The British Novel: Modernism English 324 Welles 134 TTh: 10:00-11:15 Dr.

Rob Doggett Office: Welles 217 C Office Hrs: TTh 11:15-12:15 Email: Doggett@geneseo.edu Course Overview This course focuses on British fiction from roughly the 1890s through the 1930s, the period that has subsequently been defined as the modernist period in literature. These years were marked by dramatic historical changesfrom the end of the old aristocratic order, to the womens suffrage movement, to the Great Warand by equally dramatic changes in the arts. This was the age of impressionism, cubism, surrealism, absurdist drama, atonal music, and imagist poetry, and all of these changes, both historical and aesthetic, had a tremendous impact on the type of fiction that emerged. We will trace out those changes by focusing on authors including Joseph Conrad, Katherine Mansfield, E. M. Forster, and Virginia Woolf. Learning Outcomes Student who successfully complete this course will: Demonstrate knowledge of the major trends, issues, and ideas in British modernist fiction. Demonstrate an ability to analyze British modernist fiction within the contexts of early twentieth century British history. Demonstrate an ability to analyze British modernist fiction within the contexts of the broader modernist movement in the arts.

Books Joseph Conrad: The Secret Agent E. M. Forster: Howards End Ford Madox Ford The Good Soldier Katherine Mansfield: Stories Virginia Woolf: To the Lighthouse Christopher Isherwood: Berlin Stories Elizabeth Bowen: The Death of the Heart Evelyn Waugh: Brideshead Revisited Grades Participation Reading Quizzes Short Essay 1 4 Short Essays [Total] OR Research Essay Final Exam 20% 10% 10%

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Participation Since this is a course designed for English majors, active participation is assumed. You should come to class having done the readings and having thought in detail about the readings. You should also be prepared to answer questions, to raise your own questions, and to comment on the ideas of others. If you are absent frequently, you will not do well in this class. Reading Quizzes In addition to fictional works, Ive included other short texts to provide critical, historical, and cultural contexts. These are all available on MyCourse. As a way of helping you to think about these texts, I have assigned a reading quiz for each work. On the day the quiz is due, please turn in (during class) a typed, 12 paragraph summary of the reading. The idea is simply to summarize in a clear, succinct manner the content of the text. That is, you dont need to formulate an argument that responds to the text; just summarize it. Grades are as follows: A B C D E A clear, succinct summary that accurately represents all the major ideas in the text. A clear, succinct summary that accurately represents some of the major ideas in text. A summary that addresses some of the major ideas but is often inaccurate. A summary that is inaccurate and poorly written. A summary that shows almost no real engagement with the text.

The goal of these quizzes is simply to make sure that you have a basic understanding of reading, so, again, strive to be clear and succinct. Note: you must submit the quizzes in class. If you miss class, for any reason, you will receive an E for that quiz. When calculating your final quiz average, I will drop your lowest quiz grade. Short Essay One Every student must write one short essay (3 pages). You can write about any book you want (see the syllabus for due dates). I will provide more details in class about the short essay, but your basic goal is to provide an interpretation of one aspect of the novel. That is, formulate an argument and prove that argument with extensive close reading of key passages. If you use any outside sources, please be sure to include citations that follow proper MLA format. Late papers will be penalized one full letter grade for each class day it is late. Four Short Essays or Research Paper Once youve completed the short essay, you have a choice. You can complete four more short essays following the same guidelines as aboveor you can write one extended research essay (10-12 pages) that is due at the end of the semester. I will provide more information about the research paper during the semester. If you are planning on doing the four short essays, be sure to write the first short essay on a novel that we are covering early in the semester (Mansfield is your last option). If you plan to write the research paper, note that the essay is due at the end of the semester; any late papers will be penalized a full letter grade for each weekday it is late. Exams There will be a comprehensive final exam. The best way to study for the exam is to keep up with the readings throughout the semester and to take notes on readings during our class discussions.

Other concerns If you have a disability that might impact your classroom performance, please be sure to visit the office of disability services as soon as possible. I will assume that all of the work you turn in for this class is your own. Taking language or ideas from any outside source without proper attribution constitutes plagiarism. If you engage in plagiarism, you will fail the assignment, may very well fail the course, and will be referred to the college for disciplinary actions. Course Readings and Assignments August 27 29 Introduction Conrad: The Secret Agent (Chapters 1-5) Due: Reading Quiz on Michael Levensons Introduction to The Cambridge Companion to Modernism.

September 3 Conrad: The Secret Agent (Chapters 6-10) Due: Reading Quiz on Guztave Le Bons The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind. Conrad: The Secret Agent (Chapters 11-end) Due: Short Essay on Conrad (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Forster: Howards End (Chapters 1-11) Due: Reading Quiz on Matthew Arnolds Culture and Anarchy. Forster: Howards End (Chapters 12-22) Forster: Howards End (Chapters 23-33) Forster: Howards End (Chapters 34-end) Due: Short Essay on Forster (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Ford: The Good Soldier (Part I) Due: Reading Quiz on Ford Madox Fords On Impressionism. Ford: The Good Soldier (Part II) Due: Reading Quiz on Paul Fussells A Satire of Circumstance.

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Ford: The Good Soldier (Part III) Ford: The Good Soldier (Part IV) Due: Short Essay on Ford (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Mansfield: The Modern Soul, The Little Governess, Bliss, The Young Girl Due: Reading Quiz on Katherine Mansfields Letters to John Middleton Murry. Mansfield: The Garden-Party, Marriage A La Mode, The Dolls House

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IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have not yet completed Short Essay I and are planning to complete only short essays for your final grade, you must write on Mansfield.

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Due: Short Essay on Mansfield (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Fall Break Woolf: To the Lighthouse, The Window (chapters I-X) Due: Reading Quiz on Virginia Woolfs The Moment, Mr. Bennett and Mrs. Brown, and Modern Fiction Woolf: To the Lighthouse, The Window (chapters XI-XIX) Woolf: To the Lighthouse, Time Passes Woolf: To the Lighthouse, The Lighthouse Isherwood: A Berlin Diary (Autumn, 1930), Sally Bowles

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November 1 Due: Short Essay on Woolf (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Isherwood: On Ruegen Island, The Nowaks Due: Reading Quiz on Walter Benjamins The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. Isherwood: The Landauers, A Berlin Diary (Winter 1932-33) Due: Reading Quiz on Adolf Hitlers Speech Inaugurating the Great Exhibition of German Art. Due: Short Essay on Isherwood (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Bowen: The Death of the Heart, The World (chapters I-VII)

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Bowen: The Death of the Heart, The World (chapters VIII-IX) and The Flesh (chapters I-III) Bowen: The Death of the Heart, The Flesh (chapters IV-VIII) and The Devil (chapters I-II) Bowen: The Death of the Heart, The Devil (chapters III-end) Due: Short Essay on Bowen (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Waugh: Brideshead Revisited (Prologue and Book I, chapters I-IV) Thanksgiving Break

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December 3 5 6 Waugh: Brideshead Revisited (Book I, chapters IV-VIII and Book II, chapters I-III) Waugh: Brideshead Revisited (Book, chapters IV-V and Epilogue) Due: Short Essay on Waugh (If you choose to write a short essay for this author, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm). Due: Research Paper (If you choose to write a research paper, please drop your paper in the box outside my office217C Welles Hallby 5pm).

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Final Exam on Thursday, December 12, 8 am 11 am.