During our twelve weeks in England we are studying various topics that are relevant to British and American literature and history, plus anything else that we may stumble upon. The following is some information about the classes that we are taking:
 
 

• History of England and Ireland (1485-1688):   The course offers a survey history of the Tudor and Stuart Britain.  The period played a major role in defining the political and religious character of Britain.  The course will consider major developments of the period including the English Reformation; the emergence of the nation state; the rise of Puritanism; the origins of the British Empire; the Civil War, the Interregnum and the Restoration.  The English explored the settled North America during the period under consideration.

• History of England and Ireland (1688-1832):   This course offers a thematic survey of the period dubbed the long 18th Century.  We trace the rise of Britain to world power with the largest empire in history despite the loss of the 13 colonies; the ascendancy of a parliamentary system of government in which the powers of the monarchy were limited; the construction of a British identity; the rise of a middle class; humanitarian reforms including the abolition of slavery; the broadening of political representation and the making of the first industrial revolution.

• The Old World and the New:  Designed to enhance our experiences abroad, this team-taught course allows us to explore the ways that Americans and Europeans have viewed one another over time.  "Encounter" literature from the Renaissance to the present, as well as our own encounters with a different culture, forms the textual basis for this course.

• Transgressive Voices in Literature:  From medieval times to the present, voices in literature have often challenged the status quo.  Featuring a broad spectrum of British literature, this course focuses on moments of dissidence and their historical/cultural significance; we pay particular attention to images of women in this context, but also to writers associated with Cambridge.

• Shakespeare in Performance:  This course is based on live productions as presented on British stages.  While informed by various critical perspectives of these plays, we consider a wide range of interpretations of the printed texts and compare them to interpretive choices in production.