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Spring 2016: English 105 Introduction to Narrative, 105-05
MWF 1pm-1:50
BRYN 204
Instructor Jeremy South ()
Cubicle Location MHRA 3112 F
Mailbox Location MHRA 3317
Office Hours: W 2-4 or by appointment as necessary
Overview
This course focuses on texts primarily from the 20th and 21st centuries. This course includes texts from varying times, places, and cultures (though primarily still within the last ~150 years). In addition, this course uses the textbook Lenses Perspectives on Literature to discuss narrative elements, along with other texts for historical and literary context. While this course does not have a particular theme, other than the study of narrative, we will examine how these narrative techniques are employed in form and content to create, or gesture at, meaning. Texts for this course, and indeed all texts, are products of and reactions to history, philosophy, and culture, we will discuss historicist, theoretical, and reader-response approaches for approaching texts.
Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) for the GLT marker
1. Demonstrate the reading skill required for the student of literary texts. (LG3)
2. Identify and/or describe some of the varied characteristics of literary texts. (LG3)
3. Demonstrate orally, in writing, or by some other means, a fundamental ability to use some of the techniques and/or methods of literary analysis. (LG 1 and LG 3)
4. Identify and/or describe some of the various social, historical, cultural, and/or theoretical
contexts in which literary texts have been written and interpreted. (LG3)
Those SLOs labeled (LG3) relate to UNCG’s Learning Goal #3 for General Education, which says students will “Describe, interpret, and evaluate the ideas, events, and expressive traditions that have shaped collective and individual human experience through inquiry and analysis in the diverse disciplines of the humanities, religions, languages, histories, and the arts.” (http://uncg.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2015-2016/Undergraduate-Bulletin/University-Requirements/General-Education-Program).
Those SLOs labeled (LG1) relate to UNCG’s Learning Goal #1 for General Education. This is the ability to “think critically, communicate effectively, and develop appropriate fundamental skills in quantitative and information literacies.” (http://uncg.smartcatalogiq.com/en/2015-2016/Undergraduate-Bulletin/University-Requirements/General-Education-Program).
Required Texts
This is the order that went to the UNCG bookstore. I urge you to find used versions of these books, but make sure they are the editions specified. A practical warning: E-books are notoriously difficult to work with because the pages never line up with the analogue text. This may create problems both in-class and when writing papers. You are more than welcome, however, to bring in course PDFs on an electronic device.
Best of the Best American Poetry, 25th Anniversary Edition. Lehman and Pinsky, eds. Scribner, 2013. (ISBN 9781451658880)
Browning, Abigail, and Melissa Ridley Elmes. Lenses Perspectives on Literature. 2nd ed. Plymouth, MI Hayden-McNeil Publishing, 2015. (ISBN 978-073807007-0)
Dick, Philip K. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Del Rey, 1996. (ISBN 978-0345404473)
Foer, Jonathan Safran. Eating Animals. Hachette, 2010. (ISBN 9780316069885)
Rushdie, Salman. Midnight’s Children. Random House, 2006. (ISBN 9780812976533)
Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle. Norton, 2002. (ISBN 9780393977790)
Woolf, Virginia. Orlando A Biography. Orlando, FL Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing, 2006. (ISBN 9780156031516)
Assorted PDFs as indicated on the schedule with CV (for Canvas). Please read the schedule so you can anticipate when to read/have them for class.
Note on Texts: Literature always makes references to, allusions to, or directly engages with religious beliefs and narratives, such as in Alice Walker’s The Color Purple, John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, and Toni Morrison’ Beloved. Other modern and contemporary writers who work with religious motifs include C. S. Lewis, William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, Saul Bellow, and Sandra Cisneros, to name a few. In this section of ENG 105, as we are reading and discussing Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie, you will quickly see that in this text, the setting, characters, and narrative structure engage with an incredible array of religious texts and cultures present in India, including Buddhism, Christianity, the Quran, Sikhism, and Hinduism. This requires a class period or two, and some initial research by you, the students, into religious texts and/or movements, their history, cultural relevance, and teachings, along with the history and diverse cultures of the Kashmir region where the novel begins. This being said, I would like to set out some ground rules for our discussion of Midnight’s Children and religious texts/beliefs:
1) Openness: UNCG is a state university, and since the state is incompetent to judge in religious matters, my purpose is neither to confirm nor refute particular religious traditions, but to welcome a variety of viewpoints in discussion, from whatever believing or secular perspective.
2) Respect: We're bound to disagree, or at least diverge, in our responses, but avoid criticizing or attacking anyone in personal or ad hominem terms. Treat each other with basic courtesy, as you'd wish to be treated.
3) Relevance: Keep your comments on point and related to the texts up for discussion on a particular day, rather than ranging far and wide with statements of personal philosophy – though of course brief personal reflections are welcome.
Assignments/Evaluation: This course features two at-home exams, both worth 15% of your grade, for a total of 30% through examinations. At the end of the semester, you will write a 1500-word thesis-driven, evidence-based analytical essay using one or two of the texts we have read this semester, worth 30%. You will be assigned response papers (prompts) to complete on three different texts of your choice during the course, worth 5% each (15% total). During the semester you will also submit a preliminary thesis statement, then a revised thesis and a short prospectus for the final paper, worth 5% each. Additionally, you will bring a full draft (all 1500 words) of your final paper to class for peer review, worth 10%. Participation is 5%. More information and detailed assignment sheets will be given to you as the semester progresses.
In short:
Exam 1: 15% (SLOs 1-4h)
Exam 2: 15% (SLOs 1-4)
Response papers: 15% (SLOs 1-4)
Participation: 5% (SLO 3)
Preliminary thesis: 5%
Prospectus and revised thesis: 5% (SLOs 1-4)
FULL Rough draft of final paper: 10%
Final paper: 30% (SLOs 1-4)
Formatting: MLA or APA are fine, but you will be held to using the format correctly, which is to say, with minimal or zero mistakes. MLA 7th ed, APA 6th ed.
NOTE: Chromebooks and Google Docs have produced weird results in the past, along with students being unable to get papers to me on time. UNCG lets you use Office 365 web apps and download Office “for free,” (they say) so please make use of these. You are expected to submit papers in Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx), Apple’s Pages (.pages), or PDF formats. Your assignments are by word count (i.e. 500 words) so be sure to keep track.
Course Policies
Academic Integrity, from UNCG:
“Academic integrity is founded upon and encompasses the following five values honesty, trust, fairness, respect, and responsibility. Violations include, for example, cheating, plagiarism, misuse of academic resources, falsification, and facilitating academic dishonesty. If knowledge is to be gained and properly evaluated, it must be pursued under conditions free from dishonesty. Deceit and misrepresentations are incompatible with the fundamental activity of this academic institution and shall not be tolerated” (from UNCG’s Academic Integrity Policy). To ensure that you understand the university’s policy on academic integrity, review the guidelines and list of violations at http://academicintegrity.uncg.edu. I expect you to abide by the Academic Integrity Policy. Incidents of cheating and plagiarism are reported to the Dean of Students and sanctions are aligned with the policies at http://sa.uncg.edu/dean/academic-integrity/violation/plagiarism/”
Said sanctions are unpleasant and mostly involve failure of the assignment or failure of the course if not expulsion. None of these are good.
Attendance: For English 105 (and because we meet three times a week), you are allowed a maximum of four (4) absences without penalty. Absences 5, 6, and 7 are a half-letter penalty each. Absence 8 is automatic course failure.
If you do not have your texts, or it becomes apparent that you are unprepared to talk about the texts, you will be marked absent.
This policy does not distinguish between “excused” and “unexcused.” You don’t need to give me a doctor’s note or heads-up because you will still be marked absent. This being said, emergencies do sometimes arise. If you have some horrible flu where you turn inside-out and have to be put back together, please contact me immediately so we can talk about options.
From prior experience: A death in the family is something to take to the Dean of Students office, and as long as I get the ok from them, you will have some leeway with course work. If you discover that you have some ongoing affliction like the Epstein-Barr virus, or some mystery affliction that’s making you miss lots of class, go see the doctor, DOCUMENT EVERYTHING, and tell me that something’s up. I can’t excuse an emergency or extenuating circumstance that is not documented, nor can the Dean of Students Office.
From the Provost’s Office: Students are by state law allowed two excused absences due to religious holidays. These absences do not count toward the total maximums allowed above. If a student plans to miss class due to a religious holiday, he or she must notify the instructor in writing at least 48 hours prior to the absence.
If you have extenuating circumstances such as a death in the family, chronic illness/injury requiring prolonged medical treatment, etc., then you should immediately contact the Dean of Students Office for advocacy. To speak with a staff member in the Dean of Students Office, make an appointment by contacting Heather Mitchell, Student Services Manager, at 336-334-5514 or via email at . You can also use the department email, for more general information. You will need to provide your name, your UNCG ID number, a telephone number that you can be reached, and a general description of why you would like to meet. If your situation is urgent, you may opt for a walk-in appointment (Monday – Friday from 900 am to 400 pm), and the staff will connect you with the appropriate person as soon as possible. The Dean of Students office is located on the second floor of the Elliott University Center (EUC).
Participation: There are a lot of you (42 or more!) so getting a word in once in a while shouldn’t be that difficult or intimidating. As a reminder, participation is a small part of the course, but class will be excruciating for everyone if students have not read the material, or if no one says anything. Your efforts in the course are far more apparent when I can see and hear you.
Readings: You must bring all readings for the day, have read them, and be ready to talk about what you’ve read. Canvas readings may be printed or electronic.
E-mail Response Policy: I will make every effort to respond to your e-mail message within forty-eight hours. If I have not replied to your message after forty-eight hours, then please re-send the message. Please keep this policy in mind when writing your papers. Last-minute questions (like 4am the night before your paper is due) may not be answered in time.
Regular use of Canvas and email: You are required to use Canvas in this course.
I will post our class syllabus, updated schedules, resources & readings, as well as assignments, exercises, and announcements to the Canvas course site. Please familiarize yourself with the system and ask me for help if needed. Also, the ITS department offers workshops on Canvas on occasion. You are also expected to regularly check your email account, and I will regularly check mine () and respond to you within 48 hours. In the spirit of courtesy, you should also acknowledge via email that you received my reply. When composing an email, please include the course number (ENG 105) in the subject, a formal greeting, and a signature.
Late Work: Late work is not accepted. The only exception to this policy is if I am contacted by the Dean of Students office on your behalf (meaning you have spoken to them and documented extenuating circumstances).
Respect for all class participants: A supportive, constructive classroom environment will allow you to get the most from this class, so I am strict on “respect,” which means being fair and mindful to your classmates. Although students with disciplinary problems tend to be few and far between at the college level, if behavioral disruptions persist within a single class meeting (or, for that matter, across multiple meetings), the student in question will be asked to leave the class with points deducted from his/her participation grade and an absence for the day. Types of disruptive behavior can include any form of disrespectful comment or action directed toward me, another student, or the subject matter we are studying. I reserve the right to interpret inappropriate behaviors as I see fit and address them accordingly, and it goes without saying that remaining in my class is a tacit acknowledgment of this right. Repeated disruptions, of any kind, will be reported to the Dean of Students for disciplinary action.
Behavior Tied to This Course: Respect for others and their ideas is expected in this course. Therefore, disruptive and disrespectful behavior will not be tolerated, and action to deter it will be taken. The UNCG Disruptive Behavior Policy describes words and deeds as follows:
“Disruptive is behavior which the UNCG regards as speech or action which 1) is disrespectful, offensive, and/or threatening, 2) impedes or interferes with the learning activities of other students, 3) impedes the delivery of university services, and/or 4) has a negative impact in any learning environment.”
“Disruptive behavior includes physically, verbally or psychologically harassing, threatening, or acting abusively toward an instructor, staff member, or toward other students in any activity authorized by the University. Disruptive behavior also includes any other behavior covered by the Student Conduct Code.”
Electronics Policy: Bring whatever device you can use to view Canvas documents, if you like. Your device must be silent. Not “vibrate.” Silent. If noise becomes a distraction, you will be asked to leave and an absence recorded.