English 597G: British Intellectual Prose, 1650-1800

Want to know who's in this class and what they're working on? 

Welcome to the home page for John T. Harwood's seminar on Restoration and 18th-century prose. At this web site you will find a syllabus for the class, links to general reference tools, and a wealth of information relating to 18th-century history and culture. This seminar surveys Restoration and 18th-century British literature, a period remarkable for its boldness of intellectual enquiry and aesthetic experimentation. We all hear the murmurs of millennial anxieties, but our century is hardly alone. Consider the great revolutions 1640, 1689, 1789. I would be surprised if the literature we read does not reflect the variety and vitality, the harmonies and dissonances, of this curiously long century.

Class time will deal with central texts, major critical issues addressed by the interpretive community committed to 18th-century studies, and with bibliographical resources and strategies for research in this area by present and future dix-huitièmistes.

As you can tell from the list of texts and the syllabus, this section of English 597 will deal only with the prose of the period. Whether you wish to see these works as texts or as contents, you will be enriched by struggling with the ideas and issues posed by these writers.

Assorted shorter works by Pepys, Boyle, Dryden, Evelyn, Law, Hume, Gibbon, and others as found in my packet that I will distribute in class.

Road Map for the Seminar

You will want to understand such things as the course requirements and schedule. You will recognize that the schedule is subject to change. You will also want to know about additional bibliographical resources, including early English newspapers and magazines. But probably the first thing you should think about is the bibliographical essay.

Web site created by Nicholas Felici; revised by John T. Harwood The animated gif on this page is used with the permission of the American Philatelic Society.