 6

The Moonstone Second Period: First and Second Narratives (Miss Clack and Matthew Bruff)

6. Seminar: Exeter Hall and the Philanthropic Movements of the mid-Victorian period Lizzie Sweet

Week 9

Tues. March 11 The Moonstone Third Narrative (Franklin Blake)

Background reading: Selection from Criminals, Idiots, Women, and Minors Margaret Oliphant "The Grievances of Women" and Helen Taylor "Women and Criticism"

Thurs. March 13

The Moonstone Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Narratives and Epilogue and "A Sermon for Sepoys" (Appendix D)

Background reading: Selection from Criminals, Idiots, Women, and Minors Margaret Oliphant "The Grievances of Women" and Helen Taylor "Women and Criticism"

SPRING BREAK MARCH 17-21

Week 10

Tues. March 25

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

7. Seminar:  Victorian Attitudes to Psychology -- The Science of Split Personalities (Broadview Appendix K)   Helen Cramer

WEDNESDAY MARCH 26 LUNCHTIME MAKEUP CLASS 12:45-1:30 and Seminar presentations

Thurs. March 27

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

8. Seminar: Ideas of Degeneration and Crime and the Jack the Ripper Case   Julia Huss

Week 12

Tues. April 1

Arthur Morrison Child of the Jago

9. Seminar: London's East End Slums in the 1890's compared to London of the 1880s Carolina Sampieri

APRIL 3

Arthur Morrison Child of the Jago

Week 13

Tues. April 8

Arthur Morrison Child of the Jago

Thurs. April 10

The Picture of Dorian Gray  Chapters 1-4

Week 14

Tues. April 15

The Picture of Dorian Gray  Chapters 5-10

10. Seminar: Victorian Attitudes to Homosexuality (Appendix F) including Codes and Covers in a Homophobic age: Pater, Huysman and Wildean Languor (Broadview Appendices D, E, G).   Giulia Spizzichino

Thurs. April 17

The Picture of Dorian Gray  Chapters 11-15

(See selections from Criminals, Idiots, Women, and Minors, including  Eliza Lynn Linton "The Girl of the Period,"The Modern Revolt" "The Wild Women: as Politicians," The Wild Women: as Social Insurgents")

SECOND ESSAY DUE

Week 15

Monday Lunchtime -- Makeup class -- Review for final

Tues. April 22

The Picture of Dorian Gray Chapters 16-20

Background Reading: Selection from Criminals, Idiots, Women, and Minors  Mona Caird "Marriage," "A Defence of the So-called Wild Woman" Millicent Garret Fawcett "The Emancipation of Women"

Thurs. April 24

Meet at the Protestant Cemetery 10:15 am Summing Up