The Week Ahead: September 9-12

Overview:

This week we finish our discussion of Beowulf with a conversation in class based on your Commonplace Book Assignment. On Wednesday we will be visiting the library. For Friday’s class, we will then turn to stories about a werewolf and a fairy queen from Marie de France.

 Assignments Due:

-Your Commonplace Book is due in class on Tuesday. Please bring it to class to submit, and make sure you review the assignment and rubric so that you turn in all of the required components.

Questions to Consider for Reading and Class Discussion:

 For Friday:

-In “Bisclavret,” the wife of the werewolf receives a rather odd punishment in the end. What is it? Why do you think it is significant?

-Lanval is an outsider of sorts in the court of Arthur. Why? Why is this an important detail in the story?

-At first glance, it seems that Lanval receives something very desirable at the end of the story. But do you think there is anything that is undesirable about his position? You might think of this question quite literally–what is his “position” at the very end of the story?!

–What do you think the stories “Bisclavret” and “Lanval” tell us about the culture from which they come? What are the values of this world? What specific examples in the text do you see that offer evidence of these values?

The Week Ahead: Sept. 2-5

Overview:

This week we continue reading Beowulf (see the Schedule of Readings and Assignment Deadlines for specific reading assignments), Commonplacing as we read. We will look at materials from Anglo-Saxon culture in class on Wednesday that will give us more insight to their cultural values.  Should be a great week!

 

Assignments Due:

No assignments due this week. Stay on top of your reading and commonplacing.

 

Questions to Consider for Reading and Class Discussion:

 

For Tuesday:

–Is Beowulf a text that supports Christian values? What are those values? Where do we see this in the text?

-What details about the battle with Grendel are particularly interesting to you? What are the differences and similarities in how Beowulf and Grendel approach their battle?

-In what ways do the descriptions of Grendel let us know that he is NOT a member of the Anglo-Saxon community? In what ways is he an outsider?

-What are the gifts received by Beowulf? What do you think is significant about these gifts? Why is gift giving so important in Anglo-Saxon culture?

 

For Friday:

-A big question: Why do you think the story gives Grendel a mother (rather than a father) for Beowulf to battle?

-Note the details we get about the dragon: what does the narrator tell us about its history? How does the dragon spend its days? In what ways does it differ from the other villains in the story?

-Pay special attention to the dragon’s treasure. What happens to it? What attitudes do we see in the story toward gold and treasure?

Welcome to British Literature!

This is the course homepage for Prof. Mulready’s ENG303 course. Here you will find all of the material you would normally find in a syllabus, posted on the left of this page under the links you see. We will also be using this page for other activities through the course of the semester.