Course syllabus
ENGLISH 353
The Age of Shakespeare: Tragedies
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Course Information 2020
Lectures: Tues 11am - 12 noon: G53 Old Choral Hal
Thurs 11 am-12 noon: 370 Social Sciences (HSB)
Teaching Staff
Professor Tom Bishop (convener), Room 629, Humanities (Arts 1) Building.
Dr Sophie Tomlinson, Room 635, Humanities (Arts 1) Building
Ms. Bryonny Muir
Office hours (TB): 12 noon -1 pm Tues and Thurs or by appointment
Office hours (ST): 12 noon- 1pm Tues and Thurs or by appointment.
Office hours (BM): 1 pm -2.30 pm Tuesdays, in Humanities (Arts 1), Room 305
Class Reps -- please contact either with feedback and issues, or raise them with a staff member.
Sarah May: smay910@aucklanduni.ac.nz
Jess Probert: jpro965@aucklanduni.ac.nz
Course Content
This introduction to the golden age of English theatre involves detailed study of a selection of tragedies by Shakespeare and several of his most brilliant contemporaries. We encourage you to think across texts as well as to engage in close analysis of individual plays. The course has a pronounced theatrical bias and is intended to help you respond to the plays as theatrical artefacts and not merely as literary texts. Lectures on individual plays consistently draw attention to their missing theatrical dimension; the close analytical work done in tutorials lays considerable stress on the practical function of dramatic verse.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course students should
- have an enhanced ability to read and understand early modern English verse and prose;
- be aware of traditions of stage performance in early modern England;
- be able to recognize and discuss some important features and changes in English society and culture across this period;
- have familiarity with typical features and structures of early modern tragedies;
- have an advanced ability to discuss and compare literature from this period using critical and scholarly resources, including electronic databases and research tools;
- understand the principles of scholarly citation.
Set Texts (please read carefully as it is complicated!)
Due to disruptions caused by coronavirus, getting books for the course is challenging. In bold below are the editions of set texts we have been able to get to the Bookstore in sufficient numbers. In addition, as indicated, the Bookstore has LIMITED numbers of copies of several additional texts. We also list below the editions we would normally use for two other plays, Doctor Faustus and The Duchess of Malfi. You may be able to get all of these or other serviceable editions from used bookstores, such as Jason Books, Hard-To-Find Books, The Open Book, or Dominion Books, etc. You may also be able to order copies for yourself from an online supplier, or download texts of these or other editions onto an e-reader (though ereaders are not so good for finding passages or taking notes for essays). Alternative editions of all these plays are also available, both new and used. We especially recommend the Arden and the Oxford series of editions. There are also library copies -- but please don't write in them.
In addition, plays of Shakespeare are available online in the New Oxford Shakespeare database in the University Library:
https://www.library.auckland.ac.nz/databases/record/?record=TheNewOxfSha
However, this database is not very user-friendly, and contains some misleading speculations along with its generally well-edited texts. Use, but use with caution.
Complete editions of Shakespeare, should you have one, will contain all the plays of his we read.
All of the non-Shakespearean plays are also available in the anthology "Six Renaissance Tragedies" edited by Colin Gibson, often to be found in used bookstores locally.
If you are in any doubt about an edition, show it to us and we can advise.
Christopher Marlowe:
Doctor Faustus, ed. Roma Gill, rev. Ros King (New Mermaids, 2009).
William Shakespeare:
Hamlet, ed. T.J. B Spencer (Penguin)
Othello, ed. Russ McDonald (Pelican)
King Lear, ed. George Hunter (Penguin)
Anthony and Cleopatra, ed. Michael Neill (Oxford) - a few copies
Thomas Middleton:
The Revenger’s Tragedy, ed. Brian Gibbons (New Mermaids) - a few copies
Middleton & Rowley:
The Changeling, ed. Michael Neill (New Mermaids) - a few copies
John Webster:
The Duchess of Malfi, ed. Brian Gibbons (New Mermaids)
Recommended Background Reading
Andrew McRae, Renaissance Drama (Arnold)
Andrew Gurr, The Shakespearean Stage, fourth ed. (Cambridge)
Russ McDonald, ed., The Bedford Companion to Shakespeare: An Introduction With Documents (Bedford/St Martins).
Adrian Poole, Tragedy: A very short Introduction (Oxford)
Peter Holbrook, English Renaissance Tragedy: Ideas of Freedom (Bloomsbury)
Performance/AV Resources
Videos/DVDs of plays on the course are held in the Library collection. Performances of Shakespeare’s plays can also be found for streaming on the Library database ‘Theatre in Video’ at:
https://www.library.auckland.ac.nz/databases/record/index.asp?record=TheinVideo
In addition to these performances, a wide range of productions (some of them quite bad!) are on YouTube and elsewhere. A fascinating selection of international productions in many languages can also be viewed at:
http://globalshakespeares.mit.edu/#
Teaching Format
This course is taught through lectures and tutorials. Recording of lectures are made and released via Canvas soon after they are given. You should use these for review and for catch-up if you are unable to attend a lecture. You should not use them as your primary means of access to the course materials. Tutorials are not recorded.
Expectations of Students
Students are expected to attend all lectures and to attend and participate in weekly tutorials having read the set text beforehand. Students must dedicate a minimum of ten hours per week to this course and coursework must be submitted on time. You should understand that the course is to be regarded as a whole, and during the semester you are expected to study all the prescribed texts. Not only will your reading of individual plays become more rewarding as you develop a sense of the context in which they were written and are able to compare them with one another, but credit will be given to students whose work in the examination and during the year demonstrates an attempt to come to terms with the course as a whole.
Tutorial Programme
Tutorials begin in the second week. Before the course begins you should have enrolled in a tutorial which suits your timetable. Attendance at tutorials is an essential part of the course and a high degree of class participation is expected. As well as reading the assigned text, you must also be sure to bring a copy of the play to your tutorial. We strongly recommend that this be a hard copy, as it is easier to work through and to mark up and take notes in.
ASSESSMENT INFORMATION
Coursework
Tutorial exercises 10%
First exercise 15%
Close reading OR performance exercise 25%
Final comparative essay plan 10%
Final comparative essay 40%
100%
COURSEWORK
1. Tutorial exercises. 1 x 100 words = 1000 words. (10%)
At each tutorial there will be a short exercise addressing the set reading for that week, for one mark each to a possible total of 10 marks. These marks are the surest and quickest way to gain or lose standing in your final grade. Remember: 10 marks can mean as much as 2 whole letter grades in your final score. Every year there are a number of students who miss out on a significantly higher grade – and sometimes even fail the whole course -- because their tutorial mark is low from simple non-attendance. PLEASE DON’T LET THIS BE YOU.
2. First exercise. 500 words or equivalent. (15%)
This short exercise is intended to give you and your instructors some indication on how you are following and understanding the scope and demands of the course. You will be asked to watch two stagings of lines from Marlowe's Doctor Faustus and to make some comparisons between them in terms of their presentation of the language and action. Details appear under the assignment rubric.
3. Close Analysis Exercise. 1000 words. (25%)
Write a detailed critical analysis of ONE of the following passages. Play close attention to the style of the passage (imagery, vocabulary, syntax, metre, and rhythm) and consider how this contributes to its dramatic effect. Discuss any other points of interest such as implied action, and consider what the passage may reveal about the character and role of its speaker(s). What is the passage’s function in the work as a whole? How does it engage the audience’s interest and advance the plot? How does it contribute to the larger themes of the play?
(NOTE: Line and scene numbering vary from one edition to another: the opening and closing words are given as a guide; if they do not match your text, consult the set edition, or ask your tutor to help you identify the right passage.)
Doctor Faustus, 2.3 (aka Scene Six), lines 18 to 34
"FAUSTUS. My heart's so harden'd, I cannot repent:" to "... And argue of divine astrology."
or
Hamlet, 1.1.148 – 166.
BARNARDO: “It was about to speak when the cock crew . . . “ to [HORATIO] “So have I heard, and do in part believe it”.
OR
3. Performance Exercise. 500 words. (25%)
Develop and perform for the class in tutorial times a short excerpt of your own choosing (no more than 50 lines) of a scene from Doctor Faustus or Hamlet, either as a solo or as part of a group (2-4 people). Lines should be memorised and staging tasks fully worked out and shared, including blocking and costumes/props. A brief report (500 words) of issues you faced, solutions you came up with and of the overall intention of your staging should be submitted after the performance.
4. Comparative Essay Plan. 500 words approx. (10%)
Submit a plan and outline of the comparative essay you propose to write in response to one of the suggested topics. Your plan should clearly indicate the argument you propose to make, the plays you will examine and, where appropriate some secondary sources you might use (though these may change as your argument develops). The purpose of this exercise is to assist you in planning and giving you advice on your best path to a successful final submission. See details under the assignment rubric.
5. Comparative Essay, 2500 words. (40%)
An essay treating at least THREE works on the course comparatively. Topics will be supplied immediately after the mid-semester break. See details under the assignment rubric.
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Presentation of written submissions
Written assignments must be typed in 12-point font with 1½ spacing between lines and a generous margin for comments on one side (make this at least 5cm). Each page should be numbered and carry your name on the top right-hand corner. Please print on one side of the paper only and staple securely. Marks will be deducted for poorly formatted work, as well as for poor spelling, grammar and punctuation. We suggest both careful proof-reading and the use, where appropriate, of spelling and grammar checking software.
At the end of your assignment include a Bibliography, even if this comprises only the editions to which you refer. For guidance on citation style, see the section on ‘Referencing’ in the English Department’s A Guide for Writing Essays under "Files" on Canvas.
Procedures for submission of coursework
Essays are to be submitted on Canvas and also in hardcopy format to the Level Three Arts Faculty Handin desk, with a cover sheet generated from Canvas. Please write your own, and your tutor’s name and tutorial time clearly on the hardcopy cover sheet, and sign the declaration concerning plagiarism. Both electronic and hard copy submissions must be made before the assignment deadline expires. Assignments not submitted electronically to Canvas will not be marked and will not receive any credit towards coursework until they are submitted online.
Policy on Extensions and Late Assignments
If you are unable to hand in an assignment by the due date, you MUST put your case for an extension, preferably via a face-to-face meeting, to your tutor. If an extension is granted, you must attach to your submitted essay a document showing the extension approved, such as an email from your tutor printed out and attached, or copied into an electronic submission. Extensions will only be granted for compelling reasons and evidence testifying to the cause of the extension may need to be provided. An extension must be requested in advance of the due date for the assignment, unless there is a genuine cause preventing this, in which case the extension should be sought as soon as is practicable after the due date. Please note that extensions CAN be granted retrospectively for convincing causes, but cannot be granted without being requested by you.
Any work handed in late without an extension will not be marked. Please make a note of this.
GENERAL COURSE RULES
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the unacknowledged inclusion of material taken from the Internet or from the work of a critic/scholar or a fellow student in an essay submitted for assessment. As plagiarism makes it impossible to appreciate an essay as the writer’s own thinking and performance it is treated severely by the University and the English Department: it is likely to result in no marks for the particular assignment and may mean that a mark of zero will be awarded for overall coursework in the paper. Please note the following University policy on plagiarism:
‘The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student’s own work, reflecting his or her learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the world-wide web. A student’s assessed work may be reviewed against electronic source material using computerised detection mechanisms. Upon reasonable request, students may be required to provide an electronic version of their work for computerised review.’
It is imperative students understand plagiarism before they commence their assignments. For guidance on this matter refer to the University’s Guidelines to the Conduct of Coursework, which can be accessed via
In addition, the University offers an on-line tutorial, accessible through the following site:
https://www.academicintegrity.auckland.ac.nz
Other resources
Two textbooks provide helpful guidance to analysing Shakespeare’s language: Sean McEvoy, Shakespeare: The Basics (Routledge, 2000) and Reading Shakespeare’s Dramatic Language: A Guide, ed. Sylvia Adamson et al (The Arden Shakespeare, 2001). The latter is pitched more ambitiously than the clearly introductory Shakespeare: The Basics, and contains a particularly useful ‘A-Z of Rhetorical Terms’ as an appendix.
Reading Lists
Supplementary reading lists for all the plays will be provided on Canvas.
The English Department Guide to Writing Essays
This is an invaluable guide to close reading, essay composition and formatting assignments. In particular, see pages 34-47 for the correct way to incorporate quotations into a text, and for formatting a Bibliography. The Guide will be posted on Canvas.
Keeping in touch
The University’s policy is that all communication with students is via their University email address – please check your university email address regularly or have your University email redirected to the account you access most frequently. Canvas announcements will be delivered automatically to all enrolled students.
Getting Help
If you need help or advice, approach your tutor in the first instance, or the course convenor. Your tutor’s weekly office hour and room location will be posted on Canvas in the first week of the semester. We like to think we are approachable and can offer practical guidance to students who are experiencing difficulties with course work.
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Course summary:
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