Home > Courses > Engl 660: Dickens and Thackeray

Spring 2004
Professor Naomi Wood
Office: 128 English/Counseling Services Building (formerly Lafene)
Office Hours: TU 4-5 and by appointment
Phone: 532-2159

This semester we'll experience two of the most important writers of the Victorian period, Charles Dickens and William Makepeace Thackeray. Dickens, of A Christmas Carol fame, is famous for his combination of sentiment and hard-hitting social commentary; while Thackeray, whose "breakthrough" work was called The Book of Snobs, privileges detached analysis. Contemporaries and, to a certain extent, rivals, Dickens and Thackeray allow us to compare two attitudes towards fiction: the one seeks to move emotionally through an appeal to emotion and sensation, while the other asks us to analyze, reflectively and ironically. There are many other points of comparison, but their novels are terrific: funny, heart-rending, expansive.
 
My goals for this class:
 
         * To read and enjoy their writing
         * To respond to and analyze the different aesthetics of each author
         * To develop a sense of each author's historical and literary context
         * To develop an ongoing interest in these authors and through them, this period
 
Student activities related to class goals
 
            * Read the selections for each week by the beginning of that week
            * Complete homework and take quizzes
            * Write 2 essays
            * Write 2 exams
 
Books (Available at Claflin Books and Copies. Paperback edition if not otherwise noted.)
 

Dickens, Charles.
Pickwick Papers, selections (Coursepak)
Oliver Twist
Dombey and Son
A Christmas Carol
David Copperfield
Great Expectations
 Thackeray, William Makepeace     
Catherine (Coursepak)
Book of Snobs, selections (Coursepak)
Vanity Fair
Pendennis, selections (Coursepak)
The Rose and the Ring (Coursepak)




Week /Date/ Day/ Reading/Activity 

For most up-to-date reading schedule, please see the Class Bulletin Board

5/17 M Final Exam (Cumulative); 2:00-3:50 p.m.; Essay Two Due



Evaluation
 
Undergraduate Students
 
25%      Attendance and Class Participation
5% Attendance (more than 2 absences begin to affect your grade; more than 9 absences will result in failure of the course)
10% Engagement in class discussion
10% Homework and quizzes
15%      Mid-Semester Exam
15%      Final Exam
15%      Essay One (a short, 5-7-page essay)
30%      Essay Two (a longer, 12-15-page research essay)
 
Graduate Students
 
30%      Attendance and Class Participation
            5% Attendance (provisos same as for undergraduate students)
            5% Engagement in class discussion
            10% Homework and quizzes
10% Presentation of research to class (20 minutes during the last couple of weeks)
15%      Mid-Semester Exam
15%      Final Exam
10%      Essay One (a short, 5-7-page essay)
30%      Essay Two (a longer, article-length research essay)
 
Class materials, including homework and other supplements, will be posted on the class bulletin board


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