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Litr
C250A: Medieval Literature
Jean-Marie Kauth
Course Description: LITR C250: Medieval Literature
So much is imagined differently in the Middle Ages: love, medicine,
literary genres, politics, gender, law, the cosmos. The Middle Ages
is in many ways a foreign land, and as such, studying medieval literature
provides the opportunity to understand our own culture by contrast.
On the other hand, so much of our own culture is a product of events,
trends, ideas, and literary works that evolved during that period.
Did you know that Romantic Love as we understand it is an invention
of the twelfth century? Or that democracy depends, by some accounts,
on the Magna Carta having happened? That the entire structure and
vocabulary of the English language, as well as our literary traditions,
were revolutionized by the Norman invasion? In C250 we will focus
on literature by major authors of the Middle Ages, both in original
Middle English and in translation from other languages: Marie de
France, Chretien de Troyes, Dante, Boccaccio, the Gawain Poet, and
Chaucer, among others.
Student Outcomes: Students who successfully complete this
course will be able to
1. explore, through discussion and writing, the connection between
literature and one's life experience.
2. present orally and discuss, through small/large group discussion
and a presentation, ideas, concepts, and key figures related to
the study of Medieval Literature.
3. develop and practice critical reading skills for textual analysis.
4. write essays in edited, standard written English.
5. develop writing skills that apply essential elements and basic
principles governing essay development, specifically a clear thesis
statement with related support and appropriate depth of content.
6. reference appropriate literary resources related to studies
in Medieval Literature.
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