- Course Type CLEP
- Subject Composition and Literature
- Level Introductory
- Length 9 Modules
- Video Length 6h 49m
- Reading Pages 1592
- Institution Modern States
ABOUT THIS COURSE
English Literature surveys prose, poetry, and drama from British and postcolonial authors, spanning from Beowulf to the present. The course emphasizes familiarity with major authors, works, literary periods, and forms, as well as knowledge of common literary terms and themes.
This is a free, self-paced Modern States course with no prerequisites. It is aligned to the CLEP® English Literature exam and is designed to prepare you to succeed on the test and earn college credit at no cost.
Modern States originally developed this course in collaboration with Professor Erika DiGirolamo. Miriam Chirico, Ph.D. of Eastern Connecticut State University supported course enhancements published in 2025.
Course Overview
English Literature Course Overview - Modern States
| Module | Topic | Video Length | Total pages of required reading |
| Module 1: Literature Terminology 00:23:08 total video length 7 total reading pages |
1: Introduction to Literature Terminology | 0:01:22 | – |
| 1.1: Plot | 0:02:25 | 7 | |
| 1.2: Setting | 0:02:09 | – | |
| 1.3: Characters | 0:05:32 | – | |
| 1.4: Point of View | 0:04:10 | – | |
| 1.5: Symbol and Figurative Language | 0:01:49 | – | |
| 1.6: Theme | 0:02:10 | – | |
| 1.7: Mood | 0:01:07 | – | |
| 1.8: Tone | 0:02:24 | – | |
| 1: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 2: Poetry Terminology 00:43:08 total video length 295 total reading pages |
2: Introduction to Poetry Terminology | 0:01:56 | – |
| 2.1: Meter | 0:02:00 | 18 | |
| 2.2: Rhyme | 0:02:24 | 64 | |
| 2.3: Stanza | 0:01:55 | 9 | |
| 2.4: Epic | 0:01:23 | 30 | |
| 2.5: Haiku | 0:03:38 | 89 | |
| 2.6: Sonnet | 0:02:39 | 66 | |
| 2.7: Terza Rima | 0:01:50 | 19 | |
| 2.8: Villanelle | 0:05:32 | – | |
| 2.9: Rhyme Royal | 0:01:15 | – | |
| 2.10: Sestina | 0:08:26 | – | |
| 2.11: Blank Verse | 0:02:31 | – | |
| 2.12: Free Verse | 0:02:14 | – | |
| 2.13: Building a Poet’s Vocabulary | 0:05:25 | – | |
| 2: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 3: Other Important Terms 01:02:23 total video length 292 total reading pages |
3: Introduction to Other Important Terms | 0:01:32 | – |
| 3.1: Allegory | 0:02:56 | 30 | |
| 3.2: Alliteration | 0:01:59 | 40 | |
| 3.3: Allusion | 0:03:46 | 85 | |
| 3.4: Antithesis | 0:02:17 | 66 | |
| 3.5: Hyperbole | 0:02:25 | 7 | |
| 3.6: Imagery | 0:03:20 | 64 | |
| 3.7: Irony | 0:03:21 | – | |
| 3.8: Metaphor/Simile | 0:04:15 | – | |
| 3.9: Onomatopoeia | 0:02:11 | – | |
| 3.10: Style | 0:10:49 | – | |
| 3.11: Symbolism | 0:03:04 | – | |
| 3.12: Personification | 0:03:33 | – | |
| 3.13: Other Important Literary Terms | 0:16:55 | – | |
| 3: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 4: Literary Periods 02:17:49 total video length 420 total reading pages |
4: Literature Through the Ages | 0:03:13 | – |
| 4.1: Mythology—Prometheus | 0:03:10 | 30 | |
| 4.2: Medieval Period | 0:05:23 | 18 | |
| 4.3: King Arthur | 0:05:55 | 40 | |
| 4.4: Death Be Not Proud by John Donne | 0:04:41 | 19 | |
| 4.5: Piers Plowman by William Langland | 0:05:48 | 9 | |
| 4.6: Renaissance Period | 0:04:24 | 66 | |
| 4.7: Hamlet by William Shakespeare | 0:09:38 | 64 | |
| 4.8: Macbeth by William Shakespeare | 0:11:43 | 89 | |
| 4.9: Othello by William Shakespeare | 0:10:01 | 85 | |
| 4.10: Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare | 0:06:33 | – | |
| 4.11: The Faerie Queene | 0:04:08 | – | |
| 4.12: Age of Enlightenment | 0:06:39 | – | |
| 4.13: Romantic Period | 0:08:43 | – | |
| 4.14: Pre-Raphaelites | 0:05:14 | – | |
| 4.15: Picaresque | 0:06:46 | – | |
| 4.16: Realism | 0:08:22 | – | |
| 4.17: Naturalism | 0:07:01 | – | |
| 4.18: Modernism | 0:05:38 | – | |
| 4.19: Postmodernism | 0:06:05 | – | |
| 4.20: Richard Cory | 0:04:07 | – | |
| 4.21: Essayists | 0:01:17 | – | |
| 4.22: Women Writers | 0:03:20 | – | |
| 4: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 5: Literary Criticism 00:18:26 total video length 79 total reading pages |
5: Introduction to Literary Criticism | 0:02:30 | – |
| 5.1: Psychoanalytic Theory | 0:02:11 | 19 | |
| 5.2: Formalist Theory | 0:01:46 | 11 | |
| 5.3: New Criticism Theory | 0:01:45 | 18 | |
| 5.4: Reader Response Theory | 0:01:27 | 10 | |
| 5.5: Structuralist Theory | 0:01:30 | 21 | |
| 5.6: Feminist Theory | 0:02:02 | – | |
| 5.7: Marxist Theory | 0:02:16 | – | |
| 5.8: Deconstructive Theory | 0:01:52 | – | |
| 5.9: Platonic Theory | 0:01:07 | – | |
| 5: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 6: Everyman 00:03:06 total video length 18 total reading pages |
6: Everyman | – | – |
| 6.1: Everyman | 0:03:06 | 18 | |
| 6: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 7: Non-fiction 00:03:22 total video length 89 total reading pages |
7: Non-fiction | – | – |
| 7.1: Non-fiction | 0:03:22 | 89 | |
| 7: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 8: Reading List 00:48:06 total video length 392 total reading pages |
8: Introduction to Reading List | 0:02:41 | – |
| 8.1: Works from Undated to 1678 | 0:05:05 | 30 | |
| 8.2: Works from 1712 to 1749 | 0:03:36 | 18 | |
| 8.3: Works from the 1760s to 1871 | 0:05:33 | 66 | |
| 8.4: Works from 1879 to 1915 | 0:05:46 | 40 | |
| 8.5: Works from 1916 to 1956 | 0:06:02 | 89 | |
| 8.6: Works from 1958 to 1973 | 0:05:28 | 85 | |
| 8.7: Authors from Margaret Atwood to Robert Herrick | 0:04:47 | 64 | |
| 8.8: Authors from Samuel Johnson to Percy Bysshe Shelley | 0:04:50 | – | |
| 8.9: Authors from Tobias Smollett to W.B. Yeats | 0:04:18 | – | |
| 8: Summary | – | – | |
| Module 9: Writing the Essay 01:09:12 total video length 0 total reading pages |
9: Introduction to Writing the Essay | 0:00:53 | – |
| 9.1: Analyzing a Poem | 0:29:49 | – | |
| 9.2: Writing a Persuasive Analysis of a Poem | 0:22:23 | – | |
| 9.3: Planning the Second Essay | 0:06:47 | – | |
| 9.4: Writing the Second Essay | 0:09:20 | – | |
| 9: Summary | – | – | |
| Course Conclusion | – | – |
