The development of the English Novel in its “golden age.” Attention to themes, forms, and styles in fiction of the Romantic and Victorian eras to the mid-19th C. Primary readings: Jane Austen, Persuasion, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, Charlotte Bronte, Jane Eyre, Charles Dickens, Great Expectations. The course turns on ideas of individuality and aspiration in the period that shape Romantic fiction of philosophic fantasy and Victorian novels of psychological and social realism, such as the Bildungsroman, the love story or marriage plot, and the panoramic, multi-character, multi-plot novel of urban spaces and large, dense social and economic systems. These works contemplate the individual both solitary and in webs of connection to others, in settings of Romantic nature and the "Dickensian" city. We will place the novels in their times with the help of short secondary readings on E-reserves: Robin Gilmour, "Introduction" to The Victorian Period, sel. Romantic poetry by Lord Byron, J.S. Mill, ch. 3 "Of Individuality" from "On Liberty," sel. from Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations; sel. from Elizabeth Gaskell's novel North and South. While placing the novels in their times, including background on the authors to enhance historical understanding, the course suggests the on-going power of these "classic" novels, including references to films that preserve and re-imagine them for later times. Lecture-discussion format. Requirements: keep up with the reading; in-class contribution (can affect course grade by +/- .3); midterm with significant essay component (25%); @7-8 pp. critical paper from a choice of topics (50%); in-class final with significant essay component (25%). For course credit, all work must be completed according to the schedule.