ENGL 4384-02W: Senior Seminar (TR 3:30-4:45, TLC 1204)

Madness and the Asylum in Literature and Film

Dr. Josh Masters

Office: TLC 2244

Phone and Email: 678-839-4862 jmasters@westga.edu and mastersjosh@yahoo.com

Office Hours: Tues 10-12, Wed 11-12 and 1-5, Thurs 10-12, and by appointment.

Description

I must begin with a confession: I have no formal training in madness or its various step-children (lunacy, insanity, mental illness, psychosis, nuttiness, etc.), and it has played very little role in my own literary and cultural research. That said, I have always been fascinated by the sight of gothic insane asylums (with marvelous names like “The Worcester State Lunatic Asylum”), and I have even gone so far as to learn a little about their history and seek them out—in such places as Staunton, VA; Ogdensburg, NY; and Danville, MA. I am similarly drawn to narratives—fictional, poetic, autobiographical, and cinematic—that feature madmen, madwomen (even madchildren), and the various institutions that house them. Therefore, this senior seminar, which will explore the representation of madness and the asylum in literature and film, is not being taught by an expert in the field, but by a curious, inquisitive co-learner and co-investigator. An important feature of the class will thus be to examine the methods of critical inquiry we mobilize in our pursuit of literary and cultural knowledge, since we’ll all be in the dark concerning our topic, at least initially. We will begin the course by reading two major works together—Ken Kesey’s novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Michel Foucault’s study Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason—as well as several shorter and excerpted texts. You will then design a final project—based on a text or texts of your choosing—that will culminate in a fifteen to twenty page research paper.

Requirements

Active participation in class, weekly writing assignments, an oral report, a substantive research project (including prospectus, abstract, and annotated bibliography), and a final presentation.

Required Texts

Michel Foucault, Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason

Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

(All additional theoretical and critical material, as well as class-chosen short readings, will be on electronic reserve or sent to you as a PDF.)

Students with disabilities should meet with me at the beginning of the semester, and we will make any necessary arrangements.

Explanation of Course Requirements

Final Grade: To pass the course, students must turn in all written work and have no more than four absences. Your final grade is comprised of the following: Final Paper of Fifteen to Twenty Pages (40%); Weekly writing assignments and critical journal (40%); Participation and Editorial Work (10%); Oral Presentations (10%).

Reading Assignments: The reading assignments can be found on the online syllabus (http://www.westga.edu/~jmasters/). You can expect to read about 200 pages each week for the first seven weeks of class.

Weekly Writing Assignments and Critical Journal: For the first half of the class, we will be reading a work of fiction for each Tuesday class. In preparation for the Tuesday discussion, you will produce a “Mountain of Notes” entry on a passage of your choice (see online syllabus for directions). For each Thursday class, we will be reading a work of criticism. Over the course of the semester you will be writing a “critical journal” that consists of ten one-page entries. These journal entries will chronicle your intellectual engagement with the theoretical material and chart all of the cool discoveries you make. Once you begin working on your final paper, you will be responsible for a series of “Process-Based” writing assignments. All of the materials referred to above will be evaluated objectively. Note: All writing in this class submitted for credit must be typed. Late assignments will be accepted but penalized.

Oral Presentations: Each student will be responsible for teaching a ten minute class based on a film that features a representation of madness. The choice of film is entirely up to you. You will receive a document with more detailed instructions. You will also be presenting an overview of your final project in April in coordination with Dr. Davidson’s class.

Discussion and Attendance: Students are expected to attend every class and arrive on time, prepared, and eager to discuss the day’s reading and writing. Your participation grade is based upon your performance in the class in terms of group work, discussion, and attendance habits. You are expected to demonstrate genuine engagement with the material, actively contribute to discussion topics, show adequate preparation for each class, and respect the ideas of your classmates. You must bring the text under discussion to every class, including a print-out of the critical reading assignment.

Email: All official email correspondence must take place through UWG accounts; however, I will also be establishing a class list using your preferred email address for other forms of communication. Your emails should be proofread and written in full sentences.

Tardiness and Leaving Early: If you arrive at class late or have to leave early, it counts as ½ of an absence.

Absences: I understand that illnesses and emergencies are a part of life, and therefore you are allowed to miss two classes (or, a total of five hours of class). I do not distinguish between excused and unexcused absences unless the absence is due to participation in an official University activity (such as band, sports, debate, etc.). Students will be administratively withdrawn from class based on the following attendance policy. Once a student exceeds four absences—even if that occurs at the end of the semester—the student will be withdrawn. 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 grade of WF.

My Plagiarism Policy: If a student is caught plagiarizing (and this includes short writing assignments), he or she will automatically fail the course. No exceptions.

Departmental Plagiarism Policy: The Department of English and Philosophy defines plagiarism as taking personal credit for the words and ideas of others as they are presented in electronic, print, and verbal sources. The Department expects that students will accurately credit sources in all assignments. An equally dishonest practice is fabricating sources or facts; it is another form of misrepresenting the truth. Plagiarism is grounds for failing the course.

Reporting Procedures for Plagiarism:
Each incidence of plagiarism is subject to review and consideration by the instructor, and is subject to a range of penalties including but not limited to failing the assignment, failing the course, and referral to the disciplinary review board (which may ultimately result in the expulsion, suspension, or disciplinary removal of the student from the university). In order to facilitate the prevention and detection of plagiarism the Department of English and the University of West Georgia will maintain records of plagiarized assignments and those who prepare and/or submit them.

Course Goals

•  Students will understand and apply select theoretical and practical issues in the discipline of literary studies.

•  Students will become conversant with representative texts and a selected issue in literary history that allows for integration of the aims of the discipline.

• Students will develop the ability to work both independently and collaboratively toward the publication of an anthology of essays by class members.

• Students will propose, research, and execute a substantive literary argument appropriate to the seminar topic.

• Students will be able to make effective oral presentations, both individual and collaborative.

• Students will participate in an end-of-semester exit interview to assess how the course and the major have served their professional goals

• Students will demonstrate in both oral and written work a discipline-specific critical facility through convincing and well-supported analysis of related material.

• Students will demonstrate their command of academic English and the tenets of sound composition by means of thesis-driven analytical prose.

Program Goals

• This course fulfills one of the departmental requirements for the completion of the English major.

• Students will develop the analytical, oral and written skills to pursue graduate study or careers in teaching, writing, business and a variety of other fields.

• Students will be able to define and pursue independent research agendas.

• 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.

Schedule (Subject to Revision)

1/6: Introductions, Syllabus, and Banafish (Oh my!)

1/11: Part I of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Mountain of Notes Entry #1)

1/13: Chapters 1 and 2 of Madness and Civilization (Journal Entry #1)

1/18: Part 2 of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Mountain of Notes Entry #2)

1/20: Chapters 3 and 4 of Madness and Civilization (Journal Entry #2)

1/25: Short Work, Class Choice (Mountain of Notes Entry #3)

1/27: Chapter 5-7 of Madness and Civilization (Journal Entry #3)

2/1:  Longer Work, Class Choice (Mountain of Notes Entry #4)

2/3:  Finish Madness and Civilization (Journal Entry #4)

2/8:  Class Choice (Mountain of Notes Entry #5)

2/10:  Critical Work TBA (Based on Class Choice—Journal Entry #5)

2/15: Class Choice (Mountain of Notes Entry #6)

2/17:  Critical Work TBA (Based on Class Choice—Journal Entry #6)

2/22:  Class Choice (Mountain of Notes Entry #7)

2/24:   Critical Work TBA (Based on Class Choice—Journal Entry #7)

3/1:  Last day to Withdraw with “W.” Group A: Film Oral Reports, Group B: Paper Proposal

3/3:   Group B: Film Oral Reports, Group A: Paper Proposal

3/8: Spring Break

3/10: Spring Break

3/15: Project Prospectus Due.

3/17: Journal Entry #8

3/22: Text-Based Mountain of Notes, Part 1 (3-4 single-spaced pages)

3/24: Annotated Bibliography, Part 1 (3-4 entries), Journal Entry #9

3/29: Text-Based Mountain of Notes, Part 2 (3-4 single-spaced pages)

3/31: Annotated Bibliography, Part 2 (3-4 entries), Journal Entry #10

4/5: First 3 pages of your paper due!

4/7: Workshop.

4/12: First 10 pages of your paper due!

4/14: Workshop

4/19: Complete Draft Due.

4/21: Workshop.

4/26: Evaluations and Workshop.

4/29: Final Drafts Due by 5 p.m.

Writing Assignment for Tuesday, January 11

Write a "Mountain of Notes" entry on a single passage from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest that you think is interesting, especially in light of our first discussion (see example below for basic structure) that interests you. Type out the quotation (try to limit the passage to fifty words), and then come up with at least five different thoughts, ideas, and insights into it. When possible, examine specific words and phrases in the passage.

Passage (from McCarthy's The Road)

He lay listening to the water drip in the woods. Bedrock, this. The cold and the silence. The ashes of the late world carried on the bleak and temporal winds to and fro in the void. Carried forth and scattered and carried forth again. Everything uncoupled from its shoring. Unsupported in the ashen air. Sustained by a breath, trembling and brief. If only my heart were stone. (11)

Context (Where and When the passage occurs and Who it involves)

Early in the novel, first or second night, the father and son lie awake in the pitch black. These are the thoughts of the father right after son asks if he wants to die.

Possible Meanings, Ideas, and Questions

-Ash linked to the father’s death, the sun and the not-sun.

-Ash is made up with the previous world, its buildings and papers and people. It's now part of the very air the father breathes--it's linked to his memories of the past, and it also seems to be killing/choking him.

-At the end, we get the father's actual thoughts, the heart of stone he desires the exact opposite of the ash.

            What about this shift from third to first person?: A kind of confession.

-Two pilgrims carried forth on the ash carrying forth the flame of humanity.

-Getting through the book like getting through the ash—what is the ash?

-Ash is that which is undecipherable.

-Ash and purgatory and

Connections (to other parts of the text):

-Is turning to stone like the mother’s suicide, a giving up?

-Ashes and deathcamps!!! Explore this further.