A study of major dramatic works written by contemporaries of Shakespeare, including some of the most popular plays performed on the Elizabethan and Jacobean stage. Designed along the lines of ENGLISH 367 and 368, this course can be taken either in addition to or as an alternative to ENGLISH 367 and 368. Plays will be read intensively as theatrical and literary works, and also will be considered in relation to complex social and political issues of the period.
Among the plays likely to be studied: The Spanish Tragedy, The Jew of Malta, Bartholomew Fair, The Knight of the Burning Pestle, The Revenger’s Tragedy, The Changeling, and The Duchess of Malfi.
Approximate book cost: $75 (available at Ulrich’s). There will be a midterm and a final exam, as well as two relatively short essays.