Assignments: Analysis 1 | Analysis 2 | 4-Page Paper and 5-Minute Presentation Guidelines

E n g l i s h 2 5 3 – 0 1 A m e r i c a n L i t e r a t u r e

Fall 2009 184709 RR209 MW 1-2:50 P.M. 4 Cr.

Ryan Davis, Clackamas Community College English Department
Office: Rook 233

Office Hours: M 11:30 A.M.-12:55 P.M. / W 11:30 A.M.-12:55 P.M. / Th 12 -12:50 P.M. / (probably also 9:20ish-10:10ish on MWF)

Writing Center: Th 1-2 P.M.

Phone: 503.657.6958 x 5137

Email: ryand@clackamas.edu

Class Website: http://www.portlandwt.com/schoolhome.htm

COURSE DESCRIPTION This course will focus on selected authors and works of pre-colonial to early twentieth century America, and survey the development of American fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama through the study of the works of both major and lesser-known writers. The course will introduce various cultural, philosophical, religious, social, historical, and economic factors that contribute to the development of literature that we identify as “American.” In our exploration, we will ask a variety of questions, including, but not limited to: What is Literature? What makes Literature American? How is America reflected in her Literature? Who are these writers of American Literature? and Why read Literature? We will approach the readings not only as individual works of art to be read creatively and enjoyed imaginatively and intellectually, but also as examples of the response of the writers to the unique experience of being American. Recommended: Pass RD-090 or placement in RD-115; pass WR-095 or placement in WR-121. Prerequisites: Pass RD-090 or placement in RD-115; pass WR-095 or placement in WR121.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES To pass ENG 253, students should be able to:

develop a set of literary criticism based on certain standard criteria
express and explain their interpretations and judgments on various literary works orally and in writing
examine and discuss the cultural, historical, and social significance of a given work
demonstrate an understanding of basic literary terms and forms

REQUIRED TEXTS AND TOOLS

Baym, Nina, ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Volume B (1820-1865). 7^th ed. New York: Norton, 2007. ISBN: 0393927407.
Baym, Nina, ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Volume C (1865-1914). 7^th ed. New York: Norton, 2007. ISBN: 0393927415.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Dover, 1994. ISBN: 0486280489
You will need four tools to pass this class, all of which can be used in the Streeter Hall Academic Computer Lab:
- a working computer to write your papers
- the Internet to view the course webpage and readings and conduct research (please check the course webpage regularly)
- a printer to print your papers
- an active email account with an appropriate user ID to communicate with me and receive announcements and supplemental information (please check your email regularly)

CLASS POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
Attendance

Any student with five or more absences will automatically fail the course.
If absent, please obtain missed information from another student or the course website. I cannot summarize an entire class, so please do not ask me what you missed.
If you are absent when a paper is due, you are still responsible for turning the work in on time.
If you stop attending class and do not officially drop or withdraw, you will receive an "F" for the course. It is your responsibility to take care of your GPA and college record.

Work Submitted

All assignments must be completed to pass the class (quizzes are the only exception).
All assignments written outside of class must be word processed, following all MLA guidelines.
Please save your assignments in Rich Text Format in Microsoft Word, so they can be recognized by most computers.
Please keep all assignments on your hard drive, a portable storage device, a CD-ROM, and in your email account. Printer issues and lost work are not excuses.
Please only turn in assignments on their due dates, after we have completely covered their content and guidelines in class.

Assignment Timeliness, Length, and Delivery

Late assignments will, at best, earn a “D” (after class is dismissed on the due date, your work is late). There are no excuses for late work.
Any assignment shorter than the required length will, at best, earn a “C” (for example, if I ask for 2 pages and you turn in 1.95 pages, you will receive a "C" at best).
Late and short assignments automatically earn an "F."
No emailed assignment will be accepted unless I previously approve it.

Effective Learning

A safe and civil environment depends on all of us, so please respect your classmates. If you do not, you will be told to leave class.
Please be on time so that you do not disrupt class.
You may eat and drink in class, but please, nothing noisy or smelly.
All cell phones must be turned off. If you are texting during class, I will ask you to leave.
No visitors in class.
While literary discussion is mandatory, discussion of the way the class operates is unnecessary. I have structured the course this way based on years of experience. If you disagree with any aspect of the course, consult with me before or after class or during my office hours. I will not use class time for disagreements.

Assignments and Grading

Assignments (guidelines for all assignments will be announced in class and posted online):
- Email Address: By Friday of the first week, in the "Subject" line of an email, send me your full name, class, and section number. I will place your email address in a BCC mailing list for class announcements and communication.
- "You Teach" Session: You will join small groups, and each group will present one lesson on a reading (groups will be chosen Week 2).
- Quizzes: There will be five quizzes over readings. Missed quizzes cannot be made up.
- Analysis 1: You will write two analyses, each two pages long. In these analyses, you will explore the influences on a particular writer and his or her work, discuss a work by someone we did not discuss in class, compare two writers or works with common themes, or focus on some other instructor-approved topic that interests you, up to that chronological point in the course.
- Analysis 2: Please choose a work of American Literature--specifically, poetry or short fiction--from the years 1830 through 1914 as your topic for this analysis. For this assignment, you may analyze a work by an author we did not discuss in class, analyze a work not discussed in class, but by an author we covered, compare two writers or works with common theme, or focus on some other instructor-approved topic that interests you.
- Presentation and Four-Page Paper: You will choose an American topic from the pre-colonial period to 1914. Because so many ways of thinking and experiences shaped American Lit., you may choose one of these to explore. You do not have to focus solely on literature, though you must explore your topic’s influence on literature. For example, you may write about an artistic movement (style, artists, art), politics (campaigns, politicians, eras), technology (advances, inventors, products), philosophy (branches, philosophers, movements), or writing (styles, writers, works) and its/their influence on literature. You may focus on an author/subject that we cover in class, so long as you do not write about the specific work we cover in class. Your presentation and paper must be on the same topic.
  - Presentation: You will deliver a five-minute (minimum) presentation on your topic, using appropriate visual or audio aids. Please be prepared for questions.
  - Four-Page Paper: You will write a four-page paper on your topic. These papers are analyses, first and foremost—they do not focus on biography.
Grading
- All assignments and final grades will be scored on the following scale: A 100-90 / B 89.99-80 / C 79.99-70 / D 69.99-60 / F 59.99 or below. I do not round grades up.
- The grade breakdown is as follows:
  - 1% Email Address
  - 10% "You Teach" Session
  - 20% Five Quizzes
  - 12% Analysis 1
  - 12% Analysis 2
  - 15% Presentation
  - 30% Four-Page Paper

SCHEDULE (all dates subject to change with sufficient notice)

Blue = linked readings / Red = administrative dates / Green = due dates / Orange = "You Teach" sessions

WEEK 1

9/28

Course Introduction

9/30

Capt. John Smith / William Bradford / Anne Bradstreet

10/4

Last day to add classes without instructor signature (Sunday, 5 p.m.)

Last day to add without $50 late registration fee for 11-week classes (Sunday, 5 p.m.)

WEEK 2

10/5

Benjamin Franklin / Thomas Jefferson

10/7

Washington Irving Vol. B 951 "Rip Van Winkle" / Nathaniel Hawthorne Vol. B 1272 "Young Goodman Brown"

10/9

1/3 payment plan amount due. $25 assessed if not paid

Last day to drop full-term classes and receive a full refund

WEEK 3

10/12

Quiz

Ralph Waldo Emerson Vol. B 1106 "Nature"

10/14

Nathaniel Hawthorne The Scarlet Letter

WEEK 4

10/19

Nathaniel Hawthorne The Scarlet Letter

Lacey J & Eden R

10/21

Quiz

Edgar Allen Poe Vol. B 1528 "The Tell-Tale Heart" & "The Cask of Amontillado"

Rafael & Mike B

Abraham Lincoln Vol. B 1627 "Address Delivered at the Dedication of the Cemetery at Gettysburg, Nov. 19, 1863"

Shawn R & Andrew S

Sojourner Truth Vol. B 1695

Paula & Jasmine

10/23

1/3 payment plan amount due. $25 assessed if not paid

WEEK 5

10/26

Henry David Thoreau Vol. B 1853 "Walden"

Caitlin C, Laura M, & Daniel F

10/28

Walt Whitman Vol. B 2190 "One’s-Self I Sing," "Song of Myself (1881)," and "When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer"

Nyth & Albert

10/31

Analysis 1 due by midnight, via email

WEEK 6

11/2

Emily Dickinson 2554

Chelsea C & Hayley C

11/4

Quiz

Mark Twain Vol. C 100 Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Craig T & Spencer

11/6

1/3 payment plan amount due. $25 assessed if not paid

Last day to drop classes without responsibility for grade

Last day to make schedule changes for eleven week classes

WEEK 7

11/9

Mark Twain Vol. C 100 Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Jessica P & Whitney K

11/11

No class—Veteran's Day!

WEEK 8

11/16

Bret Harte Vol. C 324 "The Luck of Roaring Camp" & "Miggles"

Jacob K & Josh G

Ambrose Bierce Vol. C 359 "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"

Taylor R & Nick D

11/18

Quiz

Henry James Vol. C 388 "The Beast in the Jungle"

Steven A & Chase R

Sarah Orne Jewitt Vol. C 520 "A White Heron"

Jessica Pool

WEEK 9

11/23

Kate Chopin Vol. C 529 "At the 'Cadian Ball" & "The Storm"

Charlotte Perkins Gilman Vol. C 806 "The Yellow Wall-paper" & "Why I Wrote 'The Yellow Wall-paper'?"

Topher C & Erica H

11/25

Analysis 2 due / Quiz

Stephen Crane Vol. C 954 "The Open Boat"

Jack London Vol. C 1051 "To Build a Fire"

WEEK 10

11/30

Presentations

Mike B
Laura M
Josh G
Steven A
Shawn R
Chelsea C
Andrew S
Spencer P
Jasmine A
Whitney K

12/2

Presentations

Caitlin K
Jessica Pool
Hayley C
Paula O
Jacob K
Erica H
Eden R
Taylor R
Chelsey F
Christopher C

WEEK 11

12/9 Wednesday, noon-2 P.M.,

Four-Page Paper due / Presentations

Rafael M
Nyth H
Daniel F
Nick D
Lacey J
Albert Z
Chase R
Craig T
Caitlin C
Jessica Porter

PLAGIARISM According to the CCC Instructional Standards and Procedures, “A student who submits the work of another as her/his own or deliberately fails to properly credit words or ideas borrowed from another source is guilty of plagiarism.” You must adhere to the following guidelines, borrowed from Clark College, regarding plagiarism:

What you need not acknowledge:

1. Common knowledge. If most readers like yourself would likely know something, you need not cite it.

2. Facts available from a wide variety of sources. If a number of textbooks, encyclopedias, or almanacs include the information, you need not cite it.

3. Your own ideas and discoveries.

What you must acknowledge:

1. Any direct quotation. You must place the exact words quoted in quotation marks.

2. Paraphrases and summaries that provide background information, present facts not commonly known, and explain various positions on your topic.

3. Arguable assertions. If an author presents an assertion that may or may not be true, you must cite the source.

4. Statistics, charts, tables, and graphs from any source. You must credit all graphic material, even if you yourself create the graph.

Purchasing research papers and submitting them is plagiarism. Asking another party to write a paper for you is cheating, and, in this case, will be considered plagiarism. Resubmitting or rewriting a paper from another course for a new grade without alerting me is plagiarism. If you are guilty of plagiarism, you will automatically fail the course.

Remember—if you have any questions regarding plagiarism—ask me.

SUPPORT SERVICES

Writing Center: McLoughlin 112, writing@clackamas.edu, 503.657.6958 ext. 5310
Advising and Counseling Department: Bill Brod Community Center, 503.657.6958 x2213
Dana Library: M-Th 7:30 A.M.-7 P.M. / F 7:30 A.M.-5 P.M., 503.657.6958 x 2288
- Your last name and either your CCC ID or library barcode number will act as your password for the following databases:
  - EBSCOHOST (Academic Search Premier, Business Source Premier, CINAHL, MEDLINE and many more indexes)
  - NewsBank (The Oregonian and The New York Times [2000-present])
  - ProQuest (The New York Times [Historical 1851-2002])
  - First Search (Article First and Worldcat databases)
  - CQ Researcher
  - Access Science
  - NetLibrary
  - Gale Virtual Reference Library

Updated: 30 Nov. 2009