Hauptseminar Victorian London

London during Victorian times is smelly, dirty, disease-infested and poor; the city is full of beggars and harlots, orphans and criminals. Jack the Ripper waits behind a street corner, and a girl selling matches freezes to death while Queen Victoria lavishly mourns her dead husband Albert. William Acton, a leading British medical doctor, in 1862 words the final statement on female sexuality (-As a general rule, a modest woman seldom desires any sexual gratification for herself. She submits to her husband's embraces, but principally to gratify him; and, were it not for the desire of maternity, would far rather be relieved from his attentions.- [The Functions and Disorders of the Reproductive Organs in Childhood, Youth, Adult Age, and Advanced Life: Considered in Their Physiological, Social, and Moral Relations. 3rd Edition. London: Churchill, 1862. p. 102]. The Great Exhibition of 1851 displays the wonders of the Empire, and in 1858, the Thames, full of waste and excrement, smells so disgusting that Parliament -considered removing the entire government from the Westminster area—despite the newly constructed building they had only recently acquired- (http://www.choleraandthethames.co.uk/cholera-in-london/the-great-stink/). All of these clichés and catchphrases pertaining to 'Victorian Times' (can you define a period of 64 years with two words?) are true - and they aren't. In this seminar, we will focus critically on the historical and literary perception and depiction of Victorian London. The seminar might be accompanied by an excursion to London, further details during the first meeting. Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist William Blake, -London- Oscar Wilde, -The Harlot's House- Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde, -Impression du Matin- A.Conan Doyle, -The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle- Secondary Sources: Pamela Horn, Life as a Victorian Lady Michael Paterson, Life in Victorian Britain Walter E. Houghton, The Victorian Frame of Mind Stephen Marcus, The Other Victorians Martha Vicinus, Suffer and be Still. Women in the Victorian Age E. Royston Pike, Human Documents of the Victorian Golden Age Liza Picard, Victorian London Philip Davies, Lost London, 1870-1945 A.N. Wilson, London. A Short History Peter Ackroyd. London. The Biography Paul Bailey (ed.), The Oxford Book of London Voraussetzungen It is mandatory that you turn up for the first meeting, no exceptions. Students are expected to have read Oliver Twist and The Picture of Dorian Gray by the beginning of the term. Should there be too many students, there will be a quiz. Regular and active participation, oral report. Term paper or oral exam at the end, depending on the exam regulations. Leistungsnachweis Regular and active participation during all meetings, oral report (depending on the number of participants), research paper. FB 02 Institut für Anglistik / Amerikanistik It is mandatory that you turn up for the first meeting, no exceptions. Students are expected to have read Oliver Twist and The Picture of Dorian Gray by the beginning of the term. Should there be too many students, there will be a quiz. Regular and active participation, oral report. Term paper or oral exam at the end, depending on the exam regulations. Regular and active participation during all meetings, oral report (depending on the number of participants), research paper. Uni Kassel SoSe 2015 Lehrveranstaltungspool FB 02 English and American Studies Prof. Dr. Bach Susanne