English 0657: Defoe, Haywood, & Richardson
Dr. Paula R. Backscheider
9082 Haley Center
pkrb@auburn.edu
(334) 844-9091
Mon. & Thurs. 1:00pm-3:30pm
Required Texts
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. New York: Norton, 1994.
Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe. Penguin, 1989.
Selected Fiction and Drama of Eliza Haywood by Eliza Haywood,
edited by Paula R. Backscheider. Oxford, 1999.
The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless by Eliza Haywood. Broadview,
1998.
Clarissa by Samuel Richardson. Houghton Mifflin, 1962.
Licensing Entertainment by William Warner. California, 1998.
Recommended Texts
The English Novel in History, 1700-1780 by John J. Richetti.
New York: Routledge, 1999.
The English novel remains the greatest
puzzle in our literary history. From obscure and disputed origins, it became
and remains the dominant literary print genre. In recent years its definition,
aesthetic, and canon have been contested anew, and its "rise" and "development"
reconceived. This seminar will consider texts by the three giants-- Daniel
Defoe, Eliza Haywood, and Samuel Richardson-- who are responsible for the
form's popularity and, perhaps, social and literary importance. The directions
they set, the readers they captured, and the themes and concerns they shared
will be explored.
Sept. 23: Introduction
27: Essays
on the story of the history of the novel
30:
" " "
" " " "
" " "
Oct. 4: Haywood's
Fruitless Inquiry and Invisible Spy
7: Reading
Day
11: Haywood's
City Jilt, Mercenary Lover, Adventures of Eovaai
14: Moll
Flanders
18: "
"
21: Licensing
Entertainment
25: Seminar
conducted by Professor John Richetti, University of Pennsylvania
28: Betsy
Thoughtless
Nov. 1:
" "
4: Reports
on major kinds of criticism in the field (book reviews)
8: Clarissa
11: "
15: "
18: Robinson
Crusoe
29: "
"
Dec. 2: Reports
on final paper
Exam period: Continuation
of reports on final paper.
Requirements: one book report and an oral report on it; one 15-25
page paper and a presentation of this paper's contents.
Suggestion: You may find it helpful to read two of the novels
before the seminar begins. Please do NOT read Clarissa. I would
suggest the two novels by Defoe.