This semester, you have discussed literature written in England from the 8th century to the early nineteenth century. In these discussions, we have examined works in a historical and literary context, drawing out themes and making connections between the author, society, and the text to define the terms “Old English,” Middle English,” “Early Modern English,” “Interregnum,” “Restoration,” and “Early 18th Century.” Now you will further our discussions by analyzing how themes permeate across literary periods of British Literature.
Select two works, each from a different period, and trace one theme throughout each text, arguing how the historical period treats that topic. Consider also how the features of the text (epic versus elegy, for example) influence the reception of the theme as well.
You may use the lecture notes and the background information in The Broadview Anthology of British Literature to develop a clear understanding of the feature of the period/author you are discussing as well as pertinent background on the work of literature you are analyzing. However, whatever information you take from the text or from lecture notes must be properly documented within your essay. Sorry, no websites are allowed.
You must include a Works Cited page listing primary texts and the background sections you used (the Works Cited page does not count toward the page limits). In addition to reading “How to Quote Poetry,” please check with any MLA style guide for correct form in essay presentation, parenthetical citations, and Works Cited entries (the Purdue OWL
(Links to an external site.)
is an excellent web resource).
Themes you may want to consider for your essay: Pride and how to combat it; Love, grace, and gentillesse (nobility of spirit); Sacrifice, grief, and hope; Catholicism vs Calvinism in regards to the root of evil; gender roles; politics; relationships (either love or spiritual); vanity; loss – death, love, hope;
Works you may consider: Choose two works, each one from a different period. (For example, one from Module 2 and one from Module 4)
Module 2 – Old English Period
“The Wanderer”
Beowulf
“The Dream of the Rood”
Module 3 – Middle English Period
The Canterbury Tales, or any smaller part of the work (e.g. “Wife of Bath’s Tale”)
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
“Lanval”
The Second Shepherds’ Play
Module 4 – Early Modern English Period
Petrarch – “Sonnet 190”
Wyatt – “Whoso List to Hunt”
Edmund Spenser – from Amoretti
Shakespeare
any of his sonnets we studied
Twelfth Night
Ben Jonson – “On My First Son”
John Donne
“The Flea”
“Batter My Heart”
George Herbert
“The Collar”
“Love (3)”
Fulke Greville, Lord Brooke
from Caelica
“Chorus Cacredotum”
More – Utopia
Robert Herrick – “To Virgins, To Make much of Time”
Andrew Marvell – “To His Coy Mistress”
Module 5 – Interregnum Period
John Milton
Paradise Lost
Module 6 – Restoration Period
Nicholas Rowe
The Tragedy of Jane Shore
Module 7 – 18th Century and Englightenment
Anne Finch
“The Introduction”
“Nocturnal Reverie”
Samuel Johnson
“On the Death of Dr. Robert Levet”
from The Rambler No. 4
Jonathan Swift
excerpts from Gulliver’s Travels
“A Modest Proposal”
“A Description of a City Shower”
Alexander Pope
“The Rape of the Lock”
Requirements:
Your paper MUST be 4-6 pages long (no less will be accepted) (remember, the Works Cited doesn’t count)
It must be in MLA style format:
Times New Roman – 12 point font
Double Spaced (but no more than double spaced)
1 inch margins all around
Have a Heading and a Header (see “How to Quote Poetry”)
Correctly use parenthetical citations
Have a Works Cited page – listing all sources used