English 117S

Book List

Greenblatt, S., ed.: The Norton Shakespeare

Other Readings and Media

Additional materials will be distributed through bCourses.

Description

This class focuses on a selection of works from Shakespeare's entire career. We'll be reading a limited number of plays and some of the poetry. One of the main issues we'd like to focus on is the oscillation between "regular" and "irregular." What is the rule, and what is the exception in Shakespeare's works? How is a comedy supposed to end? How does it end? What makes a tragic hero? Is Lear a tragic hero? What are the rules of theater? What are the rules of literature? Who creates them and why? When do they get transgressed, and why? A tentative list of the plays includes A Midsummer Night's Dream, Troilus and Cressida, King Lear, Cymbeline,and The Tempest, as well as some of the sonnets. Two short assignments and a final essay in lieu of a final examination.

This course satisfies the Shakespeare requirement for the English major.