Self-Paced High School Literature 2: The Middle Ages

This literature course starts with a translation of the Anglo-Saxon classic and covers a couple of medieval masterpieces, before spending time in the legends of King Arthur and a couple of other influential works. Then we take our time and soak in the English language's greatest and most important writer, William Shakespeare. The course concludes with a quick look at the metaphysical poets of the 17th century. See course book list below.

For this self-paced class:

• Students have access to recorded lectures from their course and can choose which books to read and in what order.
• Students will have access to weekly reading pacing guides and auto-grade quizzes.
• This class does not include live class sessions or teacher support.
• All recordings will be available from September 2 through the end of the following August.

Book & Reading List

There are many options for acquiring these books. You can order them from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or another online retailer. If you want to save money, you can check them out of the library. For most of them, you can get e-book versions or access them online and read them on your computer screen. Please note any particular edition or translation, as those are the ones you need; if no specifics are included, any version will work.

• Beowulf (Seamus Heaney translation)
• The Inferno, by Dante (John Ciardi translation)
• The Canterbury Tales, by Chaucer (We will be reading the Prologue and four tales. You can find them online, but I recommend purchasing the whole book.)
• The Prologue
• “The Knight’s Tale”
• “The Franklin’s Tale”
• “The Pardoner’s Tale”
• “The Nun’s Priest’s Tale”

• “Gawain and the Green Knight” (J.R.R. Tolkien translation, though other translations can work)
• The Once and Future King, by T.S. White
• Le Morte D’Arthur, Sir Thomas Malory (We are only reading short excerpts from this book, and I’ve provided them in digital form in the syllabus. You don’t have to buy anything.)
• Utopia, by Thomas More
• Fierce Wars and Faithful Loves: Book I of Spenser’s The Faerie Queene, by Roy Maynard 
• Various Essays by Michel de Montaigne (Nothing to buy here; digital copies provided.)
• Dr. Faustus, by Christopher Marlowe
• Hamlet, by William Shakespeare
• Macbeth, by William Shakespeare
• Henry IV, Part 1, by William Shakespeare
• Henry IV, Part 2, by William Shakespeare
• Henry V: 1989 Film directed by Kenneth Branagh (That’s right. You don’t need a print version of this play unless you want to both read and watch it. Instead of reading this week, students will watch a really good film production directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh. If you can find a streaming version, great. Otherwise, try libraries.)
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare
• Much Ado About Nothing, by William Shakespeare
• Shakespeare’s Sonnets (No need to buy; the poems are provided in the syllabus.)
• "Sonnet #18"
• "Sonnet #29"
• "Sonnet #71"
• "Sonnet #116"

• John Donne’s Poetry (No need to buy; the poems are provided in the syllabus.)
• “Valediction: Forbidding Mourning”
• “Holy Sonnet #5”
• “Holy Sonnet #7”
• “Holy Sonnet #10”
• “Holy Sonnet #14”
• “The Flea”

• Metaphysical Poetry (No need to buy; the poems are provided in the syllabus.) 
• “To His Coy Mistress” by Andrew Marvell
• “To the Virgins” by Robert Herrick
• “To Althea” by Richard Lovelace
• “Why So Pale and Wan, Fond Lover?” by Sir John Suckling