English 1575—Twentieth Century Literature

But slumber and sleep though it might there came later in the summer ominous sounds like the measured blows of hammers dulled on felt, which, with their repeated shocks still further loosened the shawl and cracked the teacups. (Woolf, To the Lighthouse, 133)

Virginia Woolf's reference to dull, distant shocks reminds us that, while we often celebrate the twentieth century as a time of technological flourishing, we paid an enormous price for our new-found conveniences. Along with the improvements in production came improvements in our ability to destroy and to kill. Writers got their first undeniable glimpse of this reality during World War I, which lasted from 1914 to 1918 and killed millions of people on the European continent. The shock of this war had ripple effects that dispersed throughout the twentieth century, and this course's reading list follows such effects through the literature of the time.

We begin the semester with one of the most interesting and most challenging books written in the twentieth century—Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse. After careful consideration of this novel, we will consider World War I itself through the poetry of Wilfred Owen, who was one of the most eloquent observers of it, and who actually died fighting in France. The remaining literary works by Ernest Hemingway, Leslie Marmon Silko, Harold Pinter, and, finally, Thomas Pynchon trace out the more general sense of the loss of structure and order in various twentieth-century communities. While there is some cause for optimism, these books provide us with a rigorously critical view of human advancement during the twentieth century.

Course Objectives

Over the course of the semester, I expect students to achieve the following goals:

• Read and understand works of literature from vastly different Anglo-American contexts in the twentieth century and in a variety of literary genres.

• Formulate persuasive arguments about the meanings and significance of these works.

• Present these arguments in the form of class discussion, group discussion, in-class exam, and paper assignments

• Recall key facts about the assigned works and their authors

• Write papers about literature that are interesting, articulate and well-organized

• Revise written work effectively

• Adhere to conventions of standard written English and college academic work when writing papers

• Provide classmates with helpful constructive comments when going over drafts of their work during peer-editing

To achieve the goals, students must do the following:

• Read all of the assigned books carefully and before class discussion of them

• Attend class every day and participate in class discussions

• Ask the professor questions in class or outside of class if you are uncertain about points in the lecture or related issues

• Take notes on material presented in class

• Devote time and attention to the class's written assignments, revising at least twice before turning in the final product

• Show up to class on peer-editing days with complete, word-processed drafts of the paper

• Offer classmates conscientious, helpful criticism on drafts in accordance with peer-editing guidelines provided in class

• Devote time to studying the assigned materials before exams by memorizing pertinent facts and sketching out arguments in response to anticipated exam questions

• Turn in all work on time, complete, and according to the guidelines provided in class

Course Requirements

Assigned Readings

Behind the Lines. Dir. Gillies MacKennon. Perf. Jonathan Pryce, James Wilby, Johnny Lee Miller, Stuart Bunce. Videocassette. Alliance Communications, 1998.

Hemingway, Ernest. The Sun Also Rises. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1926.

Owen, Wilfred. 1920. The Collected Poems of Wilfred Owen. New York: New Directions, 1963.

Pinter, Harold. The Homecoming. New York: Grove, 1965.

Pynchon, Thomas. The Crying of Lot 49. New York: HarperCollins, 1965.

Silko, Leslie Marmon. Ceremony. New York: Penguin, 1977.

Woolf, Virginia. To the Lighthouse. San Diego, CA: Harcourt, 1927.

Additional Notes

Your grade will depend primarily on your written work and the understanding of the material that you convey through that work. A command of standard written English and the ability to present an argument will also contribute to the determination of your grade. Any infractions against UMD's Scholastic Dishonesty provisions in the Student Conduct Code as stated in the UMD catalogue will receive serious attention and appropriate penalties.

Individuals who have any disability, either permanent or temporary, which might influence their ability to perform in this class, are encouraged to inform me at the start of the semester. I can make special adaptations of teaching methods, assignments, materials, or testing as required to provide for equitable participation in the course. The Access Center is also available to assist students with disabilities. It is located in 138 Library (or Kirby Plaza) and on the web at <http://www.d.umn.edu/access/>.