English 609.43/519.30 - Geoffrey Chaucer

Instructor:  Dr. Murray McGillivray

Tuesday, 9:00 - 11:30

Mail to: mmcgilli [at] ucalgary [dot] ca

Course Description:

The works of Geoffrey Chaucer have been a magnet for new theoretical and critical approaches in Middle English studies for more than forty years. In this course, the literary works of Geoffrey Chaucer (excluding, therefore, his translations of Boethius and of the Roman de la rose and his treatise on the astrolabe) will be read against this background of contemporary theory and criticism. In particular, we will explore approaches such as exegetical criticism, feminist criticism, queer theory, New Historicism, Postcolonial readings, and the recent turn against "theoretical" approaches. No previous background in Middle English or Chaucer is required, but students who do not have such a background would be well advised to practice their Middle English reading skills before the beginning of the course, preferably by reading at least the Canterbury Tales before the course begins.

Primary Text: The Riverside Chaucer, ed. Benson