This course will focus on the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In daily discussion, we'll focus on close-reading texts, while looking for clues about social and cultural context in this time period. As we follow chronological shifts in literary form and content, we'll consider parallel developments in music and the visual arts. Authors will likely include Eliza Haywood, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, R.L. Stevenson, and George Gissing. We'll focus on several novels, with a supplemental Course Reader containing poetry, stories, and essays. In addition to a heavy reading load, this course requires active discussion, presentations, exams, and essays. Before you register, consider your ability to attend class each morning at 8:30am with enthusiasm – this course is not for the chronically late or absent.

Textbook list for the UW Bookstore:
Eliza Haywood, Fantomina (1724)
Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey (1798)
Charles Dickens, Hard Times (1854)
R.L. Stevenson, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886)
George Gissing, The Odd Women (1893)
Course Reader