Spring 2004
English 2130-26H
Survey of American Literature
Dr. Debra Ann MacComb
Office: TLC 2232
Office Phone: 770-836-6512 email: dmaccomb@westga.edu
Office Hours: TR 11-12 and 2-3; W 9-1. I will also happily see you by appointment.
Catalog Course Description: A survey of important works of American literature. Required for English majors. May count for credit in Area C.2. Prerequisites: ENGL 1101 and ENGL 1102.
This course will develop a range of enduring themes that have characterized
American literature: the encounter with and appropriation of nature; the
crafting of an identity that attempts to reconcile the desires of the
individual with the needs of society; the individual’s ability to chart his own
path to success; the “problem” of the socio-cultural “other”; and the tension
between the public and private spheres.
In exploring these themes, we will read a variety of canonical and
non-canonical texts to examine the authorial strategies that developed over
time which make these works aesthetically as well as historically pertinent.
Required Texts:
Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. (
Douglass,
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby (Scribner)
Foster, Hannah W. The Coquette. (
Franklin, Benjamin. Autobiography (
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter (Penguin)
Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman (Penguin)
Smith, Lee. Fair and Tender Ladies (Ballantine)
Twain, Mark. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Penguin)
Other works in handouts.
Learning Outcomes:
· Students will develop the ability to recognize and identify significant achievements in American literature.
· Students will understand the relevant social, historical, and aesthetic contexts of these literary works.
· Students will appreciate the implications of theoretical and critical approaches to such literature.
· Students will develop enhanced cultural awareness and analytical skills.
· Students will demonstrate their command of academic English and of the tenets of sound composition by means of thesis-driven analytical prose.
Class Policies:
· Attendance and participation:
Because this is a seminar, student participation is both essential and mandatory. Students should come to class prepared to contribute to class discussion, listen attentively and critically to others’ comments and questions, respond collegially to others’ views, and generally conduct themselves in a professional manner. I expect you to take your work very seriously, preparing for each class by carefully reading each assignment, reflecting upon that reading, and thinking about the implications of the reading. Missing two or more classes will adversely affect your final grade.
·
Written
and oral assignments:
Late work will be penalized. Oral reports cannot be made up.
Course Assessment:
· Attendance, participation and in-class writing assignments (10%). The in-class writing assignments may take the form of reading quizzes, short explications, or analytical responses to questions on the text under discussion. For this reason it is wise to read the text in advance of class discussion.
· Oral reports (15%). Oral report #1 (5%) will require brief research into a literary term or period that will establish a context for discussion. Generally, these five minute reports will come at the beginning of class. Oral report #2 (10%) will be an explication of a poem by Emily Dickinson or Walt Whitman. Consultation with me about the poem is strongly advised.
· Response essays (45%). Three 4-page essays based on a range of topics from class discussion.
·
Midterm
(10%) and Final (20%) exams. The midterm exam will be in essay form;
the final exam, which will be cumulative, will include identifications,
explication and a long essay.
Academic Dishonesty
Plagiarism is grounds for failure in the course; in addition, I will report any instance of plagiarism to the Dean for disciplinary action. Plagiarism is the use of another’s words or ideas as if they were one’s own. Therefore, if you borrow an idea, either
--express it in language entirely your own and acknowledge your borrowing with a parenthetical reference or footnote
or
indicate the exact extent of your debt to the actual words of the source by enclosing them in quotation marks and document the source according to MLA conventions.
Further, submitting the same paper in multiple
classes—no matter whether those courses are taken in the same or different
semesters—is a form of academic dishonesty and will result in a failing grade
for the course.
Schedule
Week 1
T 1/6 Course
Introduction
“A Nation Apart” (handout)
R 1/8 Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, I
Week 2
T 1/13 Oral
Report: The Age of Enlightenment
Autobiography
of Benjamin Franklin, I
R 1/15 Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, II
Week 3
T 1/20 Oral
Report: Epistolary Novel, Sentimental Mode
The
Coquette
R 1/22 The Coquette
Week 4
T 1/27 Oral
Report: Slave Narrative Essay #1 due
Narrative
of the Life of Frederick Douglass
R 1/29 Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Week 5
T 2/3 Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
R 2/5 Oral
Report: Romance Mode
The
Scarlet Letter
Week 6
T 2/10 The Scarlet Letter
R 2/12 The Scarlet Letter
Week 7
T 2/17 Midterm Exam—Bring a large bluebook
R 2/19 Oral
Reports:
Week 8
T 2/24 Oral
Reports: Dickinson, Whitman
R 2/26 Oral
Reports: Whitman
Week 9
T 3/2 Oral
Report: Realism
Adventures
of Huckleberry Finn
R 3/4 Oral
report: Reconstruction and Jim Crow
Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn
Week 10
T 3/9 Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
R 3/11 Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Week 11
T 3/16 Oral
Report: Regionalism and Naturalism
The
Awakening Essay #2 due
R 3/18 The Awakening
Spring Break 3/22-3/26
Week 12
T 3/30 Oral
Report: Modernism
Oral Report: The Jazz Age
The
Great Gatsby
R 4/1 The Great Gatsby
Week 13
T 4/6 The Great Gatsby
R 4/8 Death of a Salesman
Week 14
T 4/13 Death of a Salesman
R 4/15 Death of a Salesman
Week 15
T 4/20 Fair and Tender Ladies
R 4/22 Fair and Tender Ladies Essay
#3 due
R 4/29 Final
Exam, 8-10 AM; please bring large bluebooks