Where did Oliver Twist learn to pick pockets? In Clerkenwell. Where did William Shakespeare submit his plays to the Master of the Revels? In Clerkenwell. And where did the Knights of the Order of St. John have their headquarters? Indeed, in Clerkenwell, too.

Fordham’s London Centre is perfectly situated to explore the city’s rich literary heritage. Some of the cultural sights associated with the English canon are within walking distance and many others are just a tube ride away. In this course, we will read texts which are quintessentially “British” – because they are linked to people, places, and historical events, but also because they address issues of gender, race, and social class in ways which are grounded in their environment and thus have a specifically Londonesque character. We will combine reading the medieval romance of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight with trips to Westminster Abbey and the Tower. The Globe Theatre will provide us with the opportunity to experience a Shakespeare play as “groundlings.” Oliver Twist describes London as a metropolis with a large population of urban poor. It is only logical that England’s oldest orphanage would be located in London, too, a museum today which we will be able to visit in addition to Dickens’s house, both a stone’s throw from our campus.

To complement our reading, we will go on excursions that will take us to Winchester to have a look at royal artefacts ranging from King Arthur’s round table to one of the few monuments celebrating the wedding of King Charles III and Lady Diana Spencer; Stonehenge, the ancient stone circle shrouded in mystery, and Highclere Castle, where Downton Abbey was filmed. At home in London, we will visit Westminster Abbey, the Tower, the Dickens Museum, and the Foundling Hospital. This cultural immersion will allow us to study London literature in a way which is only possible on site and to thus develop a sophisticated understanding of identity, diversity, and class in the capital of the British Empire.

This course is a Medieval Studies, English, and History Major or Minor course and satisfies the Advanced Literature Core at Fordham University.

Dates: July 1st – August 2nd, 2025 (This course will run during Session 2. Students can also consider taking an additional course during Session 1).

Costs: $4,200 + Tuition (This includes housing, excursions, health insurance, and an overnight trip outside London)

Application Deadline:

• Priority Deadline: January 15, 2025
• Final Deadline: February 1, 2025

You can learn more about Fordham’s Summer in London Program here.