BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC DÂN LẬP HẢI PHÒNG -------------------------------------- ISO 9001 : 2008 ĐỀ TÀI NGHIÊN CỨU KHOA HỌC Supplementary material: “A brief introduction to English literature from the Middle Ages to the 19th century” for English majors learning English literature at HPU. (Tài liệu bổ trợ: “Giới thiệu sơ lược về văn học Anh giai đoạn từ thời kỳ trung đại đến thế kỷ 19” giúp sinh viên chuyên ngữ trường ĐHDLHP trong viêc học môn văn học Anh) Chủ nhiệm đề tài:: Nguyễn Thị Thu Huyền, M. HẢI PHÒNG, 2013 TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC DÂN LẬP HÀI PHÒNG -------------------------------------- ISO 9001 : 2008 Supplementary material: “A brief introduction to English literature from the Middle Ages to the 19th century” for English majors learning English literature at HPU. (Tài liệu bổ trợ: “Giới thiệu sơ lược về văn học Anh giai đoạn từ thời kỳ trung đại đến thế kỷ 19” giúp sinh viên chuyên ngữ trường ĐHDLHP trong viêc học môn văn học Anh) CHUYÊN NGÀNH: TIẾNG ANH Chủ nhiệm đề tài: Nguyễn Thị Thu Huyền HẢI PHÒNG, 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page PART I.
INTRODUCTION 1 PART II. Teaching and learning English literature 4 2. The survey: data collection, data analysis and discussion 6 PART III. CONTENT OF THE SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL 11 Chapter I: Literature of the middle th th I.
ANGLO-SAXON period (5 – 10 centuries) 11 II. ANGLO-NORMAN period(11th-13th centuries) 13 III. PRE-RENAISSANCE (14th-15th centuries) 15 GEOFFREY CHAUCER (1340-1400) & Canterbury Tales. Literature of the renaissance 25 (End of the 15th- beginning of the 17th century) WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (1546-1616) 31 Chapter III.
Literature of Enlightenment (18th century) 50 DANIEL DEFOE (1660 - 1731) &The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe 51 JONATHAN SWIFT(1667 – 1745) & Gulliver‟s Travels 56 ROBERT BURNS (1759 - 1796) & his lyrical poems 64 Chapter IV. Literature of the beginning of the 19th century 71 ROMANTICISM 71 GEORGE GORDON BYRON (1788—1824) 74 WALTER SCOTT (1771—1832) & Ivanhoe 79 Chapter V. Literature from the 1830s to the 1850s 84 CRITICAL REALISM 85 CHARLES DICKENS (1812-1870) & Dombey and Son 86 WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY (1811-1863) 92 & Vanity Fair (1847-1848). CHARLOTTE BRONTE & Jane Eyre (1847) 97 EMILY BRONTE& Wuthering Heights (1847).
Literature of the last decade of the 19th century 101 OSCAR WILDE (1854-1900) 103 &“The Picture of Dorian Gray” (1891) BIBLIOGRAPHY 110 APPENDIX I i Other authors of English American Literature & short stories by Oscar Wilde APPENDIX II xxxii The questionnaire ABSTRACT PART 1: INTRODUCTION I. RATIONALE There are aspects of English culture that are encapsulated by English literature. Of course, this is quite obvious when studying the works of Shakespeare or of writers, poets and playwrights of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It is, however, also true when studying other works of English literature.
Students can learn about allusions and references to different aspects of English culture. They can also learn the context and meanings of famous quotes and phrases. Studying Literature does not confine the students to the traditions of England but includes the possibility of introducing them to traditions which inform English Literature, such as the study of Ancient Greek drama, and to literature in other contexts, such as American literature. It also provides the students with an alternative to the pervasiveness of ―television culture‖ with its immediacy and, often, its shallowness.
An enjoyment and appreciation of literature will give students the ability to develop this into an interest in books and reading as they move away from their studies and into their adult lives. They will have the confidence to approach and tackle new forms of books and writing, since they were exposed to a range of literature during their school days. English Literature is a very complex subject as there are usually lots of texts to be understood and analyzed. When studying literature, students can learn not only language aspects such as vocabulary items but also that language can be used for specific and aesthetic purposes.
Familiarity with the concepts of beat, metre and rhythm can improve their own writing as students are able to appreciate and apply these ideas. Finally, the study of Literature can provide students with a fresh and creative angle with which to approach their studies in particular and their lives in general. So the next time you are reading a newspaper article lamenting the lack of creativity and initiative in the local workforce, remember that in a small way the study of English Literature can help to add a refreshing and further dimension to a person‘s life. AIMS OF STUDY This research aims to: - Investigate the interest of English majors at HaiPhong Private University in learning English Literature and their desires in getting more background knowledge of overview of history of English Literature.
- Provide them the supplementary material of brief history of English literature from the Middle Age to 19th century with the knowledge of English historical periods and literary trends, brief account of outstanding authors‘ careers and works, their literary ideologies. The extracts from these works are also added. They may be chapters from novels, short stories, poems or acts from plays. Questions for appreciation and analysis are designed to help students to get better understanding and have their own comments on what they read.
- Contribute to raising interest for students in appreciating the beauty of the English literature. SCOPE OF STUDY - The study especially focuses on the analysis of the interest and desires of English majors from the 5th semester at HPU in studying a subject, English Literature to find out the necessity of a source of material with the background knowledge of history of English Literature from the Middle Age to 19th century. METHODOLOGY The research project is based on both theoretical discussion and data analysis. Data were collected and analyzed for the aim of finding students‘ ambition in enhancing their motivation and their likes when learning English literature.
The „Quantitative‟ and „Qualitative‟ are the main methods applied to pursue the objectivity in a research. All the interpretations, comments, and conclusions are drawn from: - Relevant references - Survey questionnaires - Statistics, description and analysis of the collected data - Personal observations and experience - Discussion with colleagues, students V. DESIGN OF STUDY The study consists of three main parts: Part 1: Introduction outlines the general background, the rationale, the methodology, the aims, the scope and the design of the study. Part 2: Development presents the theoretical background and discusses the data analysis and findings.
This part includes the following chapters Chapter 1. Briefly presents learning and teaching English literature Chapter 2. Data collection, data analysis and discussion Part 3: Designing a supplementary material of ‗Overview of history of English literature from the Middle Age to 19th century. Teaching and learning English literature Literature is a very versatile subject and is generally considered one of the most difficult subjects to teach.
There is no right or wrong way to teach a literature class; however, there is a smart way to teach it. The idea in literature is not just to get an answer, it is to get an in-depth, provocative and creative answer. The job of the professor is not to teach the student, it is to lead the student. Basing on such criteria for teaching English literature for English majors as a subject at university, designing a supplementary material to enhance their background knowledge is of importance.
This material, which presents the whole splendid history of English literature from Anglo-Saxon times to the close of the Victorian Era, first hopes to create or to encourage in every student the desire to read, and to know literature itself rather than what has been written about literature. The second is to interpret literature both personally and historically, that is, to show how it generally reflects not only the author's life and thought but also the spirit of the age and the ideals of the nation's history. The survey questionnaire, data collection and analysis 1. The survey questionnaire: the purpose and design In order to get information of the interest as well as the expectations of English majors at HPU of a systematic knowledge of history of English literature before learning the subject English American literature, 40 survey questionnaires have been collected from the English majors from the 5th semester.
The questionnaire for them is designed with 5 questions. They aim at finding out their interest and their knowledge prepared for learning the subject English American literature at HPU and their expectation for a supplementary material of background knowledge of history of English literature. Preliminary results and analysis 2. Student‘s comments on the learning the subject English American literature at university 2.
Students‘ comments on the importance of background knowledge of literature in appreciating a literary work. The frequency of absorbing autonomously the literary background knowledge before learning the subject English American literature. Students‘ means of getting knowledge of history of English literature 2. Students‘ expectations in being provided a systematically supplementary material of history of English literature when studying the subject English American literature at HPU Basing on the available data, it came to us that a very high percentage of students had awareness in an attempt to study a quite difficult but interesting subject English American Literature.
Their expectation is to get a systematic background knowledge of history of English Literature so that it can help them understand and arise their true emotions to appreciate the beauty of a literary work. Therefore, a help and guide in providing a supplementary material of overview of history of English literature are of significance. CONTENT OF THE SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL Chapter I: Literature of the middle I. ANGLO-SAXON period (5th – 10th centuries) II.
ANGLO-NORMAN period(11th-13th centuries) III. PRE-RENAISSANCE (14th-15th centuries) GEOFFREY CHAUCER (1340-1400) & Canterbury Tales. Literature of the renaissance (End of the 15th- beginning of the 17th century) WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (1546-1616) Chapter III. Literature of Enlightenment (18th century) DANIEL DEFOE (1660 - 1731) &The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe JONATHAN SWIFT(1667 – 1745) & Gulliver‟s Travels ROBERT BURNS (1759 - 1796) & his lyrical poems Chapter IV.
Literature of the beginning of the 19th century ROMANTICISM GEORGE GORDON BYRON (1788—1824) WALTER SCOTT (1771—1832) & Ivanhoe Chapter V. Literature from the 1830s to the 1850s CRITICAL REALISM CHARLES DICKENS (1812-1870) & Dombey and Son WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY (1811-1863) & Vanity Fair (1847-1848). CHARLOTTE BRONTE & Jane Eyre (1847) EMILY BRONTE& Wuthering Heights (1847). Literature of the last decade of the 19th century OSCAR WILDE (1854-1900) &“The Picture of Dorian Gray” (1891) BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDIX I Other authors of English American Literature & short stories by Oscar Wilde APPENDIX II The questionnaire PART 1: INTRODUCTION I.
RATIONALE There are aspects of English culture that are encapsulated by English literature. Of course, this is quite obvious when studying the works of Shakespeare or of writers, poets and playwrights of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It is, however, also true when studying other works of English literature. Students can learn about allusions and references to different aspects of English culture.
They can also learn the context and meanings of famous quotes and phrases. Studying Literature does not confine the students to the traditions of England but includes the possibility of introducing them to traditions which inform English Literature, such as the study of Ancient Greek drama, and to literature in other contexts, such as American literature. It also provides the students with an alternative to the pervasiveness of ―television culture‖ with its immediacy and, often, its shallowness. An enjoyment and appreciation of literature will give students the ability to develop this into an interest in books and reading as they move away from their studies and into their adult lives.
They will have the confidence to approach and tackle new forms of books and writing, since they were exposed to a range of literature during their school days.
