Course Description
This class will focus on selected works by William Shakespeare. We will begin the course with a study of the wonderfully concise sonnet--in particular, we will study how Shakespeare shaped this poetic form for his own creative purposes. Through these sonnets, we will come in contact with some of Shakespeare's major themes: the necessity of procreation, the ravages of time on the individual, the search for immortality through poetry, the pleasures and anxieties of love, and the value and fragility of friendship. Through our discussions of the sonnet, we will study the poet's rich language, as well as his poetic innovations with what had become a well-known--and well-used--form.

Following our study of the sonnet, we will read and discuss the following plays: The Taming of the Shrew; The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet; The Tragedy of Julius Caesar; The Comical History of the Merchant of Venice, Or Otherwise Called the Jew of Venice; Twelfth Night, Or What You Will; and The Tragedy of Macbeth.

As a backdrop to this literature, we will also look at the historical, political, and religious temper of the times, a period replete with intrigue, espionage, religious tension--an historical era that also saw England threatened by civil war, as well as threats of invasions by France and Spain. Central to this historical background is Queen Elizabeth I, the last of the Tudor line of rulers in England, a strong, brilliant, but erratic ruler who reigned through a period in which the English language was well on the way to achieving its richness, in which the English theater acquired its international reputation, and in which the English military and economy rose to be one of the strongest on the globe.

This course will be rich in material, and with your help, it should be challenging and stimulating, as well as a lot of fun.

The Textbook
Greenblatt, Stephen, et. al. The Norton Shakespeare: The Essential Plays and Sonnets. W. W. Norton and Company, Second Edition. ISBN: 978-0-393-93313-0. The page references given below are for this text.

I know that many of you will have your favorite editions of the plays and sonnets; however, if you are taking the course for credit, you will need to purchase this edition, mainly because of the excellent background material it contains--and for which you will be responsible.

The Honor Code
This code stipulates that when independent work is required—as it is on your essays and quizzes—each of you does that work within the boundaries that I set. See my web site on "Plagiarism" for clarification of how the honor code applies to your written work. For the quizzes, you will refrain from using notes, books, or information from any other source. Failure to adhere to this code will cause a breach in the healthy academic environment of trust that I wish to foster in this class. It will also lead to your failing the course. Your continuing in this class will tell me that you will abide by the honor code as I have set it forth here and on the above-mentioned web link.

The Goals

• to analyze and understand the structure of Shakespeare's sonnets, comedies, and tragedies
• to form an understanding of the political, religious, and social background of the age in which Shakespeare lived and wrote
• to write clear, coherent, and argumentative/analytical essays based on the works under discussion
• To use the standard MLA form of documentation, including in-text and works cited citations
• to adhere to the standard rules of English grammar and American idiom and usage

Evaluation
You will be evaluated two ways: through essays and objective quizzes. You will write three essays, as noted below. The essays will be argumentative and analytical, requiring critical thinking and interpretation; they will be at least one thousand words apiece. The quizzes will be based on the sonnets and plays, as well as on the non-fictional readings from the textbook and from our discussions in class. Please be sure to buy a pack of scantrons at the bookstore, and bring them to class, along with a number 2 pencil. The scantron we will use is form number 882-E. There will be several quizzes throughout the semester. Approximately seventy (70) percent of your grade will be based on your writing. Approximately thirty (30) percent will be based on the objective quizzes.

Works and the Dates They are Due
The following is a schedule of the works and the days that you should have read them before coming to that day's class. For the first class, I will give you a handout with the sonnets. For the second and succeeding classes, I will give you page numbers in the Greenblatt text listed above. For the sonnets, I have also listed the numbers of the works that we will discuss. When a play is due on the first day listed, be sure to have read at least the first half of the play. Complete the play by the second day's discussion.

8/24 -- Introduction to the class; Shakespeare's Sonnets: 1-20

8/31 --- The Sonnets: 1659-1667; Sonnets, continued: 22, 23, 29-30, 34, 37, 40-42, 53, 56, 60, 62, 64, 68, 71, 76, 79, 99

9/7 --- Shakespeare's World: 2-30; Sonnets, concluded: 104, 116, 126, 127-136, 138, 144-147, 151-154; The Shakespearean Stage: 79-99

9/14 --The Taming of the Shrew, 119 (This is introductory material that you should read, along with the text of the play itself. These introductions will also apply to the other plays.)

9/21 -- The Taming of the Shrew, concluded

9/28 -- Shakespeare's Life and Art: 42-74; The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, 925

10/5 -- The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Concluded

10/19 -- The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, concluded

10/26 -- The Comical History of the Merchant of Venice, 247

11/2 -- The Comical History of the Merchant of Venice, concluded

11/9 -- Twelfth Night, Or What You Will, 445

11/16 -- Twelfth Night, Or What You Will, concluded; Sir Henry Wotton on the Burning of the Globe, 1748-1749

11/23 -- Thanksgiving Holidays, No Class Today

11/30 -- The Tragedy of Macbeth, 1343

12/7 -- Tragedy of Macbeth, concluded

12/14 -- The Final Exam Day, with Pizza