Four by Austen

Peter Medine
Spring 2022
Wednesdays |  
1 PM - 4 PM
February 2, 9, 16, 23, March 2, 16, 23, 30, April 6, and 13, 2022
Course Format: Hybrid
Location: Main Campus
Tuition: $265

Attend In Person OR Online!
See Below for full details about our new Hybrid courses

We will study four Jane Austen novels and the reasons for their perennial appeal. Austen combines the patterns of romance—where the principal couple surmounts obstacles separating them and eventually marry—and the Bildungsroman—where the lovers come to know one another and thereby gain self-knowledge. She relies heavily on the narrative technique of “free indirect discourse.” The expression of thoughts and feelings comes not directly from an authoritative narrator but indirectly as if from within the character’s consciousness. The result is a probing depiction of the characters’ efforts to cope with the constraints of society and survive with their identities intact. Her prose is graceful and expressive, and the worlds of refined convention and romantic love are absorbing.

NEW – Hybrid Course Format

  • All classes will be delivered both in person and online via live video streaming. Students will enroll in their preferred format during registration.
  • In person classes will be held in the Rubel Room at the University of Arizona’s Poetry Center (1508 E Helen St, Tucson, AZ 85721). Enrollment for in person classes is limited by classroom capacity and offered on a first come, first served basis. All students attending on campus will observe the relevant University of Arizona policies designed to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 (more information here). Students who enroll to attend in person will also have complete online access to the course including all class recordings.
  • Online students may attend all classes via live video streaming and will be able to participate in all course Q&A sessions with the professor in real time. Students may also access class recordings for a limited time to assist those who may not be able to attend the live class times. Online access will be password protected and only available to enrolled students.

Registration Will Open Online:
Monday, November 22, 2021 at 8 AM (AZ Time)

Required Reading

Since discussion of the novels will consist largely of detailed analysis of particular passages, seminar participants should have the edition used by the instructor: the Dover Thrift editions of the novels listed below.

  • Emma. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1999. [ISBN 13:978 0 486 40648 0.]
  • Persuasion. Mineola, NY: Dover P ublications, 1997. [ISBN 13: 978 0 486 29555 8.]
  • Pride and Prejudice. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1995. [ISBN 13: 978 0 486 28473 6.]
  • Sense and Sensibility. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1996. [ISBN 13: 978 0 486 29049 2.]

Meet Your Instructor

Professor Emeritus

PETER E. MEDINE is Professor Emeritus at the University of Arizona, where he served in the English Department from 1969 to 2014. He has written, edited, or coedited seven books in Early Modern English studies. His most recent coedited book is Visionary Milton: Essays in Prophecy and Violence (2010). He is the recipient of several Humanities Seminars Superior Teaching Awards and the College of Humanities Award for Outreach Service.  

Location

POETRY CENTER
Dorothy Rubel Room
1508 E Helen
Tucson, AZ 85721
United States

Located on the SE corner of Helen Street and Vine Avenue, one block north of Speedway and three blocks west of Campbell Ave.

Street map image of Poetry Center

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