The British Literature course is a survey course that studies British literature beginning with Beowulf and proceeding to contemporary literature in the 20th century. We have a lecture series that students have access to on SetonOnline in which a lecturer points out the significance of the various texts they read throughout the course. I highly suggest students engage with the lecture videos since they can quite helpful in bolstering their understanding. In addition to various tests/exercises, students will also be completing a few stand-alone essays on the texts they read, like on Robinson Crusoe and Pride and Prejudice.
Similar to other HS English courses, British Literature also has Book Analysis assignments. The student chooses a novel from the approved list for quarters 1, 2, and 3 and writes two essays focusing on the theme, morality, conflict, or character traits. Unlike Literature and Composition and Literature Composition II, however, British Literature does not contain a research report.
For your benefit, here is a list of texts/excerpts students read in British Literature:
* Based on our experience, students who read the books in bold do better on their book analyses and tend to enjoy the books more
British Literature
Required Texts/Excerpts: Prose and Poetry of England by Seton, Beowulf, The Canterbury Tales: Prologue/Nun's Priest's Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Paradise Lost by John Milton, Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, and Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot.
Book Analysis Books
1st Quarter
The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
2nd Quarter
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
3rd Quarter
Silas Marner by George Eliot
Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis
The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith
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