The epic forms an important aspect of Western Literature, and most (perhaps all) classically educated people read Homer's Iliad and Odyssey and Virgil's Aeneid. However, epic literature doesn't end with Virgil. Hundreds of epics were written after Virgil, but most are unread today. Not all of these epics are worth reading, but there are many epics which ought to be read more frequently and ought to be more widely known. Epic was widely understood in the ancient world to be a didactic form of poetry, and people expected to learn about their worlds and about themselves by reading these stories. This course gives students a chance to learn about themselves and the world they inhabit through early modern epics, frequently referred to as Heroick Poems.

This course covers four important works of epic literature that were each attempts to redraw the poetic landscape while acknowledging a profound debt to the great Greek and Roman epics. Over the course of the year, we will read Torquato Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered, Edmund Spencer's Faerie Queene (Book I), John Milton's Paradise Lost, and Richard Blackmore's epic Prince Arthur. Each of these epics presents a vision of the Christian hero which is well worth considering.

Course Objectives

To think carefully about epic in terms of both form and content (i.e. what makes an epic an epic?)
To learn literary judgment through exposure to excellent works
To en-culturate students into important works of the Christian West
To think critically about plots, characters, literary devices, and modes of expression

Assessesments

Students will be graded the following:

• participation in class discussion
• periodic notebook checks
• 4 critical essays

Required Materials

• Notebook, pencil, etc.
• Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered (edition TBD)
• Spencer's Faerie Queene (edition TBD)
• Milton's Paradise Lost (edition TBD)
• Blackmore's Prince Arthur (edition TBA)