English 112 –English
Composition, section 001,
Class Date, Time and Place:
Houston 200 and Wubben 145
June 16 – July 10
Your Instructor: Dr. Julie Barak
Office Phone: 248-1072
Office: LHH 446 –
A.M. LHH 452 – P.M.
Office Hours: Immediately after class and by
appointment
E-mail: [email protected]
Syllabus subject to change. Changes will be announced in class.
Course
Goals: To examine, discuss, and
practice composing various styles and modes of writing in order to develop the
confidence, independence, and skills necessary to tackle virtually any writing
task assigned in any college class. In particular, this will include learning
to read, think and write critically about literature and other types of texts;
discovering the steps in the research process and applying those steps in our
own writing; analyzing, summarizing, paraphrasing, quoting and citing source
material without plagiarizing; eliminating distracting mechanical errors,
developing an awareness of various citation styles, including, but not limited
to, MLA.
State-wide General Education
Requirements: This course has been accepted by the
The following have been chosen from the list of
General Education Objectives shown in its entirety in the Mesa State College Catalog:
OBJECTIVE 1—Students will be able to think
critically and recognize issues across a broad spectrum of subjects.
OBJECTIVE 2—Students will be able to communicate
effectively in the English Language.
Course
Methods: Two things are important
about the course in terms of methods.
First of all, the course is designed as a writing workshop. That means
that we’ll spend most of our class time writing, reading, and talking about
writing and/or reading. We’ll write
about others’ writing, write about our own writing process, write about various
subjects, read our own writing out loud in large and small groups, read others’
writing, and discuss everything! Second,
I’ve chosen a topic to help us begin our reading/writing/conversing. That topic
is race/race relationships. In particular, we’ll be looking at race from a
postcolonial context. As we read and discuss the literature and the essays I’ve
selected for the class, research topics and projects should begin to develop
for you. We’ll spend time investigating how to turn these ideas into a
researched writing project.
Required
Texts:
|
Graff and Birkenstein |
They Say, I
Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic
Writing |
Norton |
|
Harris, Joseph |
Rewriting: How to Do Things with Texts |
|
|
Kincheloe, Steinberg, Rodriguez and Chennault |
White
Reign: Deploying Whiteness in |
|
|
Shakespeare, William Eds. Gerald Graff and James Phalan |
The
Tempest: A Case Study in Critical
Controversy |
|
|
Conrad, Joseph Ed. Paul B. Armstrong |
Heart of
Darkness: A Norton Critical Edition, 4th Edition |
Norton |
Other
Expenses:
Occasional copies of your
own writing for large and small group discussion.
Course
Requirements:
1.
Three Papers: One essay on The Tempest (100 points), one on Heart of Darkness (150 points), and one extended research paper
that has its source in an idea, concept or event in White Reign (250 points).
More details about and explanation of these assignments will follow.
2.
Various Assignments
Connected to Research Paper: a) thesis statement: 25 points b)bibliography: 50 points c) prospectus: 50 points. More details about and explanation of these
assignments will follow.
3.
Attendance, Participation,
and Late Work:
In a workshop setting, your contributions to discussion are very
important. If you’re not here, you not
only can’t learn from what goes on, you also can’t share what you know. So, show up and speak up. Attendance is
required and points are lost when you don’t come to class. Every hour of class you miss,
costs you 6 points. In addition, not
doing the in-class assignments and homework or not bringing the requested work
to class, can cost you up to 20 points per assignment, depending on the
assignment. If you don’t miss any class time, you’ll receive 18
bonus points at the end of the semester which you can apply to any other grade
you’ve received for the class.
Policies and
Procedures:
1. Academic Honesty: Refer to the Student Handbook for college policies
on Academic Honesty. You are cautioned a) against using, word for word, without
acknowledgment, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, etc. from the printed or manuscript
material of others; b) against using with only slight changes the materials of
others; and c) against using the general plan, the main headings, or a
rewritten form of someone else’s material. These cautions apply to the work of
other students as well as to the published work of professional writers. (Department of English,
2. Students w/ Disabilities: In coordination with Educational Access Services,
reasonable accommodations will be provided for qualified students with
disabilities. Please meet with the
instructor the first week of class to make arrangements. Educational Access Services can be contacted
at 248-1856, or in person at
Points and Grades:
Tempest Essay: 100
points
Heart of Darkness Essay 150 points
Research Paper 250
points
Research Question 25 points
Prospectus 50 points
Bibliography 50 points
Class Participation and Attendance 375
points
A = 900-1000 points, B = 800-899 points, C = 700-799
points, D = 600-699 points F = below 600
|
Date |
Class Activities |
Work Due |
|
6/16 |
Hour 1: Introductions – “Why I Write . . .” a.
Writing is like
. . . b. What kind of writing do you expect to be doing in
the future? In your career? In other roles in your life? c.
What do you
think is the relationship between writing and reading? d. If you could design your own writing assignment,
what would it be? e.
Are there any
questions you’d like to ask about me as a writer? f.
Share your
name, some information about your self and one of your answers to the above
questions with the class. What you can expect. Syllabus Packet Review Break Hour 2: Acts 1-3 of The Tempest – Film Hour 3: Small groups: a.
Come up with 3
questions about the film. Everybody
write them down. b. Remix. c.
Share your
questions with your new group. d. Work to answer them. e.
Share some of
what you discovered with the rest of us. |
|
|
6/17 |
First Half: Divide into four
groups. Discuss the following
questions. a.
Compare the
plot to murder Prospero to the plot to murder Alonso. Shakespeare clearly
intended one murder plot to mirror the other. What does each group of
conspirators have in common? How important are social status and rank in
evaluating these two murder plots? b.
How does
Prospero’s magic differ from that of the witch, Sycorax? c.
Discuss Gonzalo’s ideas of the
ideal society. Why do you think that
utopian dreams are destined to fail?
Does Prospero fail as a ruler because of his idealism? d.
Analyze
Prospero’s motives. What does he want
from his “enemies?” Is Prospero a
“good” man? Does he change during the
course of the play? e.
Traditionally,
Shakespeare uses poetry for noble characters and prose for the lower class.
Caliban, however, uses both poetry and prose. Discuss why he shifts between
poetry and prose and under what circumstances. What does this reveal about
this character? How does this shape
our response to him? f.
Create and
discuss one of your own questions as a group that brings in the political
issues about the play that you read about last night. (Some of these questions
were stolen or adapted from Cliffsnotes: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/
WileyCDA/LitNote/The-Tempest-Study-Help-Essay-Questions.id-130,pageNum-57.html)
Break Second half: Read from essays on the K:
Drive. Each student is responsible for
writing down one question or comment in response
each peer’s essay as we read them.
Following each essay, we’ll have a short discussion of a) the central
response to the articles and b) the effectiveness of the style. |
1. Finish The
Tempest 2. Read 93-115, too. 3. Read chapter one of Graff and Birkenstein 4. Write a short (2-3 page) response to Will and Greenblatt (p.93-115, above) beginning with one template
from Chapter One of Graff and Birkenstein. 5. Post this piece of writing to the K: Drive. |
|
6/18 |
First Half: a.
Review Outline Format b. Form three groups. Each group should produce a sentence
outline of
one of the essays. c. Share these outlines with the class. Break Second Half: Review Harris: a.
Define the
project in your own terms b. Make a list of key words or passages c.
Assess the uses
and limits of this approach d. go back to your groups and work with the same essay to
perform these same three tasks. e.
Share with the
class. Follow up: One more time back to the
groups. What’s the difference in these
two different “ways of reading?” Which
one is more useful? Which one is more
difficult? |
Read Brower 183-202 Read Barker and Hulme 229-245 Read Willis 256-268 Read chapter one of Harris Read chapters two and three
of Graff and Birkenstein |
|
6/19 |
First hour: Preview First Essay
Assignment – Responding to Literature a.
Powerpoint b. Review Graff and Birkenstein c.
rubric d. Look at two examples and use rubric to assess. e.
Questions about
the assignment? Break Second hour: Tools for supporting your
response: a.
one group
define illustrating b. one group define authorizing and borrowing c.
one group
define extending d. Each group should please find an example of this
technique in Ehrenreich’s piece on page 50. e.
Each group
should compose a paragraph in which they employ their technique in a response
to The Tempest. Begin your paragraph with a template
from G and B. f.
Share your
definitions and paragraphs. Break Third hour: Citing sources IN your
paper: a.
Sandwich PPT b. Handout c.
Works Cited
Page – See handout. |
Read chapter four of Graff
and Birkenstein Read chapter two of Harris Begin reading Heart of Darkness |
|
6/23 |
First Half: Exchange papers. a.
Use
handout/rubric to review work b. Use techniques from chapter one of Harris to write a
response to the paper. (Define the
project, list key terms, assess the uses and limits) Break Second Hour: Small group questions: a.
Some critics believe that in Heart of Darkness
Conrad illustrates how “the darkness of the landscape can lead to the
darkness of social corruption.” What does this statement mean? How can one’s
environment affect one’s actions, feelings, and morals? Is this statement
believable or not? Have you ever experienced a change in yourself that
resulted from a change in your environment? What kind of change was it? b. Heart of Darkness seems to blur the line between
the so-called “advanced” society of c.
In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz is depicted as an
upstanding European who has been transformed by his time in the jungle—away
from his home, away from familiar people and food, and away from any
community moral support that might have helped prevent him from becoming such
a tyrant. There was nothing and no one, in essence, to keep him on the
straight and narrow. Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? Was
there ever a time in which you felt alone, in a strange environment, or
different from everyone else around you? How did that experience affect you
or change you? Did you find yourself pulled toward base, cruel instincts as
Kurtz was? What did you do to cope with those feelings? d. Kurtz’s dying words are a cryptic
whisper: “The horror, the horror.” What “horror” could Kurtz have been
talking about? Is there more than one possibility? Why do you think Conrad
made this scene so ambiguous? e.
Some readers claim that Heart of Darkness is
strictly a political novella. Others, however, say it’s really a story about
the human condition. What does Heart of
Darkness imply about the politics of colonization? What does it imply about the human
condition? Can a work of fiction be interpreted in different ways? Should
readers consider the author’s intent when analyzing a story? In the case of this novella, which reading
seems most valid to you? f.
Heart of Darkness can sometimes seem to readers
like an incredibly dark, depressing story that paints civilizations in a very
negative light. Did it seem this way to you, or did the story contain any
positive moments? If so, what were they? Why did they seem positive? g. Share
group responses/Discussion Source for the questions
above : http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/heartofdarkness/ |
Essay #1 due: Post to K: Drive Finish reading Heart of Darkness |
|
6/24 |
First half: a.
In small
groups, using outline techniques we learned last week,
produce an outline of one of the essays. b. In addition, come up with 3 questions about the
novel that the critic you’re working with has answered. c.
Share outline
and questions/answers with the class. Break a.
Read chapter 3
of Harris and chapter 6 of Graff and Birkenstein. b. In your small groups, go back to the essays you
worked with earlier this morning and find examples in which the critic argues
the other side, uncovers values and/or dissents. c.
As a group,
find a spot in which you disagree with the critic you’re working with. Construct a paragraph that articulates your
point of view and use a Graff and Birkenstein template to plant the critic as
a naysayer in your paragraph. Share these paragraphs with
the class. |
Read Chinua Achebe, p. 336-349. Read Hunt Hawkins, p.
365-375. Read Edward W. Said, p. 422-429. Read J. Hillis
Miller, p. 463-474. Bring your Harris and Graff
and Birkenstein books to class, please. |
|
6/25 |
First half: a.
Position Paper
PPT b. Practice – Post and Read Break: Second half: Introductions – PPT a.
Look for
examples of these techniques in essays about Heart of Darkness. b.
Take some time
to put together an intro to your position paper that employs one of these
techniques. Conclusions a.
Handout b. Find a powerful conclusion in one of the essays
about Heart of Darkness. Go back to the beginning of the article and
reread the introduction. Be prepared
to explain to the rest of us how they are circle around or connect the
beginning to the ending. |
Please bring your Heart of Darkness text to class. |
|
6/26 |
First half: a.
Share
introductions. b. Discussion/editing Support: a.
Review Chapter
One of Harris – See above b. Working with the Conrad’s novel and the critics
we’ve read, construct a paragraph in which you employ each of the four
techniques Harris describes in this chapter.
Break Second half: PPT – counter argument a.
Choose one of
Harris’s techniques from Chapter 3.
Reread Harris’s examples. Write
your own counterargument using one of these examples as a model. Try to stick as closely to the model,
stylistically, as you can. b.
For
example: Here’s paragraph from Estrada: When
I was a kid living in Here’s an imitation by Barak: When
I was a teenager living in Here’s a paragraph from Steven King: I
think that we’re all mentally ill; those of us outside the asylums only hide
it a little better – and maybe not all that much better, after all. We’ve all known people who talk to
themselves, people who sometimes squinch their
faces into horrible grimaces when they believe no one is watching, people who
have some hysterical fear – of snakes, the dark, the tight place, the long
drop. . . and, of course, those final worms and grubs that are waiting so
patiently underground. Here’s an imitation by Barak: I
think that we’re all religious, those of us outside organized religions only
hide it a little better – and maybe not all that much better after all. There
are so many ways the idea of God finds its way into our vernacular, that it’s
almost impossible to talk without acknowledging his existence. “Oh my God!” is a standard exclamation in
our culture. To say things like “I’m
praying for help or rain or money or whatever, is a common way implying that
you’re hopeful about a certain outcome.
“God damn it!” is an everyday kind of curse. It’s very difficult not to lay in the dark
and implore the aid of some greater being.
And, of course, it’s difficult for even the most dedicated atheist to
accept the idea of entirely ceasing to be, eternal non-existence. Share
your imitations |
Draft of your introduction/
presentation of the issue. Posted to
K: Drive Reread Harris chapter 3. Bring your Harris text to
class, please. |
|
6/30 |
First hour: In small groups c.
Summarize the
article by describing its project, listing and defining its key terms and
assessing its uses and limits. d.
Compose 2 or 3
questions for discussion c.
List 7 or 8
topics that would be good for research d.
Share Break Second hour: Harris – Read p.
73-79. a.
Handout b. Can you think of any examples of this kind of
rewriting or revising? c.
Choose a text
you know and attempt to take another approach with a character or situation. d. Share Titles – PPT 1.
In small
groups, generate a list of 10 titles about one of the topics we’ve listed on
the board for today. 2.
Share/Discuss 3.
Generate 10
more titles based on our discussion. |
Paper #2 due – Post to K:
Drive Read Kincheloe and
Steinberg from White Reign 3-29 Read Rains 77-99 Read Chennault
299-328 Please bring your Harris
book to class. |
|
7/01 |
First hour: In small groups e.
Summarize the
article by describing its project, listing and defining its key terms and
assessing its uses and limits. f.
Compose 2 or 3
questions for discussion. e.
List 7 or 8
topics that would be good for research f.
Share Break Second hour: Modes of Writing – PPT
Third hour: Library – |
Read Nicholson 193-212 Read Brents
and Monson 213-227 Read Allison 231-243 Read Carter 269-283 |
|
7/02 |
First hour: a.
PPT – from
Topics to Questions b.
Generate questions. c.
Share lists. d.
Thesis
Statement – Handout e.
Try to compose
an arguable thesis statement that forecasts the organization of your paper. Break Second hour: Work on your bibliography. Research, as well, if you
need to. |
Research and read. Bring books or copies of
articles you found in your search to class with you. Bring at least 10 sources that you found IN
the library or FROM the library web page.
|
|
7/03 |
First half: Thesis Workshop a.
What’s the
topic? b. What’s the angle? c.
Is this an
interesting angle or argument? Why or
why not? If not, how could the writer
shift the angle to make it arguable?
Interesting? d. Does the thesis include the pronoun “I”? How could the writer revise to get rid of
that pronoun? e.
Does the thesis
provide a map for the paper? Make an
outline of the paper based on the thesis.
If you can’t make this map, make some suggestions to the writer about
how the thesis might be revised or developed to produce a map. f.
Return thesis
statements and feedback to writers. Bibliography Workshop a.
Are there 10
sources? b.
Are the sources
listed alphabetically? c.
Are the items
formatted with a hanging indent? d.
Is all the
information required by MLA included in the citation? Break Second half: Prospectus PPT a.
Writing time b.
Share/Discuss
what you’ve worked on and questions you have. |
Bring a hard copy of your
thesis and bibliography drafts to class. Also, post both of them to
the K: Drive. Read and take notes from
your sources. Read Graff and Birkenstein,
chapters 7 and 10. |
|
7/07 |
First half: Prospectus Workshop: a.
Point to the
Graff and Berkenstein template in each paragraph. b.
Is the writer’s
Who Cares? paragraph persuasive? c.
Does the writer
explain why it matters adequately or do you still have questions about the
importance of his/her topic? d.
How well does
the writer lay out the roadmap of the paper in the final paragraph? Break Second half: Small Groups: a.
Define each of
these “terms” or behaviors: Acknowledging Influences, Turning an Approach on
Itself, Reflexivity b. Look at
Graff’s essay, “Hidden Intellectualism.”
Discuss how and where he employs each of these techniques in this
essay. c.
Share d. Look through your sources; think about what you’ve
read so far. Write about how you could
use each of these activities to expand your essay. Be sure to reference specific
articles/authors for each. e.
Work on writing
one of these sections of your essay. f.
Share Writing/Consultation time |
Thesis and Bibliography
due. Hard copy to me. Copy posted to
K: as well. Read Harris 83-97. Read Graff 142-148. |
|
7/08 |
First half: Draft workshops – Part I: Each group reads and
discusses 3 papers. You have about ½
hour to deal with each one. Mark up
only two copies of the essay – one for me and one for the writer. Write up
only one response to each essay, but make two copies. The instructions in bold below indicate
your tasks. a.
What is the
writer’s project? What does the writer
want to accomplish in this essay?
(Define the project in your own terms.
Make a list of key words or passages.
Assess the uses and limits of this approach) Either
write an abstract of the piece (p. 110) or produce a sentence outline (p.
112) b.
What works in
this draft? How could the writer build
on the strengths of this draft? (Where
could the writer illustrate, authorize, borrow or extend elements of the text
to make it better?) Draw a straight line under passages that
strike you as especially strong and a wavy line under passages that leave you
asking questions or that feel undeveloped.
If a passage is left unmarked, indicate why in the margin. Should it be cut? Why or why not? If
you’ve drawn a straight line under a passage, describe what you liked about
it. Why was it especially interesting,
provoking, well-argued, nicely illustrated, etc. c.
What else
might be said? How could the writer
acknowledge other views and possibilities?
(Where could the writer argue the other side, uncover values and/or
dissent?) Suggest one or two ways in which the author
might develop, extend, qualify, or rethink the project of her or his
essay. (This is not the moment to
offer advice on editing, proofing, or other more local matters of style and
correctness.) List three or four specific points where you think the author
might do the sort of work in revision that you’ve suggested. If you’ve drawn a wavy line in part B,
above, indicate what you think the writer needs to do with the text to
address your suggestions. d.
What’s
next? What are the implications of
what the writer has to say? (Does the
writer Acknowledge Influences, Turn an Approach on Itself, Practice
Reflexivity? Where are there
opportunities for these behaviors in the text?) What
is the import of the issue under discussion?
What do you, as the reader, know that you didn’t know before, think
you should do that you hadn’t thought of doing before, feel
that you hadn’t felt before? How do
you answer the questions, “So what?” and “What’s next?” about topic/argument
of this essay? Draft Workshops – Part II: Read the responses your
peers wrote to you. After thinking
about these responses, write a response that describes which comments from
your readers are the most useful in rethinking your essay, lay out the plan
for the next draft of the essay. What
will you go back to in order to address these comments? What will you say next? Where will it go from here? Writing/Consultation time. |
Prospectus due. Post a draft of your essay
to the K: Drive. Bring 3 copies of at least
5 pages of your draft to class. Read 98-123 of Harris. |
|
7/09 |
Conferences |
Bring 2 copies of your
draft with you to the conference. |
|
7/10 |
Optional Conferences. |
Paper Due – at or before |