Fall 2005
Email: JeffSchragel@yahoo.com Telephone:
Office Hours: TBA Mailbox: 110B Leonard
In this introduction to literature in English, we will explore works of fiction, nonfiction, drama, and poetry written by authors of diverse backgrounds from multiple critical angles.
• To explore connections between literature and life
• To develop and apply critical thinking skills
• To enhance awareness of the operations of culture, world context, and gender in literature and society
A primary aim of this course will be focused on gaining a better understanding of culture, world context, and gender from the perspective of its significance in our daily lives. This course will focus on the many different contexts that people negotiate in their every day lives. I will break the course into four different sections that will overlap including: Gender Politics, Cultural Identity, Language of Imperialism, and Class Structures. Questions that we will consider will include the following: How does literature challenge us to rethink our ideas about our placement in the world? How does our social identity shape the production of literature, and how is this identity concealed? What is the significance of race, class, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation in writing and reading literature? Through classroom discussion, journal writing, and group work I hope that you will develop the critical ability to read and write about literature from a wider lens. You will also be encouraged to engage in dialogue and debate as we work together to build our skills and awareness. Most importantly, we will discuss how we can use this knowledge in the global community.
E-Fictions Textbook: Anthology
Long Day’s Journey Into Night: Eugene O’Neil
Things Fall Apart: Chinua Achebe
The Shadow Man: Mary Gordon
Course Packet from Copies Now
• Class Participation 10%
Since our class will include a considerable amount of discussion, your active participation is crucial. Plan on coming to class with a number of comments or questions you would like to share. Obviously, you must attend class in order to participate: absences, excused or otherwise, will negatively affect your participation grade. The main components of this grade will be class discussion, attendance, informal in-class writing, and staying on task during group work.
• Presentation 15%
You will be asked to participate in one group presentation during the course. Each group will facilitate class discussion on historical and social issues related to the reading. Early in the semester, I will pass out a sign-up sheet of authors and works we will be reading, along with the presentation schedule: you may not get your first choice, so come to class with a few possibilities in mind (and don’t worry if you haven’t heard of the work or author – the presentation will give you the chance to learn about them!). Prior to your presentation date, get together with your group partners to plan what you will present to the class. You are free to focus on what you like in your presentation, with a few exceptions: do not summarize the reading or give us a chronological account of the author’s life. Instead, do some research and share what you find interesting with the rest of us. Remember that this is a “group” presentation: you have to get together outside class, cooperate in your decisions, share the workload, and speak an equal amount during the actual presentation. Each group is required to provide a handout to the class and should encourage discussion for the class. The presentation will last from fifteen minutes, and you will receive a group and individual grade for your efforts.
• Response Portfolio 40%
Once per week, you will write a 1-2 page response in which you reflect on the week’s readings. You are free to write about whatever you like: you might, for example, discuss a specific passage that really caught your attention, an aspect of the work that relates to your own experience, or your own personal thoughts or reactions to the text. Each response must be word-processed, double-spaced, in 12-point Times or Times New Roman with 1-inch margins, and include your name and date. Print and collect your responses in a folder (marked on the outside with your name and class number). You will submit your portfolio three times during the semester: for the third and final submission, you must add an introduction that includes responses to my written comments, anything seen in hindsight, and commentary on your progress throughout the class.
• Paper 25%
In a 5-7 page paper, you will examine one of our course texts in detail. I am not interested in a summary of the book or a personal response (that’s what your response portfolio is for). Instead, analyze: build an argument about the strong points or shortcomings of the text, citing specific lines and passages and drawing on at least three outside sources for support. Papers will be due at different points throughout the semester, so you can choose to get your paper “out of the way” early or wait until later in the semester. I will pass around a sign-up sheet and schedule, and you will write a brief topic proposal, which we will discuss in individual conferences. You will then have two weeks to write a rough draft for me to comment on, and your revised final draft will be due a week later. The same formatting rules for the portfolio apply to your paper, with the additional qualification that the paper is written in MLA format (I will discuss this with you in class). You are strongly encouraged to make appointments with the IUP Writing Center (218 Eicher Hall, 724-357-3029): the center is free, and you will find the staff very helpful.
• Final Exam 10%
At the end of the class, I will give a short answer and essay question exam covering our class readings and material introduced throughout the class.
• Attendance
Faithful attendance is a key to this course: class participation is 10% of your grade for this class, and participation clearly depends on attendance. If you come to each class session, participate actively, and keep up with the work, you will do well in this class. Any more than five excused absences will normally result in failure of this class. “Excused” means that a student who cannot come to class emails or calls me ahead of time (and always lets me know how to get in contact). If I am not notified in advance, I count absences as unexcused, with each unexcused absence normally resulting in the participation grade dropping. Additionally, any student with more than one unexcused absence prior to the November 5 withdrawal deadline will probably be asked to withdraw from the course. Of course it also goes without saying that “attendance” means arriving on time and remaining for the duration of class: repeated tardiness will be treated as absence.
• Plagiarism and Cheating
Plagiarism means using material from an outside source (for example, copying material or paraphrasing or summarizing someone else’s ideas) without properly acknowledging the source and its author. “Recycling” previously submitted work (either one’s own work, work downloaded/purchased online, or work collected in fraternity/sorority “files”) also constitutes plagiarism. Plagiarism will normally result in formal adjudication and failure of the course. Teachers today have a vast array of easy-to-use resources for checking plagiarism: in short, never submit work that is not your own. I realize that some plagiarism is accidental: in order to prevent this from ever happening, we will treat the subject of plagiarism at length early in the semester, and I will show you how to properly cite sources. In the meantime, you can find a complete description of IUP’s plagiarism policy in the “Academic Integrity Policy” section of the Undergraduate Catalog. Like plagiarism, cheating will not be tolerated, and will result in automatic exam grade of zero.
• Late Assignments
I do not accept work submitted after the time it is due. If you do not do the work on time, you automatically receive a zero for it. Contact me by e-mail in any extreme circumstances, but unless I respond otherwise this policy is in effect.
• Mutual Respect
Differences of opinion will occur in class discussions, and I expect you to be courteous, kind, and respectful toward your classmates and me. All cell phones and other electronic devices must be turned off for the duration of class.
• Syllabus Changes
While I do not expect any changes to this syllabus, it remains open to revision. Any changes will be announced in class: you are responsible for keeping up-to-date.
• Office Hours
I strongly encourage you to make use of my office hours. Come by to see me if you have any problems, concerns, or questions. Always be sure to schedule a meeting time with me in advance.
Grading
In the first week of class, I will hand out sample grading sheets for each of my course requirements so that you will know exactly what is expected in this course. Based on the distribution of course requirements, you can calculate your grade for the course as follows:
Requirement Percentage Points Your Points
• Class Participation 10% 10 ________
• Presentation 15% 15 ________
• Response Portfolio:
Submission 1 12.5% 12.5 ________
Submission 2 12.5% 12.5 ________
Submission 3 15% 15 ________
• Paper 25% 25 ________
• Final Exam 10% 10 ________
TOTAL 100% 100 ________
Your total points will result in one of the following course grades. Keep in mind, however, that poor attendance will significantly lower your grade.
A+ 96 - 1000 C+ 76 – 79 F under 60
A 93 – 96 C 73 - 76
A- 90 – 93 C- 70 - 73
B+ 86 – 89 D+ 66 - 69
B 83 – 86 D 63 - 66
B- 80 – 83 D- 60 - 63
M 1/10 Class Introduction
W 1/12 “Good Boys and Dead Girls” Handout and Robert Browning’s “Porphyria’s Lover”
F 1/14 “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”
M 1/17 No Class (Begin Reading The Shadow Man)
W 1/19 Charlotte Perkins Gillman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”
F 1/21 Mary Gordon’s The Shadow Man, Preface and Chapt. One and Two pp. xiii-105
M 1/24 The Shadow Man, ch. 3 pp. 109-164
W 1/26 The Shadow Man, ch. 4 pp. 164 – 202
F 1/28 The Shadow Man, ch.5 pp. 203-274
M 1/31 Reflection / Workshop day
Gender Politics/ Cultural Identity
W 2/2 “Everyday Use”
F 2/4 “In Search of Our Mother’s Gardens”
M 2/7 Alice Walker Misc. Poems
W 2/9 Pat Mora Misc. Poems
F 2/11 Marilou Awiakta Misc. Poems
----Portfolio Submission #1----
M 2/14 Ana Castillo So Far From God ch. 1,2 pp. 1-60
W 2/16 Ana Castillo So Far From God ch. 3-5 pp. 61-102
F 2/18 Ana Castillo So Far From God ch 6- 9 pp. 103-50
M 2/21 Ana Castillo So Far From God ch. 9-16 pp. 150-252
W 2/23 Margaret Walker “I Want to Write” and “For my People”
F 2/25 Reflection / Workshop day
Cultural Identity/ Language of Imperialism
M 2/28 Ha Jin “The Bride Groom”
Edward Said Selection from Orientalism
W 3/2 Nguyen Huy Thiep “Salt of the Jungle”
F 3/4 Chinua Achebe “Vengeful Creditor”
M 3/7 Spring Break
W 3/9 Spring Break
F 3/11 Spring Break
M 3/14 Chinua Achebe”Things Fall Apart” ch.1-7 pp.1-54
W 3/16 Chinua Achebe”Things Fall Apart” ch.8-19 pp. 55-142
F 3/18 Chinua Achebe”Things Fall Apart” ch.20-25 pp. 142-78
M 3/21 Short selections from “The Romantic Imagination,” “The Triumph of Vulgarity” and The Mirror and the Lamp” and “I wandered Lonely as a Cloud” by William Wordsworth
W 3/23 Sections of William Wordsworth’s “Preface to Lyrical Ballads”
----Portfolio Submission #2----
F 3/25 Selection from Dorothy Wordsworth’s “Grasmere Journals,” John Clare’s “Clock a Clay”
M 3/28 John Clare’s “From Helpstone,” “A Ramble,” “To the Fox Fern,” “Dedication to Mary” and “What is Life”
W 3/30 Selections from John Keats’s “Letters” on Negative Capability and Selections from John Taylor (Keats’s editor)
F 4/1 John Keats’s “Ode to a Nightingale”
M 4/4 Reflection / Workshop day
W 4/6 Eugene O’Neils “Long Day’s Journey into Night” Act 1
F 4/8 Eugene O’Neils “Long Day’s Journey into Night” Act 2
M 4/11 Eugene O’Neils “Long Day’s Journey into Night” Act 3,4
W 4/13 Selections from “Film Theory” and Finding Forrester (Film)
F 4/15 Finding Forrester (Film)
M 4/18 Finding Forrester (Film)
W 4/20 Film Discussion
F 4/22 Final Paper / Exam workshop
M 4/25 Concluding Discussion- Why does all this matter and what can we do with it?
----Portfolio Submission #3----
M 5/2 FINAL EXAM: 8:00am - 10:00am