ENG 438 - Traditions

Semester Hours: 4

This course examines some of the texts central to the history of English literature. The specific focus will be on literature that explores the religious concepts of sin, the devil, and salvation. Some readings and several student projects consider more contemporary views of these concepts and of the historical texts that present them. These selections and activities should help readers cope with the major challenge of most texts on the list: namely, the more remote style and vocabulary of these older works. Authors include Dante, Chaucer, Langland, Spenser, Milton, Bunyan, Blake, Browning, Graham Greene, C. S. Lewis, and Archibald MacLeish. Several films are also included.