Purpose:

• To give in-depth, first-hand experience with Chaucer's works, particularly the Canterbury Tales..
• To give some acquaintance with the cultural and historical traditions of which these works are a part.
• To develop an acquaintance with the scholarly literature on Chaucer and his works.
• To develop an understanding of the research methodology necessary for literary scholarship.
• To further develop the critical skills necessary for evaluating literary and scholarly work.
• To develop a working knowledge of one dialect of Middle English.
• To promote active engagement with literary texts, rather than simply passive reception of information about them.

Text:

Course requirements:

Description of course requirements and policies:

Forum:  Students will participate in the class online discussion group, the Forum.  Discussion questions will be posted on a regular basis.  Each student will be expected to contribute approximately 500 words per week; this minimum length requirement may be satisfied by a single long contribution, or by several short ones (as part of the ongoing discussion).  Contributions to the Forum will be evaluated at least twice during the semester.

Critical papers:  Each student will write two medium-length (6-10 page) papers on some aspect of the Canterbury Tales.  A draft of the paper will be posted on the Forum discussion page for comments, critique and discussion by the rest of the students in the class.  The student will then present the paper during one of the regular class meetings.  A student may substitute an alternative project for one of the papers.  Alternatives may include (but are not limited to) the following:  an annotated bibliography of research on some aspect of Chaucer studies; a website presentation for a specific and well-defined audience; a detailed lesson plan, with bibliography, for teaching one of the Canterbury Tales or one of the other poems; a class presentation on current research on one of the Canterbury Tales.  

Research project:  Students will be assigned, individually or in groups, to prepare an electronic edition of one of Chaucer's poems for publication on the Internet.  The edition will consist of the following:  a public domain version of the text, with hypertext glosses; a critical introduction; an annotated bibliography of all available scholarship.  See the Research Project page for a more detailed description of the assignment.

Web site critique:  Each student will locate two web sites concerned with Chaucer or with medieval studies.  The web site must be one which the student considers a worthwhile resource, and may not be one which is already listed on the Resources on Chaucer or Resources on the Middle Ages pages for this class.  S/he will then evaluate the sites and prepare thorough critiques of them; these critiques will be reviewed and discussed in class.  Finally, s/he will submit the sites to the Merlot online database so that they will be more widely available to others.

Class participation:  Class participation is essential to the success of the course. Students will be evaluated on both the quantity and the quality of their participation on a day-to-day basis.

Other assignments:  Each student will prepare and submit an audiotape of his/her oral reading of the first 42 lines of the General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales.  There may also be periodic in-class writings and/or quizzes.

Attendance:  Any absence in excess of three may result in a lowered final grade.

Academic honesty:  All students are expected to be familiar with and to abide by the Edgewood College Policies on Academic Honesty and Plagiarism.

Student evaluation of course:  Students will complete online course evaluations in the final week of the semester.

Students with disabilities:  It is “the policy of the College to ensure that no person shall, solely by reason of disability, be excluded from participation in, or be denied the benefits of, any program or activity operated by Edgewood College.” If you have a disability and you have documented accommodations for the disability through the Disabilities Services Coordinator, and if you need to use those accommodations for this class, please notify the professor as soon as possible. If you have questions about accommodations, contact Elizabeth Watson in the Student Resource Center (663-2281). She will work with you on appropriate accommodations, and all information will be kept confidential.

Assessment of Student Work:

Papers: Papers will be graded on the standard letter-grade scale (A, AB, B, BC, C, CD, D, F). Due dates are listed in the Schedule of Assignments. Papers will be graded according to the following criteria:

• Demonstration of an understanding of the text beyond the level of plot

• Demonstration of critical insight into the text beyond the level of the superficial

• A clearly stated and critically perceptive thesis

• Extensive and appropriate use of the text and/or secondary sources to support the thesis

• Careful organization of ideas and careful reasoning

• Effective incorporation of quotation, paraphrase, and other supporting evidence

• Coherent connection of ideas and effective transitions

• Effective variation of sentence patterns and lengths

• Precise and appropriate word choice

• Appropriate use of MLA-style documentation

• Effective use of standard English grammar and syntax and careful proofreading

Forum: Each student must post on a regular basis on the Forum. The Forum is intended to establish a dialogue about the course materials and to give students an opportunity to "think out loud" about them. Forum postings will be evaluated twice during the semester, and given a plus, check, or minus. A check gives credit for the assignment, but does not affect the final semester average. A minus will be averaged in at one letter grade lower than the student's average for other work. A plus will be averaged in at one letter grade higher than the student's average for other work. Forum postings will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• At the time of evaluation, each student must have posted an average of at least 500 words per week.

• All postings must be concerned with the material covered by the class.

• Postings should deal specifically with textual materials related to the class, quoting or making specific references to details whenever appropriate.

• Postings should strive to get beyond the superficial or obvious; comments or discussion which lead to new critical insights will be given highest value.

• Grammar, mechanics, etc. will not be included in the evaluation of Forum postings

Research Project:  The research project will be graded on the standard letter-grade scale (A, AB, B, BC, C, CD, D, F).  They will be graded according to the following criteria:

• Quality of glosses, including accuracy of glosses and quality of judgement regarding which words and/or portions of the text require glossing.

• Quality of research, including completeness of bibliography and demonstration of understanding of the the sources included.

• Quality of writing (the critical introduction will be evaluated according the criteria described above for the critical papers).

• Technical competency--this is not a requirement, but additional credit may be given for demonstration of particular competency in formatting material for the web.

Web Site Critiques:  Web site critiques will be graded on the standard letter-grade scale (A, AB, B, BC, C, CD, D, F).  They will be graded according to the guidelines given on the Critiques of Web Sites page in the class website.

Class Participation: Class participation will be evaluated on a daily basis. Participation will be evaluated on the relevance and quality of contributions, as well as their quantity. Participation in general class discussions, question-and-answer sessions, small group work, and all other class activities will be included in the evaluation. 

T 1/17    Course intro.; historical and linguistic background. Assgt.: pp. xxix-xliv; also Language and Linguistics (Harvard Chaucer Page).
R 1/19    Historical and linguistic background; intro. to Middle English.  Assgt.: pp. 643-47 (or click here).

T 1/24    "The Complaint of Mars."  Assgt.:  pp. 23-24 (or use Edwin Duncan's very helpful "Electronic Edition of the General Prologue").
R 1/26   Introduction to the Canterbury Tales:.  Assgt.: pp. 24-36; also E. Talbot Donaldson, "Chaucer the Pilgrim"

T 1/31    General Prologue. . Assgt.: pp. 37-66.
R 2/02    The Knight's Tale. Assgt.: Charles Muscatine, ""The Knight's Tale,"; David Aers, ""Imagination, Order and Ideology

T 2/07    The Knight's Tale. Assgt.: pp. 66-77.
R 2/09    The Miller's Prologue and Tale.  Assgt.: pp. 77-84.

T 2/14    The Miller's Prologue and Tale; The Reeve's Prologue and Tale.
R 2/16    The Reeve's Prologue and Tale. Assgt.: pp. 84-104. General Prologue reading tape due.

T 2/21    The Cook and the Man of Law.
R 2/23     Review of web site critiques. Assgt.: pp. 105-122.

T 2/28    The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale. Assgt.: Mary Carruthers, "The Wife of Bath and the Painting of Lions," 
R 3/02    The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale. Assgt.: pp. 122-136.  First critical paper due.

T 3/07    The Friar and Summoner. Assgt.: pp. 137-53. 
R 3/09    The Clerk's Prologue and Tale. Assgt.: pp. 153-68.

T 3/14    SPRING BREAK
R 3/16    SPRING BREAK

T 3/21    The Merchant's Prologue and Tale. Assgt.: pp. 178-89; George Lyman Kittredge, Chaucer's Discussion of Marriage.  Web site critiques due.
R 3/23    The Franklin's Prologue and Tale. Asgt.:  pp. 193-202; David Aers, ""Chaucer: Love, Sex and Marriage,"

T 3/28    The "Marriage Group"--reflections; The Pardoner.  Assgt.: Additional readings assigned in class.
R 3/30    The Pardoner. Assgt.: pp. 203-08; pp. 209-12; Albert H. Silverman, "Sex and Money in Chaucer's Shipman's Tale".

T 4/04    The Shipman's Tale; The Prioress's Prologue and Tale. Assgt.: pp. 252-61; pp. 262-69.
R 4/06    .The Nun's Priest; The Second Nun's Prologue and Tale.  Assgt.: pp. 270-81; 282-86; 328.  Second critical paper due

T 4/11    . The Canon's Yeoman's Prologue and Tale; The Manciple and Chaucer's Retraction.
R 4/13    Canterbury Tales--reflections. Assgt.: pp. 348-73.

T 4/18     The House of Fame.
R 4/20    .The House of Fame. Assgt.: pp. 588-630 (selections). 

T 4/25       The Legend of Good Women.  Last day for critical papers.
R 4/27    The Legend of Good Women. Assgt.: .  Text and glosses for Research Project due.

T 5/02    Review. 
R 5/04    Review.  Research Project due.