Lecturer: Brandy James
Robinson
Office: Pafford 336
Phone: 678-839-4881
Email: brobinso@westga.edu; URL: http://www.westga.edu/~brobinso
Office Hours: T,Th: 2-3; W: 10-12; also available by appointment and email
Course Description:
On defining the creation of identity, American essayist, novelist, and
playwright James Arthur Baldwin comments, “An identity would seem to be arrived
at by the way in which the person faces and uses his experience.” Baldwin’s
statement encompasses far-ranging ideas and introduces questions that have
historically characterized American literature: How have Americans characterized
their own identities at different points in time, and how have historical
events, cultural phenomena, social environments, and personal experiences become
meshed with and changed these identities? To what extent does the American
landscape, either as a physical or symbolic space, attribute to this
definition? Is the definition “American” even a valid identity? As we closely
examine these questions by examining
the various literary genres that span almost four centuries, we will focus on
how language and writing has been used to construct and alter the meaning of
“American identity.” In addition, we will also delve into the formation of
identity from the perspectives of race, gender, and social class and examine how
each has been used for this purpose.
Course Goals:
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.
Program Goals:
Oral and written communication will be characterized by clarity, critical
analysis, logic, coherence, persuasion, precision, and rhetorical awareness
(Core Curriculum learning outcomes I).
Cultural and Social Perspectives: Cultural and social perspective will be characterized by cultural awareness and an understanding of the complexity and dynamic nature of social/political/economic systems; human and institutional behavior, values, and belief systems; historical and spatial relationship; and, flexibility, open-mindedness, and tolerance. (Core Curriculum learning outcomes III).
Aesthetic Perspective: Aesthetic perspective will be characterized by critical appreciation of and ability to make informed aesthetic judgments about the arts of various cultures as media for human expression (Core Curriculum learning outcomes V).
This course fulfills the Area C.2 requirement in the core for all students.
Area C (Humanities/Arts) Learning Outcomes:
1. To develop the ability to recognize and identify achievements in literary,
fine and performing arts;
2. To have an appreciation of the nature and achievements of the arts and
humanities; and
3. To develop the ability to apply, understand, and appreciate the application
of aesthetics criteria to “real world” circumstances.
This course fulfills an Area F requirement for English majors (all tracks) in the core.
This course fulfills one of the core-level language arts requirements for Middle Grades Education majors.
This course contributes to the program goal of equipping students with a foundation in literary history and the issues surrounding literary study in contemporary culture.
This course broadens students' desire and ability to take pleasure in their encounter with literature.
Section Objectives:
1) To examine American literature in the context of American culture and
society
2) To develop the habits of reading a variety of literary forms with
concentration and interest
3) To understand the coherence and contradiction inherent in the story of
American literature
4) To sharpen and strengthen skills in critical thinking, writing, and
speaking through class discussion, presentations, and writing assignments
in various modes
5) To develop and encourage independent thinking
6) To experience pleasure in the act of examining texts and exchanging ideas
and information with other members of a literary community
Required Texts:
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby ISBN: 0684801523
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter and Other Writings ISBN:
9780393979534
Baym, Nina, Ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Shorter
Seventh Edition ISBN: 9780393930573
**Note: The Norton Anthology and The Scarlet Letter may be
purchased in a bundled package under a separate ISBN from the UWG Campus
Bookstore**
Course Guidelines:
1. Attendance Requirements: Students will be administratively withdrawn from class based on the following attendance policy. For classes that meet three times a week, a student is allowed four absences. Upon the fifth absence, the student will be withdrawn. For classes that meet twice a week, a student is allowed three absences. Upon the fourth absence, the student will be withdrawn. Be aware that no distinction exists between excused and unexcused absences. If the withdrawal occurs prior to the withdrawal date (March 1), the student will receive a grade of W. If the withdrawal occurs after the withdrawal date, the student will receive a WF. **Note: Tardies will also be counted as part of the attendance requirements. A student is considered tardy if he/she is 15 minutes or more late. Two tardies will equal one absence.**
2. Disruptive Behavior: Students will be dismissed from any class meeting at which they exhibit behavior that disrupts the learning environment of others. Such behavior includes—but is not limited to—arriving late for class, allowing cell phones to ring, speaking disrespectfully to the instructor and/or to other students, checking email or surfing the web, and using personal audio or video devices. Each dismissal of this kind will count as an absence and will be applied toward the attendance requirements policy above.
3. Paper Format: All formal writing should be submitted according to MLA format.
4. Revision Policy: Students have many opportunities for revision before the final draft of each paper is due. Students may submit rough drafts for peer editing and/or instructor review. Students should use peer editing and instructor review, along with the Writing Center, as means for revision before the paper is due. No revisions will be accepted after the due date. No exceptions.
5. Late Work: Students are responsible for finding out from the instructor and/or our on-line syllabus material/due date(s) with regard to missed work; if a student is absent on the day out-of-class work is due or if a student is present but does not turn in the work on the assigned due date, five points will be deducted from the overall grade of the assignment for each day (not class period) the work is late. If a student finds it necessary to miss class on a day work is due, the material should be emailed to the instructor the day work is due in order to avoid any penalty. Once an assignment is two weeks late, it will not be accepted. The only exception to this policy is with regard to the final exam. If the final exam is not received by the date/time of the final exam posted on the syllabus, it will not be accepted. For example, if the final exam is scheduled from 11-1 pm, it will not be accepted after 1 pm.
6. Office Consultations: An office consultation, whether they be conducted during scheduled office hours or during a scheduled appointment, is a time for you to meet with me to discuss very specific issues, i.e., a specific essay, a specific in-class or out-of-class assignment, a specific grade, a specific concern as it relates to your writing, etc. If an office consultation is scheduled to discuss a final grade on one of the response essays, you must wait 24 hours from the time I return the essay to you to meet with me. This will give you the opportunity to review my comments. When you schedule an office consultation, you should come in prepared. This will give us some guidelines during our consultation and help to generate discussion. Be aware that an email asking questions about an essay CANNOT replace an actual meeting with me during office hours. It is very difficult to respond to your questions and your needs by only responding to an email, especially if your questions are general. I welcome any email correspondence you wish to have with me; however, this type of correspondence is best used only when you have a very SPECIFIC question that doesn't require discussion. **Please Note: The official email communication method will be through campus e-mail (MyUWG)
7. A Valuable Student Resource: the Writing Center assists all
students in the development of their writing skills. Make an appointment with a
UWC tutor (well in advance of the assignment due date) and focus on
improving your writing. The tutors will not
proofread or edit your work, but they will assist you in your endeavor to become
a better writer. Become familiar with the Writing Center, check it out, and use
it. Its reason for being, its mission, is to work with you and help you become a
better writer regardless of your level of ability or proficiency. The Writing
Center is located in the Parkman Room, TLC 1201 visit the Writing Center online
Writing Center Policies/Hours
8. Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty
9. Students With Special Needs: If you have a registered disability and require accommodation, please see me at the beginning of the semester. If you have a disability that you have not yet registered, please contact Dr. Ann Phillips in Room 137 at Parker Hall.
10. Library Instruction Sessions: Students enrolled in 1/2000 level courses, inexperienced researchers, and students needing refresher classes in basic research are strongly encouraged to sign-up for the basic library instruction sessions and online research sessions. Please see the links below for further information and scheduling:
Online Research:
http://www.usg.edu/galileo/skills/
Basic Library Instruction:
http://www.westga.edu/~library/nav/stuinstruct.shtml
11. Severe Weather Guidelines for Department of English and Philosophy:
The University of West Georgia is committed to the personal safety of its students, faculty, and staff in the event of severe weather. University policy regarding severe weather and emergency closings is posted at http://www.westga.edu/police/index_2277.php and official announcements about class and/or examination cancellations will be made only by the President and/or the Department of Public Relations. Although it is not possible to develop policy to address every weather-related emergency, these guidelines are intended to provide some general direction about such situations.
For immediate severe weather situations, especially when classes are in session, faculty, staff and students are advised to follow the emergency procedures identified below:
1. Direct occupants to remain in the building and to seek shelter immediately on the lowest level of the building in interior rooms (closet, interior hallway) away from corners, windows, doors, and outside walls.
2. Instruct occupants to not leave the building.
3. Evacuate all offices, rooms or hallways with windows and glass or with exterior walls.
4. Provide assistance to persons with disabilities.
5. Accompany occupants to the nearest designated shelter area in the building.
6. Comply with departmental severe weather policies/procedures.
7. Wait for an “all clear” signal” before resuming activity.
8. Occupants will: a) proceed to the nearest designated shelter area in the building by the closest route; b) move quickly but in an orderly manner so that all will arrive safely; c) will not attempt to vacate the premises, drive or seek shelter in cars; d) take a seat in the shelter area; e) remain cooperative with those in charge; and f) wait for an “all clear” signal before resuming activity.
In the event that classes are cancelled or disrupted for less than one calendar week, each professor, at his or her discretion, will make adjustments as needed to cover material missed during those cancelled sessions. This may or may not involve the use of rescheduled or online classes. If the closures exceed a single calendar week, students should contact the Chair of the Department of English and Philosophy at 678-839-6512 or the professor of the class for updated information regarding changes to the schedule in the Department. It is the intention of the Department of English and Philosophy to handle every concern seriously and as effectively as possible.
Course Assessment:
Daily Quizzes and Writing Responses: 10% (Quizzes, announced and unannounced,
along with in-class and out-of-class writing responses will be given weekly; the
assignments may take the form of short explications or brief analytical
responses to questions on the text being discussed)
Response Essays: 50% (Several 3-4 page essays dealing with analyses of chosen
literary works and based on a range of topics from class discussion);
grading rubric
Mid-Term: 20% (The mid-term exam, which is cumulative, includes identifications,
explication, and concise analyses of passages from texts we have read and
discussed in class)
Final: 20% (The final exam will be administered in the form of a take-home
essay)
**Also Note: No extra credit will be assigned or accepted in this course. In
addition, work completed for another course will not be accepted in this course
Readings and Assignments:
Note: Readings and assignments are due on the day they are listed on the syllabus. Changes or additions to the readings may occur throughout the semester based on the needs of the class. Any such changes will be announced in class.
January
Th 7 Introduction to the Course
T 12 American Puritanism; (Norton-pgs.1-16); Anne Bradstreet (poem found on pg. 109/**pdf file for class discussion/notes); Literature to 1700
Th 14 Age of Enlightenment (Norton-pgs. 151-161); Alexander Pope; Some Principles of Autobiography; Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, I; (Norton-pg.236); homework assignment due; Lecture Notes
T 19 Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, II (Norton-pg. 276); Sign for Analysis: The Franklinian Dream as a Cultural Phenomenon (in-class); Autobiography Small Group Work Assignment
Th 21 Autobiography Small Group Work Assignment (cont); Writing Response
Th 28 American Romanticism and Transcendentalism: (Norton-pg. 431-452); Emerson's "Self-Reliance" (Norton-pgs. 532-550); Lecture Notes (Overview); Link to Goethe's Sorrows of Young Werther; Link to William Blake Archive; Contemporary Visual Ad
February
T 2 Historical Fiction and the Romance Mode: Lecture Notes; Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" (SL: 178); David Levin's "Shadows of Doubt: Specter Evidence in Hawthorne's 'Young Goodman Brown'" (SL: 693)Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil" (SL: 189); Frederick Crews' "Escapism in 'Young Goodman Brown' and 'The Minister's Black Veil'" (SL: 700);Assign Topics for Response Essay #1 ; Short Writing Response (Franklin) Due; Historical Information on the Salem Witch Trials of 1692; Overview of Significant Elements
Th 4 Prefatory discussion of "The Custom House" (SL: 7-35); Begin The Scarlet Letter (SL:36-73) (Chapters 1-7); Critical Approaches to Reading Texts ; Freud's Theories of the Unconscious; Oedipus Complex ; In-Class Assignment;
Th 11 The Scarlet Letter: (SL: 73-128) (Chapters 8-17); Homework Assignment Due (follow model for in-class assignment); Response #1 Due
T 16 conclude The Scarlet Letter: (SL: 128-166) (Chapters 18-24); Lecture Notes; Scaffold Scenes--3-Part Structure
Th 18 The Rise of Realism: (Norton-pgs. 1255-1269);The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn 1277-1323; Realism Lecture Notes; Huck Finn Lecture Notes ; Close Reading Exercise
T 23 Huck Finn 1323-1367 ; Questions/Items to Consider ; assign topics for Response Essay #2
Th 25 conclude Huck Finn 1367-1463; Mid-Term Study Guide; "We Wear the Mask"; "Finding Jim Behind the Mask"; "Reinventing the World and Reinventing the Self in Huck Finn" ; Preparatory Notes for Response Essay #2 (if needed): Claims vs. Observations; Thesis Construction; Thesis Review; Paragraph Construction; Content Characteristics; 3 I-ed Monster
March
T 2 Mid-Term Exam
Th 4 Response Essay #2 Due
T 9 Modernism and The Jazz Age: (Norton-pgs. 1881-1896);The Great Gatsby 1-96;Questions to Consider (Class Discussion); T.S. Eliot's The WasteLand
Th 11 First Year Writing Program's Shared Text Lecture Series (Natasha Trethewey); No Class
T 16 conclude The Great Gatsby 97-180; Thematic Elements (Homework/Class Discussion); Gatsby Preface
Th 18 The Harlem Renaissance: Langston Hughes; assign topics for Response #3
March 22-27 Spring Break (No Classes)
T 30 "Harlem"; "Negro"; "Theme for English B" 2270; "Mother to Son" 2265
April
Th 1 Neal Lester's Lecture: "Nappy Edges and Goldy Locks: African Americans and the Politics of Hair"
T 6 Modernism/Postmodernism: Characteristics; (Norton-pgs. 2305-2318); Tennessee Williams' Street Car Named Desire (2337); Watching Film
Th 8 Class Canceled/English Department Undergraduate Conference
T 13 continue SCND; Response Essay #3 Due
Th 15 SCND (response questions)
T 20 Scott Momaday's "The Way to Rainy Mountain" 2704; "Perpetuating Remembrance: N. Scott Momaday and Kiowa Storytelling"
Th 22 (Poetry) Yusef Komunyakaa's "Facing It" 2780; "My Father's Love Letters" 2780
T 27 Distribute/Discuss Topics for Final Exam; Mini Conferences (If Necessary)
Final Exam is due at my office during scheduled final exam time (Final is scheduled from 11-1 on Thursday, May 6th--the exam is due by 1 pm; no exams will be accepted after this time. No exceptions. Only hard copies accepted; exams cannot be emailed)
Note: All grades will be posted on Banweb at the conclusion of the course.
I will not give out individual grades by telephone.