Semester II, 2009

General Education 111 or its equivalent is a prerequisite for all courses in the English department except some Level I Interim courses. While a few courses have additional prerequisites, most Level I and Level II courses are open to all -- majors and non-majors alike -- after General Education 111. Level III courses (numbered 300 or higher) are primarily for English majors and ordinarily build upon prior work. All Level III courses require as a prerequisite English 185 and at least one Level II course in an area of relevant background as confirmed by the instructor or the department.

GLE Courses:
English 247: Post Colonial Literatures
English 2XX: African Literature

All English Courses:
English 185: Literary Studies
English 221: Literatures in English to 1650
English 222: Literatures in English 1650 to 1850
English 227: King Arthur Through the Ages
English 230: Literary Eras: The Victorian Period
English 233: Children's and Young Adult Literature
English 247: Post Colonial Literature
English 251A: Creative Writing: Non-Fiction
English 251B: Creative Writing: Non-Fiction
English 257: Creative Writing: Fiction and Poetry
English 274: Linguistics
English 275: Literature and Film
English 280: Shakespeare
English 330: Advanced Studies in Lit Eras: Romantic
English 340: Topic: Lit of the 20s and 30s
English 360: Literary Theory
English 371: Advanced Poetry
English 372: Advanced Nonfiction

English 185: Literary Studies
xxxxx English 185 is the foundation of the St. Olaf English major, introducing students to the strategies of critical interpretation they will use in later courses and to enduring questions about literature and its role in a culture. Students are encouraged to ask, "Why do we read?" "What constitutes literature?" "How is meaning made, and what is possible to say about a literary work?" In addition, the course introduces students to the variety of literatures in English produced around the world. In formulating their responses to literary works and literary questions, students practice and develop skills in both writing and oral communication. (WRI, ALS-L, ORC) Top of page
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

185-A: Literary Studies (Mary Titus)
185-B: Literary Studies (Carol Holly)
185-C: Literary Studies (Jenny Dunning)

English 221: Literatures in English to 1650 (Karen Marsalek/Mary Trull)
xxxxx Students explore poetry and prose from the earliest periods in the development of the English language and literature -- by Caedmon, the Beowulf poet, Chaucer, Julian of Norwich, Malory, Spenser, Shakespeare, Lady Mary Wroth, Donne, Milton -- and investigate how literary conventions and social history interact. From sermons to sonnets, students examine 1000 years of literary history and ultimately follow the voyage of English from Britain to the Americas. (WRI) Top of page
Prerequisite: Prior or simultaneous study in English 185

English 222: Literatures in English 1650 to 1850 (Jonthan Hill)
xxxxx Students study literary developments from the mid-17th to the mid-19th centuries. Topics examined include the influence of the Puritan Revolution on literature; satiric modes practiced by Dryden, Pope, and Swift; the rise of the novel; the Romantic movement; Transcendentalism; and the development of American identity in writers such as Franklin, Fuller, and Douglass. (WRI) Top of page
Prerequisite: English 185 and 221

English 227: King Arthur through the Ages (Karen Cherewatuk)
xxxxxA study of the Arthurian legend, from its Celtic orgins through the classic medieval romances of Chretien and Malory, to the Victorian adaptations of Tennyson and the Pre-Raphaelites, to contemporary novels and film. The course focuses on the myth's characteristic forms and ideas: the errant knight's adventures, the grail quest, and triangulating desire and adulterous love. (ALS-L) Top of page
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 230: Literary Eras: The Victorian Period (Diana Postlethwaite)
xxxxxA time of British political and cultural dominance, examines the work of such writers as Tennyson, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Dickens, and the Brontes, in the context of scientific, industrial and colonial growth, religious skepticism, and challenges to class and gender inequalities. (ALS-L) Top of page
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 233: Children's and Young Adult Literature (Jan Hill)
xxxxx In this course we begin with the rather strange history of European, British and American children's literature, from didactic courtesy books to frightening tales of death and salvation to pleasure-centered fairy tales and medieval romances; then sample classics from the Golden Age of children's literature; then turn to reading contemporary picture books, chapter books, and novels for children and young adults. Students will read a range of fantasy, science fiction, and contemporary young adult realism. (ALS-L) Top of page
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 247: Post Colonial Literatures (Joseph Mbele)
xxxxx Students encounter the literatures from former British colonies and from other countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Primary attention is given to literatures in English, but the readings may include some translations. The course examines diverse cultural expressions and the historical and cultural contexts of the works read, including the relationship between oral and written literature, as well as between indigenous and foreign elements. (ALS-L, MSC-G) xTop of Pagexxxx
 English majors please note: GLE course
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 251, Section A: Creative Writing: Nonfiction (Mary Steen)
xxxxxx Creative nonfiction--a genre in which a writer uses literary techniques to convey true events, reflections, and information--covers considerable terrain, from E.B. White's "Bedfellows" to Annie Dillard's "The Leg in the Christmas Stocking," from Adam Gopnik's "Power and the Parrot" to Anne Fadiman's "Marrying Libraries." We will read such essays for strategies and inspiration; students' own work will experiment with form, contain the fruits of research, attend closely to language. Students should expect to analyze and discuss professional essays, read and review student essays, and, of course, write and revise. (WRI) Top of page
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 251, Section B: Creative Writing: Nonfiction (Jan Hill)
xxxxx Creative Nonfiction is a name given to the modern essay, both to distinguish it from fiction and to disassociate it from its less entertaining nonfiction cousins (academic, technical, scientific and textbook writing), suggesting some interesting assumptions that we will discuss in class. Students will write familiar nonfiction such as memoir, the introspective "thoughts on" personal essay; place, travel, or nature writing; arts and culture magazine pieces; and also try some less-familiar forms, such as an exploration of a subject outside the writer's comfort zone, immersion journalism, or a cultural critique.
Top of Page Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent (WRI)

English 257: Creative Writing: Fiction & Poetry (Jennifer Kwon Dobbs)
xxxxx This course will focus on contemporary fiction and poetry--reading from the perspective of a writer, understanding craft, and writing. As the class itself will become our writing community, careful and timely preparation, regular attendance, and respectful participation are a must. Students should be prepared to share their work in mini and whole-class workshops. Students should expect to do a lot of writing and reading. Top of Page (WRI)
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 274: English Language & Linguistics (Karen Marsalek)
xxxxx Students encounter principles and approaches to linguistic analysis based on phonemics, morphology, and syntax. Students explore aspects of semantics, language acquisition, variation, and change, including grammatical analysis of documents ranging from film clips and advertisements to professional memos and literary texts. The course provides an overview of the history of English, serves as introduction to the linguistics concentration, and fulfills the linguistic requirement of the Communication Arts and Literature License.
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Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 275: Literature and Film (Mary Trull)
xxxxx Students explore the complex relationships between literature and film. How do we translate the verbal into the visual? What can novels do that films cannot and vice versa? Subject matter includes both classic and contemporary fiction and film. (ALS-L) Top of page
Prerequisite: FYW or equivalent

English 280: Shakespeare (Richard DuRocher)
xxxxx This course will explore the wonderfully diverse world of English drama from the 1590's to the early 1600's. While our focus will be on Shakespeare's plays, we will also delve into plays by Ben Jonson, Christopher Marlowe, and others. We will analyze both the language of the plays and methods of performance. We will read eight or nine plays, attend at least one staged performance, and see a number of film adaptations. Students will need to arrange their schedules to accomodate about six film screenings outside of class time as well as one or two trips off-campus. Top of Page (ALS-L)

English 330: Topic: Romantics (Jonathan Hill)
xxxxx "Have all writers since the early 19th century been recovering romantics? Has all writing since been merely a development of or reaction against romanticism?" This course will give these questions meaning. It offers both broad and intensive study of British romantic writers who, while united in the decisive break they made with the principles and practices of neo-classic writing, are also strikingly varied in their particular styles and imaginative temperaments. We shall read the first generation poets--Blake, Wordsworth and Coleridge--and the second--Byron, Shelley and Keats. In addition, we shall read a selection of women poets of the period--Smith, Robinson, and Hemans. Not only poetry, but prose also was revolutionized by romantic writers. We shall read three of the period's non-fiction prose writers--Lamb, Hazlitt and De Quincey--and three novels representing three different fictional genres--the gothic (Walpole's The Castle of Otranto), the oriental (Beckford's Vathek), and the historic (Scott's Ivanhoe). Class meetings will be mainly discussion, seasoned by lectures. Assignments will include short essays, quizzes, and a research project. The class is recommended equally for romantics and skeptics. Prerequisities: English 185 plus one additional course of relevant background.
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English 340: Advanced Studies in Literary Eras: American Writers of the 1920s and 30s (Richard Buckstead)
xxxxx In this course we shall study major works by American writers of this era: Anderson, Hemingway, Faulkner, Steinbeck, Cather, O'Neill, Fitzgerald, Caldwell. Students will write two interpretive essays and present the second one to the class at the end of the semester. There will be no exams: final grades will be based on class discussion and the two essays.
Prerequisite: English 185 plus one additional course of relevant background. Top of page

English 360: Literary Theory (Richard DuRocher)
xxxxx This class focuses on defining, classifying, analyzing, interpreting, evaluating, and understanding literature. Students study both practical criticism (discussion of particular works or writers) and theoretical criticism (principles and criteria appropriate to literature generally). The course introduces a broad range of critical theories and provides an historical overview of the subject. Top of page
Prerequisite: English 185 plus one additional course of relevant background.

English 371: Advanced Poetry (Jennifer Kwon Dobbs)
xxxxx Students who have completed an introductory course (or courses) in creative writing will focus on poetry, deepening their understanding of the form and completing a substantial portfolio of polished work. Class sessions will include discussion of models in contemporary poetry, exploration of various options within the form, and workshopping of student writing. (WRI)
Registration by portfolio only. Submit portfolio according to the guidelines to the English office by 4:00 p.m. (November 15, 2008). Top of page
Prerequisite: English 251, 255, 257, or relevant writing course

English 372: Advanced Creative Non-Fiction (Jenny Dunning)
xxxxx Students explore advanced strategies in writing essays. Three areas of emphasis are explored through the semester: the personal essay, lyrical prose, and creative journalism. Many class sessions take the form of workshops in which students critique their peers' work. (WRI)
Registration by portfolio only. Submit portfolio according to the guidelines to the English office by 4:00 p.m. (November 15, 2008). Top of Page
Prerequisite: English 251, 255, 257, or relevant writing course