English 113/113W Syllabus

Winter 2013

Davis OldhamOffice: 5355(FOSS Bldg)

ours: M–F 11:30 – 12:30
206-546-4768and by appointment

Section S1 (0683); S1 (0685)

9:30 – 10:20, M – F

Room: 1727

Required texts:None. All readings will be in the form of handouts or online.Regular internet access is required. If this poses a problem, please see me immediately.

Prerequisites:Placement into ENGL 101 or equivalent with instructor permission.

Also required:A good dictionary, for definitions, syllable divisions, and proper accent—essential for analyzing metrical poetry. Shoreline students have access to the Oxford English Dictionary, which is the best dictionary of English, through our library; plan to use that if you do not have your own.

This document spells out the course policies on grading, late assignments and other matters that are essential to your success in the course.

COURSE PHILOSOPHY

This course introduces the formal, academic study of poetry. This means it’s a bit of an odd duck in the academic world, because the main reason people write such things is not for them to be studied, but to give pleasure. A poem, says Robert Frost, “begins in delight and ends in wisdom.” They’re supposed to be enjoyable, while also giving us something deeper and richer than just fun—a sense of meaning, fulfillment. The difficulty is that the tools of academia are not, by and large, designed to enhance either joy or fulfillment, delight or wisdom. However, they can help us develop our ability to pay attention to the poem sufficiently to achieve some of that joy, some of the meaning. The goal of this class is to introduce some poems that are rewarding in this way, and to study them carefully to try to understand how they work.

COURSE POLICIES

Assignments and Grades

These are the different types of assignment in this class and what each is worth:

Assignment / % of grade
Assigned readings (not graded but you are responsible for the material in them) / N/A
Threeessays / 25% each
Quizzes / 10%
Preparation and in-class exercises / 15%

You will have the option to rewrite one of the essays at the end of the quarter. Rewritten papers must be accompanied by the draft with my commentsor they will not be accepted. Please save all work, including work I’ve graded and handed back, until the end of the quarter. Rewritten papers must address substantive comments on the previous draft (i.e. not just grammar and spelling) in order to receive a higher grade.

W section students will hand in a rough draft of each essay one week before the due date for that paper. I will read and comment on the drafts and return them in time to use my comments in revision.

Major Dates

Here is a schedule of important due dates—subject to change. Daily homework consists of doing the reading and coming to class prepared to discuss.

Definitions / Week 1 (January 7 – 11)
Lineation and Rhythm / Weeks 2 – 4 (January 14 – February 1)
Essay I / Monday, February 4
Metaphor and Imagery / Weeks 5 – 7 (February 4 –February 22)
Essay II / Monday, February 25
Sound and Song / Weeks 8 – 11 (February 25 – March 18)
Essay III / Monday, March 18
Optional rewrite of one essay / Friday, March 22
Late Assignments

All assignments are due in class on the specified date. Prep work, obviously, applies only to the day it is due and so cannot be accepted late. (You can’t prep for a class that’s already happened.) I will consider accepting essays late ifthey are accompanied by a written explanation. I reserve the right to refuse late essaysor deduct pointsfor lateness, at my discretion.

Participation

Participation and collaboration are fundamental to the structure of this course. There will be lots of class discussions and group work. I’ve tried to set it up so you’ll want to talk about what you’re learning, so hopefully this won’t be a problem. If you are unable or unwilling to participate in any of the ways provided, you should take a different course.

I have worked hard to ensure that class time will be productive for you. In return I expect you to treat me, your classmates, and yourself with respect. This means that you should be here every day, on time and prepared to work—alert, attentive and ready to participate. Please do not:

  • read material not related to the class,
  • do homework for another class,
  • chat,
  • talk or send messages on your cell phone,
  • sleep,

or in any other way show disrespect toward the rest of the class. If you can’t be mentally present, take a mental health day and come back the next prepared to work. And again, please be on time. Late arrivals disrupt and distract, wasting everyone’s time and money.

In short: I will treat you like an adult and I expect you to behave like one.

Pass/No Credit Option

You have the option of taking this class P/NC. If you choose this option and your grade is 2.0 or higher, it will appear as a “P” on your transcript. You will get credit but the grade will not be calculated in your GPA. If you choose this option and your grade is below 2.0, it will appear as “NC” on your transcript. You will not receive credit but it will not affect your GPA. To choose this option you must submit a pass option card signed by me to the registration desk no later than the end of the fifth week (Friday, February 1). A maximum of thirty P credits may apply to any Shoreline degree (with the exception of Nursing and Health Care Information Programs).

Disability

If you need course adaptations or special accommodations because of a disability, or if you have medical information to be shared with me in the event that the building needs to be evacuated, please contact me or come see me during office hours. If you require accommodations due to a diagnosed disability please contact the coordinator of services for students with disabilities in the FOSS Building, Room 5226; 546-4545 (phone) or 546-4520 (TTY).

Diversity/Respect

This class is built on the assumption that diverse perspectives are fundamental to learning. In fact, poetry is all about diverse perspectives: using your imagination to see the world from different points of view. The course is structured to make the most of our differences by giving you many opportunities to interact with all of your classmates. We’ll be dealing with topics that can sometimes look different depending on where you stand—topics that can become controversial as well. This is just the sort of situation where we benefit most from experience and perspectives different from our own. But for this to work we must all be willing to listen to each other respectfully. A few basic guidelines can make a big difference here:

  • Treat each other with respect.
  • When disagreeing, question the quality of the argument, not personal beliefs.
  • Speak from experience.
  • Avoid generalizations about groups of people.
  • Share air time.
  • Listen respectfully to different perspectives.
  • Don’t blame or scapegoat.
  • Focus on learning, not on winning arguments.

A word of caution: Don’t assume that if you look, dress, or speak differently from someone that you are better than them. Derogatory, hurtful or bigoted comments should not be tolerated. If you hear such comments, challenge the speaker to be more respectful and support the person being addressed. If you feel you have been the target of such comments, please let me know.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined in the Student Handbook as “quoting, paraphrasing or summarizing portions of another’s work from a published, unpublished or electronic source without acknowledging that source.” In short, it means representing another’s written work as your own. It can take different forms, including:

  • submitting a paper someone else wrote with your name on it,
  • including someone else’s exact words in your paper without giving credit for them (including using their exact words without quotation marks, even if you cite the source),
  • including someone else’s ideas in your paper without giving credit for them, and
  • letting someone else do so much work on your paper it’s as if they wrote it, or part of it.

In this culture plagiarism is a form of theft. It is the most serious crime you can commit in an academic setting. Plagiarism will result in a zero for the assignment. Extensive plagiarism is grounds for failing the course and can get you kicked out of school.

Most of the time people plagiarize for one simple reason: panic. They feel unable to do the assignment, don’t ask for help and get into a bind, whereupon they grab something that looks good and hand it in. My advice is to stop this problem before it starts. If you’re having trouble with the assignment, see me. I will do everything I can to help you complete the assignment successfully. But I can’t help if you don’t talk to me.

Course Outcomes

The goal of this course is that, at the end of it, you should be able to:

  1. Identify and describe the main forms of poetry, including open ("free verse" or "organic") and closed (“received” or “fixed”).
  2. Identify and describe the characteristic features of poetry that differentiate it from other literary genres, including rhythm, structure, and use of figurative language.
  3. Analyze and respond to poems in terms of their cultural, historical and political contexts, as well as their universal themes.
  4. Identify poetic techniques and styles and explain how these have evolved over time.
  5. Apply a variety of perspectives and critical approaches to the study of poetry.
  6. Articulate the intellectual and emotional differences between reading a poem and hearing it.
  7. Reflect upon and describe how poetry can bring self-awareness to the reader and give meaning to human experience.
A Final Note

Reading poetry is interesting, fun, exciting. My hope is that you will leave this class having found a way to deepen and enrich your life experience. The work we do should help you toward that goal. If you are finding it overwhelming, please talk to me ASAP so I can help you manage it and find a way to make it work for you.