This course will explore the idea of “England” through British literature, poetry, histrorical texts, and film by asking students to consider it as a constructed space that cultural producers have sought to “reboot” almost since its inception. A term borrowed from the lexicon of computing, to “reboot” means to restart a machine or operating system. In cultural and literary terms, “rebooting” means something similar: to start anew with fresh ideas in a way that is consistent with the principals of the original, but not unnecessarily constrained by what has taken place before. Beginning with a reading of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Britonum and the notion that Britain derives its name from Brutus, the alleged great-grandson of Aeneas (who, arguably, arrived on English shores with the idea of rebooting Troy), students will move through redactions of Arthurian legend, Shakespearean drama (our focus will be on the particularity with which contemporary performances of Shakespeare are inevitably in conversation with contemporary articulations of Englishness) and conclude with a consideration of how nineteenth century London novel (as exemplified by Dickens) compares with the twenty-first century productions of Zadie Smith, Hanif Kureishi, and the BBC rebooting of Sherlock.
I’ve always been one to overthink things. I feel often I contradict my go with the flow, mellow attitude, because most of the time my brain underneath my usual calm demeanor is going a million miles per hour. Coming to England has been a lot of emotions wrapped up into a short amount of time,…
I was standing on top of Port Isaac, or at least I was as close as a person could be to such a place. With my eyes closed I felt like I could be anywhere I wanted to be. Where I was did not matter. My hands were stretched high over my head and my…
There are very few places that capture the picturesque and beauty of Port Isaac- a fishing village located in the Cornwall region of western England. Rolling hills of square cut fields plaster the landscape, blanketing the countryside in a lazy wave of green. The fields go on for what seems like forever, are…
As I look out upon the bay I am struck by how much beauty can be in one place. One would think that it should not be possible to have such a concentrated amount of breathtaking scenery in such a small town. Yet, Port Isaac defies the odds. I am actually very excited for the…
Samantha Silverman August 27th, 2015 Stratford-upon-Avon I Guess That This Must Be The Place I have always struggled with the concept of home. I’m not sure what that says about me, but only recently have I begun to value the place, the collection of people, that is my home, for what…
Two Roses and Two Thorns: Rose: The people here are so much more friendly and welcoming than I anticipated. Maybe it’s because we’re not in the city and non-city people in general are just more friendly? Either way, I’m highly impressed. Today, we went to Warwick to visit an ancient castle and after I had…
As we cruise by the green farmlands of southern England, I can’t help from imagining red dragons occupying the city of Mooreland or giants fighting in the vast farmland. The pure lure of the land outside the windows take me back to Maine, racing down Route One on the way to Boston. The rest of…
It is so fascinating how structure defines place and it’s society. We are so accustomed to where we are that we forget to stop and notice the way in which we subconsciously conform to the movement that surrounds us. Yes we feel free, but what we often forget to realise is that there is a…
