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English 300:
Writing about Literature Literature ~
Literary Theory ~ Literary Criticism winter 2007 Dr. Abby
Coykendall acoykenda@emich.edu Office:
Pray-Harrold Hall 603G Phone:
734-487-0147 (messages only) Office Hours: M 3:15-5:30; Th 12:45-3:30 PM ~ or email for an appointment ~
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English 300: Writing about Literature
Course
Description: This course will not only provide the background in
literature and literary criticism necessary to appreciate and to comprehend
upper-division literature classes, but it will also furnish the writing and
critical-thinking skills necessary to succeed in them. To this end, we will focus on the three major
literary genres (fiction, poetry, and drama), along with surveying the wide
variety of interpretive practices and critical methodologies that scholars and
students use to approach them. We will
pay especial attention to those methodologies that are most representative of
the major movements in literary criticism; namely, marxism, psychoanalysis,
deconstruction, feminism, queer theory, cultural studies, and new
historicism. The ultimate aim is to
offer a forum in which you can develop and refine your writing and
critical-thinking skills at an advanced level, particularly by honing in on
those techniques that most assist in and apply to the study of literature.
Course Objectives: By the end of
the semester, you will have become
¬ Conversant in
the techniques, thematic concerns, and formal structure of the principal
literary genres;
¬ Acquainted
with the history, terminology, and theoretical positions of the major schools
of literary criticism;
¬ Capable of
applying this new knowledge in writing, first and foremost by developing clear,
coherent, and persuasive arguments that reflect the conventions of literary
criticism.
Required Texts
The following books are available at
Ned’s (http://www.nedsbooks.com/emu/; 483-6400;
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Text and Contexts [TC], Ed. Steven Lynn, 4th
ed. (Longman, 2004; ISBN 0321209427)
Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Rime of the
Ancient Mariner [RAM]
(Dover, 1992; ISBN 0486272664)
William Shakespeare, Hamlet [HM], Ed. Susan L. Wofford (Bedford, 1994; ISBN
0312055447)
Make sure to get
the same editions listed above even if you purchase the books online, where
they may be significantly less expensive; otherwise, the differing page numbers
will make it very difficult for you to follow along with class discussions. The most reliable way to get the correct
edition is to search by the ISBN number, a fingerprint of sorts for the book. ** It
is especially important to get the correct edition of Hamlet, for we
will be using many other materials from that edition besides the play itself.
Several required texts are located
online through the
Course Itinerary
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Section One: Reader Response and New Criticism (Fiction Case Study) |
Main Texts: Isak Dinesen, “The Dreamers” Survey of Literary Criticism in Texts & Contexts |
Key Skills: Organization & Argumentation |
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Section Two: Marxism and Deconstruction (Poetry Case Study) |
Main Texts: Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “Rime of the
Ancient Mariner” Karl Marx and Jacques Derrida One Scholarly Article of Literary
Criticism Survey of Theoretical Approaches in Hamlet Edition |
Key Skills: In-Depth Textual Analysis &
Effective Quotation |
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Section Three: Psychoanalytic and Feminist Criticism (Drama Case Study) |
Main Texts: William Shakespeare, Hamlet Select Literary Criticism on Hamlet Self-Directed Outside Research on Hamlet |
Key Skills: Research & Documentation |
Each of the three sections of the course is devoted to one
genre of literature (fiction, poetry, or drama), as well as to one or more
schools of literary criticism. In
addition, we will focus on two writing skills of especial importance for each
section: organization and argumentation (section one); in-depth textual
analysis and quotation (section two); and finally research and documentation
(section three). The third essay must
demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the writing and critical thinking
skills that have come before.
Altogether, you will compose three
essays (one pertaining to each of the three literary genres), as well as
undertake two substantive revisions of the first two essays on fiction and
poetry. ** See the “Guidelines on Essays
and Revisions” for more information about the specific requirements: http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/guide.htm.
Assignments & Assessment
As with any university course, the
homework will take around two hours for every hour of class, and you can thus
expect to spend six hours each week completing the various assignments and
readings. A significant amount of
writing will be assigned throughout the semester, whether informal responses or
more formal essays. With the responses,
the mechanical elements of writing do not matter in the least, and the goal is
to freely and openly express ideas; whereas, with the essays, the mechanical
elements of writing must be attended to very thoroughly and the goal is to
defend a focused argument clearly, coherently, and persuasively.
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20% |
Responses, Homework, & Participation |
length: |
due dates: |
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15% each |
Essay One (Fiction): Dinesen Essay Two (Poetry): Coleridge |
3½-4 pgs. |
February 7
March 19
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15% each |
Revision of Essay One Revision of Essay Two |
4-4½ pgs. |
March 5
April 9
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20% |
Essay Three (Drama): Shakespeare |
4½-5 pgs. |
April 30
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The participation grade, largely based
on responses, in-class writing, and homework assignments, is a considerable
portion of your final grade — 20% — so keep up with the coursework and
contribute to class discussions as actively as you feel comfortable. Aside
from the critical theory exercises (which cannot be made up after the due
date), late homework assignments are marked down only minimally; however, late
assignments must be turned in within a week of the initial due date to receive
any commentary. Assignments and
essays will not be considered late simply because you were absent (I always
assume that you have a good reason for missing class), but be careful not to
exceed the minimum number of absences allowed for the course.
Attendance
Because this course primarily consists
of reading and discussion — rather than facts, figures, or memorization —
attendance is crucial. After FIVE
absences, your final letter grade will start being reduced by one third; that
is, the sixth class missed will turn a final grade of an A into an A-; the
seventh, into a B+; and so on. These
five absences are for emergencies, so make sure to conserve them for the end of
the term when you may become ill or have other extenuating circumstances. Leaving halfway through a class period or
arriving halfway into one each count as half an absence. Please do not distract other students by
coming in late or by answering your cell phone. You should also never walk in
or out of class midway through unless there is a genuine emergency. It
is your responsibility to ensure that you have not been marked absent because
you were late.
Academic Integrity
Plagiarism is a very serious offense
against the Code of Student Conduct (http://www.emich.edu/sjs/acddishon.html). Any plagiarized writing will automatically
result in a failing, zero-percent grade for the assignment, as well as in
further disciplinary action from the Student Judicial Services if egregious. The general rule is that if you use three or
more words of another writer in a row without enclosing those words in
quotation marks and acknowledging your source, you are guilty of
plagiarism. See http://www.emich.edu/halle/plagiarism.html for more
specific guidelines. **Note: turning a
paper in that you wrote for another course for this class, i.e. recycling the
same words for double credit, also constitutes academic dishonesty at EMU.
Schedule
Section I: Reader Response and New Criticism (Fiction Case Study)
Monday,
January 8: Survey Course; Student Introductions; Conjectural Response/HOMEWORK [for 1/10]: 1) Review the
syllabus, making sure to note down any questions that you have; 2)
Make up the Conjectural Response if you missed class [ER]; 3)
Read “Critical Worlds” in Text and Contexts (TC),
pg. 3-20; 4) Read Isak Dinesen, “The
Dreamers,” Part I, in the Electronic Reserves (ER), pg. 271-91 (http://reserves.emich.edu/; password 300).
Wednesday,
January 10: Begin Dinesen, Reader Response, & New Criticism/HOMEWORK [for 1/17]: Read “Analyzing Fiction” in Electronic Reserves (ER), pg. 1-21; 2) Read (and preferably
re-read) Isak Dinesen, “The Dreamers,” Part II-IV [ER 291-355],
with at least one of the “Analyzing
Fiction” questions (pg. 20-21) in mind.
Monday,
January 15: NO CLASS (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)
Wednesday,
January 17: Continue Dinesen, Discuss the Elements of Fiction/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “Unifying the Work” [TC
37-48]; 2) Read “Creating
the Text” [TC
61-75]; 3) Write a brief, 250-word response on the Dinesen novella
from the point of view of either reader response or new criticism (as described
in TC).
Monday,
January 22: Continue Dinesen, Reader Response, & New Criticism/HOMEWORK: 1) Read Texts & Contexts [TC
48-55, 76-85]; 2) Read “Guidelines on
Essay Formatting and Organization” [ER 10 pgs.]; 3) Review the “Sample Essay”
[ER]; 4) On a computer, adapt the “Sample Essay” file,
substituting a provisional title for Essay One (on Dinesen using either reader response or new criticism), along with
your own header, name, section, and other information; 5) Print a copy properly formatted to turn in during class.**NOTE: Save this template file for all
of your future essays, without altering the margins or fonts, but changing the
specific essay information as the need arises.
Wednesday,
January 24: Review of Essay Conventions, Literary Criticism, & Writing
Technique/HOMEWORK: 1) Finish “Critical Worlds” [TC
21-34]; 2) Review “Guidelines on
Essays and Revisions” [ER]; 3) Write an introductory
paragraph for Essay One in the same Sample Essay file from last time, making sure that it has a thesis statement, as well as three topic
sentences underneath for each body paragraph; 4) **NOTE: You must email
a copy of the resulting outline to acoykenda@emich.edu by Sunday 2PM.
Monday,
January 29: Discuss Critical Approaches; Workshop Paper Topics; Begin
Poetics (Shakespeare, Millay, Hughes)/HOMEWORK: 1) Begin “Analyzing Poetry” [ER 22-29]; 2) Begin Samuel
Taylor Coleridge, “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” [RAM], Part I; 3) Add a body
paragraph, with at least one indented or in-text citation, to Essay One, formatting the quotations properly (see the “Guidelines on
Essay Formatting” [ER]); 4) Print a copy to turn
in.
Section II: Marxism and Deconstruction (Poetry Case
Study)
Wednesday,
January 31: Workshop
Paragraphs; Discuss Poetics; Listen to “Rime of the
Ancient Mariner”/HOMEWORK: 1) Finish “Analyzing Poetry” [ER 29-41]; 2) Read Coleridge,
“Rime” [RAM], Parts II-III; 3) Add at
least three body paragraphs to Essay One,
revising the earlier portions as needed;
4) **NOTE: You must bring TWO
copies of the draft to next class.
Monday,
February 5: Poetics
Review; Discuss Coleridge; Peer Workshop/HOMEWORK: 1) Finish Coleridge,
Rime of the Ancient Mariner [RAM], Parts IV-VII; 2) Complete
Essay One
(3½ pages, due Feb. 7).
Wednesday,
February 7: Discuss Essays, Poetics, & Coleridge/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “Background on Marx, Engels, and
Marxism” [ER]; 2) After reading “What Is
Marxist Criticism?” from the Hamlet Critical Edition [HM 332-44], do the “Critical Theory Exercise”
(Part I only); 3) Read Karl Marx,
“Meaning of Human Requirements” [ER 93-98].
Monday,
February 12: Discuss Marxism & Coleridge/HOMEWORK: 1) Read David Simpson, “How
Marxism Reads ‘The Rime’” [ER 148-66]; 2) Write a
brief, 250-word response on the Coleridge poem from a Marxist perspective,
directly quoting, analyzing, and
applying the “Meaning of Human
Requirements” at some point.
Wednesday,
February 14: Discuss
Marxism, Coleridge, & the Responses/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “What
Is Deconstruction?” [HM 283-93]; 2) Read Texts and Contexts [TC
106-12]; 3) Read selections from
Jacques Derrida, Given Time [ER 6-33]; 4) Read “Background
on Derrida” [ER 1815-19].
Monday,
February 19: Discuss Deconstruction & Derrida/HOMEWORK: 1) Re-Read Coleridge’s “Rime” in its entirety [RAM]; 2) Note down the line
numbers of a passage from the poem that seems to relate to Derrida (or seems
ripe for deconstruction), along with a second passage that seems to relate to Marx
(or seems ripe for marxist analysis or critique); 3) Be prepared to discuss these passages in class.
Wednesday,
February 21: Discuss Deconstruction, Marxism, & Coleridge/HOMEWORK: 1) Write an introductory
paragraph, complete with a thesis statement and three topic sentences, for Essay Two
(on Coleridge using either a marxist or
deconstructive approach and quoting/analyzing Marx or Derrida directly at some
point in the essay); 2) Finish Revision One (Essay One extended to 4 pages and substantially revised) due Mar. 5; 3) **NOTE: Make sure to bring the
original draft of Essay One, as well as the revision itself, to
class.
Section III: Psychoanalytic and Feminist Criticism (Drama Case
Study)
Monday, February 26—Wednesday, February 28: NO CLASS (Winter Recess)
Monday, March 5: Watch
& discuss the film Derrida/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “Analyzing Drama” [ER 42-53]; 2) After reading
“What Is Psychoanalytic Criticism?” [HM 241-51], do the “Critical Theory Exercise,” Part I; 2) Read Sigmund Freud, Selections from Interpretation of Dreams [ER113-27].
Wednesday, March 7:
Introduce Drama, Freud, & Psychoanalysis/HOMEWORK: 1) Read William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Introduction [HM 3-24]; 2) Read Freud, “The ‘Uncanny,’” Part I [ER]; 3) Add at least three body paragraphs
to Essay Two, revising the earlier portions as needed; 3) **NOTE: You must bring TWO copies of the draft to next
class.
Monday, March 12: Discuss
Shakespeare & Freud; Peer Editing of Essay Two/HOMEWORK: 1) Read Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act I [HM 27-56]; 2) Read Freud, “The ‘Uncanny,’” Part II [ER]; 3) Work on Essay Two (3½ pages, due Mar. 19).
Wednesday, March 14: Discuss
Shakespeare & Freud; Watch portions of Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet/HOMEWORK: 1) Read Shakespeare, Hamlet,
Act II-III [HM 56-109]; 2) Finish Freud, “The ‘Uncanny,’”
Parts III [ER]; 3) Finish Essay Two
(3½ pages, due Mar. 19).
Monday, March
19: Discuss Shakespeare & Freud; Continue Branagh’s Hamlet/HOMEWORK: 1) Finish Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act IV-V [HM 109-131]; 2) Write a
250-word response on Hamlet directly quoting, analyzing, and applying
Freud’s “The ‘Uncanny.’”
Wednesday,
March 21: Discuss Shakespeare & Freud; Continue Branagh’s Hamlet/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “What Is Feminism?” [HM 208-15]; 2) After reading
Elaine Showalter, “Representing Ophelia” [HM 220-38], do the “Critical Theory Exercise,”
Part II [ER]; 3) Read Eve Kosofsky
Sedgwick, “Epistemology of the Closet” [ER 244-50].
Monday, March
26: Discuss Feminism, Queer Theory,
& Shakespeare/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “What Is New Historicism?” [HM
368-76]; 2) After reading Janet Adelman, “‘Man and Wife’” [HM
256-79], do the “Critical Theory Exercise,”
Part II [ER].
Wednesday,
March 28: Discuss New Historicism, Adelman, & Shakespeare/HOMEWORK: 1) Read Texts
and Contexts [TC
245-78]; 2) Review “Guidelines on
the Research Essay” and “Researching
Literature” [ER]; 3) You will need to find
at least one refereed article through the Halle databases (literary criticism
on Coleridge) to incorporate into Revision Two (of Essay Two),
due Apr. 9.
Monday, April
2: Documentation & Research; Research Demonstration/HOMEWORK: 1) Read “MLA In-Text Citations” [ER]; 2) Read “MLA
Documentation” [ER] closely enough to be able to pass the quiz on Wednesday (you will
need to know how to cite books, articles, articles from databases, book
chapters, and webpages in MLA formatting); 3)
Begin work on Revision Two (4 pages, due Apr. 9); the revision must incorporate/analyze a
quotation from at least one referred article (literary criticism on Coleridge);
it also must have parenthetical citations, as well as a Works Cited page,
properly documented according to MLA conventions.
Wednesday,
April 4: Continue Discussion of Research Papers; Quiz on MLA Documentation/HOMEWORK: 1) After reading either Marjorie Garber, Michael S. Bristol, or Karin C.
Coddon in the back of the Hamlet edition [HM], do the “Critical Theory Exercise,”
Part II [ER]; 2) Finish Revision Two (4 pages, due Apr. 9), including a properly formatted Works Cited
page; 3) **NOTE: Make sure to bring the original draft of Essay Two, as well as the revision, to class.
Monday, April
9: Continue Discussion of Hamlet Criticism, Revisions, &
Research/HOMEWORK: 1) Read your Conjectural Response from the first day of class; 2) Write an optional 250-word
Extra-Credit Response on the Conjectural Response (due 4/25), describing how
your understanding of literature and/or literary criticism has been changed or
reconfirmed; 2) Review the “Guidelines on
the Research Essay”; 4) Write an introductory paragraph, complete with a
thesis statement, for Essay
Three (a 4½-pg. feminist or psychoanalytic interpretation
of Hamlet, directly quoting/analyzing Freud or Sedgwick), including at
least three topic sentences; 5) **NOTE:
You must email a copy of the resulting outline to acoykenda@emich.edu by Tuesday 2PM.
Wednesday,
April 11: Revisit Conjectural Responses; Course Retrospect/HOMEWORK: 1) Find at least two refereed articles or book chapters on Hamlet
(sources meeting the minimum research requirements, yet found through your own
research and not already covered in class) to incorporate into Essay Three; 2) Print a copy of your citations in MLA
formatted Works Cited page, including your other three sources and the play; 3)
Be prepared to discuss passages from at least one of the outside research
sources in class; 4) Begin work on Essay
Three (draft for peer editing due
4/18).
Monday, April
16: Continue Discussion of Shakespeare, Criticism, & Research/HOMEWORK: 1) Draft at least three body paragraphs for Essay
Three, revising as needed the portions from before; 2) **NOTE: You must bring TWO copies of the draft to next
class.
Wednesday,
April 18: Peer Workshop Essay Three/HOMEWORK: 1) Make up any outstanding homework by
next class; 2) Work on Essay
Three (4½ pages, due 12PM Apr. 30).
Wednesday,
April 25 (11:00-12:30 PM): Research
Presentations/HOMEWORK: 1) Finish final copy of Essay Three (4½ pages, due 12PM Apr. 30).
Monday, April 30: Essay
Three due by 12 PM;
either put in it my English department mailbox (612 Pray Harrold) or slide it
under my office door (603G Pray Harrold)
Online Handouts and Links for English 300 (Winter 2007)
· Course
Syllabus
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/w07/)
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Course
Schedule [Section I, II, III]
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/w07/#schedule)
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Electronic
Reserves (http://reserves.emich.edu/eres/coursepage.aspx?cid=1369)
·
Sample Essay File
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/samp.doc)
·
Guidelines on Essay Formatting and
Organization (http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/essay.pdf)
·
Guidelines on Essays and Revisions
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/guide.htm)
·
Conjectural Response
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/cr.pdf)
·
Critical
Theory Exercise (http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/exercise.pdf)
·
Guidelines on the Research Essay
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/300/res.htm)
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Researching Literature
(http://people.emich.edu/acoykenda/demo.htm)
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Roget's
Thesaurus
(http://humanities.uchicago.edu/orgs/ARTFL/forms_unrest/ROGET.html)
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Foriegn Language Translation
(http://www.freeonline.it/link_dtml?id_sito=275)
·
Glossary
of Literary Terms [Norton Anthology]
(http://www.wwnorton.com/litweb/glossary/welcome.htm)
·
Writing
about Literature [Norton Anthology]
(http://www.wwnorton.com/litweb/writing/welcome.asp)
[Syllabus
last modified XXX 0, 0000]