What is an American? An Exploration of Identity and Ethnicity in Twentieth Century American Literature
Spring 2016
Mon/Wed 5pm-6pm
Shiffman Humanities Ctr125
Michael Mirer,
Office Hours: Monday, 1:30-2:30 and by appointment in Rabb 214.
When Israel Zangwill dubbed America “The Melting Pot” in 1905 he saw the potential for the vast mixture of peoples to “unite to build the Republic of Man and the Kingdom of God.” While the Twentieth Century has not been kind to Zangwill's utopian optimism, the question of who is or what constitutes an American remains as charged as ever. In this course we look at a small group of writers who deal with these big issues as in the short stories of Bernard Malamud, essays by Adrienne Rich, Kimberle Crenshaw, and finally Jean Toomer's masterpiece Cane. Each author offers a different approach in their attempt to position themselves in an American context and we will use this work to better understand the intersections of ethnicity, gender, and identity. These works will serve as specific moments of being, and are not intended to be exhaustive In our writing as well as our reading students will be encouraged to expand upon the vision of the world offered here as we will attempt to better understand the representations and possibilities of identity in this period.
In this course students will be introduced to the art of the college essay through a range of writing exercises each designed to prepare students for the three major assignments of a University Writing Seminar, the close reading essay, the lens essay, and finally a research paper. Students will learn how to read texts critically, how to craft and hone research questions, and how to compose a paper that makes a strong and persuasive argument.
Required Texts:
Parfitt, Matthew. Writing in Response
Toomer, Jean. Cane
Write Now!
Other Readings on Latte (Print and Bring to Class!)
Grading Rubric:
Attendance/Participation in peer reviews, workshops: 20%
Assignments:
Close Reading Essay 1: 20%
Lens Essay 2: 20%
Research Essay 3: 30%
Final Portfolio (with evaluation): 10%
Classroom & Course Policies
Technology: No cell phones or laptops allowed in class unless a student has prior approval from the university. I will restrict any device that becomes a distraction.
Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. You are allowed three absences before your grade is lowered a third of a letter grade (A becomes A-, D- becomes F, etc.). After these three absences (for any reason) your dean will be notified. Please come to class and be on time. Excessive tardiness will be counted as an absence.
Participation: This is a discussion-based class, and participation is vital to everyone’s success during our time together. A few notes on what constitutes meaningful participation:
· Coming to class on time with the readings in hand and completed.
· Thoughtful, regular contributions to class discussion.
· Submitting work on time.
· Active, courteous, and helpful engagement in peer workshops. This means giving and receiving comments in a professional manner.
· Reading Responses will count as part of your participation grade. Each response will consist of two quotations and two relevant questions(at least two or three sentences in length) analyzing the quotations posted by 5pm the night before class and a response to at least one other student’s post by noon the day of class. A response will be counted as incomplete unless both the original post and response are done.
If you are on the quieter side, feel free to come see me during my office hours to discuss the readings to help supplement participation.
Formatting: All essays will be submitted to me in class and electronically to your peers. Essays must use 1-inch margins and 12 point Times New Roman font. Do not enlarge your punctuation—I can tell. Essays must have a title and be double-spaced. Pre-drafts will be submitted in hard copy in class and must be typed and stapled.
Late Work, Extensions and Minimum Page Requirements
I am usually willing to offer extensions, given legitimate reasons. If a catastrophe happens and you are afraid your work will not be completed in time, contact me more than 24 hours before the due date and arrange for an extension. Otherwise, late work, including first drafts, will be penalized by a third of a grade per day (B+becomes a B, a B- becomes a C+ so on) on the final paper. If a paper is due electronically at midnight and you submit it at 12:01 AM, it is late. In addition, final papers that do not meet minimum page requirements will be penalized by a third of a grade for each page that the paper falls short.
Conferences: We will meet individually three times during the semester—once per major assignment—for twenty minute conferences. Conference attendance is MANDATORY. Any missed conference will count as an absence. You should bring all relevant materials to a conference, including pre-drafts, revisions, outlines, or key sources. Please note that you can also come see me during office hours.
The Writing Center: Take advantage of the Writing Center in Goldfarb Library, where you can get 45-minute one-on-one tutorials. Appointments tend to fill up during the weeks leading up to UWS assignment due dates. Schedule appointments early and often.
IMPORTANT: There is a popular rumor that if you go to the Writing Center, you immediately get a 24-hour extension on your paper. This is not true. I will approve extensions on a case-by-case basis. You must have prior approval from me for an extension, contingent on an appointment at the Writing Center and written proof of an appointment.
Academic Integrity: It is essential that all the work you hand in for this course is your own, and that when you use outside sources or ideas, you cite them properly. The University’s policy on academic integrity is distributed annually in the Rights and Responsibilities Handbook (http://www.brandeis.edu/studentaffairs/sdc/rr/). Instances of apparent or alleged dishonesty will be forwarded to the Department of Student Development and Conduct for possible referral to the Student Judicial System, and may carry severe consequences including failure on the assignment in question, failure in the course, and/or suspension from the University. Please do not hesitate to ask me any questions you have about plagiarism, citation or use of sources.
Disabilities: If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis and wish to have reasonable accommodation made for you in class, please come see me as soon as possible. Further information is available at the Brandeis Disabilities Services and Support website (http://www.brandeis.edu/acswerv/disabilities).
Syllabus Adjustments: I reserve the right to make adjustments to this syllabus if I deem them necessary as the semester goes on. Please refer to LATTE as the final word on all assignments, prompts, and due dates.
Unit 1: What is Close Reading?
Week 1
Jan 13 (W) • In Class: Intro to writing and to seminar topic; diagnostic writing
Week 2
NO CLASS JANUARY 18
Jan 20 (W) • Reading Assignment: Course Syllabus
• Writing Assignment: none
Jan 25 (M) • Reading Assignment: Malamud, “Angel Levine”
• Writing Assignment: Short response with two quotations and two questions (at least two or three sentences in length) to be discussed in class and posted to latte by 5pm the night before (1/24). You must also respond to at least one of your colleagues posts by noon 1/25 (this is true of all uses of the forum).
Week 3
Jan 27 (W) • Reading Assignment: Malamud, “Angel Levine”, Parfitt: Chapters 2, 3
• Writing Assignment: Pre-draft 1.1 (mini close-reading)
Feb 1 (M) • Reading Assignment: “Elements of the Academic Essay,” and “When Gender Changed” by Liana Simpson from Write Now!
• Writing Assignment: Pre-Draft 1.2 (Thesis Statement on Latte by Noon, Feb. 1st)
Week 4
One-on-One Conferences to discuss drafts of Essay 1 this week and/or next
Feb 3 (W) • Reading Assignment: “The Noble Controversy” by Cynthia Cheloff in Write Now!
• Writing Assignment: Draft of Essay #1 due with Draft Cover Letter in class.
• Essays should be sent to peer review groups before class.
Feb 8 (M) • Reading Assignment: Workshop materials; Parfitt Chapter 6
• Writing Assignment: Draft Responses to draft writer(s)
• In Class: Draft workshop focusing on thesis, structure, evidence, analysis
Week 5
Unit 2: How to Work with a Text as a Lens
Feb 10 (W) • Reading Assignment: none
• Writing Assignment: Revision of Essay #1 due with Revision Cover Letter
• In Class: Discussion of unit 1 sources—what did you learn from writing your essay? Essay #2 writing assignment; introduction to lens analysis and lens text
NO CLASSES 2/15-2/19
Feb 22 (M)
• Reading Assignment: Adrienne Rich, “Split at the Root: An Essay in Jewish Identity”
• Writing Assignment: Reading Responses on Latte
Week 6
Feb 24 (W) • Reading Assignment: Rich, “Split at the Root,” Kimberlé Crenshaw, “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminisit Theory and Antiracist Politics”
• Writing Assignment: Reading Responses on Latte, responses should have one question and quotation from each text.
Feb 29 (M) • Reading Assignment: Crenshaw, “Demarginalizing the Intersection”
• Writing Assignment: Pre-draft 2.1
• In Class: Understanding and applying lens text; summary and paraphrase
Week 7
Mar 2 (W) • Reading Assignment: Crenshaw
• Writing Assignment: Response on Latte
• In Class: Discussion of pre-draft 2.1; thesis and motive in lens essays
Mar 7 (M) • Reading Assignment: “Art from the Bottom of a Well” by Raphael Stigliano from Write Now!
• Writing Assignment: Pre-Draft 2.2
• In Class: working with quotations; working with lens; Discussion of sample student essay; drafting strategies
Week 8
One-on-One Conferences to discuss drafts of essay 2 end of this week
Mar 9 (W) • Reading Assignment: “Impish Impulses” by Sarah Klieger from Write Now!
• Writing Assignment: none or notes/reader response
• In Class: working with quotations; working with lens; Discussion of sample student essay; drafting strategies
Mar 14 (M) • Reading Assignment: none
• Writing Assignment: Draft of Essay #2 due with Draft Cover Letter
• In Class: Style workshop: clarifying “to be” & spotting loser sentences in drafts
Week 9
Mar 16 (W) • Reading Assignment: Workshop materials, Parfitt Chapter 7
• Writing Assignment: Draft responses to draft writer(s)
• In Class: Draft workshop focusing on thesis, motive, analysis, revision
strategies
Mar 21 (M) • Reading Assignment: Cane, Part I
• Writing Assignment: Reading Response on Latte
• In Class: Essay #3 writing assignment; finding a topic; types of sources
Week 10
Unit 3: The Argumentative Research Essay: Beyond the Book Report
Mar 23 (W) • Reading Assignment: Cane, Part I
• Writing Assignment: Revision of Essay #2 due with Revision Cover Letter
• In Class: Framing a research question
NO CLASSES MARCH 28
Mar 30 (W) Library FLIP Session!
• Reading Assignment: Library Research guide
Week 11
Apr 4 (M) • Reading Assignment: Cane, part II
• Writing Assignment: Reading Response; Pre-draft 3.1 (Research Proposal)
Apr 6 (W) • Reading Assignment: Cane, part III
• Writing Assignment: Reading Response
Week 12
Apr 11(M) • Follow Up FLIP Session Meet in Library
• Reading Assignment: “Upholding the Status Quo” by Anna Reich from Write Now!
• Writing Assignment: Library Latte Assignment; Pre-Draft 3.2 (Annotated Bibliography)
• In Class: “Interweaving multiple sources” in Write Now! essay; prep for annotated bibliography
Apr 13 (W) • Reading Assignment: Your research materials, Parfitt Chapter 10
• In Class: Research question, thesis, and motive in Write Now! essay; quotation and citation
April 15 (F) Pre-draft 3.3 (Outline)
Week 13
One-on-One conferences to discuss drafts of essay 3 end of this week/next week
Apr 18 (M) • Reading Assignment: none
• Writing Assignment:
• In Class: Essay structure; paragraphing; audience and tone; title workshop
Week 14
Apr 20 (W) • Reading Assignment: None
• Writing Assignment: Draft of Research Essay Due in Class and on Latte
• In Class: Structure and stitching; conclusions
NO CLASSES APRIL 22-APRIL 29
May 2 (M): Last day of class