Course Requirements
What absolutely, positively must be done.
Attendance and Participation (15%)
Attendance and in-class participation are mandatory. You are allowed only FOUR absences for ANY reason (including illness, family difficulties, athletic events, etc.).
Up to four absences, I do not need to see *any* documentation. Upon your fifth absence, you will be docked 1/3 of a letter grade. Any further absences will be docked one full letter grade except in cases of extreme necessity with accompanying documentation, advisor corroboration, and my approval.
After SEVEN absences, you cannot pass the class (please remember that eight absences equals nearly three full weeks of class).
Two tardies count as an absence.
If you are more than 7 minutes late, you should not come—it is disruptive and disrespectful. It is a morning class, which I know is difficult, but you are adults, and should purchase an alarm clock (don’t just use your phone) to wake you at least a ½ hour before class begins. This will give you time to dress and to grab a caffeinated beverage.
In-class participation is a part of your grade, and will be a portion of the points per class (depending on how much full class discussion or group work we’re doing on a given day). If you are painfully shy, then please talk to me at the beginning of the semester, and we will work out a way for you to fulfill the participation requirement. Unless I have talked with you about it, I am not averse to calling on you randomly in class if my questions are met with silence.
As a final note, you must complete all of your reading and be able to discuss it in order to get full points for the day.
Up to four absences, I do not need to see *any* documentation. Upon your fifth absence, you will be docked 1/3 of a letter grade. Any further absences will be docked one full letter grade except in cases of extreme necessity with accompanying documentation, advisor corroboration, and my approval.
After SEVEN absences, you cannot pass the class (please remember that eight absences equals nearly three full weeks of class).
Two tardies count as an absence.
If you are more than 7 minutes late, you should not come—it is disruptive and disrespectful. It is a morning class, which I know is difficult, but you are adults, and should purchase an alarm clock (don’t just use your phone) to wake you at least a ½ hour before class begins. This will give you time to dress and to grab a caffeinated beverage.
In-class participation is a part of your grade, and will be a portion of the points per class (depending on how much full class discussion or group work we’re doing on a given day). If you are painfully shy, then please talk to me at the beginning of the semester, and we will work out a way for you to fulfill the participation requirement. Unless I have talked with you about it, I am not averse to calling on you randomly in class if my questions are met with silence.
As a final note, you must complete all of your reading and be able to discuss it in order to get full points for the day.
Journal of Questions(10%)
Your journal is a space for reflection, negotiation, and analysis of both the texts we work with this term and the emotions, recollections, and questions that they may invoke.
In your journal, you will have *one* formal entry for each unit in which you conduct a close reading of a selected poem or short section of the text. These may not exceed one single-spaced page in length, and must fulfill the following requirements:
The journal is to help you develop your thoughts relating to the process of interpretation, and to ask questions and make remarks about what you encounter in the text. Aside from the formal entries, you are welcome to get creative in your journal, and in fact, should plan on it. Possible methods include:
The journal should help you develop your understanding of the course problematics, issues in the interpretation of literature, and should provide a basis for studying for exams and composing essays.
Your journal is a space for reflection, negotiation, and analysis of both the texts we work with this term and the emotions, recollections, and questions that they may invoke.
In your journal, you will have *one* formal entry for each unit in which you conduct a close reading of a selected poem or short section of the text. These may not exceed one single-spaced page in length, and must fulfill the following requirements:
- Point out specific details in the text, including word choice, phrasing, meter & form (if relevant)
- Highlight patterns in those details
- Make a reasonable claim about what the details mean in the context of the larger work
The journal is to help you develop your thoughts relating to the process of interpretation, and to ask questions and make remarks about what you encounter in the text. Aside from the formal entries, you are welcome to get creative in your journal, and in fact, should plan on it. Possible methods include:
- Comic that explains a poetic form
- Find one poem that connects with one of the novels, and conduct a close reading that shows how the themes of the poem and the novel relate
- Write an entry on one of the graphic narratives that explains it using poetic form.
- literary analysis of a section of the text (using one of the "lenses" we discuss in class or your own interpretive method)
- mimicry (try to write in the style of the author)
- rewriting (writing a passage from a different characters' perspective)
- personal connections (using your own experience to connect to the issues raised in the text, including expressing confusion or new insights)
- responses to political and social issues encountered
- poetry
The journal should help you develop your understanding of the course problematics, issues in the interpretation of literature, and should provide a basis for studying for exams and composing essays.
Short Presentations (5% each=10%)
Your short presentations should be five minutes (very little more, very little less), and should introduce one of the literary terms for the day to the class. In addition to the definition, you should use examples from our reading to illustrate what the device looks like in practice, and using your examples, you should remark on how it affects meaning. Visual aids, handouts, or whatever you think will help your classmates better understand the term in question are highly encouraged.
You will need to do two of these over the course of the semester. Sign up for your days on the second day of class after looking over our course schedule. I would recommend choosing one term that you're already familiar with and one term that you think will be a challenge.
Your short presentations should be five minutes (very little more, very little less), and should introduce one of the literary terms for the day to the class. In addition to the definition, you should use examples from our reading to illustrate what the device looks like in practice, and using your examples, you should remark on how it affects meaning. Visual aids, handouts, or whatever you think will help your classmates better understand the term in question are highly encouraged.
You will need to do two of these over the course of the semester. Sign up for your days on the second day of class after looking over our course schedule. I would recommend choosing one term that you're already familiar with and one term that you think will be a challenge.
Essays (15% each= 45%)
Three papers—one for each unit—that use 1-3 close readings of a section of a text in order to build a broader, researched argument about an interpretation of the work.
Please see assignment sheets for details.
- 4-6 pages, double-spaced
- Times New Roman, 12 pt. font, 1” margins all around
- MLA Format
- 3-4 sources aside from the text (you may use one of the articles we read in class, but you must find the other sources on your own)
- Clear thesis statement
- Specific quotations from the text
- Close reading of quotations
- Conclusion that connects the work to some outside concern
Please see assignment sheets for details.
Exams 10% each=20%
There will be two exams—one midterm and one final—that will focus on terminology and close reading skills. Preparation for these exams should draw from our readings, discussions, lectures, and class notes.
There will be two exams—one midterm and one final—that will focus on terminology and close reading skills. Preparation for these exams should draw from our readings, discussions, lectures, and class notes.
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How does the artist make meaning?
