| Unit name | Chaucer and Chaucerians |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ENGLM0078 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Baden-Daintree |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
none |
| Co-requisites |
none |
| School/department | Department of English |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit will focus on a range of medieval texts by Geoffrey Chaucer, and a selection of contemporary or later texts that are in dialogue with Chaucer’s example, or which have preceded him. The unit will facilitate detailed study of Chaucer’s poems, and of various writers who followed, imitated, and strove to outdo him, for instance John Gower, Thomas Hoccleve, James I, and Robert Henryson. Students may read a number of Canterbury Tales, as well as Chaucer’s dream visions, and his masterful love poem, Troilus and Criseyde.
The aim of the unit is to give students a good grounding in Chaucer’s poems, and enable them to assess Chaucer’s influence on later literary tradition.
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1.demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of a diverse range of literary texts;
2. apply an understanding of critical and theoretical reading to specific issues articulated in the designated literary texts;
3. discern different critical perspectives on the literature studied;
4. identify and present pertinent evidence to develop a cogent argument;
5. demonstrate skills in textual analysis, argumentation, and critical interpretation, using evidence from primary texts and secondary sources.
Teaching will involve asynchronous and synchronous elements, including long- and short-form lectures, group discussion, research and writing activities, and peer dialogue. Students are expected to engage with the reading and participate fully with the weekly tasks and topics. Learning will be further supported through the opportunity for individual consultation.
Riverside Chaucer, ed. Larry Benson, 3rd edn (Oxford, 2008)
Robert Henryson: The Complete Works, ed. David J. Parkinson (Kalamazoo, MI, 2010) [free online edition available]
John Gower, Confessio Amantis, ed. Russell A. Peck, 2 vols (Kalamazoo, MI, 2006) [free online edition available]
Sources and Analogues of the Canterbury Tales, ed. Correale and Hamel (Brewer, 2002) [e-text available in UoB library]
