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Syllabi
Completed Courses
American Novelists on Film
Through The Eyes of A Child: Representing Adolescence in American Literature
Chief American Writers
American Presidential Rhetoric
Text and Tradition: Special Focus in CompositionProposed courses
Chief American Writers
Chief American Writers
L 14 213C - Summer 2000
Course Objectives:
A broad survey of general American literary and philosophical movements, with particular concentration on the century beginning in 1830. We will try to add some lesser known figures to the "chief" writers, in pursuit of a balanced understanding of varying American voices. My aim is an inclusive class discussion of crucial American texts that does not recycle cliches about our writers' greatness, but that encourages us to sharpen our thinking and writing skills in examining some central documents of our culture.
Required Texts:
All of the following are available from the University bookstore:
Poe, The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales; Emerson, Selected Essays, Lectures, and Poems; Hawthorne, Selected Tales; Whitman, Leaves of Grass; Dickinson, Poems; James, Washington Square; Wharton, Ethan Frome; Johnson, The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
Reading Assignments:
An asterisk indicates I'll pass this material out in class. All other assignments can be found in one of the required texts listed above. When (P) follows an assignment, this indicates you may choose this piece for your class-leadership day (see a. under participation requirements).
Week 1: July 17 - 21
a. orientation and introduction: American literature in the early nineteenth century
b. Irving, "Rip Van Winkle"*
c. Poe, "Ligeia" and "William Wilson"
d. Emerson, general introduction and Nature (Introduction to IV. "Language")
e. Emerson, Nature (V. "Discipline" and VIII. "Prospects")
f. Emerson, "The American Scholar" and "Self-Reliance" (P)
Week 2: July 24 - 28
a. Hawthorne, "Young Goodman Brown" and "The Minister's Black Veil"
b. Hawthorne, "My Kinsman, Major Molineux" (P) and "The Birthmark" (P)
c. Jacobs, from Incidents*
d. Whitman, general introduction* and Song of Myself to section 13
e. Whitman, Song of Myself to section 27
f. Whitman, Song of Myself to section 52 (P)
Week 3: July 31 - Aug 4
a. Whitman,"There Was a Child Went Forth" and "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry"*
b. Melville, "Bartleby the Scrivener"* (P)
c. Dickinson, first and second selections [TBA]
d. Dickinson, third and fourth selections
e. Dickinson, fifth and sixth selection
Week 4: Aug 7 - 11
a. James, Washington Square to chapter 14
b. James, Washington Square to chapter 24 (P)
c. James, Washington Square to completion (P)
d. Crane, "The Open Boat"*
e. Wharton, Ethan Frome to chapter 2
f. Wharton, Ethan Frome to completion (P)
g. Cather, "The Sculptor's Funeral"* and "Neighbor Rossicky"* (P)
Week 5: Aug 14 - 18
a. Johnson, Autobiography to chapter 4.
b. Johnson, Autobiography to chapter 8. (P)
c. Johnson, Autobiography to conclusion (P)
d. O'Connor, "Everything that Rises. . ."* and "The Artificial Nigger"* (P)
e. Frost, first selection*
f. Frost, second selection*
g. review for final exam
Writing Assignments:
First essay: Poe / Emerson / Hawthorne, due Wed, July 26 (2 � to 3 pages)
Second essay: Whitman / Dickinson, due Mon, Aug 7 (2 � to 3 pages)
Third essay: Movie adaptations for Washington Square or Ethan Frome, due Mon, Aug 14
(2 complete pages)
Final exam (in-class), Friday, Aug 18
Revision of one assigned essay (first, second or third), due Mon, Aug 21
Participation requirements:
a. one class leadership day, for which you guide class discussion for 15 minutes minimum
b. one pop quiz per week on the assigned reading material (Keep up with the reading assignments as outlined above and these should pose no problems.)
c. your informed and insightful contributions to daily class discussions
d. two required conferences with the instructor: one to plan your leadership day and one to discuss the paper you choose to revise. (Feel free to schedule any additional conferences you wish, or to drop by my office unannounced for any assistance!)
Grading:
Your final grade will be an average of the following eight grades:
three paper grades (including one revision)
one final exam grade (weighted double)
one grade for class leadership day
one grade for total points on all pop quizzes
one grade for class participation
