01 CAC TTH7 12146 TOMCO MU-211
From 1300 to 1800, the North Atlantic region experienced a period of intense cooling, leading to colder winters, crop failures, weather fluctuations, droughts, and even the freezing of the River Thames on a few occasions. We now call this the Little Ice Age. But what were the cultural responses to this climatological moment? This course will ask us to begin thinking about the relationship between literature and the environment. With our texts rooted in the Renaissance, we will move between drama and poetry, examining how figures such as William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, John Milton, and others represent the natural world. Along with our primary texts, we will also consider the works of prominent ecocritics and discuss how literature, the environment, and ethics come together. Grading will be based on attendance, short writing assignments, and two papers.