George Eliot's Middlemarch
When Emily Dickinson was asked what she thought of George Eliot's Middlemarch, she responded: "What do I think of glory?" And Virginia Woolf later described the novel as "one of the few English novels written for grown-ups."
This course will spend the entire semester reading Eliot's novel and studying it closely. We will explore its style, the historical context in which it was written and in which it is set, the ideas with which it engages, and its salient formal features. Our overarching aim will be to familiarize ourselves with the tools, skills, and questions that enable and enrich literary interpretation.
Readings
- George Eliot's Middlemarch
YOU WILL NEED TO PURCHASE A PRINT (PHYSICAL) COPY OF THE BOOK IN THE EDITION ASSIGNED FOR THIS COURSE. Do not purchase a different edition and do not purchase an ebook. Check the Campus Bookstore prior to the beginning of classes to see the edition that has been chosen for the course.
Assessment
- Attendance
- Participation
- Seminar presentation
- Short exercises and assignments
- In-class writing
- Final exam
**Subject to change**
Prerequisites
- Registration in an English Major or Joint Honours plan
