ENG 130: Survey of American Literature

ENG 130: Survey of American Literature

Fall 2016

Instructor: Jeremy Hurley

Email:

Office: STV 421D

Office Phone: (309) 438-7801

Office Hours: MW 2:00-3:30 and by appointment

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Course Description and Objectives:

As its title suggests, this course will provide a historical study of the main movements in American literature from its beginnings to the present. Through an examination of selected literary texts from both canonical and non-canonical authors, this course will engage with a diverse body of works to expand student knowledge of important American literary movements. Along with gaining a greater familiarity with important American literary works, students will also analyze how these works reflect or challenge contemporary social and cultural beliefs.

Students in this course will be required to complete a substantial amount of reading, weekly discussion forum posts, one critical essay, a group presentation, as well as midterm and final exams. You should complete all assigned readings in order to facilitate thoughtful discussion with your peers. Please be aware that some course content may be considered sensitive; therefore, please be prepared to discuss all topics that arise with open-minded maturity.

Required Texts:

Reading for the course will come primarily from the four works listed below. Any additional required reading will be available via Reggienet. As we will be spending class meetings discussing the assigned readings, students should not come to class without the required text.

Baym, Nina, ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Shorter 8th edition. 2 volumes. New York: Norton, 2013. (ISBN: 9780393918885)

Cather, Willa. O Pioneers! New York: Oxford UP, 2008. (ISBN: 9780199552320)

Foster, Hannah Webster. The Coquette and The Boarding School. New York: Norton, 2013. (ISBN: 9780393931679)

Welch, James. The Death of Jim Loney. New York: Penguin, 2008. (ISBN: 9780143105183)

Recommended Texts:

Rowlandson, Mary. The Sovereignty and Goodness of God. Ed. Neal Salisbury. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1997. (ISBN: 9780312111519)

General Course Policies

1. Policy on class attendance

The attendance regulation of the University is based on two principles. First, students should attend class regularly; second, students are primarily responsible to the instructor in matters pertaining to class attendance. Every student is responsible for class attendance and successful completion of academic work. Attendance regulations encourage student maturity and assume that academic success is the student’s primary goal in college. For this course, you are allowed three absences without penalty, which comprises about 10% of our total course meetings. Please note that I do not differentiate between excused and unexcused absences. Each absence beyond three will reduce your final grade by one-half of a letter grade. Therefore, missing five class meetings will reduce your final semester grade by 10 points.

• Make-up work: Please note that in-class assignments or discussion posts cannot be made up unless the instructor has been notified of the absence beforehand. All assignments are due on their regularly scheduled due date, so please make arrangements as necessary if you expect to miss a class meeting.

• Students who participate in Sanctioned University Activities: Illinois State University deeply values and supports the required participation of students in Sanctioned University Activities. Instructors will provide such students with reasonable accommodations for completing missed exams, quizzes, and the like. The Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs will determine Sanctioned University Activities. It is the responsibility of the student to (1) inform instructors of scheduled absences in advance, (2) where possible and as soon as possible, provide a schedule of all semester absences, and (3) arrange to complete missed classroom work. Ultimately, students are responsible for material covered in class. In the event of disagreement regarding this policy, the issue will be directed to the appropriate Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs for arbitration.
• Religious Accommodations: The University will accommodate, within reason, students whose religious obligations require absence from class. Students who are unable to attend class or take examinations for religious reasons should consult their instructors in advance about alternative arrangements.

2. Grading Scale

A = 90-100

B = 80-89

C = 70-79

D = 60-69

F = 59 or below

If you ever have a question about a grade and/or a comment I have made, please contact me.

3. The public nature of class writing and discussions

Please consider every piece of writing you do for this class to be "public property." Remember that you may be expected to share your writing with others, so avoid writing about things that you may not be prepared to subject to public scrutiny, or things you feel so strongly about that you are unwilling to listen to perspectives other than your own. This does not mean that you are not entitled to an opinion but that you adopt positions responsibly, contemplating the possible effect on others. This course may contain content (assigned readings, in-class discussions, etc.) deemed offensive by some students. If you have concerns about any course content, please bring these concerns to the attention of your instructor.

4. Late Writing Projects

Final projects are due by the posted deadlines. I do not accept late final projects without penalty unless you have received permission from me prior to class and have explained why the project is late and when it will be turned in. This does not apply for requests made the day an assignment is due. If you do not receive permission to submit late, late final papers will be penalized 1 letter grade for every calendar day that the project is late.

5. All writing for this class must be written for this class

To pass this class all major writing assignments must be submitted; furthermore, all writing submitted for this class must be written for this class. Resubmitting a paper from another class or elsewhere constitutes academic dishonesty.

6. Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is expected in all classroom endeavors. Academic integrity is an important part of this University and this course. Academic integrity is required of you, the student, and me as the instructor. Students are expected to be honest in all academic work. A student’s placement of his or her name on any academic exercise shall be regarded as assurance that the work is the result of the student’s own thought, effort, and study.

Students who have questions regarding issues of academic dishonesty should refer to the Code of Student Conduct, (V. University Regulations, Sec. B1 “Academic Integrity”), which outlines unacceptable behaviors in academic matters. In certain circumstances (such as cheating or plagiarism) I may be required to refer a student(s) to Community Rights & Responsibilities for a violation of Illinois State University's Code of Student Conduct. If you are uncertain about whether or not something is dishonest, please contact me. Academic penalties regarding academic dishonesty may range from receiving zero credit for an assignment to more severe disciplinary actions, based on the seriousness of the infraction.

7. Classroom Behavior

Students are expected to behave in a manner consistent with being in a professional environment. Open discussion and disagreement are encouraged in a respectful manner. Open hostility, rudeness, and incivility are discouraged and will result in appropriate action. Mechanical disruptions (cell phones, pagers, electronic toys, music players, etc.) are also strongly discouraged. Students acting in a disruptive or uncivil manner may be dismissed from the class for the remainder of the class period. If necessary, referrals may also be made to Community Rights & Responsibilities for violations of the Code of Student Conduct.

8. Student Access and Accommodation Services

Individuals with disabilities may need reasonable accommodations, modifications, and/or auxiliary aids in order to have equal access to programs and services offered. Student Access and Accommodation staff are available to assist the student in determining which accommodations are appropriate and how to access these accommodations. The student is strongly encouraged to contact the office as soon as s/he has been admitted to the University. This early contact allows for sufficient time to ensure that accommodations are in place for the beginning of a semester. Although Student Access and Accommodation Services will work with each student requesting accommodations, requests later in a semester may result in a delay or inability to provide accommodations. Any student needing to arrange a reasonable accommodation for a documented disability should contact Student Access and Accommodation Services on campus in 350 Fell Hall, via email at , or by calling 309-438-5853. Students may also visit their website (http://studentaccess.illinoisstate.edu) for additional information.

9. Mental Health Resources

Life at college can get very complicated. Students sometimes feel overwhelmed, lost, experience anxiety or depression, struggle with relationship difficulties or diminished self-esteem. However, many of these issues can be effectively addressed with a little help. Student Counseling Services (SCS) helps students cope with difficult emotions and life stressors. Student Counseling Services is staffed by experienced, professional psychologists and counselors, who are attuned to the needs of college students. The services are FREE and completely confidential. Find out more at counseling.illinoisstate.edu or by calling (309) 438-3655.

10. Individual Writing Assistance

Although it is not required, I highly recommend that students take advantage of the writing assistance offered through the Julia N. Visor Academic Center whenever composing an essay for any class. They can provide assistance at virtually any stage of the writing process. You can meet face to face or work online with a tutor. Website: http://universitycollege.illinoisstate.edu/tutoring/writing; Location: 012 Vrooman Hall; Phone: (309) 438-7100

Major Assignments and Course Grades

Grades are based on a combination work performed through the semester. The specific weight in the course grading is as follows:

Discussion Forum Posts/Quizzes20%

Midterm Exam20%

Final Exam20%

Critical Essay25%

Group Presentations15%

• Discussion Forum Posts/Quizzes: We will have new readings for practically every class meeting. To help facilitate discussion, class members will be required to post a passage analysis once per week. One half of the class will be responsible for posts on our Monday readings; the other half will be responsible for posts on our Wednesday readings. The posts should be completed at least one day in advance of our in-class discussion. These posts should consist of a short passage from one of the required readings and a brief (125-200-word) original analysis explaining the significance of the passage. This should be an analysis of the text; it should not merely summarize or restate the passage or simply reflect on your own reading. These posts will make up 20% of your final grade, so be thorough. Generally, I don’t give quizzes, but if I see that participation is lacking, I may do so at any time. These may be given without warning during the course.
• Midterm/Final Exams: The midterm exam is designed to cover only the material from the first half of the semester, and the final exam is designed to cover only material from the second half. Blue books will be required for the exams, so please buy these well in advance of the exam dates.
• Critical Essay: Students must complete a 1500-1750-word critical essay on a topic relevant to our coursework this semester. This essay will require the use of peer-reviewed journal articles to help support your argument.
• Group Presentations: For this portion of the class, students will be placed into groups and asked to present contextual information to the class regarding our readings on assigned days. The group will be responsible for contextualizing the primary text(s) using historical information and critical scholarship. Groups should use Prezi, PowerPoint, or a similar program to create a visual aid. Along with the presentation, each group should also submit a presentation document in essay format to the instructor at least one week in advance of the presentation. This will allow your instructor adequate time to provide feedback on your presentation before your presentation date. Final drafts of the presentation document and the accompanying visual aid must be submitted on Reggienet (under the assignments link) before the presentation.

**Please note: Assignments which do not meet the length requirement will receive an automatic letter grade reduction. Furthermore, failing to complete the required number of peer reviews (if applicable) will also result in an automatic letter grade reduction.

Tentative Schedule

***Note*** This schedule is subject to change. Changes may be discussed in class, related through email, or posted in the Announcements section on ReggieNet. You are responsible for being aware of any changes. All readings and assignments are due at the beginning of class on the date assigned. Texts marked with (RN) are available in the Course Readings section on our course Reggienet site.

When there are two sets of page numbers given for the same text, the second set of numbers refers to the page numbers for the single-volume Norton Anthology of American Literature.

FINAL EXAM: Date and Time TBD

Major Course Projects

Critical Essay:

Students must complete a 1500-1750-word academic essay on a topic relevant to our coursework this semester. The essay should contain a clearly identifiable thesis statement and adequate support, including a minimum of three articles from peer-reviewed academic journals to further its argument. Primarily, this essay should provide a textual analysis, contextual analysis, or comparative analysis that provides your reader insight into your selected text. Your choice(s) of texts for this essay have some limitations: You may not write about a text we have covered in class (without explicit permission), but you may write about a different work by one of the many authors we covered, or practically anything else found in our required course textbooks or considered “American” literature. However, your essay should arise from your own research; writing an essay that simply repeats information covered in class is not the purpose of this exercise. Instead, I am interested in seeing how you engage texts through your own ideas and research.

Due dates:

Rough Draft submitted for Peer Review: November 14, 2016 (by 11:59 PM)

Completion of Peer Review: November 18, 2016 (by 11:59 PM)

Final Draft submitted via Reggienet: November 21, 2016 (by 11:59 PM)

Requirements:

1500-1750 words

MLA format

Interesting and original title

Minimum of three peer-reviewed journal articles cited

Essays not meeting these requirements may not be accepted. Failure to submit a draft for peer review or to complete two peer reviews may result in a letter grade deduction on your final draft. Failure to meet the length requirement will also result in a letter grade deduction on your final draft.

Group Presentation:

Early in the semester, students will be placed into small groups and assigned a topic or movement significant to American literature. The Group Presentation assignment requires that students create a thoughtful and well-researched document along with a professional and well-rehearsed class presentation. While there is a scholarly research component to this project, I suggest using web resources (Wikipedia, for example) to help locate information on the literary movement and cultural/historical background.

The Presentation Document: Your group will submit a well-organized Presentation Document that covers the information from your presentation. This information should be made available to your instructor (via email) at least one week in advance of your presentation date. Sections One and Two (combined) should be at least 1000-1250 words and written in essay form. Please arrange your Presentation Document in the following manner:

• Section One: Literary Movement
• What literary movement is reflected in the author's work? What social/cultural changes brought about this movement? How can readers identify works in this movement? What are the primary characteristics a reader should notice when reading texts from this movement/period?
• Section Two: Cultural/Historical Background
• What should a reader know about the author(s) in question (education, upbringing, class, etc.)? How might these things have affected the author’s perspective on the world and influenced his/her writing? Do not simply offer a timeline of events; instead, discuss the formative influences and events most important for understanding the author's writing.
• Section Three: Annotated Bibliography
• Four peer-reviewed journal articles cited in MLA format, with 125-150-word annotations (not including the citations) that summarize and identify the importance of the scholarship.

In-Class Presentation: Along with the presentation document, your group will also create and deliver a 12-15-minute presentation to the class on a specific date. These presentations should complement the course readings by offering relevant historical and cultural information, information on the particular literary movement the class is reading at that time, and a discussion of two peer-reviewed journal articles. The research completed for the Presentation Document should provide the foundation for the In-Class Presentation.