Instructor: Julie Barak Phone: 248-1072
e-mail: [email protected] Office
Hours: MWF
Home Page: http://mesastate.edu/~jbarak
General Education Goals: The course addresses the following General Education
goals as they are articulated in the College Catalog (p. 51): 1) To be able to
communicate effectively in the English language. 2) To be aware of the great
moral, ethical, and philosophical questions which have endured through the ages.
3) To have some knowledge of the origins of our own culture and the existence
of others. 4) To understand the complexities of our social, economic, and
political environment. 5) To appreciate the contributions of literature to our
perception of ourselves and our world.
Course Goals: In an attempt to meet the above general education goals
through course-specific content goals, the course will develop or enhance the
following skills/abilities/knowledge base of its participants: 1) To become
familiar with the development, directions and theories of postcolonialism. 2) To
read various postcolonial texts through the lens of postcolonial theory. 3) To learn to summarize accurately and
succinctly. 4) To practice applying theory to various texts. 5) To investigate the value of theory to
readers. 6) To develop the habit of
critical thinking when approaching texts and ideas.
Course Methods: 1) The most important pedagogical method of the course
will be large group discussion. We’ll ask questions, connect theory and text,
challenge interpretations, build bridges between past and present and self and
other, investigate our reasons for our responses, argue, agree, resist,
compromise, rebel and conform. We must become a community of learners dedicated
to challenging each other to grow in knowledge and compassion. 2) Because reading the material is imperative
to good discussions, various types of quizzes, oral and written reports will be
required throughout the semester to encourage you to keep current on the
reading.
Required Texts:
Achebe, Chinua. Anthills
of the Savannah.
Cliff, Michelle. No
Telephone to Heaven.
Dangarenbga, Tsitsi. Nervous
Conditions.
McLeod, John. Beginning Postcolonialism.
Murakami, Haruki.
Wind up Bird Chronicles.
Ngugi wa Thiong’o.
Grain of Wheat.
Rhys, Jean. Wide Sargasso Sea.
Suri, Manil. The
Death of Vishnu.
Requirements:
Random reading quizzes:
Short quizzes over the fiction
should be expected daily, though they will probably occur more randomly. In general, we’ll read between 50-60 pages of
a text for each class. The quizzes will
test your general reading comprehension; they’re not tricky or too
detailed. Usually, they’ll consist of 5
factual questions about events or characters. They may, however, also ask you
to explain motivation or speculate on theme.
No make up quizzes. If you’re not here for the quiz, your quiz
grade is zero. I’ll drop the lowest
three grades for the semester. (40%)
Brief written and oral reports:
Chapter Reports:
A summary of an assigned section
of each chapter of Beginning
Postcolonialism. Your task is to summarize accurately and succinctly enough
to fill your classmates in on the sections of the chapter they may not have
read. Each report should conclude with
at least two comments or questions for generating discussion. No longer
than one single spaced page. (8 * 5% for 40%)
Click here for reading assignment
roster.
Connection Reports:
For each of the last 2 books we
read, Suri and Murakami, you’ll submit a 2-3 page double-spaced essay
describing your interpretation of a passage, chapter, theme, or character in
the text that employs some aspect of postcolonial theory. The basic question
you’ll be answering is the following:
How are you using the theory to make sense of the text? (2 * 10% for 20%)
Attendance and Participation: Being here is,
obviously, crucial for participation in the discussions. We can’t learn from you and you can’t learn
from us if you’re not here. So show up
and speak up. You have three free
absences. Your final grade will drop one
letter grade (A, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, etc.) for each class you miss after the
first three. This means that if you have
a B for the class at the end of the semester, but you’ve missed 6 classes, your
grade will drop to a C. If you’ve missed
8 classes, it will drop to a D, and so on.
Other Policies and Procedures: Refer
to the Student Handbook for college policies on Academic Honesty. If you require any kind of assistance for
special needs, please see me and we’ll make arrangements to suit your
situation.
Assignment Schedule:
|
Date |
Reading Assignment |
Writing Assignments |
|
Jan. 12 |
Introductions |
|
|
Jan. 14 |
BP-1 |
Chapter Reports |
|
Jan. 16 |
BP-2, The Overland
Mail-Appendix |
Chapter Reports |
|
Jan. 19 |
Ngugi – 1-4 |
|
|
Jan. 21 |
Ngugi – 5-7 |
|
|
Jan. 23 |
Ngugi – 8-10 |
|
|
Jan. 26 |
Ngugi – 11-13 |
|
|
Jan. 28 |
Ngugi – to end |
|
|
Jan. 30 |
BP-3 |
Chapter Reports |
|
Feb. 02 |
Achebe – 1-4 |
|
|
Feb. 04 |
Achebe – 5-7 |
|
|
Feb. 06 |
Achebe – 8-11 |
|
|
Feb. 09 |
Achebe – 12-15 |
|
|
Feb. 11 |
Achebe – to end |
|
|
Feb. 13 |
BP-4 |
Chapter Reports |
|
Feb. 16 |
Winter Break |
|
|
Feb. 18 |
Rhys – Part I |
|
|
Feb. 20 |
Rhys – Part II p. 38-71 |
|
|
Feb. 23 |
Rhys – to end |
|
|
Feb. 25 |
BP-5 |
Chapter Reports |
|
Feb. 27 |
Dangarembga – 1-3 |
|
|
Mar. 01 |
Dangarembga – 4-6 |
|
|
Mar. 03 |
Dangarembga – 7-9 |
|
|
Mar. 05 |
Dangarembga – to end |
|
|
Mar. 08 |
BP-6 |
Chapter Reports |
|
Mar. 10 |
No class |
|
|
Mar. 12 |
No class |
|
|
Mar. 15-19 |
Spring Break |
|
|
Mar. 22 |
Cliff – I & II |
|
|
Mar. 24 |
Cliff – III & IV |
|
|
Mar. 26 |
No class |
|
|
Mar. 29 |
Cliff – V & VI |
|
|
Mar. 31 |
Cliff – to end |
|
|
Apr. 02 |
BP-7 |
Chapter Reports |
|
Apr. 05 |
Suri – 1-3 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 07 |
Suri – 4-6 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 09 |
Suri – 7-9 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 12 |
Suri – 10-13 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 14 |
Suri – to end |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 16 |
Murakami – Part 1, 1-10 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 19 |
Murakami – Part I to end,
Part 2, 1-3 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 21 |
Murakami – Part 2, 4-13 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 23 |
Murakami – Part 2 to end,
Part 3,1-8 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 26 |
Murakami – Part 3, 9-23 |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 28 |
Murakami – to end |
Connection Reports |
|
Apr. 30 |
BP-8 |
Chapter Reports |
|
May 05 |
|
Exam – 1:00 |