The first-year English course
The first-year English course at Oxford is mostly divided between Early Medieval English Literature and the literatures of the Victorian period and of the 20th and 21st centuries. Early Medieval English is taught throughout all three terms; the period 1830–1910 is taught in the first term (Michaelmas) and the modern period in the second term (Hilary). The teaching of these subjects is done by a mixture of tutorials and classes here in Balliol; and there is a complementary programme of lectures and seminars offered by the University English Faculty, and you are encouraged to take full advantage of that. You will also be taking an introductory course (‘Paper 1’) which is taught by a series of compulsory Faculty lectures as well as by classes and tutorials in College.
You will be assessed on all this work by a number of examinations, called Prelims, which you will sit at the end of the third term (Trinity), as well as by a Portfolio for Paper 1 submitted during Trinity. This is a Pass/Fail examination, with the possibility of Distinction. Your performance in Prelims does not count towards your final degree, which is entirely based on your performance in exams and coursework during your third year. You will also be set some College examinations (Collections) at the beginning of Hilary and Trinity Terms: these do not count towards your degree either, but are just a way for your tutors to keep an eye on your progress.
Preparing for your course
You have a busy year ahead of you, and it will simply not be possible to read large amounts during term-time: it is very important that you are properly prepared for the course when you come up to Oxford. This page suggests the directions that your preliminary reading might most usefully take. Remember that cheap second-hand books can often be purchased online at abebooks.co.uk and other on-line booksellers.
Joint schools
If you are set to study English and Modern Languages or History and English, you will be sitting two examinations in English (single honours students sit four). Paper 1 – the introduction to language and literature – is compulsory; the other is for you to choose: either Victorian literature or twentieth century literature or Early Medieval English literature. Students tend to choose either Early Medieval or Modern as the timetabling makes it rather challenging to fit in Victorian literature; but talk to us if you want to explore that possibility. You should aim to read a generous selection of the texts listed below as you need to make an informed decision about which of these papers to sit in Prelims. Joint schools students are warmly welcome to attend classes on the period they are not going to offer in Prelims.
If you would like any further guidance about what to read or which editions to use, please feel free to contact us.
Introduction to English Language and Literature
This paper comes in two parts: 1A (which you will study in Hilary term) is about language and 1B (which you will study first, in Michaelmas) is about approaches to the study of literature—a sort of ‘literary theory’ paper, but we will be approaching it in a practical way with close readings and critical appreciations of text as well as sampling some of the leading critical voices. There is no particular preparation required for this paper: I shall distribute texts for our classes once you are here. If you have time on your hands, however, you could look at Jonathan Culler’s Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford University Press) which would introduce you to some of the major questions.
The English Faculty Library’s Guide to Prelims 1 contains direct links to a range of online and bibliographic tools. The College, Faculty, and University libraries offer access to many useful resources that are too expensive to warrant individual purchase: you can work with them once you arrive.
Advance reading for paper 1A in the second term will be given over the winter vacation. To get a head start, over the summer it is an excellent idea to read an introductory text such as The Stories of English by David Crystal (you may be able to borrow this from your local public library).
If you have any questions about 1B, please contact: seamus.perry@balliol.ox.ac.uk and for 1A get in touch with: hannah.ryley@ell.ox.ac.uk.
Early Medieval Literature 650‑1350 (Old and Early Middle English)
Welcome to Prelims paper 2: Early Medieval Literature 650‑1350! In this course we will be exploring the very earliest instances of what we call English literature. The period 650‑1350 spans the conversion of the migrant Anglo-Saxons through to the turbulent reign of Edward III. The focus is on literature in Old English, the language of the Anglo-Saxons, and Early Middle English and its development after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
You will work on this paper in both the first and second terms, before being assessed by examination in the third term. In the first term, you will have language classes and translation assignments in order to get to grips with texts in the original language. In the second term, language work will continue and you will also write essays. The exam is split into two parts: a commentary, and then two essays.
There is an extraordinarily rich body of literature in Old English, including texts in a variety of genres such as epic, lament, chronicle, riddle, dream vision, hagiography, and homily, while Early Middle English sees the flourishing of debate poetry, lyric, and romance.
Starting point
To get a feel for the literature of this period, aim to read a selection of Old and Early Middle English texts in translation this summer before you come to Oxford. Reading widely will also help you to prepare particularly for the essay section of the exam. The two essential texts are marked with asterisks.
Start with:
- *Seamus Heaney, Beowulf (London: Faber & Faber, 1999). This creative translation is a beautiful introduction to Beowulf, and a key text for this paper. It’s a great place to start.
Next steps
- *Elaine Treharne, ed. and trans. Old and Middle English c.890–c.1400: An Anthology, 3rd edn (Oxford: Blackwell 2010). It is essential to own a copy of this anthology; dip in and read widely! Begin with the ‘Introduction’, and read whatever most appeals to you. I suggest focussing on working through a selection of the texts in the first 225 or so pages.
- Roy Liuzza, ed. and trans. Old English Poetry: An Anthology (Peterborough, ON: Broadview Press, 2014). May be hard to get hold of – see excerpts online: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/roy-liuzza
- Amy Jeffs’ creative adaptations of stories from this period: Wild: Tales From Early Medieval Britain (London: riverrun/Quercus, 2022), as well as in Storyland (2021) and Saints (2024)
- Laura Varnam’s poetry, which creatively engages with Beowulf and other Old English texts https://drlauravarnam.wordpress.com/beowulf/ (Laura is an academic in Oxford!)
Commentary & language
In the exam, you will be asked to demonstrate knowledge of either Old English or Early Middle English by discussing the language and style of an extract. This exercise is known as the ‘commentary’. At Balliol, the focus will be on Old English, and the ‘set texts’ we will translate and study in preparation for the commentary section of the exam are: The Dream of the Rood, The Wanderer, an extract from Beowulf (‘Beowulf’s Fight with Grendel’), and The Battle of Maldon.
Over the summer, begin to familiarise yourself with Old English by reading a guide to the language.
- For a fun introduction, start with: Hana Videen, The Wordhord: Daily Life in Old English (London: Profile Books, 2021) and/or watch her York Festival of Ideas presentation: https://youtu.be/mwlWdc0D2po?feature=shared
Then, I recommend choosing one of the following and reading the introductory sections:
- Peter Baker, Introduction to Old English, 3rd edn (Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012). See also Baker’s online resources, to accompany the book http://www.oldenglishaerobics.net
- Mark Atherton, Complete Old English: Teach Yourself (London: Hachette, 2012)
Background & context
Familiarity with the cultural and historical background to and context of the texts we’ll be studying together will enable you to understand important themes and motifs; the following are highly readable and great places to start:
- Browse this wonderful blog about the medieval seasons, which often features local Oxford detail, by Eleanor Parker: https://aclerkofoxford.blogspot.com/ and/or her book: Winters in the World: A Journey Through The Anglo-Saxon Year (London: Reaktion, 2022)
- Miri Rubin, The Middle Ages: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford: OUP, 2014)
- Kevin Crossley-Holland, The Anglo-Saxon World (Oxford: OUP, 2009)
- Hugh Magennis, ed. The Cambridge Introduction to Anglo-Saxon Literature (Cambridge: CUP, 2011)
Summary
To prepare for this paper, I warmly encourage you to read as widely as you can over the summer before term begins. Just to recap, the two essential texts are: Heaney’s Beowulf andTreharne’s Anthology. Second-hand copies of these, and many of the other texts on this list, can be found on https://abebooks.co.uk or https://www.bookfinder.com or similar. At the time of writing it costs £16–40 in total (depending on condition) to equip yourself with second-hand copies of the two recommended texts. If you have any questions at all about this paper, or difficulties getting hold of any these texts, please get in touch with me by email: hannah.ryley@ell.ox.ac.uk Happy reading!
Victorian and Modern Literature
You should aim to read many of the major texts before coming to Oxford. Take notes as you read, focusing on language, style, and form, to aid your essay-writing during term. For each of the period papers you should expect to study (and write an essay on) about four authors or subjects (such as a genre — ‘elegy’ or ‘nonsense poetry’ — or a literary grouping — ‘Pre-Raphaelite poetry’ or ‘Poetry of the 1930s’). We like to give our students the opportunity to write about what enthuses them: we do not aim to be prescriptive, but advice and more specific guidance about reading is always on hand.
It is an excellent idea to have some sense of the larger shape of the history of literature in English, and you could have no better introduction to the poetry than Christopher Ricks’s Oxford Book of English Verse, which ranges from medieval lyrics to the end of the twentieth century. Don’t try and read it systematically: just browse. Ricks’s introductory essay, ‘Of English Verse’, is a suggestive account of the line of great poet-critics that is one of the characteristics of the English critical tradition.
Victorian Literature
Daniel Karlin’s Penguin Book of Victorian Verse is excellent if you want a general anthology of the period. But the poems I will advise you to read are widely available, many on-line; and all the novels we will be looking at are in Penguin or Oxford World’s Classics paperbacks.
There is a small number of major authors that I would like everyone to know before coming up to Oxford so we have those texts in common. Here it is:
- Alfred Tennyson (1809−1892), “Mariana”, “In Memoriam”, “Maud”
- Charles Dickens (1812−1870), Hard Times
- Emily Bronte (1818 — 1848), Wuthering Heights
- Walt Whitman (1819−1892), “Song of Myself” from Leaves of Grass
- Frederick Douglass (?1818–1895), Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
- George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans) (1819−1880), Middlemarch
- Matthew Arnold (1822−1888), “Dover Beach”, “To Marguerite — Continued”
- Christina Rossetti (1830−1894), “Goblin Market”
- Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844−1889), “Binsey Poplars”, “The Windhover”, “Pied Beauty”
- Joseph Conrad (1857−1924), Heart of Darkness
Modern Literature
You will have enough to be getting on with, I am sure; but if you want to try something in anticipation of the modern paper which we are studying Hilary term you might try some of the following: E.M.Forster, Howards End; James Joyce, Dubliners; Katherine Mansfield, Bliss and Other Stories, Virginia Woolfe, To The Lighthouse; James Baldwin, Giovanni’s Room.
Seamus Perry and Hannah Ryley July 2025