English 232/ Comp Lit 236:
The Novel in the History of Mediation

Professor William Warner

warner@english.ucsb.edu

Office: South Hall 2507

Office hours, Monday 3:00-4:00PM, by appointment

 

The full syllabus, with each weekÕs reading, as well as the online Ôcourse readerÕ is at this Ôblind linkÕ:

http://emc.english.ucsb.edu/emc-courses/Novel-Mediation-S2011/novel-mediation/

Definition of a Ôblind linkÕ: an http:// address that is linked to no other site. It therefore cannot be found by web-crawlers and added to search engines. This enables us to put up the copyrighted materials for use in our seminar.

The Online Reader includes: 1-a schedule with title pages, 2-early editions, 3-critical articles, 4-resources links, 5-a bibliography for the rise of the novel.

 

I: (3/31) Introduction and discussion of the rise of the novel 
Question: "What is the novel?

 

II: (4/7) Theoretical and historical framing
Questions: What is the history of mediation? What is Enlightenment? What is an actor-network? What do novels have to do with the Enlightenment? 
Bruno Latour, Reassembling the Social, 1-86, 159-362. 
from Siskin & Warner, This is Enlightenment: ÒIntroduction: this is Enlightenment,Ó 1-33. 
Ian Watt, The Rise of the Novel, chapters 1&2, 9-59.

 

III: (4/14) The novel of the 17th century
The question of origins: where does 'the novel' begin? How is it related to romance and novella
?

Mme. de Lafayette, The Princess of Cleves (French 1678)
Aphra Behn, Oroonoko, or, The Royal Slave (1688)

 

IV: (4/21) Formula Fiction and RichardsonÕs ÔoverwritingÕ of the novel of amorous intrigue:
Questions: Why does Pamela become a 'media event'? How does Richardson change the novel?

Eliza Haywood, Fantomina: or, Love in a Maze(1725)
Samuel Richardson, Pamela or, Virtue Rewarded(1740)
Samuel Richardson, Familiar Letters (1741), the kernel of the Pamela story (#138-139)

 

V: (4/28) Elevating the novel: Questions:What is the effect of splicing Cervantes into the history of the English novel with Joseph Andrews? How does it produce an alternative to Richardson?
Fielding, Shamela (1741) & Joseph Andrews(1742) 
Bakhtin, The Dialogic Imagination, selections by McKeon. 

 

VI: (5/5)The Novel and the Circulating Library: Questions: How does circulation increase the impact and value of novels? How do debates about intellectual property inflect the concept of the author and the self? 
Burney, Evelina (1779) 

 

VII: (5/12) The Novel and the turn toward Sentiment: Questions: What is sentimentalism in Sterne? How does sentimentalism become part of the history of the novel? How does Austen critique but also incorporate sentimentalism? 
Sterne, A Sentimental Journey (1768) 

 

VIII: (5/19) The Novel, Anthology, and Literature: Questions: What is the effect of anthologizing the (eighteenth century) novel? How does the novel become the narrative of nations?
Scott, Waverley (1814)

 

IX: (5/26) Novel Reading as a National Pastime:Questions: How does the novel become an institution? How do the new formats of the novel—published by weekly installments in magazines and then as a Ôtriple-deckerÕ—change the social life of the novel? What is the relationship between the novel and the long history of visualization (detailed description, illustration, photography)?       
Dickens; Oliver Twist (1838) with Cruckshank illustrations 

 

X: (6/2) Presentations by Seminar Members 

 

Research activities:

 

2 short presentations (of 7-10 minutes): these might include, a summary of the argument of the 18th century text or the modern critical text; application to the primary text under discussion; statement of general issues or questions for seminar discussion.  

 

Short overview of seminar paper will be presented on 6/2/2011. The seminar paper should offer a reading of some facet of one novel, perhaps drawing upon some of the issues pursued in the seminar. Length, 12 pages, plus a list of works cited (MLA format). Due Friday, June 10th.

 

Preferred editions:
Latour, Bruno. Reassembling the Social: An Introduction to Actor-Network Theory. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2007. Paperback. ISBN-10: 0199256055 ISBN-13: 978-0199256051

Nixon, Cheryl. L. Novel Definitions: An Anthology of Commentary on the Novel: 1688-1815. Toronto: Broadview Press, 2009. Paperback. ISBN-10: 1551116464 ISBN-13: 978-1551116464

Siskin, Clifford and Warner, William. This is Enlightenment. Chicago: U of Chicago Pr. 2010

Mme. De Lafayette. Princess de Cleves. Publisher: Penguin Classics; First Edition edition (October 6, 1992) Language: English ISBN-10: 0140445870 ISBN-13: 978-0140445879

Richardson, Samuel. Pamela: Or, Virtue Rewarded. Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (July 12, 2001) Language: English ISBN-10: 0192829602 ISBN-13: 978-0192829603
Fielding, Henry.  Joseph Andrews and Shamela. Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; Reissue edition (November 11, 2008) Language: English ISBN-10: 0199536988 ISBN-13: 978-0199536986 Burney,

Burney, Francis. Evelina. Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's; First Edition edition (March 15, 1997) Language: English ISBN-10: 0312097298 ISBN-13: 978-0312097295

Sterne, Lawrence. A Sentimental Journey. Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; New edition (December 15, 2008) Language: English ISBN-10: 0199537186 ISBN-13: 978-0199537181

Austen, Jane. Sense and Sensibility. Publisher: Broadview Press (April 3, 2001) Language: English ISBN-10: 155111125X ISBN-13: 978-1551111254

Scott, Sir Walter. Waverley. Publisher: Penguin Classics (February 26, 1981) Language: English ISBN-10: 0140430717 ISBN-13: 978-0140430714

Dickens, Charles. Oliver Twist. Hardcover: 608 pages Publisher: Penguin Classics Hardcover; Reprint edition (September 28, 2010) Language: English ISBN-10: 0141192496 ISBN-13: 978-0141192499