UNIT ONE: THE ENLIGHTENED SUBLIME: POETRY AND THE FRENCH REVOLUTION
Jan 17: Opening Day: Romanticism through "The Solitary Reaper."
Jan 19: Reading: Peter
Gay, "The Enlightenment in Its World." For Discussion: Immanual
Kant, "An Answer to the Question: What Is Enlightenment?"; William
Blake, "Mock on, Mock On, Voltaire, Rousseau" and "Inscription to
*Milton*"; William Blake, *The Marriage of Heaven and Hell*. Important:
Read over the chronology at the back of the *Cambridge Companion to
British Romanticism*.
Jan 24: Reading: Marshall Brown, "Romanticism and the Enlightenment," from *The Cambridge Companion to British Romanticism*; Helen Maria Williams, selections from *Letters from France* and Thomas Paine, selections from *The Rights of Man* (in *The French Revolution Controversy*). For Discussion: Finish *The Marriage of Heaven and Hell.* Short Essay Due Group A.
Jan 26: Reading: William Wordsworth, The Prelude Book I:272-640, and Book VI:426-572. For Discussion: Edmund Burke, Selections from *An Inquiry into Our Ideas of the Sublime and the Beautiful*; Percy Shelley, "Ozymandius"; William Wordsworth, "Elegiac Stanzas Suggested by a Picture of Peele Castle" We also are more than free to discuss *The Prelude* passages today. Short Essay Due Group B.
Jan 31: Reading: P.M.S. Dawson, "Poetry in the Age of the French
Revolution" (in the *Cambridge Companion); Edmund
Burke, selections from *Reflections on the Revolutions in France* (in
*French Revolution Controversy*); Samuel Taylor Coleridge, "France: An
Ode". For Discussion: Anna
Letita Barbauld, "The Mouse's Petition" and "On the General Expected
Rising of the French Nation", and "To Mr. Coleridge"; Samuel Taylor
Coleridge, "Fears in
Solitude". Short Essay Due Group C.
UNIT TWO: ROMANTIC POETRY AFTER WATERLOO
Feb 2: Reading: "From Byron's Letters and Journals" and "Images of Byron" (both in back of Norton Critical Edition); Byron, *Childe Harold's Pilgrimage*, Canto 1:i-xiv. For Discussion: Byron, *Childe Harold's Pilgrimage*, Canto 3. Short Essay Due Group D.
Feb 7: Reading: Marilyn Butler, "Culture's Medium: The Role of the Review"; ALSO: Go and read some contemporary Reviews of Manfred. I will provide you with appropriate citation information. For Discussion: Lord Byron, *Manfred*. Short Essay Due Group E.
Feb 9: For Discussion: Percy Shelley, *The Mask of Anarchy*, "England in 1819," and "Ode to the West Wind." Short Essay Due Group F.
Feb 14: For Discussion: Percy Shelley, The Cenci. Short Essay Due Group A.
Feb 16: For Discussion: Finish Percy Shelley, The Cenci, and discuss Shelley, Prometheus Unbound, Act I. Short Essay Due Group B.
Feb 21: Reading: Timothy Webb, "Romantic Hellenism" (in *Cambridge
Companion*). Discussion: Finish Shelley, Prometheus
Unbound. Short Essay Due Group C.
Feb 23: Reading: Raymond Williams, "Introduction" to *John Clare: Selected Poetry and Prose*. We will spend three class periods on Clare. Per class, we will discuss two or three poems in depth. I strongly recommend, however, that you simply read the *Selected Poem* cover to cover, dipping in as you wish, and moving on if a poem does not please you. Raymond Williams is perhaps the most important materialist critic working in England in the last 40 years; his introduction is excellent. The edition is littered with short prose passages (in 'quotations marks' in the table of contents) written by Clare that are very entertaining as well, and will give you a huge amount of insight into this fascinating poet. For Discussion: "The Mores," "The Lament of Swordy Well" and "Remembrances." Short Essay Due Group D.
Feb 28: Reading: Hannah More, "Village Politics" (in *The French Revolution Controversy*). For discussion: Clare cluster #2: "The Thrushes Nest," "The Pettichaps Nest," "The Mouse's Nest," "The Badger," "The Fox." All of these poems are superb, and to an extent speak to one another. Please come to class, therefore, with the following assignment in hand: I want you to write one paragraph in which you explain what poem you want the class to discuss, and what it is about this particular poem that makes you want to discuss it. In class, I will have several of you read your paragraphs. If you think that you want to write a paper on Clare's work, I strongly advise that you read through all of the bird's nest poems. They are short, and fascinating. Short Essay Due Group E.
Mar 2: Clare cluster #3: "Journey out of Essex," "don juan," "I am," "The Peasant Poet," "Letter to James Hipkins," and "To John Clare." We will either discuss "don juan" or whatever poems you wish to discuss that we haven't hit on yet. Short Essay Due Group F.
SPRING VACATION: ENJOY YOURSELVES; IF YOU ARE DYING TO WORK, BEGIN READING FOR YOUR LONG PAPER.
UNIT THREE: ROMANTIC BOOKS AND THE RECEPTION OF ROMANTICISM
Mar 14: Reading: William Blake *Songs of Innocence* and *Songs of Experience*. For Discussion: *Songs of Innocence*. Short Essay Due Group D.
Mar 16: Continued Discussion of *Songs of Innocence* and *Songs of Experience*. Short Essay Due Group D.
Mar 21: Reading: Morris Eaves, "Romanticism and the Sister Arts" (in *Cambridge Companion*). Finish Blake's *Songs*. Short Essay Due Group E.
Mar 23: Reading: Volume One of Lyrical Ballads. For Discussion: "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," "Goody Blake and Harry Gill," "Simon Lee," "The Thorn," "Expostulation and Reply," and "The Tables Turned." Short Essay Due Group C.
Mar. 28: Reading: (Keep reading Lyrical Ballads); Samuel Taylor Coleridge, "This Lime Tree Bower" and "Frost at Midnight" (in Coleridge volume); Samuel Coleridge, Biographia Literaria, Chapter XIV. ALSO: Go and read some contemporary Reviews of *Lyrical Ballads*. I will provide you with appropriate citation information. For Discussion: "Tintern Abbey," "The Nightingale," and "The Lucy Poems." Short Essay Due Group A.
Mar 30: Reading: Finish Volume II of *Lyrical Ballads*. For Discussion: "Hart-Leap Well" and "Michael." Short Essay Due Group B.
Apr 4: Reading: Stuart Curran, "Women Readers, Women Writers" and Joanna Baillie "Introductory Discourse" (on gopher). We will be comparing the "Introductory Discourse" to Wordsworth's "Preface" to *Lyrical Ballads*, and beginning with *De Montfort*.
Apr 6: Finish *De Montfort*.
Apr 11: Reading: Go and read some contemporary Reviews of *Christabel, Kubla Khan, and The Pains of Sleep* by Coleridge. I will provide you with appropriate citation information. For Discussion: Samuel Taylor Coleridge, "Kubla Khan," "Christabel," and "The Pains of Sleep." DUE TODAY: A PROSPECTUS (ONE PAGE) OF YOUR LONG PAPER.
Apr 13: Reading: John Keats, Lamia. For
Discussion: We will be talking about Christabel
and "Lamia" together.
Apr 18: Read the rest of the poems from Keats's 1820 volume. ALSO: Go and read some contemporary Reviews of Keat's 1820 *Poems* and Byron's Don Juan Canto I. I will provide you with appropriate citation information. For Discussion: The Odes.
Apr 20: Read from Felicia Hemans, *Records of Woman*. For Discussion: Keats's "Constanza" (though we will certainly talk about other poems as well)
Apr 25: Finish Hemans. Begin Byron, *Don Juan*, Canto I and Canto II. DUE TODAY: THREE FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS (for full assignment, look on the gopher).
Apr 27: Finish Byron, *Don Juan*, Canto I-II.