ENGL 216

Fall 2026 Part of Term 1

Part of Term 1
Aug 24-Dec 9

Legends of King Arthur

Credit: 3 hours.

Arthurian myth and legend is one of the most enduring literary traditions of Western Europe, and the characters of Arthur, Merlin, Guinevere, Lancelot, Gawain and Mordred were as popular in the Middle Ages as they are today. Originating in early medieval Wales, the legends traveled through England to France and Germany and throughout the modern world. Students will study the development of the Arthurian tradition in chronicles, poetry, romances, lais, and fabliaux, comparing variations across cultural and historical boundaries.

Same as CWL 216 and MDVL 216. Prerequisite: Completion of the Composition I requirement.

This course satisfies the General Education Criteria in Fall 2022 for:

Humanities – Lit & Arts

Cultural Studies - Western

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ENGL 216 class schedule data for fall 2026
	Status		CRN	Type	Section	Time	Day	Location	Instructor	Section Details
			67743	Lecture-Discussion	M	11:00AM -11:50AM	MWF	Lincoln Hall	Barrett, R	Availability: Closed Part of Term: 1 Date Range: 08/24/26-12/09/26 Degree Notes: Humanities - Lit & Arts, and Cultural Studies - Western course. Section Info: FA26 ENGL 216 - Legends of King Arthur - Robert Barrett - In this introduction to Arthurian literature, we’ll spend the first half of the semester following King Arthur as he and his court emerge from the twelfth-century Welsh borderlands (Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain) and make their way across the Channel to France (the chivalric romances of Chrétien de Troyes and Heldris of Cornwall). We’ll then return to England for the close of the Middle Ages and Thomas Malory’s fifteenth-century Morte Darthur. The second half of the semester focuses on post-medieval adaptations of Arthurian legends: we'll read Mark Twain's satirical Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889), Susan Cooper's mythic Grey King (1975), Tracy Deonn's Afrofuturist Legendborn (2020), and Nicola Griffith's genderbent Spear (2022). We will even watch George A. Romero’s 1981 Knightriders, starring a very young Ed Harris as the King Arthur analog in a Ren Faire motorcycle jousting show. Writing assignments will include short reading responses as well as a longer project asking students to research and present on a modern Arthurian text that isn’t included on the course reading list. There will also be at least two exams.