ENGLISH 201
Introduction To This Web Course
English 201 consists of significant pieces of modern fiction, both short stories and
novels, American and European. Very little attention is going to be paid in this course
to critical terminology or literary jargon. The emphasis throughout will be upon the
student's own immediate and human experience in the reading of each work as a
separate entity. Formal criticism, it must be remembered, can only come after the
literary artifact, and whatever useful terminology exists (that tries to help us in the
classification and understanding of individual stories and novels) is based on an
intelligent and feeling perception of the primary work itself.
The readings, the questions contained in each lesson, and the midcourse and final
examinations are designed for any undergraduate interested in reading and responding
to an integral and vital part of his or her own world in the twentieth century. One need
have no prior or special historical orientation or have done much work (if any) in other
English courses. The essential prerequisites are an open and lively mind and heart,
and a willingness to expend some effort, with the expectation of a good return through
learning and enjoyment.
To enhance your appreciation of the universal relevance of literature, consider each
work read in this course, regardless of the specific time or place in which it was written,
as having been conceived by a human being passionately and intelligently occupied by
the same fundamental issues every human being has had at one time or another to
confront; and as being read by fellow human beings who share, consciously or not, the
same pressing concerns.
Keep faith with the author by allowing him to set his own terms for his writing and by
paying close attention to what he has written. As you read, give yourself to the author.
Use the literary text itself—all that was written by the creative author, starting with the
title of the work and concluding with the closing words of the final page—as the basis
for all interpretations. Use no study guides or other material (biographical, historical, or
what-have-you) extraneous to your own direct coming to terms with what is in front of
you.
Before attempting to answer the questions in any lesson, read the appropriate work
carefully, and read the discussion contained in that lesson. Return to the work itself as
