Navigation:
Updated on:
7/18/11
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RESOURCES: To search the Anglo-Saxon Poetic Records, click here. LINKS. King Alfred's Grammar Tinker, Beowulf
Translations 1909. Google Books Germanic Lexicon
Project The
Labyrinth British Library:
ISAS
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ENGLISH 491: Beowulf
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Syllabus |
S. Harris Office: Bartlett 259 Office Hours: By appointment. 545-6598 | sharris at english.umass.edu |
This syllabus, as Anaxagoras reminds us, is subject to change. The latest version on this website is the binding syllabus. |
E491,
Spring 2009
TTh
9:30 am - 10:45 am, Bartlett Hall 205
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Course: This course introduces you to the epic poem Beowulf in its original language and in translation. Written between c. 750 and c.1000 AD, Beowulf is the chief poetic achievement of Anglo-Saxon England. It is a poem of stunning artistry, complex structure, and profound wisdom. Beowulf inspired J. R. R. Tolkien and Seamus Heaney as it continues to inspire today. We will read the poem extremely closely. As we do, we will put it into its historical and literary contexts, imagining Anglo-Saxon readers as well as modern ones. Recommended for students who have completed ENGL 313, Old English. Attendance: Please attend classes. University guidelines for absence will be enforced. Check your handbook. My lectures are copyrighted material. Any use of my lectures in written, electronic, or recorded form without my prior consent is illegal. So please do not record them for your absent friends. Books: Books will be ordered to Amherst Books, 8 Main St., in Amherst.
For those without Old English, here are some free resources you will absolutely need.
The three books all Beowulf scholars need are free on Google Books. On the left side of this page, under "Links," see Klaeber, Chambers, and Zupitza. Structure & Objectives: The course is both a language course, and a course in literary culture. Many of the students will already have learned Old English, so if you have not taken English 313, then you must take advantage of the on-line grammars to catch up quickly. I will be making available a number of resources to help you read Old Englsh effectively. Please check the resources section of this site often. One half of each class will be dedicated to the language of the poem. This means lexicon, syntax, and semantics. It also means memorizing paradigms. If you don't like foreign or ancient languages, then this course is not for you. The second half of each class will be dedicated to discussion. You are also expected to complete your readings and translations prior to each class--the readings average 100-200 pages per week. The translations should take about 4 to 6 hours per week. Here is Beowulf in MS Word. Those without Old English can limit themselves to as much per class as they can manage--but you must be up to speed within 8 weeks. Conferences: Please meet with me at least once during the semester (at the least to check your grades to ensure my gradebook and your grades match up). Please make an appointment to meet at a time convenient to you and I will try to oblige. |
Key:
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Assignments:
There is one paper, 1500 wds.(35%); three sample translations (30%); and a final exam (35%). See Grading Policies and Papers for more information on how I assign grades. Paper topics in Notes.
- YOUR PAPER MUST BE HANDED IN AT THE BEGINNING OF CLASS ON THE DATE DUE. LATE PAPERS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
- No electronic submissions.
- ALL MISSED ASSIGNMENTS GET AN "F." If you foresee being absent, please let me know well beforehand. Check "Policies" in the help section.
- PLAGIARISM GETS AN "F." This may be for the paper or for the course, at my discretion. Please check your student handbook and university guidelines for more on plagiarism.
- ALL PAPERS MUST BE TYPED OR WORD-PROCESSED. Not doing so reduces your grade by one letter-value (e.g., "C" down to "D").
Notes:
NOTE 1: Warning. This course is NOT a breeze. You will leave it able to read Old English.
NOTE 2: The course schedule is subject to change. It is not to be construed as a substitute for your attendance or as a catalogue of all the information for which you are responsible. All changes will be announced with a reasonable lead time. This syllabus constitutes a binding contract between the student and the professor. If you do not agree with any of the provisions set herein or if you foresee disagreeing with any of the provisions which may be reasonably added during the course of the term, then you are free to drop this class within the time allotted by the university.
NOTE 3: All material pertaining to this course--namely but not exclusively handouts, quizzes, exams, tests, maps, graphs, charts, printed matter, recorded matter, electronic matter including but not limited to this syllabus and associated electronic documents, films, video clips, conversations, office consultations, classroom responses, lectures, asides, answers to classroom queries, and related utterances--is copyrighted material and is subject to international and US laws of copyright. Enrollment in this course constitutes tacit acceptance of this agreement and of the copyright claims made therein. Any breach of this agreement or use of copyrighted material by any member of the university or the public without prior consent will be met with legal action.