English 380 Calendar

ENGL 380: Love and Death: The Tristan Tradition

Spring, 2008 Dr. Debora B. Schwartz

Class meetings: TR 2-4, Rm. 2-13 http://www.calpoly.edu/~dschwart

Office: 47-35G, tel. 756-2636 Main English Office: 756-2597

Office Hours: M 12-1:30, W 11-12:30, T/R 12:30-1:30, and by appt. e-mail: dschwart@calpoly.edu

Calendar, Spring, 2008

Week

NOTE: DO NOT PRINT OUT THIS CALENDAR OF ASSIGNMENTS!! It is intended to be consulted online prior to each class meeting. (Print-out would be VERY long, and assignments are subject to change.)

Note 1: some required readings are accessed electronically. Electronically accessed readings may be in one of the following forms:

.PDF files placed on Electronic Reserve through the Library Resources section of Blackboard. To access Blackboard, log in at MyCalpoly, go to "Blackboard Access" and select "ENGL 380-01" from the classes you are taking. Click on the link in the Electronic Reserves section (under "Library Resources") to download and print the file using Acrobat Reader.
"Online readings" are simple .html files residing on my website. To access online readings, simply click on the link.

All electronically accessed readings should be completed prior to the class meeting for which they are assigned. Always PRINT THEM OUT, put them in a course binder, and be sure to BRING THEM WITH YOU TO CLASS.

Note 2: Occasionally, a link on the course calendar leads to an online study guide for an individual text. Be sure to PRINT OUT study guides and read them BEFORE you begin the primary reading assignment. Keep them in your course binder which you should always bring with you to class.

Note 3: This calendar is subject to change. You are advised to consult it on-line and/or to print out only one day's or week's assignment at a time. Please remember that the on-line calendar, not any print-out you make, is authoritative. Check weekly to ensure you are completing the correct assignment, as instructions may change or be added.

Aubrey Beardsley, How Sir Tristram Drank of the Love Drink (1893)

Week 1 (April 1-3)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
Introduction and background; course requirements and expectations. Please note that a GWR evaluative writing sample (not an actual GWR exam) can be taken by individual request only during office hours.

Day 2
TOPIC: What is this "Tristan" story, anyway?
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Read completely through the class homepage (no need to follow links, but pay particular attention to the information on the GWR, on Reading Quizzes, and on my attendance policy). YOU ARE EXPECTED TO BE FAMILIAR WITH THE COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EXPECTATIONS OUTLINED ON THIS SITE.

REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Joseph Bédier, The Romance of Tristan and Iseult (1900). You must read the WHOLE TEXT by this class meeting! (It looks long, but is in fact a fun and very fast read!) NOTE: if you do NOT enjoy this reading, you should probably drop this class, as we will be dealing exclusively with variations on this story for the entire quarter.

TEXT INFO: Joseph Bédier based this modern French retelling of the Tristan stories (1900) on extensive comparison of the extant medieval source material; he sought in this way to recreate the lost "original" text (but in fact created a distinctly 20th-century narrative). Translated into modern English by Hilaire Belloc and Paul Rosenfeld.
(Please note that you are responsible for all information listed as "TEXT INFO" or "FILM INFO" on the course calendar for your reading quizzes and exams!)

Week 2    (April 8-10)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: An episodic romance: Béroul, The Romance of Tristan.
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Translatio (online reading; click on link to access, PRINT IT OUT, and include in your course binder. You are responsible only for material which is also covered in lectures; you can safely ignore the rest);

The Medieval Tristan Tradition (online reading; click on link to access, PRINT IT OUT, and include in your course binder. This webpage presents essential background information on the Tristan texts dating from the Middle Ages).

"Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (online reading; click on link to access, PRINT IT OUT, and include in your course binder).

The REQUIRED online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" refers to the following medieval prologues and epilogue, which are RECOMMENDED readings for our class:

Marie de France, prologue and epilogue to the Fables and prologue to the Lais (.PDF file, 8 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; the links at left take you to relevant portions of the online reading).

Prologues to Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide and Cligés (in your Arthurian Romances textbook, the first two paragraphs of each work, found pp. 37 and 123; the links take you to the relevant portions of the online reading).

Please note that you are responsible for assigned background material for both quizzes and exams: this material includes all required background readings, as well as the information listed as "text info" or "film info" on this course calendar.
REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

An episodic romance: Béroul, The Romance of Tristan.   Reading assignment for today is ONLY Béroul's text, found pp. 39-148 of the Béroul textbook. Note 1: Be aware that the passages printed in italics are not part of Béroul's poem -- they are additions inserted by the translator to smooth out the choppiness of the incomplete narrative preserved in the single extant manuscript of Béroul's romance. These italicized passages -- which are required reading -- are taken from Bedier's reconstruction of the "whole" story (assigned for our second class meeting). Note 2: the episode of "Tristan's Madness" printed pp. 151-164 of the Béroul textbook is likewise not part of Béroul's text; it is an entirely separate episodic poem (assigned for our next class meeting) which the translator chose to incorporate into his narrative.

TEXT INFO:   Béroul wrote his romance, in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets, some time in the second half of the twelfth century; it appears to have influenced the work of Chrétien de Troyes (active ca. 1170-1190), so we assume it to predate those of Chrétien's works which show its influence. Preserved in only one manuscript, in a single fragment of 4,485 lines; this fragment is itself divided into various episodes.   Part of the so-called "common tradition."
NOTE: If you'd like, feel free to skim through the Introduction in the Béroul textbook (pp. 9-35) -- but please note that the material you will be tested on is what's found in required background readings and/or listed under "text info" here on the course calendar -- not what's presented in the textbook's Introduction.

Day 2
TOPIC: Competing Versions and Medieval Fragments (Marie de France, "Chevrefoil"; fragments of Thomas's Romance of Tristan; the independent episode of Tristan's Madness)
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Review The Medieval Tristan Tradition (this online reading, assigned for our last class meeting, should already be included in your course binder).

Appendix 1, "A Note on Thomas's Tristan," pp. 355-63 in Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan (a required textbook for this class)

Review "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (online reading originally assigned for 4/8/08; click on link to access it). If you have not already done so, PRINT IT OUT, place it in your course binder, and bring it with you to class. This reading should help you better understand the way in which the various authors whose works we are reading today appropriated and reworked portions of a story of which they were not the "original" authors.

The REQUIRED online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" refers to the following medieval prologues and epilogue, which are RECOMMENDED readings for our class:

Marie de France, prologue and epilogue to the Fables and prologue to the Lais (.PDF file, 8 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; the links at left take you to relevant portions of the online reading.) These short readings will provide an interesing context for understanding what Marie is doing in her lai, "Chevrefoil" (required primary reading for today's class) .

Prologues to Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide and Cligés (in your Arthurian Romances textbook, the first two paragraphs of each work, found pp. 37 and 123; the links take you to the relevant portions of the online reading).

REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Marie de France, "Chevrefoil" (.PDF file, 3 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, include it in your course binder, and BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS.)

Fragments of Thomas's Romance of Tristan: printed in Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 301-353 and Appendix 2, p. 364 ("The Scene in the Orchard")

Tristan's Madness (an independent episodic poem by an unknown author which is printed in Béroul, The Romance of Tristan, pp. 151-64).

TEXT INFO:

Marie de France was active ca. 1160s-1190s at the Anglo-Norman court; "Chevrefoil" is one of her collection of twelve lais, or short narrative poems in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets.

Thomas wrote his romance, also in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets, ca. 1170-75 for the Anglo-Norman court; eight fragments totalling more than 3000 lines have been preserved in five different manuscripts. Part of the so-called "courtly tradition."

There are two versions of the episode of Tristan's Madness (or "Folie Tristan"), both of which are short French narrative poems, probably dating from the second half of the twelfth century, in octosyllabic rhyming couplets. One is preserved in a single manuscript in Berne (Switzerland) and the other is in Oxford (England). The text we are reading is the 572-line Berne fragment (often referred to as the "Folie Tristan de Berne"); this text is associated with the so-called "common tradition" of which Béroul's poem is also a part (presumably, the reason the translator of Béroul's text chose to fold this originally independent text into his translation of Béroul).

NOTE: There will be several group screenings of the film which you must see PRIOR TO OUR CLASS MEETING on TH 4/17, Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979), The first two are THIS COMING WEEK-END, Sunday 4/13, from 4:00-6:00 and from 6:00 to 8:00 PM; another screening will take place on T 4/15 from 5:00--7:00 PM. The VHS cassette of the film (91 min.) is on reserve for ENGL 380 in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You may also be able to rent this film from NetFlicks , or find it locally at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store, at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere!

Group Screenings of Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979) in Library 202 onSUNDAY 4/13 from 4:00-6:00 and from 6:00-8:00 PM, as well as on T 4/15 from 5:00-7:00 PM.

Week 3 (April 15-17)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: An anti-Tristan: Chrétien de Troyes's Cligés
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Cligés Study Guide (online reading; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, place it in your course binder, and bring it with you to class). NOTE: this study guide should be read BEFORE you tackle the primary text itself; use it to guide your reading of Chrétien's romance.

Review "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (online reading originally assigned for 4/8/08; click on link to access it). If you have not already done so, PRINT IT OUT, place it in your course binder, and bring it with you to class. This reading should help you better understand the literary techniques employed by Chrétien (e.g. his borrowing from prior literary works, including numerous Tristan elements).

The REQUIRED online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" refers to the following medieval prologues and epilogue, which are RECOMMENDED readings for our class:

Marie de France, prologue and epilogue to the Fables and prologue to the Lais (.PDF file, 8 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; the links at left take you to relevant portions of the online reading.)

Prologues to Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide and Cligés (in your Arthurian Romances textbook, the first two paragraphs of each work, found pp. 37 and 123; the links take you to the relevant portions of the online reading).

REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Chrétien de Troyes, Cligés (in Arthurian Romances, required textbook, pp. 123-203).

TEXT INFO: Chrétien de Troyes was active ca. 1170-1190; Cligés, his second extant romance, is in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets.
Optional: follow link for information on Chrétien's The Knight of the Cart, the first Lancelot and Guenevere romance, which was also modelled on the Tristan romances, from which it borrows freely (includes e.g. variations on the flour on the floor episode, the ambiguous oath, a passion inspired by a woman's golden hair, and an adulterous passion linking a King's wife with his best knight).
NOTE: you are responsible only for the information listed above under "text info," NOT for additional material found on the linked Knight of the Cart page (an optional reading). You may also find it helpful to skim through the Introduction (pp. 1-25 in Arthurian Romances) -- but please note that the material you will be tested on is what's found in required background readings and/or listed under "TEXT INFO" on the course calendar -- not what's presented in optional readings such as the introduction to the textbook.
3rd Group Screening of Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979) in Library 202 from 5:00-7:00 PM.

Day 2
TOPIC: Tristan Film 1 -- Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979)
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Meradith McMunn, "Filming the Tristan Myth: From Text to Icon" (from Cinema Arthuriana, ed. Kevin J. Harty [New York: Garland, 1991], pp. 169-180; .PDF file, 6 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, include it in your course binder, and BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS.)

IMDB page on Tom Donovan's Lovespell (consult online and/or place print-out in course binder).

REQUIRED FILM:

Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979). NOTE: This film (91 min.) is REQUIRED VIEWING by today's class. Group Screenings in Library 202 will take place on Sunday 4/13 from 4:00-6:00 and from 6:00 to 8:00 PM; another screening will take place on T 4/15 from 5:00--7:00 PM. The VHS cassette of the film is on reserve in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You can also get this film from NetFlicks or rent it from Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store (2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). (To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere!)

FILM INFO: Film dates from 1979. Director: Tom Donovan; produced and written by Claire Labine (worth noting: the prior professional background of both Donovan and Labine was primarily in television soap operas). Starring Richard Burton (King Mark), Kate Mulgrew (Isolt), Nicholas Clay (Tristan), and Geraldine Fitzgerald (Bronwen). Alternate titles: Summer of the Falcon (UK title); Tristan and Iseult; Tristan and Isolde.

Week 4 (April 22-24) Note: if you have not already done so, you should CHOOSE A PAPER TOPIC and BEGIN WORK ON YOUR PAPER THIS WEEK-END! Paper 1 may be turned in at the last class meeting of week 4, or it may be submitted via email (as a Microsoft Word attachment) no later than 6 PM on Sunday, 4/27. Exception: persons writing on Gottfried's Tristan (only) may turn in their papers in class on Tuesday, 4/29 -- but please note thatYOUR PAPER MUST BE SUBMITTED BEFORE YOU TAKE THE MIDTERM EXAM!!

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: A Mega-Romance: Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Review the online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (which should already be in your course binder) to remind yourself of the issues involved in Gottfried's German adaptation of Thomas's French poem.

NEW online reading: "Courtly Love"; read for a better understanding of the treatment of love in Gottfried's poem.

(Remember, both of these REQUIRED readings will be covered on the midterm exam!)
REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 41-149.

TEXT INFO: written ca. 1210, Gottfried's Tristan, a German romance that is an adaptation or translatio (more than simply a "translation") of Thomas's romance, contains 19,416 lines in rhyming couplets; it breaks off (presumably because Gottfried died before finishing it) just after the point where the surviving fragments of Thomas begin. Part of the so-called "courtly tradition."
NOTE: You may also find it helpful to skim through the Introduction in the textbook (pp. 7-35) -- but please note that the material you will be tested on is what's found in found in required background readings and/or listed under "TEXT INFO" on this course calendar -- not what's presented in the introduction to the text.

Day 2
TOPIC: Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan, cont.
REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 150-248.

PAPER 1 may be turned in today, or it may be submitted via email (as a Microsoft Word attachment) no later than 6 PM on Sunday, 4/27. Exception: persons writing on Gottfried's Tristan (only) may turn in their papers in class on Tuesday, 4/29 -- but please note that YOUR PAPER MUST BE SUBMITTED BEFORE YOU TAKE THE MIDTERM EXAM!!

Week 5 (April 29-May 1)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan, concl.
REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 249-297.

Day 2
MIDTERM EXAM
NOTE: Group screenings of "Extended Scenes from Wagner's Opera Tristan und Isolde," the film which you must see PRIOR TO OUR NEXT CLASS MEETING (on T 5/6 ), are THIS COMING WEEK-END, on Sunday (5/4), from 4-6 AND from 6-8 PM in Library 202. The screening room is also reserved for the use of our class on MONDAY, 5/5, from 1:00-5:00 PM (it was already reserved by another group from 12-1 and from 5-9). The DVD of the performance (approx. 90 min.) is on reserve for ENGL 380 in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! Also, when you screen the DVD, BE SURE TO TURN ON THE ENGLISH SUBTITLES, or you will be VERY confused! You may also be able to get this film from NetFlicks, or to rent it locally (it is available at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere!
NOTE: Click on link to read the synopsis of the opera BEFORE viewing the video (approx. 90 min.).

Group screenings of the film which you must see PRIOR TO OUR CLASS MEETING on T 5/6, Extended Scenes from Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde (based on Gottfried's Tristan), will take place on Sunday 5/4 from 4-6 AND from 6-8 PM in Library 202. The screening room is also reserved for the use of our class on MONDAY, 5/5, from 1:00-5:00 PM (it was already reserved by another group from 12-1 and from 5-9). The first person arriving during one of these time slots will have to check out the DVD (on reserve at the circulation desk for ENGL 380 and ENGL 459) AND pick up the key for library room 202. Don't foget to turn on the English subtitles -- or you'll have a very odd viewing experience!!

Week 6 (May 6-8)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: Wagner's Opera Tristan und Isolde
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Synopsis of the opera (online reading to complete BEFORE viewing video; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, place in your course binder, and bring it with you to class).

Helmut Reichenbächer, "Richard Wagner's Adaptation of Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan" (from the University of Toronto Quarterly 67.4 [1998]: 762-67; .PDF file, 4 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard).

Also recommended:

Renee L. Curtis, "Wagner's Tristan und Isolde: The Transformation of a Medieval Legend" (from Tristania 8.2 [1983]: 3-14; .PDF file, 13 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard).

Fred Toner, "Wagner's Tristan und Isolde: A Transformation of the Medieval Legend" (from Chimères 1 [1981]: 49-65; .PDF file, 10 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard).

explore the Metropolitain Opera's Tristan und Isolde website.

REQUIRED FILM:

Extended scenes from Richard Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. DVD (approx. 90 min.) is REQUIRED VIEWING by today's class. Group Screenings will take place on SUNDAY 5/4 from 4-6 AND from 6-8 PM in Library 202. The screening room is also reserved for the use of our class on MONDAY, 5/5, from 1:00-5:00 PM (it was already reserved by another group from 12-1 and from 5-9). The first person arriving during one of these time slots will have to check out the DVD (on reserve at the circulation desk under ENGL 380/459) AND pick up the key for library room 202. Don't foget to turn on the English subtitles -- or you'll have a very odd viewing experience!! The DVD of the film (approx. 90 min.) may also be checked out for individual two-hour, in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE CIRCULATION DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! Note: You may be able to get this film from NetFlicks, and it is available locally at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store (at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it!

OPERA AND FILM INFO: Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde, composed 1857-59, was based on Gottfried's Tristan. The video of "Extended Scenes" (musical highlights linked by narration) presents excerpts from the 1976 Opéra du Québec production starring Jon Vickers as Tristan and Roberta Knie as Isolde, with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of conductor Franz-Paul Decker.

Day 2
TOPIC: The Victorian Era 1--Arnold and Tennyson
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

"Tristan and Isolt after the Middle Ages" from the Camelot Project website. (Follow link to access the required section of this online reading, which is only a small portion of the page itself; be aware that you do NOT need to print out the entire webpage, just the three final paragraphs of the essay, which begin at this link.)

First five paragraphs (up to 1852 publication of "Tristram and Iseult") of the Matthew Arnold Biography from the Victorian Web. (Feel free to read as much of the rest as you find interesting.)

Tennyson Author Page from the Camelot Project website.

Have a look at the paintings on the class homepageand spend some time browsing the 19th-century images of Tristan and Isolt and of King Mark on the Camelot Project website.

Also recommended (but NOT required):

E. D. H. Johnson's commentary on Arnold's "Tristram and Iseult" from the Victorian Web (follow link to access the relevant section of this OPTIONAL online reading; if you choose to print it out, be aware that the relevant passages are found in the middle of the essay, in the eleven paragraphs beginning at this link and ending here).

George P. Landow's commentary situating "The Last Tournament" with regards to the theme "Having Faith and Keeping Faith" in Tennyson's Idylls of the King (from the Victorian Web).

For more biographical information on Tennyson, see the Tennyson Biography from the Victorian Web.

REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Matthew Arnold, "Tristram and Iseult" (1852) (PDF file, 12 pp.);

Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "The Last Tournament" (1871; part of his Arthurian collection The Idylls of the King) (PDF file, 11 pp.)

Both poems are on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT THEM OUT, place them in your course binder, and BRING THEM WITH YOU TO CLASS.
TEXT INFO 1: British poet Matthew Arnold lived from 1822-1888. His "Tristram and Iseult" (1852), the first ninetheenth-century English treatment of the theme, is a narrative poem comprising a series of monologues and dialogues written in various forms of rhymed verse (primarily but not exclusively in couplets).
TEXT INFO 2: British poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson lived from 1809-1892. His "The Last Tournament" (1871) was published as part of The Idylls of the King (1859-1885), a collection of poems in blank verse (=unrhymed iambic pentameter) recounting the rise and fall of King Arthur.

Week 7 (May 13-15)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
As needed, continue discussion of Tennyson and Arnold.
NEW TOPIC: The Victorians and Pre-Raphaelitism 2 -- Algernon Charles Swinburne
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Review "Tristan and Isolt after the Middle Ages" from the Camelot Project website (assigned for last class meeting; follow link to access the required section of this online reading, which is only a small portion of the page itself; be aware that you do NOT need to print out the entire webpage, just the three final paragraphs of the essay, which begin at this link.)

Algernon Charles Swinburne Biography from the Victorian Web.

Have a look at the paintings on the class homepage and spend some time browsing the 19th-century images of Tristan and Isolt and of King Mark on the Camelot Project website.

REQUIRED PRIMARY READINGS:

Algernon Charles Swinburne, "Queen Yseult" (1857-1858) (PDF file, 27 pp.)

Algernon Charles Swinburne, "The Wife's Vigil," part VII of his long poem Tristram of Lyonesse (1882) (PDF file, 4 pp.)

Both poems are on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT THEM OUT, place them in your course binder, and BRING THEM WITH YOU TO CLASS.
Also highly recommended:

"Prelude," the opening section of Swinburne's Tristram of Lyonesse (and as much of the rest of the poem as you care to peruse); you can access this text in the online reading on the Camelot Project website.

TEXT INFO: British poet Algernon Charles Swinburne lived from 1837-1909. His early poem "Queen Yseult" (written 1857-1858) is divided into six "cantos" (or sections) written in tercets (i.e. three-line stanzas); all three lines of each tercet rhyme with each other, so that the rhyme scheme is "AAA BBB CCC" etc. The long narrative poem Tristram of Lyonessedates from 1882; it consists of a "Prelude" (highly recommended) and nine sections (only one of which is required reading, section VII, "The Wife's Vigil"); this work is written entirely in rhyming couplets (every two lines rhyme with each other, so that the rhyme scheme is "AA BB CC" etc.)

Day 2
As needed, continue discussion of Swinburne.
NEW TOPIC: 20th-Century Perspectives -- Reimagining Isolde of the White Hands
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Oscar Fay Adams biography from Sacklunch.net.

Maurice Baring biography from FantasticFiction.

Rhoda Pettit's Dorothy Parker Biography from the Modern American Poetry Site.

Have a look at the paintings on the class homepage and spend some time browsing the 20th-century images of Tristan and Isolt and of King Mark on the Camelot Project website.

REQUIRED PRIMARY READINGS:

Oscar Fay Adams, "The Pleasaunce of Maid Marian" (1906; .HTML file from the Camelot Project site);

Maurice Baring, "From the Diary of Iseult of Brittany" (1913; .HTML file from the Camelot Project site);

Dorothy Parker, "Guenevere at Her Fireside" (note reference to Tristan!) and "Iseult of Brittany" (both 1931; together in one PDF file, 2 pp.;on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard).

Be sure to PRINT OUT these readings and bring them with you to class!
NOTE: On your print-out of the Adams poem, you will need to WRITE IN LINE NUMBERS for every 5th line. For your numbering, count "Isolt the White, the daughter of a king," as line 1; thus, line 5 (the first you should number) is "Upon an autumn midnight drencht with rain."
HINT: the lines to count are those that begin at the left margin, with the exception of the two half-lines "False heart! False love!" in Iseult's song, each of which counts as a full line. Because lines in this poem are determined by syllable count, one numbered line may be printed over two subsequent lines; you will know to count only one line because the second of the two does not begin at the left margin. EXAMPLE: The following should be counted as three lines of text, although it is printed over four lines:
The sharp-fac'd damsel, clanging to the door,
Laught shrilly, crying out the while:
'Your guest,
Good cousin, is not to your mind, meseems.'
(Here, the second of the three countable line begins with "Laught" and ends with " 'Your guest,").
TEXT AND AUTHOR INFO:

The American poet Oscar Fay Adams lived from 1855-1919. He wrote a number of poems on Arthurian themes (available on the Camelot Project site), including "The Pleasaunce of Maid Marian" (1906), originally published in the volume Sicut Patribus and Other Verse. This poem is in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter).

British writer Maurice Baring lived from 1874-1945; among his close friends was Hilaire Belloc, the English translator of Bédier's Romance of Tristan and Iseult. "From the Diary of Iseult of Brittany" (1913) is a witty short story in prose which was originally published in the satirical collection Lost Diaries (London: Duckworth, 1913).

American writer Dorothy Parker lived from 1893-1967. She was a prominent member of the "Algonquin Round Table,"a literary circle of New York writers and intellectuals in the 1920s and 1930s. A prolific author of poetry, fiction, theater reviews and critical essays, she was a frequent contributor to The New Yorker (among many other publications). "Guenevere at Her Fireside" and "Iseult of Brittany" both date from 1931; they were originally published in the volume Death and Taxes. Both poems are in quatrains (four-line stanzas) of alternating rhyme (rhyme scheme "ABAB CDCD" etc.)

NOTE 1: Jean Delannoy's 1943 film L'Éternel retour (107 min.) must be screened prior to our next class meeting (on Tuesday 5/20). There will be several Group Screenings in Library 202, on TUESDAY 5/13 (6-8 PM); and on SUNDAY 5/18 (from 4-6 and 6-8 PM). The VHS cassette of the film is on reserve in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You are unlikely to be able to get this film from NetFlicks (unless it's recently been released on DVD). But it should be available locally at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store at 2161A Broad (between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere! (Be sure to inquire about the French title and both English titles if you do!)
NOTE 2: Nancy McKenzie's Prince of Dreams (2004), the novel assigned for Thursday 5/22, is a fun and easy read -- but a longer than usual reading chunk for a Thursday class. GET STARTED ON IT OVER THE WEEK-END!!

Group Screenings of Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (1943; also released as The Eternal Return and Love Eternal) in Library 202: Group Screenings in Library 202, on TUESDAY 5/13 (6-8 PM); and on SUNDAY 5/18 (from 4-6 and 6-8 PM).

Week 8 (May 20-22)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: Tristan Film 2 -- Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (1943)
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READINGS:

Phyllis Gaffney, "A Double-Sided Mirror: Cocteau's L'Eternel Retour and the Medieval Sources," Tristania 21 (2002): 105-21 (.PDF file, 9 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, include it in your course binder, and BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS).

IMDB page on Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (consult online and/or place print-out in course binder).

Also review comments on L'Éternel retour in Meradith McMunn, "Filming the Tristan Myth: From Text to Icon," assigned reading for Th 3/17 (.PDF file, 6 pp., which should already be in your course binder).

REQUIRED FILM:

Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (1943); this film (107 min.) is REQUIRED VIEWING by today's class. There will be several Group Screenings in Library 202, on TUESDAY 5/13 (6-8 PM); and on SUNDAY 5/18 (from 4-6 and 6-8 PM). The VHS cassette of the film is on reserve in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You may be able to get this film from NetFlicks, or possibly locally (try Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere! (Be sure to inquire about the French title and both English titles if you do!)

FILM INFO: Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (1943; also released as The Eternal Return and Love Eternal; black and white, in French with English subtitles). Directed by Jean Delannoy from a screenplay by Jean Cocteau. Cast: Jean Marais as Patrice (the Tristan role); Madeleine Sologne as Nathalie la blonde (Blonde Nathalie, the Isolde the Blonde/ Isolde of Ireland/ Queen of Cornwall role); Jean Murat as Marc; Junie Astor as Nathalie la brune (Brunette Nathalie, the Isolde of the White Hands role); Piéral as Achille Frossin (i.e.Frocin the Dwarf); Alexandre Rignault as Morholt.
NOTE: The novel assigned for Thursday 5/22 is a fun and easy read, but a longer than usual reading for a Thursday class. GET STARTED ON IT OVER THE WEEK-END!!

Day 2
TOPIC: Nancy McKenzie, Prince of Dreams (2004)
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Nancy McKenzie Biography from Gale Contemporary Authors (Kennedy Library subscription database).

You may also find it amusing to visit the website Nancy McKenzie's Arthurian Tales.
REQUIRED PRIMARY READING:

Nancy McKenzie, Prince of Dreams (2004), pts. 1-3 (pp. 3-205)

TEXT/AUTHOR INFO: American author, born 1948. Prince of Dreams is a novel written in prose that was originally published in 2004. McKenzie is apparently at work on a sequel, Dreamer of Lyonesse, that will trace the fates of Tristan the Younger, Ysaie the Sad, Aimee and Keridwen.

Week 9    (May 27-29)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
NO CLASS (Monday classes meet).

Day 2
TOPIC CHANGE: you will not be responsible for Nancy McKenzie's Prince of Dreams on our final exam -- although persons who completed (and enjoyed) this long novel will have the option of writing about it for their exam essay, and will benefit from some Bonus E.C. Questions focussing on it on the fianl exam.
NEW CLASS TOPIC: Contemporary American Fiction 1 -- John Updike
FIRST HOUR:

OPTIONAL Bonus Reading Quiz on Nancy McKenzie's Prince of Dreams. NOTE: you should NOT turn in this quiz if you think there's a chance it would pull down your quiz average; it is offered to students who have completed the novel as a reward for their efforts if they would benefit from the chance to improve their overall quiz average.

In class, students who did not know about this change in calendar will have the opportunity to read through the two (short) Updike readings (originally assigned for T 6/3/05; now listed below). Or, if you DID check your email/ this calendar of assignments and have already read the two Updike stories, you will have a nice long post-quiz break until the second hour of our class meeting!

SHOW ME PRINT-OUTS of the two Updike readings and I will add up to 2 BONUS PTS. -- one for each of the two print-outs -- to your reading quiz total before calculating your quiz average.

SECOND HOUR: Discussion of the two short stories by John Updike (listed below)
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

John Updike Biography and the two paragraphs discussing Brazil (scroll down within the Sidelights section), both in Gale's Contemporary Authors (a Kennedy Library subscription database).

REQUIRED PRIMARY READINGS:

John Updike, "Four Sides of One Story" (1966; PDF file, 8 pp.) and "Tristan and Iseult" (1994; .PDF file, 3 pp.).   Both stories are on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT THEM OUT, include them in your course binder, and BRING THEM WITH YOU TO CLASS);

TEXT AND AUTHOR INFO:

John Updike is an extremely prolific, living American author, born 1932, who has won multiple awards for his work (including two Pulitzer Prizes and two National Book Awards for fiction; for the full list, see his entry in the Gale's Contemporary Authors subscription database). Our readings are two short stories in English prose: "Four Sides of One Story" originally appeared in the collection The Music School: Short Stories (1966); "Tristan and Iseult" originally appeared in the collection The Afterlife and Other Stories (1994). Updike is also the author of the Tristan-themed novel Brazil (1994), a reimagining of the Tristan story set in laste twentieth-century Brazil.

NOTE: By our last class meeting, on Th 6/5, you will need to have screened TWO films: Veith von Fürstenberg's hard-to-findFire and Sword, a German-Irish made-for-European-television movie (1982, 84 min.; available only on VHS; a copy is on reserve in the Kennedy Library under ENGL 459); as well as Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde (2006; available from NetFlicks and at local video stores). Group Screenings will be set up in Library 202; scheduling details TBA.

Week 10 (June 3-5)

Topic and Readings

Day 1
TOPIC: Contemporary American Fiction 2 -- Steven Millhauser
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING:

Steven Millhauser Biography and the two paragraphs discussing The King in the Tree: Three Novellas (scroll down within the Sidelights section), both in Gale's Contemporary Authors (a Kennedy Library subscription database).

REQUIRED PRIMARY READINGS:

Steven Millhauser, "The King in the Tree" (2003; in the required textbook The King in the Tree: Three Novellas, pp. 141-242).

TEXT AND AUTHOR INFO:

Steven Millhauser is another living American author, born in 1943. The author of numerous novels and fiction collections, his awards include a Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1997 for Martin Dressler: The Tale of an American Dreamer (for the full list, see his entry in the Gale's Contemporary Authors subscription database). "The King in the Tree" (2003) is a novella written in English prose.

NOTE: By our last class meeting, on Th 6/5, you will need to have screened TWO films: Veith von Fürstenberg's hard-to-find Fire and Sword, a German-Irish made-for-European-television movie (1982, 84 min.; available only on VHS; a copy is on reserve in the Kennedy Library under ENGL 459); as well as Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde (2006; available from NetFlicks and at local video stores).
Group Screenings of Fire and Sword (only) will take place in Library 202 at the following dates and times: Sunday, Jun1 1, 4 PM and 6 PM; Tuesday, June 3, 6 PM; Wednesday, June 4, 10 AM amd 6 PM.

Day 2

TOPIC: Tristan Film 3 -- Veith von Fürstenberg's Fire and Sword(1982) and Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde (2006)
REQUIRED BACKGROUND READINGS:

IMDB pages on Veith von Fürstenberg's Fire and Sword (1982) and Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde (2006) (consult online and/or place print-outs in course binder).

Also review comments on Fire and Sword in Meradith McMunn, "Filming the Tristan Myth: From Text to Icon," assigned reading for Th 3/17 (.PDF file, 6 pp., which should already be in your course binder).

Keith Breese's (highly positive) review of Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde. (Consider whether you agree with his assessment!)

REQUIRED FILMS:

Veith von Fürstenberg's Fire and Sword (also called Feuer und Schwert), a German-Irish made-for-European-television movie (1982, 84 min.).

Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde (2006, 125 min.).

Group Screenings of Fire and Sword (only) will take place in Library 202 at the following dates and times: Sunday, Jun1 1, 4 PM and 6 PM; Tuesday, June 3, 6 PM; Wednesday, June 4, 10 AM amd 6 PM.

FILM INFO:

Director Veith von Fürstenberg's hard-to-find Fire and Sword (also called Feuer und Schwert, although it is in English), is a German-Irish made-for-European-television movie (1982, 84 min.; not available on DVD). Features Christoph Waltz as Tristan, Antonia Preser as Isolde, Leigh Lawson as Mark, and Peter Firth as Dinas.

Director Keith Reynolds's Tristan and Isolde (2006, 125 min.) is the most recent cinematic refashioning of the Tristan legend. It stars James Franco as Tristan, Sophia Myles as Isolde, and Rufus Sewell as Lord Marke.

PAPER 2, a revision of Paper 1, will be due no later than FRIDAY OF EXAM WEEK. Because I will NOT READ REVISED PAPERS unless I also have the original, marked up paper with my corrections and comments which I returned to you, you MUST turn that original draft in to me along with your revised paper. If you end up submitting the revised paper electronically after the date of our final exam, you MUST give me the original, marked up essay at the time of the exam. In that case, KEEP A COPY for yourself so you will have it as you polish your final revision!

There will be a three-hour, closed-book Final Exam on Tuesday, June 10, from 4:10 - 7:00 PM. You must take the exam at the scheduled time.KEEP THIS DATE IN MIND WHEN MAKING END-OF-QUARTER TRAVEL PLANS!

Contents of this and all linked pages Copyright Debora B. Schwartz, 2004-2008

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John Duncan, Tristram and Isolde (1912)

Spring, 2008		Dr. Debora B. Schwartz
Class meetings: TR 2-4, Rm. 2-13		http://www.calpoly.edu/~dschwart
Office: 47-35G, tel. 756-2636		Main English Office: 756-2597
Office Hours: M 12-1:30, W 11-12:30, T/R 12:30-1:30, and by appt.		e-mail: dschwart@calpoly.edu

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	Introduction and background; course requirements and expectations. Please note that a GWR evaluative writing sample (not an actual GWR exam) can be taken by individual request only during office hours.
Day 2	TOPIC: What is this "Tristan" story, anyway? REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Read completely through the class homepage (no need to follow links, but pay particular attention to the information on the GWR, on Reading Quizzes, and on my attendance policy). YOU ARE EXPECTED TO BE FAMILIAR WITH THE COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EXPECTATIONS OUTLINED ON THIS SITE. REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Joseph Bédier, The Romance of Tristan and Iseult (1900). You must read the WHOLE TEXT by this class meeting! (It looks long, but is in fact a fun and very fast read!) NOTE: if you do NOT enjoy this reading, you should probably drop this class, as we will be dealing exclusively with variations on this story for the entire quarter. TEXT INFO: Joseph Bédier based this modern French retelling of the Tristan stories (1900) on extensive comparison of the extant medieval source material; he sought in this way to recreate the lost "original" text (but in fact created a distinctly 20th-century narrative). Translated into modern English by Hilaire Belloc and Paul Rosenfeld. (Please note that you are responsible for all information listed as "TEXT INFO" or "FILM INFO" on the course calendar for your reading quizzes and exams!)

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	TOPIC: An episodic romance: Béroul, The Romance of Tristan. REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: *Translatio* (online reading; click on link to access, PRINT IT OUT, and include in your course binder. You are responsible only for material which is also covered in lectures; you can safely ignore the rest); The Medieval Tristan Tradition (online reading; click on link to access, PRINT IT OUT, and include in your course binder. This webpage presents essential background information on the Tristan texts dating from the Middle Ages). "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (online reading; click on link to access, PRINT IT OUT, and include in your course binder). The REQUIRED online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" refers to the following medieval prologues and epilogue, which are RECOMMENDED readings for our class: Marie de France, prologue and epilogue to the Fables and prologue to the Lais (.PDF file, 8 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; the links at left take you to relevant portions of the online reading). Prologues to Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide and Cligés (in your Arthurian Romances textbook, the first two paragraphs of each work, found pp. 37 and 123; the links take you to the relevant portions of the online reading). Please note that you are responsible for assigned background material for both quizzes and exams: this material includes all required background readings, as well as the information listed as "text info" or "film info" on this course calendar. REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: An episodic romance: Béroul, The Romance of Tristan. Reading assignment for today is ONLY Béroul's text, found pp. 39-148 of the Béroul textbook. Note 1: Be aware that the passages printed in italics are not part of Béroul's poem -- they are additions inserted by the translator to smooth out the choppiness of the incomplete narrative preserved in the single extant manuscript of Béroul's romance. These italicized passages -- which are required reading -- are taken from Bedier's reconstruction of the "whole" story (assigned for our second class meeting). Note 2: the episode of "Tristan's Madness" printed pp. 151-164 of the Béroul textbook is likewise not part of Béroul's text; it is an entirely separate episodic poem (assigned for our next class meeting) which the translator chose to incorporate into his narrative. TEXT INFO: Béroul wrote his romance, in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets, some time in the second half of the twelfth century; it appears to have influenced the work of Chrétien de Troyes (active ca. 1170-1190), so we assume it to predate those of Chrétien's works which show its influence. Preserved in only one manuscript, in a single fragment of 4,485 lines; this fragment is itself divided into various episodes. Part of the so-called "common tradition." NOTE: If you'd like, feel free to skim through the Introduction in the Béroul textbook (pp. 9-35) -- but please note that the material you will be tested on is what's found in required background readings and/or listed under "text info" here on the course calendar -- not what's presented in the textbook's Introduction.
Day 2	TOPIC: Competing Versions and Medieval Fragments (Marie de France, "Chevrefoil"; fragments of *Thomas's Romance of Tristan;* the independent episode of Tristan's Madness) REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Review The Medieval Tristan Tradition (this online reading, assigned for our last class meeting, should already be included in your course binder). Appendix 1, *"A Note on Thomas's Tristan,"* pp. 355-63 in Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan (a required textbook for this class) Review "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (online reading originally assigned for 4/8/08; click on link to access it). If you have not already done so, PRINT IT OUT, place it in your course binder, and bring it with you to class. This reading should help you better understand the way in which the various authors whose works we are reading today appropriated and reworked portions of a story of which they were not the "original" authors. The REQUIRED online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" refers to the following medieval prologues and epilogue, which are RECOMMENDED readings for our class: Marie de France, prologue and epilogue to the Fables and prologue to the Lais (.PDF file, 8 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; the links at left take you to relevant portions of the online reading.) These short readings will provide an interesing context for understanding what Marie is doing in her lai, "Chevrefoil" (required primary reading for today's class) . Prologues to Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide and Cligés (in your Arthurian Romances textbook, the first two paragraphs of each work, found pp. 37 and 123; the links take you to the relevant portions of the online reading). REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Marie de France, "Chevrefoil" (.PDF file, 3 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, include it in your course binder, and BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS.) Fragments of Thomas's Romance of Tristan: printed in Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 301-353 and Appendix 2, p. 364 ("The Scene in the Orchard") *Tristan's Madness* (an independent episodic poem by an unknown author which is printed in Béroul, The Romance of Tristan, pp. 151-64). TEXT INFO: Marie de France was active ca. 1160s-1190s at the Anglo-Norman court; "Chevrefoil" is one of her collection of twelve lais, or short narrative poems in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets. Thomas wrote his romance, also in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets, ca. 1170-75 for the Anglo-Norman court; eight fragments totalling more than 3000 lines have been preserved in five different manuscripts. Part of the so-called "courtly tradition." There are two versions of the episode of Tristan's Madness (or "Folie Tristan"), both of which are short French narrative poems, probably dating from the second half of the twelfth century, in octosyllabic rhyming couplets. One is preserved in a single manuscript in Berne (Switzerland) and the other is in Oxford (England). The text we are reading is the 572-line Berne fragment (often referred to as the "Folie Tristan de Berne"); this text is associated with the so-called "common tradition" of which Béroul's poem is also a part (presumably, the reason the translator of Béroul's text chose to fold this originally independent text into his translation of Béroul). NOTE: There will be several group screenings of the film which you must see PRIOR TO OUR CLASS MEETING on TH 4/17, Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979), The first two are THIS COMING WEEK-END, Sunday 4/13, from 4:00-6:00 and from 6:00 to 8:00 PM; another screening will take place on T 4/15 from 5:00--7:00 PM. The VHS cassette of the film (91 min.) is on reserve for ENGL 380 in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You may also be able to rent this film from NetFlicks , or find it locally at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store, at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere!

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	TOPIC: An anti-Tristan: Chrétien de Troyes's Cligés REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Cligés Study Guide (online reading; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, place it in your course binder, and bring it with you to class). NOTE: this study guide should be read BEFORE you tackle the primary text itself; use it to guide your reading of Chrétien's romance. Review "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (online reading originally assigned for 4/8/08; click on link to access it). If you have not already done so, PRINT IT OUT, place it in your course binder, and bring it with you to class. This reading should help you better understand the literary techniques employed by Chrétien (e.g. his borrowing from prior literary works, including numerous Tristan elements). The REQUIRED online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" refers to the following medieval prologues and epilogue, which are RECOMMENDED readings for our class: Marie de France, prologue and epilogue to the Fables and prologue to the Lais (.PDF file, 8 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; the links at left take you to relevant portions of the online reading.) Prologues to Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide and Cligés (in your Arthurian Romances textbook, the first two paragraphs of each work, found pp. 37 and 123; the links take you to the relevant portions of the online reading). REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Chrétien de Troyes, Cligés (in Arthurian Romances, required textbook, pp. 123-203). TEXT INFO: Chrétien de Troyes was active ca. 1170-1190; *Cligés,* his second extant romance, is in French octosyllabic rhyming couplets. Optional: follow link for information on Chrétien's The Knight of the Cart, the first Lancelot and Guenevere romance, which was also modelled on the Tristan romances, from which it borrows freely (includes e.g. variations on the flour on the floor episode, the ambiguous oath, a passion inspired by a woman's golden hair, and an adulterous passion linking a King's wife with his best knight). NOTE: you are responsible only for the information listed above under "text info," NOT for additional material found on the linked Knight of the Cart page (an optional reading). You may also find it helpful to skim through the Introduction (pp. 1-25 in Arthurian Romances) -- but please note that the material you will be tested on is what's found in required background readings and/or listed under "TEXT INFO" on the course calendar -- not what's presented in optional readings such as the introduction to the textbook. 3rd Group Screening of Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979) in Library 202 from 5:00-7:00 PM.
Day 2	TOPIC: Tristan Film 1 -- Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979) REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Meradith McMunn, "Filming the Tristan Myth: From Text to Icon" (from Cinema Arthuriana, ed. Kevin J. Harty [New York: Garland, 1991], pp. 169-180; .PDF file, 6 pp., on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, include it in your course binder, and BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS.) IMDB page on Tom Donovan's Lovespell (consult online and/or place print-out in course binder). REQUIRED FILM: Tom Donovan's Lovespell (1979). NOTE: This film (91 min.) is REQUIRED VIEWING by today's class. Group Screenings in Library 202 will take place on Sunday 4/13 from 4:00-6:00 and from 6:00 to 8:00 PM; another screening will take place on T 4/15 from 5:00--7:00 PM. The VHS cassette of the film is on reserve in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You can also get this film from NetFlicks or rent it from Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store (2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). (To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere!) FILM INFO: Film dates from 1979. Director: Tom Donovan; produced and written by Claire Labine (worth noting: the prior professional background of both Donovan and Labine was primarily in television soap operas). Starring Richard Burton (King Mark), Kate Mulgrew (Isolt), Nicholas Clay (Tristan), and Geraldine Fitzgerald (Bronwen). Alternate titles: Summer of the Falcon (UK title); Tristan and Iseult; Tristan and Isolde.

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	TOPIC: A Mega-Romance: Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Review the online reading "Medieval Attitudes toward Vernacular Literature" (which should already be in your course binder) to remind yourself of the issues involved in Gottfried's German adaptation of Thomas's French poem. NEW online reading: "Courtly Love"; read for a better understanding of the treatment of love in Gottfried's poem. (Remember, both of these REQUIRED readings will be covered on the midterm exam!) REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 41-149. TEXT INFO: written ca. 1210, Gottfried's Tristan, a German romance that is an adaptation or translatio (more than simply a "translation") of Thomas's romance, contains 19,416 lines in rhyming couplets; it breaks off (presumably because Gottfried died before finishing it) just after the point where the surviving fragments of Thomas begin. Part of the so-called "courtly tradition." NOTE: You may also find it helpful to skim through the Introduction in the textbook (pp. 7-35) -- but please note that the material you will be tested on is what's found in found in required background readings and/or listed under "TEXT INFO" on this course calendar -- not what's presented in the introduction to the text.
Day 2	*TOPIC: Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan, cont.* REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Gottfried von Strassburg, Tristan, pp. 150-248. PAPER 1 may be turned in today, or it may be submitted via email (as a Microsoft Word attachment) no later than 6 PM on Sunday, 4/27. Exception: persons writing on Gottfried's Tristan (only) may turn in their papers in class on Tuesday, 4/29 -- but please note that YOUR PAPER MUST BE SUBMITTED BEFORE YOU TAKE THE MIDTERM EXAM!!

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	TOPIC: Wagner's Opera Tristan und Isolde REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Synopsis of the opera (online reading to complete BEFORE viewing video; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, place in your course binder, and bring it with you to class). *Helmut Reichenbächer, "Richard Wagner's Adaptation of Gottfried von Strassburg's Tristan"* (from the University of Toronto Quarterly 67.4 [1998]: 762-67; .PDF file, 4 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard). Also recommended: Renee L. Curtis, "Wagner's Tristan und Isolde: The Transformation of a Medieval Legend" (from Tristania 8.2 [1983]: 3-14; .PDF file, 13 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard). Fred Toner, "Wagner's Tristan und Isolde: A Transformation of the Medieval Legend" (from Chimères 1 [1981]: 49-65; .PDF file, 10 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard). explore the Metropolitain Opera's Tristan und Isolde website. REQUIRED FILM: Extended scenes from Richard Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. DVD (approx. 90 min.) is REQUIRED VIEWING by today's class. Group Screenings will take place on SUNDAY 5/4 from 4-6 AND from 6-8 PM in Library 202. The screening room is also reserved for the use of our class on MONDAY, 5/5, from 1:00-5:00 PM (it was already reserved by another group from 12-1 and from 5-9). The first person arriving during one of these time slots will have to check out the DVD (on reserve at the circulation desk under ENGL 380/459) AND pick up the key for library room 202. Don't foget to turn on the English subtitles -- or you'll have a very odd viewing experience!! The DVD of the film (approx. 90 min.) may also be checked out for individual two-hour, in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE CIRCULATION DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! Note: You may be able to get this film from NetFlicks, and it is available locally at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store (at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it! *OPERA AND FILM INFO: Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde, composed 1857-59,* was based on Gottfried's Tristan. The video of "Extended Scenes" (musical highlights linked by narration) presents excerpts from the 1976 Opéra du Québec production starring Jon Vickers as Tristan and Roberta Knie as Isolde, with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of conductor Franz-Paul Decker.
Day 2	TOPIC: The Victorian Era 1--Arnold and Tennyson REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: "Tristan and Isolt after the Middle Ages" from the Camelot Project website. (Follow link to access the required section of this online reading, which is only a small portion of the page itself; be aware that you do NOT need to print out the entire webpage, just the three final paragraphs of the essay, which begin at this link.) First five paragraphs (up to 1852 publication of "Tristram and Iseult") of the Matthew Arnold Biography from the Victorian Web. (Feel free to read as much of the rest as you find interesting.) Tennyson Author Page from the Camelot Project website. Have a look at the paintings on the class homepageand spend some time browsing the 19th-century images of Tristan and Isolt and of King Mark on the Camelot Project website. Also recommended (but NOT required): E. D. H. Johnson's commentary on Arnold's "Tristram and Iseult" from the Victorian Web (follow link to access the relevant section of this OPTIONAL online reading; if you choose to print it out, be aware that the relevant passages are found in the middle of the essay, in the eleven paragraphs beginning at this link and ending here). George P. Landow's commentary situating "The Last Tournament" with regards to the theme "Having Faith and Keeping Faith" in Tennyson's Idylls of the King (from the Victorian Web). For more biographical information on Tennyson, see the Tennyson Biography from the Victorian Web. REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Matthew Arnold, "Tristram and Iseult" (1852) (PDF file, 12 pp.); Alfred, Lord Tennyson, "The Last Tournament" (1871; part of his Arthurian collection *The Idylls of the King) (PDF file, 11 pp.) Both poems are on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT THEM OUT, place them in your course binder, and BRING THEM WITH YOU TO CLASS. TEXT INFO 1: British* poet Matthew Arnold lived from 1822-1888. His "Tristram and Iseult" (1852), the first ninetheenth-century English treatment of the theme, is a narrative poem comprising a series of monologues and dialogues written in various forms of rhymed verse (primarily but not exclusively in couplets). TEXT INFO 2: British poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson lived from 1809-1892. His "The Last Tournament" (1871) was published as part of *The Idylls of the King* (1859-1885), a collection of poems in blank verse (=unrhymed iambic pentameter) recounting the rise and fall of King Arthur.

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	As needed, continue discussion of Tennyson and Arnold. NEW TOPIC: The Victorians and Pre-Raphaelitism 2 -- Algernon Charles Swinburne REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Review "Tristan and Isolt after the Middle Ages" from the Camelot Project website (assigned for last class meeting; follow link to access the required section of this online reading, which is only a small portion of the page itself; be aware that you do NOT need to print out the entire webpage, just the three final paragraphs of the essay, which begin at this link.) Algernon Charles Swinburne Biography from the Victorian Web. Have a look at the paintings on the class homepage and spend some time browsing the 19th-century images of Tristan and Isolt and of King Mark on the Camelot Project website. REQUIRED PRIMARY READINGS: Algernon Charles Swinburne, "Queen Yseult" (1857-1858) (PDF file, 27 pp.) Algernon Charles Swinburne, "The Wife's Vigil," part VII of his long poem Tristram of Lyonesse (1882) (PDF file, 4 pp.) Both poems are on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT THEM OUT, place them in your course binder, and BRING THEM WITH YOU TO CLASS. Also highly recommended: "Prelude," the opening section of Swinburne's *Tristram of Lyonesse* (and as much of the rest of the poem as you care to peruse); you can access this text in the online reading on the Camelot Project website. TEXT INFO: British poet Algernon Charles Swinburne lived from 1837-1909. His early poem "Queen Yseult" (written 1857-1858) is divided into six "cantos" (or sections) written in tercets (i.e. three-line stanzas); all three lines of each tercet rhyme with each other, so that the rhyme scheme is "AAA BBB CCC" etc. The long narrative poem *Tristram of Lyonessedates from 1882; it consists of a "Prelude" (highly recommended) and nine sections (only one of which is required reading, section VII, "The Wife's Vigil");* this work is written entirely in rhyming couplets (every two lines rhyme with each other, so that the rhyme scheme is "AA BB CC" etc.)
Day 2	As needed, continue discussion of Swinburne. NEW TOPIC: 20th-Century Perspectives -- Reimagining Isolde of the White Hands REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Oscar Fay Adams biography from Sacklunch.net. Maurice Baring biography from FantasticFiction. Rhoda Pettit's Dorothy Parker Biography from the Modern American Poetry Site. Have a look at the paintings on the class homepage and spend some time browsing the 20th-century images of Tristan and Isolt and of King Mark on the Camelot Project website. REQUIRED PRIMARY READINGS: Oscar Fay Adams, "The Pleasaunce of Maid Marian" (1906; .HTML file from the Camelot Project site); Maurice Baring, "From the Diary of Iseult of Brittany" (1913; .HTML file from the Camelot Project site); Dorothy Parker, "Guenevere at Her Fireside" (note reference to Tristan!) and "Iseult of Brittany" (both 1931; together in one PDF file, 2 pp.;on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard). Be sure to PRINT OUT these readings and bring them with you to class! NOTE: On your print-out of the Adams poem, you will need to WRITE IN LINE NUMBERS for every 5th line. For your numbering, count "Isolt the White, the daughter of a king," as line 1; thus, line 5 (the first you should number) is "Upon an autumn midnight drencht with rain." HINT: the lines to count are those that begin at the left margin, with the exception of the two half-lines "False heart! False love!" in Iseult's song, each of which counts as a full line. Because lines in this poem are determined by syllable count, one numbered line may be printed over two subsequent lines; you will know to count only one line because the second of the two does not begin at the left margin. EXAMPLE: The following should be counted as three lines of text, although it is printed over four lines: The sharp-fac'd damsel, clanging to the door, Laught shrilly, crying out the while: 'Your guest, Good cousin, is not to your mind, meseems.' (Here, the second of the three countable line begins with "Laught" and ends with " 'Your guest,"). TEXT AND AUTHOR INFO: The American poet Oscar Fay Adams lived from 1855-1919. He wrote a number of poems on Arthurian themes (available on the Camelot Project site), including "The Pleasaunce of Maid Marian" (1906), originally published in the volume Sicut Patribus and Other Verse. This poem is in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter). British writer Maurice Baring lived from 1874-1945; among his close friends was Hilaire Belloc, the English translator of Bédier's Romance of Tristan and Iseult. "From the Diary of Iseult of Brittany" (1913) is a witty short story in prose which was originally published in the satirical collection Lost Diaries (London: Duckworth, 1913). American writer Dorothy Parker lived from 1893-1967. She was a prominent member of the "Algonquin Round Table,"a literary circle of New York writers and intellectuals in the 1920s and 1930s. A prolific author of poetry, fiction, theater reviews and critical essays, she was a frequent contributor to The New Yorker (among many other publications). "Guenevere at Her Fireside" and "Iseult of Brittany" both date from 1931; they were originally published in the volume Death and Taxes. Both poems are in quatrains (four-line stanzas) of alternating rhyme (rhyme scheme "ABAB CDCD" etc.) NOTE 1: Jean Delannoy's 1943 film L'Éternel retour (107 min.) must be screened prior to our next class meeting (on Tuesday 5/20). There will be several Group Screenings in Library 202, on TUESDAY 5/13 (6-8 PM); and on SUNDAY 5/18 (from 4-6 and 6-8 PM). The VHS cassette of the film is on reserve in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You are unlikely to be able to get this film from NetFlicks (unless it's recently been released on DVD). But it should be available locally at Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store at 2161A Broad (between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere! (Be sure to inquire about the French title and both English titles if you do!) NOTE 2: Nancy McKenzie's Prince of Dreams (2004), the novel assigned for Thursday 5/22, is a fun and easy read -- but a longer than usual reading chunk for a Thursday class. GET STARTED ON IT OVER THE WEEK-END!!

	Topic and Readings
Day 1	*TOPIC: Tristan Film 2 -- Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour* (1943) REQUIRED BACKGROUND READINGS*: Phyllis Gaffney, "A Double-Sided Mirror: Cocteau's L'Eternel Retour* and the Medieval Sources," Tristania 21 (2002): 105-21 (.PDF file, 9 pp.; on e-reserve in the Library Resources section of Blackboard; be sure to PRINT IT OUT, include it in your course binder, and BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS). IMDB page on Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour (consult online and/or place print-out in course binder). Also review comments on L'Éternel retour in Meradith McMunn, "Filming the Tristan Myth: From Text to Icon," assigned reading for Th 3/17 (.PDF file, 6 pp., which should already be in your course binder). REQUIRED FILM: *Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour* (1943); this film (107 min.) is REQUIRED VIEWING by today's class. There will be several Group Screenings in Library 202, on TUESDAY 5/13 (6-8 PM); and on SUNDAY 5/18 (from 4-6 and 6-8 PM). The VHS cassette of the film is on reserve in Kennedy Library, so you can also check it out on your own time for independent in-library viewing -- BUT BE SURE IT IS RETURNED TO THE RESERVE DESK BY 1/2 HOUR BEFORE SCHEDULED GROUP SCREENINGS!! You may be able to get this film from NetFlicks, or possibly locally (try Insomniac, SLO's fabulous independent video store** at 2161A Broad, between South and Branch; tel. 545-8866). To my knowledge, it is not available at other local video stores -- but feel free to call around, and let me know if you find it elsewhere! (Be sure to inquire about the French title and both English titles if you do!) *FILM INFO: Jean Delannoy's L'Éternel retour* (1943; also released as The Eternal Return** and Love Eternal; black and white, in French with English subtitles). Directed by Jean Delannoy from a screenplay by Jean Cocteau. Cast: Jean Marais as Patrice (the Tristan role); Madeleine Sologne as Nathalie la blonde (Blonde Nathalie, the Isolde the Blonde/ Isolde of Ireland/ Queen of Cornwall role); Jean Murat as Marc; Junie Astor as Nathalie la brune (Brunette Nathalie, the Isolde of the White Hands role); Piéral as Achille Frossin (i.e.Frocin the Dwarf); Alexandre Rignault as Morholt. NOTE: The novel assigned for Thursday 5/22 is a fun and easy read, but a longer than usual reading for a Thursday class. GET STARTED ON IT OVER THE WEEK-END!!
Day 2	TOPIC: Nancy McKenzie, Prince of Dreams (2004) REQUIRED BACKGROUND READING: Nancy McKenzie Biography from Gale Contemporary Authors (Kennedy Library subscription database). You may also find it amusing to visit the website Nancy McKenzie's Arthurian Tales. REQUIRED PRIMARY READING: Nancy McKenzie, Prince of Dreams (2004), pts. 1-3 (pp. 3-205) TEXT/AUTHOR INFO: American author, born 1948. Prince of Dreams is a novel written in prose that was originally published in 2004. McKenzie is apparently at work on a sequel, Dreamer of Lyonesse, that will trace the fates of Tristan the Younger, Ysaie the Sad, Aimee and Keridwen.