Why British Literature?

In our British Literature courses a while back, I asked students to consider why they chose to take this particular class - it is the first section of a series and covers Anglo Saxon readings up to the 18th Century.  Wanting more than a generic response, I urged the scholars in my class to think beyond the typical, "it's a requirement!" answer (some folks are dual credit high schoolers and the course is part of their curriculum).  In order for students to get the most out of the class, we need consider our time together as more than solely a requirement.

Below are some of their responses:

"I want to try and get back into reading and gain...general knowledge.  I hope to learn more about the 18th century and why we need to learn about it."

"I hope that by taking this class my writing will be at its best."

"I want to learn more about Old English."

To add to our discussion and thinking, we watched Chimamanda Adichie's TedTalk on "The Danger of a Single Story," in which Adichie describes how we suffer from narrow views of the world, of different people, of places, and more.  Her talk helped us consider the semester ahead, and how we do have certain goals in mind, but one key aspect of the course should be that we think beyond a single story of British Literature - whose voices are not included in our course text?  Why?  Why, in various spaces, is British Literature privileged over others?  Who had the power to write and publish way back when?  What happened socially and politically that led to these voices and publications?