ENGL 2035 - Shakespeare

Credits: 3
Hours/Week: Lecture 3
Course Description: This college literature course intended for all students explores William Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets in both their early modern context as well as their relevance today. The course engages the literary genres of plays and sonnets, examining the unique language of Shakespeare’s works. Focus also includes reading Shakespeare’s work as public discourse, offering a foundation for critical reflection on historical and contemporary civic life. 
MnTC Goals
MnTC Goal 6 - Humanities and the Fine Arts

MnTC Goal 9 - Ethical and Civic Responsibility

 

Prerequisite(s): Course placement into college-level English and Reading OR completion of ENGL 0950  with a grade of C or higher OR qualifying English Placement Exam OR completion of RDNG 0950  with a grade of C or higher OR completion of ESOL 0051  with a grade of C or higher and ESOL 0052  with a grade of C or higher.
Corequisite(s): None
Recommendation: ENGL 1020   with a grade of C or higher OR ENGL 1021  with a grade of C or higher.

Major Content
 

1. Shakespeare’s life and literary significance
2. Analysis of Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets:
   1. Critical reading of plays and sonnets
   2. Critical writing about plays and sonnets
3. Characteristics of at least three of the four classifications of Shakespeare’s plays: comedy, tragedy, history, romance
4. Elements of drama: character, plot, setting
5. Elements of sonnets: form, use of iambic pentameter
6. Elizabethan theatre conventions
7. Shakespeare and the Elizabethan Age
8. The play and sonnets as literary genres
9.  Shakespeare’s relevance in contemporary society

1. recognize the scope and variety of Shakespeare’s works and their engagement with ethical and civic dilemmas. 

2. analyze how Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets explore common questions of public life including justice, power, and social responsibility. 

3. interpret Shakespeare’s works critically, considering their commentary on citizenship, leadership, and rhetoric. 

4. evaluate how Shakespeare’s themes resonate with contemporary civic and ethical challenges. 

5. articulate personal and analytical responses to Shakespeare’s relevance in shaping civic awareness. 

• 09.01 Examine, articulate, and apply their own ethical views.
• 09.02 Understand and apply core concepts (e.g. politics, rights and obligations, justice, liberty) to specific issues.
• 09.03 Analyze and reflect on the ethical dimensions of legal, social, and scientific issues.
• 09.04 Recognize the diversity of political motivations and interests of others.
• 09.05 Identify ways to exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizenship

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