In this class, we will begin to track the development of the eighteenth and nineteenth-century British novel. Our orienting point of analysis will be the role of women, both as authors and protagonists, in the rise of the novel. While most of our time will be devoted to close readings of the primary texts, we will also discuss each novel in relationship to an excerpt from a representational critical work that attempts to establish the novel’s significance and location in the history of the British novel. We will attempt to tease out each critical work’s successes and shortcomings in defining the British novel.
This is a lecture and (mostly) discussion course requiring extensive student participation. Assignments may include the following: discussion leadership responsibilities, a seminar paper, weekly reading quizzes if necessary, and a final.
Primary authors will include: Aphra Behn, Eliza Haywood, Daniel Defoe, Samuel Richardson, Jane Austen, and Charlotte Bronte. Secondary authors may include: Jane Spencer, Ian Watt, John Richetti, Michael McKeon, Edward Said, and Sandra M. Gilbert and Susan Gubar

Texts:

• • Eliza Haywood and perhaps Aphra Behn. - Available on Library Ereserve.
• • Daniel Defoe. Moll Flanders. - Broadview Press, 2005, ed. Paul A. Scanlon. [1551114518]
• • Samuel Richardson. Pamela. - Oxford World’s Classics. [0192829602]
• • Jane Austen. Mansfield Park. Broadview Press, 2001, ed. June Sturrock. [1551110989]
• • Charlotte Bronte. Villette. Broadview Press, 2005, ed. Kate Lawson. [1551114615]

Primary texts will be available in the University Bookstore; secondary texts will be available on library E-Reserve.
Possible Secondary Criticism
• Jane Spencer, The Rise of the Woman Novelist: From Aphra Behn to Jane Austen
• Ian Watt, The Rise of the Novel
• John Richetti, The English Novel in History
• Michael McKeon, The Origins of the English Novel
• Edward Said, Culture and Imperialism
• Sandra M. Gilbert and Susan Gubar, The Madwoman in the Attic