EL3028:06
Early English: Monsters and Dreams
Townsville, Cairns
HECS Band 1
26 hours lectures, 13 hours tutorials. Semester 2.
Staff: Mr J Gray, Dr C Taylor.
An intensive study of two major works of Early English Literature: Beowulf and Piers Plowman.
Learning Objectives:
- to broaden and intensify the literary-critical skills and understanding attained by students at earlier levels, particularly where essay writing and extra-literary issues are concerned;
- to attain an ability to read the text of Beowulf in Old English;
- to develop an understanding of the principles by which editors determine, reconstruct and emend the text of the Beowulf manuscript;
- to acquire the ability to locate, summarise and evaluate a current topic in Beowulf studies and to judge which studies are determining the current direction of research;
- to achieve a detailed knowledge of the C-Text of Piers Plowman and of the ideas and arguments on salvation, poverty, charity and love which it contains;
- to attain a knowledge of the political context of Piers Plowman;
- to develop an understanding of the poetry and poetic genres of Piers Plowman.
Assessment by written translations Beowulf (20%); research seminar paper Beowulf and participation (20%); one Piers Plowman essay of 2,000 words (20%); a three-hour examination (40%).