Office: 218A Blocker
Phone: 845-9670 (direct line w/ voice mail); 5-3452 (English Department)
Email: h-andreadis@tamu.edu (best way to reach me quickly)
Hours: 12:40-1:40 p.m. MWF & by appointment

COURSE SCHEDULE

Weeks 1,2,3 (9/1, 9/8, 9/15): Merchant of Venice

Weeks 4,5 (9/22, 9/29): Midsummer Night's Dream
(10/3: First essay on MV or MND due)

Weeks 6,7,8 (10/6, 10/13, 10/20): Twelfth Night
(10/31: mid-term exam; see ^b below; covers MV, MND, and TN)

Weeks 9, 10, 11 (10/27, 11/3, 11/10): Troilus and Cressida
(11/14: second essay on T&C due)

Weeks 12, 13, 14 (11/17, 11/24, 12/1): The Tempest

Weeks 15 (12/8): Last class meeting
(final projects on The Tempest due)

TEXTS & OTHER MATERIALS:

Any single-volume college text (that is, one that includes scholarly apparatus) of Shakespeare's complete works; The Riverside Shakespeare has been ordered. You are responsible for general introductions as well as introductions to particular plays in the Riverside edition.

Course pack of supplementary materials available at Notes-'n-Quotes

The Bedford Companion to Shakespeare, Russ McDonald

Electronic materials: non-commercial web sites related to the study of Shakespeare's plays (many of these are accessible from my web page); video and audio tapes of Shakespeare's plays, especially those by the BBC, available at the LRD in Evans Library.

REQUIREMENTS & GRADING:

2 short essays..............................30% ^a
Term Quiz...................................30% ^b
Class group project......................20% ^c
Discussion questions.....................20% ^d
Final project...............................10% ^e

^a Short essays = 2 typed pages, 10-point, double-spaced, @ 15% each on assigned topics. Short essays are to be submitted at the beginning of classes for which they are assigned. Late essays will not be accepted unless there is a compelling , documentable, and university-recognized reason for failure to meet the due date: no excuses, no exceptions.

^b The term quiz will consist of a variety of short answers (in various formats including quotations from the plays, terms to be identified, and the like) covering materials from the plays as well as from group projects, the Bedford essays, and website materials.

^c Groups will outline and present to the class chapters in The Bedford Companion or analyses of web site materials. Assignments will be made the first week of class.

^d Each student will be responsible for a discussion question that focuses on a specific scene of on of the plays. Questions are to be submitted at the end of the class in which they are used.

^e The final project on The Tempest may be a brief essay on a topic to be determined or a group presentation of a scene from that play.

We will be spending one week during the semester (dates to be determined) in an English computer lab exploring the many websites available for the serious study of Shakespeare and the early modern period (a.k.a. the Renaissance.)

N.B. Consistent and regular attendance is taken for granted. University regulations will be observed: excessive unexcused absences (more than 3) will cause your final grade to be penalized as much as 10%. In addition, your participation should include constructive contributions to class discussion and prompt fulfillment of class assignments/requirements.