Retirement

I’m officially retiring this blog from classroom use, because it was becoming confusing to keep a single blog for all of my classes. From now on I’ll use this for general reflections on the field and on higher education, and I’ll keep individual blogs for each of my classes. I’ll post links here for the new course-specific blogs as soon as I bring them online.

I will leave up the old syllabi, links, discussion questions, etc., in case anyone finds them useful.

Edit: The new blogs are as follows:

For EH 102-105: http://jvhalbrooks102.wordpress.com/

For EH 215-103: http://jvhalbrooks215.wordpress.com/

For EH 311: http://jvhalbrooks311.wordpress.com/

 

Troilus Book One

Compare the narrative voice in Troilus and Criseyde to that of The Tales. What sort of relationship to his story does he suggest when he claims that he serves “God of Loves servauntz”?

Also, what can you say about Criseyde?  Can you “read” her?  (And I add the quotation marks for a specific reason.)

 

Miller, Reeve, and Cook

Though these tales are all fabliaux, they differ quite radically in tone. As you read them, think about how you might describe these differences. How are they different in their respective effects on the reader?

Also, in what sense does the Miller “quit” the Knight? Does he do so in the way the Host intends when he uses the word? How does the Reeve quit the Miller?

Finally, Chaucer offers another “excuse” at the beginning of The Miller’s Tale; does this excuse offer some kind of commentary on authorship?

Since I neglected to mention it last week, don’t worry about reading more of the Trigg. We will have plenty to talk about with the remainder of Fragment I.

 

Back on the air

Hello Chaucerians and HELers (HELerians?). As promised and at long last, I have posted the syllabi for this semester on the pages to the right. Please check this space often for updates, assignments, and discussion questions. Feel free to comment and continue our conversations from class any time.

 

Brit. Lit. Assignment

For our last assignment before the final exam, you should choose a passage from either Milton or Swift and perform a close reading.  Your passage should be one that we have not discussed in detail in class.  I will be gauging the progress that you have made since our close-reading assignment at the beginning of the semester.  The paper should be about four pages, double-spaced, and it is due on the last day of class.  This assignment will take the place of test three on the syllabus.

 

White

Here is our open thread for T. H. White.  Comments?  Suggestions for discussion?

 

Swift

Reminder: Our readings for the last two weeks will be the selections by Jonathan Swift listed in the syllabus. Feel free to comment on any of these readings.

 

Brit. Lit.: Test Two

Reminder: test two will be on Wednesday, 21 March.  The format will be similar to that of test one.  It will cover:

–Chaucer, beginning with the Friar’s portrait in the General Prologue and including The Miller’s Tale and The Pardoner’s Tale

–Malory

–The poems we covered by Wyatt, Sidney, Marlowe, Ralegh, and Shakespeare (through sonnet 116)

 

Yvain

Dear Malorians:

After the break we will begin discussing Chrétien’s Yvain.  It actually makes pretty good beach reading.

 

Geoffrey: Comments on the “House of Constantine” Section?

In this section leading up to the Arthurian moment, we might begin marking differences between Geoffrey’s and Malory’s treatments of the narrative.