Course Description

In the nineteenth century, Britain expanded and consolidated its hold on overseas territories, becoming the world's preeminent superpower. As a result, Britain was integrally tied to foreign cultures and economies. The nation's very identity came to be defined in terms of its imperial activities. As the people of Britain grappled with the implications of their nation's global expansion project, the empire served as a pressing topic for political commentators, visual artists, and popular writers. This course will introduce students to nineteenth-century literary representations of empire, as we try to answer a number of questions about the connections between imperialism and Victorian popular culture: How were the people and places of empire represented to the British public? What were the chief attractions and anxieties associated with imperial commitments? How does literature help construct political and ideological realities?

Prospective students are cautioned that this course course boasts a particularly heavy reading load, even for a graduate-level course. The reading will average 300-400 pages per week, and will include scholarly essays, theoretical texts, and literary works. In addition, there will be a number of written assignments and a major research project. At the end of the semester, you'll know a lot about the empire and its literary representations, but you'll also be very tired.

Week Four:
War and Domesticity