Studies in British Literature: The History of the British Novel

Upon completion of any second-year English literature course, the student should be able to

1. use with increased proficiency the skills of literary analysis taught in first-year English courses;
2. recognize the significance of the literary and non-literary or cultural context of a work being studied, such as the biographical, historical, mythological or philosophical context;
3. read critically and use in essays secondary sources, such as criticism and other texts by the same author, as an aid to comprehending the primary text(s) being studied;
4. read critically and independently works or aspects of works not discussed in class; and
5. formulate a thesis on a given subject in one or more specific works, and to develop this thesis using suitable textual evidence.

Upon completion of English 2119, the student should also have a deepened understanding of

1. different strategies of narrative development in fiction;
2. the elements of fiction, such as plot, setting, character, and point-of-view;
3. some of the major forms in the history of the British novel, such as picaresque, the epistolary novel, domestic fiction, the novel of manners, and social criticism; 
4. patterns of both continuity and change within the genre of the British novel; and
5. the exploration and interpretation of theme, including themes significant to the history of the British novel, such as the relationship between the individual and society.