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English Romantic Poetry

Purpose of Course  showclose

The Romantic Period in England took place during the “age of revolutions,” a span of time that saw not only the rapid industrialization of Europe but two significant national revolutions—one in France, and one in America. This revolutionary spirit in many ways fed and sustained the Romantic movement in English literature; its chief practitioners believed that poetry could literally transform the world and the way in which we understand it.   In this course, we will examine this revolutionary energy alongside a number of other English Romantic characteristics, including a fascination with nature and the natural world, a desire to create popular art forms for the masses, and an inward-facing focus on the individual spirit. The course has been arranged to first acquaint you with the broader socio-historical and literary context in which English Romantic poetry thrived, and then divided into three units we might roughly categorize as the Romantic poet and the outer world, the Romantic poet and the inner world, and the poetry that bridges the gap between the two. In each unit, we will perform close readings of a number of the period’s prominent poems, identifying what makes each a “Romantic” poem.

Learning Outcomes  showclose

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • Provide an account of Romanticism as both an historical period as well as a movement in art and literature.
  • Identify and explain Romanticism in terms of its relation to the French Revolution.
  • Describe the new views of society and social relations that arose during this era.
  • Explain the significance of industrialization, the rise of the working class, the expansion of British Empire, the heightening of British nationalism, and the rise of the press.
  • Explain Romanticism’s relationship to Neo-Classicism.
  • List and describe the major tenets of Romanticism, including the movement’s interests in the natural world, supernaturalism, revolution, morality, ethics, exoticism, urbanization, mindscapes, moods, imagination, and interiority.
  • Provide an account of the nature and function of the Romantic craft of authorship.

Course Requirements  showclose

In order to take this course, you must:

√    Have access to a computer

√    Have continuous broadband internet access

√    Have the ability/permission to install plug-ins or software (e.g. Adobe Reader of Flash)

√    Have the ability to download and save files and documents to a computer

√    Have the ability to open Microsoft files and documents (.doc, .ppt, .xls, etc.)

√    Be competent in the English language

√    Have read the Saylor Student Handbook.

√    Have completed ENGL203: Cultural and Literary Expression in the 18th and 19th Centuries

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