English 389

Professor Julianne Newmark

Fall 2006

Survey of American Literature

 

Mondays and Wednesdays: 2:00 to 3:15 p.m.                                            Office Phone:   505-835-5901                            

Room: Weir 129                                                                                    Email: jnewmark@nmt.edu

                                                                                               

Office hours: Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 1:00 to 1:50 p.m. and by appointment

 

ABOUT OUR COURSE:

 

Welcome to American Literature.  In this course, we will conduct a survey of the literature of the lands that now comprise the United States, beginning with Native legends and tales that pre-date the arrival of European explorers and concluding with the writings of present-day novelists, essayists, and poets who represent many ethnicities and American regions.  In between, we will examine American texts and oral literatures from the sixteenth through the twenty-first centuries.  Since our course is but one semester in duration, often we will read excerpts from important American texts rather than the full texts as originally published (or at times written but unpublished).  As students in this course, you will be expected to develop a solid understanding of the American literary tradition based on these readings, on the historical context that I will provide you in lecture, on the discussions we have as a class, and on the analyses of texts that you do individually in your essays and exams.

 

We will begin our course by inquiring into the development of ÒAmerican LiteratureÓ as disciplinary area.  Why do university students study American Literature?  How does a Ònational literatureÓ develop?  How does a nation know when it has Ònational literatureÓ?  What if the members of this national body are unequal, live in radically different geographical areas, practice different religions, and even have different citizenship statuses?  These issues have always challenged the idea of a cohesive America.  How, then, do we envision a cohesive American national literary tradition?  What features mark American literature and distinguish it from other national literatures?  These are the questions with which we will begin our study this semester and to which we will return frequently throughout the term.

 

POLICIES:

 

Required texts: 

            ¥           The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Shorter Sixth Edition

            ¥           A style-guide of your choice

 

Required work and grading scale:

Your grade will be based on various factors, including attendance, participation, and completion and quality of written work.  You will be expected to participate in daily class discussions, occasional online discussions, and occasional group work in class.  You will write two formal papers and complete two exams.

 


Essay one (four to five pages)                     90

Essay two (four to five pages)                     90

Midterm Exam                                        75

Final Exam                                             150

Poem analysis                                          20

Quizzes                                                  35

Participation and attendance                        40

TOTAL                                                 500          

 

 

Grading scale:

A                                  465 and above

A-                                 450-464

B+                                435-449

B                                  415-434

B-                                 400-414

C+                                385-399

C                                  365-384

C-                                 350-364


Class Participation:

You will be evaluated on your ability and willingness to participate in classroom discussions and other activities.  Keep this in mind and be sure to be alert in class, prepared for class work, and engaged in our subject matter.

 

 

 

Poem Analysis: 

Once during the term, each student will have to read and offer an analysis of a poem of the studentÕs choice (by a pre-selected author).  This brief presentation must also incorporate discussion of one or two pieces of pertinent criticism of the poetÕs work along with the studentÕs own reading of the poem.

 

Attendance and Tardiness:

If you miss more than three classes, you will be asked to drop the course or you will receive a failing grade. There are, of course, extraordinary situations in which absences might be excused.  A stay in the hospital, for example, is what I would call Òextraordinary.Ó 

 

I do take attendance into consideration in the calculation of your final grade, along with the above-mentioned factor of participation.  Be sure to attend all class meetings and to be on time.  Every three days that you are tardy (more than five minutes) count as one "absent" day.  I consider this syllabus, incidentally, as your contract with me, and mine with you.  If you choose to continue in this class, after reading this syllabus, I expect that you will abide by the requirements of this course.

 

Quizzes:

There will be a series of unannounced reading quizzes throughout the term. 

 

Late Papers:

Papers must be turned in at the beginning of our class time on the day the assignment is due.  After this time, for each day an assignment is late, I will deduct one letter grade (meaning, if the paper begins at an "A" and is one day late, I will begin grading it from an "A-" -- etcetera).  Again, extraordinary circumstances might excuse a late assignment, but these are rare.  I will not accept emailed versions of papers; you must come to class, or arrange to see me in my office, to turn in your paper-copy of your assignment.  I reserve the right not to accept late papers.

 

Courteousness and Cell Phones:

We will be covering some sensitive topics in this class.  So, I will expect you to behave appropriately and be open to different opinions.  Above all, be courteous to your classmates.  One sign of courteousness is that you turn off your cell phone before entering class.  If there are repeated problems with your cell phone, I will ask you to leave the classroom for the day.  You will take an absence that day.

 

Equal Access:

Qualified students with disabilities needing appropriate academic adjustments should contact me as soon as possible to ensure your needs are met in a timely manner.  Handouts are available in alternative accessible formats upon request.

 

Plagiarism:

In our course, I will review the standards of correct citation, academic honesty, and intellectual property.  After this information has been presented to you in class, you are responsible for it and cannot claim ignorance as a defense against an accusation of academic dishonesty.  You will need to quote directly from literary texts, and appropriately cite these texts, in both of your papers and in your exams.  Each of your papers must have a Works Cited page.

 

Plagiarism, in very general terms, is the use of someone elseÕs words or ideas without proper citation.  The style guide Everyday Writer, which you may have from English 111 or 112, includes information about plagiarism.  I suggest that you become familiar with pages 168 and 173-175 and commit to memory the information regarding plagiarism that I provide for you in class. All other good style guides provide detailed information on avoiding plagiarism. Also, the NMT library offers a handy website addressing many plagiarism issues and provides advice on avoiding plagiarism:

http://infohost.nmt.edu/~nmtlib/INFO/ORef/plagiarism.html

 

 

 

Essay Format:

All work that is to be handed in must be typed, double-spaced, printed on white paper in black ink, and must use twelve-point font (preferably Times New Roman).  If your paper does not conform to these stylistic requirements, I will hand it back to you without a grade and you will be required to reformat in and will suffer a late-paper penalty.  Again, your papers must include correct text citations and a Works Cited page.

 

Course calendar:

 

Week one:                                Reading/Assignment Due:                    

Wednesday, August 23               Course introduction, review syllabus.

 

Week two:

Monday, August 28                    pgs 17-36 (Iroquois and Pima creation stories; Columbus; Cabeza de Vaca)

                       

Wednesday, August 30               pgs 61-70 and 75-94 (Winnebago trickster tales and William Bradford)

 

 

Week three:

Monday, September 4                LABOR DAY – NO CLASSES

 

Wednesday, September 6           pgs 114-126 and 135-152 (Bradstreet and Rowlandson)

                                                                                                           

 

Week four:

Monday, September 11              pgs 293-299 (Occom)

Essay One assigned

                                                       

Wednesday, September 13         pgs 219-231 and 276-293 (Franklin)

                                                                                               

                                   

Week five:

Monday, September 18              pgs 299-310 and 320-334 (Crevecoeur and Paine)

 

Wednesday, September 20         pgs 334-342 and 350-361 (Jefferson and Equiano)

           

Week six:

Monday, September 25              ESSAY ONE DUE

pgs 366-378 (choose HALF of WheatleyÕs poems)

Student poetry analysis.

 

Wednesday, September 27         pgs 460-469 and 476-482 (Cooper and Apess)

 

Week seven:

Monday, October 2                   pgs 482-527 and 539-556 (Emerson)

 

Wednesday, October 4              pgs 834-853 and 895-905 (Thoreau)

 

Week eight:

Monday, October 9                   pgs 812-834, 939-941, and 947-950 (Jacobs and Douglass)

 

Wednesday, October 11            pgs 985-1003, 1058-1066, 1071-1074 (Whitman)

Student poetry analysis.

 

 

Week nine:

Monday, October 16                 Catch-up, review day.

 

Wednesday, October 18            Exam preparation day.

 

Week ten:

Monday, October 23                 MIDTERM EXAM

 

Wednesday, October 25            pgs 1081-1111 and 1453-1460 (Melville and Bierce)

 

Week eleven:

Monday, October 30                 pgs 1167-1189 (choose ONE THIRD of DickinsonÕs poems)

Student poetry analysis.

 

Wednesday, November 1           pgs 1621-1630 and 1702-1719 (Washington and Du Bois)

                                                Essay Two assigned

 

Week twelve:

Monday, November 6                pgs 1460-1467 and 1780-1789 (Native American oratory, chants, and songs)

 

Wednesday, November 8           pgs 1792-1807 (Zitkala-Sa)

 

Week thirteen:

Monday, November 13              HANDOUT: Willa Cather

 

Wednesday, November 15         ESSAY TWO DUE

pgs 1933-1946 (choose HALF of WilliamsÕs poems)

Student poetry analysis.

                                                                       

Week fourteen:

Monday, November 20              pgs 1954-1963 and 1973-2003 (H.D. and Eliot)

 

Wednesday, November 22         pgs 2096-2109 and 2120-2126 (Hurston and Toomer)       

 

Week fifteen:

Monday, November 27              pgs 2190-2206 and pgs 2245-2249 (Crane and Cullen)

 

Wednesday, November 29         pgs 2249-2255, 2265-2271, and 2566-2580 (McNickle, Bulosan, Anzaldua)

                                                Course evaluations.

 

Week sixteen:

Monday, December 4                Exam preparation day.

 

Wednesday, December 6           FINAL EXAM