Description:
The stories concerned with King Arthur and his knights have retained
their fascination in western culture for over seven centuries.
This course will address itself to the early formation of Arthurian
narratives, their genres, and their sub-textual motives: from
the treatment of Arthur as a Celtic hero in the Welsh Mabinogion
to the pseudo-historical presentation of him as royalty in Geoffrey
of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain, from Arthur's
use in the articulation of the chivalric code in Chrétien
de Troyes' romances and the religious reconstitution of the Arthurian
myth in The Quest for the Holy Grail to the use of Arthurian
material as a vehicle of literary and social criticism (Sir
Gawain and the Green Knight) and of bourgeois self-fashioning
(Malory's Le Morte Darthur).
Required Texts:
The Mabinogion, trans. Jeffrey Gantz (1976). Viking Penguin,
ISBN-13: 9780140443226, Penguin Classics
The Quest of the Holy Grail, trans. P.M. Matarasso (1969).
Viking Penguin, ISBN-13: 9780140442205, Penguin Classics
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, trans. Brian Stone (1959).
Viking Penguin, ISBN-13: 9780140440928, Penguin Classics
Béroul, The Romance of Tristan, trans. Alan S. Fredrick
(1978). Viking Penguin, ISBN-13: 9780140442304, Penguin Classics
Chrétien de Troyes, Arthurian Romances, trans. William
W. Kibler and Carleton W. Carroll (1991). Viking Penguin, ISBN-13:
9780140445213, Penguin Classics
Geoffrey of Monmouth, The History of the Kings of Britain,
trans. Michael A. Faletra (2008). Broadview Editions, ISBN-10:
1-55111-639-1
Sir Thomas Malory, Works, ed. Eugene Vinaver, 2nd ed. (1971).
Oxford University Press, ISBN-10: 0-19-281217-3
Wolfram von Eschenbach, Parzival, trans. A.T. Hatto (1980).
Viking Penguin, ISBN-13: 9780140443615, Penguin Classics
Pearsall, Derek. Arthurian Romance: A Short Introduction. Malden,
MA: Blackwell Publishers, 2003. ISBN-13: 9780631233206
Requirements:
Students will be responsible for the content not only of the reading
assignments, but also of our discussions in class. Regular attendance
and participation in the discussions of all texts (not
just the text[s] that you are researching for the semester) are
prerequisites for passing the course. The door to the classroom
will remain open for five minutes after the scheduled time for
the class to begin; after that point the door will be closed.
If you are late and see that the door has been closed, you have
already been marked absent for that day - do not come into the
classroom. Two unexcused absences are permissible without any
effect on your grade, but three unexcused absences or more will
adversely affect the final grade for the course. Absences due
to a medical condition must be excused by a statement signed by
the physician in charge of the treatment. You may also expect
brief quizzes on all reading assignments. Do not use electronic
equipment in the classroom to take notes. The final grades for
the course will be composed of individual performance in six
areas:
1) A Topic Description. All Topic Descriptions (1 page; typewritten;
double-spaced; with 1-inch margins, and your name the top of the
page; and carefully proofread) are due on September 7.
The grade on the Topic Description will account for about 10 percent
of your final grade. Two or three students may wish to work together
on a series of oral presentations of related topics or literary
texts and/or intellectual documents to be held at successive class
meetings.
2) An oral presentation (ca. 10-15 minutes) representing the
fruits of your initial research on a topic which will either be
assigned to you or which you will choose yourself after consultation
with me. You must meet with me during my office hours
(or make an appointment) to discuss your topic. The presentation
should be open-ended and should encourage questions from the rest
of the class. The grade on the presentation will account for about
15 percent of the final grade.
3) A brief critical book report (2-3 pages; typed or printed in
no larger than size 12 font; double-spaced; with 1-inch margins,
page numbers, and your name on every page; and carefully proofread)
of one or two major studies of the topic or text on which your
paper and presentation are based, due on the date of the oral
report. Include the bibliography of the book(s) or article(s)
you are reviewing at the end of your review. The grade on the
critical book report will account for about 10 percent of the
final grade. To see an example of a well done review, click on
the following link: Sample
1.
4) Quizzes on each work to be read for the semester. The average
of all the quizzes will account for about 15 percent of the final
grade.
5) A short paper (5-10 pages; typed or printed in no larger than
size 12 font; double-spaced; with 1-inch margins, page numbers,
and your name on every page; and carefully proofread) to be handed
in one week before the oral presentation. The paper will
include an annotated bibliography of 3-5 items which you will
have read in preparation for giving the report and writing the
paper (for all questions of documentation and references, follow
the guidelines available at: http://www.public.asu.edu/~dedalus/guidetostyle/index.html).
The short paper for all reports to be held after October 28 will
be due on October 26. The short paper will serve as the
basis for your term paper. The grade on the short paper will account
for about 20 percent of the final grade. To see examples of all
that is required for a good paper, click on the following links:
Sample 1, Sample
2.
6) A term paper (15-20 pages; typed or printed in no larger than
size 12 font; double-spaced; with 1-inch margins, page numbers,
and your name on every page; and carefully proofread) in which
all of your research on the topic, and all of your own brilliance,
are formulated carefully and in the scope which the subject demands.
Term papers must be turned in to me - together with the copy
of the short paper you handed in to me and which I returned to
you with my comments - at the latest on the last day of class.
I will not be able to complete your grade for the course (you
will receive an Incomplete) unless I receive both papers at the
end of the semester. The grade on the term paper will account
for about 30 percent of the final grade.
1. (8/19): Introduction: The Historical Arthur
2. (8/24): Introduction: The Historical Arthur; Pearsall, pp.
1-6; from Gildas and Pseudo-Nennius (in Geoffrey of Monmouth,
The History, Appendix A, pp. 218-38)
3. (8/26): The Arthur of Celtic Myth: from the Mabinogi:
How Culhwch Won Olwen ________________________, ________________________
4. (8/31): The Arthur of Celtic Myth: from the Mabinogi:
How Culhwch Won Olwen ________________________, ________________________
5. (9/2): The Arthur of Chronicle: from Malory, Works:
"The Tale of the Noble King Arthur that was Emperor Himself
through Dignity of his Hands"; Pearsall, pp. 83-89, 91-92
________________________, ________________________
6. (9/7): The Arthur of Chronicle: from Malory, Works:
"The Tale of the Noble King Arthur that was Emperor Himself
through Dignity of his Hands" ________________________, ________________________;
all Topic Descriptions due today
7. (9/9): Rosh haShanah: No class
8. (9/14): The Arthur of "History:" from Geoffrey
of Monmouth, The History of the Kings of Britain, books
8-11 (pp. 143-204); Pearsall, pp. 6-13 ________________________,
________________________
9. (9/16): The Arthur of "History:" from Geoffrey
of Monmouth, The History of the Kings of Britain, books
8-11 (pp. 143-204) ________________________, ________________________
10. (9/21): The Value System of Courtly Love: Béroul,
The Romance of Tristan ________________________, ________________________
11. (9/23): The Value System of Courtly Love: Béroul,
The Romance of Tristan ________________________, ________________________
12. (9/28): Arthurian Society in Romance I: The Value System of
Chivalry: Chrétien de Troyes, Cligés;
Pearsall, pp. 20-26, 31-32 ________________________, ________________________
13. (9/30): Arthurian Society in Romance I: The Value System of
Chivalry: Chrétien de Troyes, Cligés
________________________, ________________________
14. (10/5): Arthurian Society in Romance II: The Hero as Knight
and Lover: Chrétien de Troyes, Erec and Enid;
Pearsall, pp. 30-31 ________________________, ________________________
15. (10/7): Arthurian Society in Romance II: The Hero as Knight
and Lover: Chrétien de Troyes, Erec and Enid
________________________, ________________________
16. (10/12): Arthurian Society in Romance III: Chrétien
de Troyes, The Knight of the Cart; Pearsall, pp. 26-29
________________________, ________________________
17. (10/14): Arthurian Society in Romance III: Chrétien
de Troyes, The Knight of the Cart ________________________,
________________________
18. (10/19): Religious Reconstitution: The Quest of the
Holy Grail; Pearsall, pp. 43-48 ________________________,
________________________
19. (10/21): No class
20. (10/26): Religious Reconstitution: The Quest of the
Holy Grail ________________________, ________________________;
all short papers to be held after October 28 are due today
21. (10/28): Arthurian Additions: Fragmentation of the Hero, Secular
and Religious Chivalry: Wolfram von Eschenbach, Parzival;
Pearsall, pp. 50-59 ________________________, ________________________
22. (11/2): Arthurian Additions: Fragmentation of the Hero,
Secular and Religious Chivalry: Wolfram von Eschenbach, Parzival
________________________, ________________________
23. (11/4): Arthurian Additions: Fragmentation of the Hero, Secular
and Religious Chivalry: Wolfram von Eschenbach, Parzival
________________________, ________________________
24. (11/9): Camelot as Satire, Arthurian Romance as Erziehungsroman:
Subjectivity in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight; Pearsall,
pp. 75-82 ________________________, ________________________
(11/11): Veterans Day: No Class
25. (11/16): Camelot as Satire, Arthurian Romance as Erziehungsroman:
Subjectivity in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
________________________, ________________________
26. (11/18): Camelot as Satire, Arthurian Romance as Erziehungsroman:
Subjectivity in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
________________________, ________________________
27. (11/23): Arthur Among the Gentry: from Malory, Works:
"The Most Piteous Tale of the Morte Arthur"; Pearsall,
pp. 96-109 ________________________, ________________________
(11/25-26): Thanksgiving: No Class
28. (11/30) Arthur Among the Gentry: from Malory, Works:
"The Most Piteous Tale of the Morte Arthur" ________________________,
________________________
29. (12/2) Arthur Among the Gentry: from Malory, Works:
"The Most Piteous Tale of the Morte Arthur" ________________________,
________________________
30. (12/7): Final Paper due today (with the copy of the short paper you handed in to me earlier in the semester)
Plagiarism is generally defined as using another's words,
ideas, materials or work without acknowledging the source. You
are responsible for knowing how to use someone else's work how
to acknowledge that source properly. You can learn more about
this and other areas of academic integrity by going to:
http://provost.asu.edu/academicintegrity.
Plagiarizing, and any other form of dishonesty, will be dealth with severely.
You might want to read a recent article about plagiarism at US universities that appeared recently in The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/education/02cheat.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&hp.