Great
Books Seminar
Dr. Margaret Hannay
Fall
2008
Texts
Alvarez,
In the Time of the Butterflies
Gaines,
A Lesson Before Dying
Homer,
The Odyssey (trans.
Fagles)
Kingston,
Woman Warrior
Marie
deFrance, Lais
Shakespeare,
Much Ado about Nothing
Handbook: Hacker, Pocket
Style Manual
GOALS
This is a student-centered course.
Great Books is designed to analyze an array of classic literary texts, both old
and new, while working on critical thinking and written and oral communication
skills. Students are expected to take an
active role in determining the direction of the class and to contribute to the
learning of others, developing collaborative leadership skills.
REQUIREMENTS
Student
progress will be evaluated by the following:
Class
participation: Participation
begins with preparing for class by doing the assigned readings and formulating
questions and comments. Always come to
class prepared to summarize the reading, to ask questions about the author's
ideas and arguments, and to connect it with the other material that we are
reading.
Class
discussion is an essential part of the seminar. Students will be graded on the
basis of demonstrated knowledge of the readings, critical thinking, and
contribution to the class's understanding of the work. Build on the ideas of
other speakers and encourage each other; what you learn in a seminar is more
dependent on each other than it is on the instructor. (Monopolizing the conversation and cutting
off other speakers is one extreme to be avoided; silence is the other.)
Quizzes:
Class will normally begin with a quick quiz on the assigned reading.
Short
papers and responses: To
prepare for class discussion and for your term paper, you will be required to
write a short paper, focusing on the reading, approximately every other
week. On alternate weeks you will be
responsible for writing a thorough evaluation of the style and content of
another student paper, and for leading a discussion of issues raised by that
paper. Both papers and responses will be graded.
If
the work is at an acceptable level for this course (B/B+), the paper or
response is given a check; plus or minus added to the check indicates that the
entry is of higher or lower quality. You
may rewrite your paper after consultation with the instructor within 2 weeks of
its return. (Responses may not be
rewritten, since their primary purpose is to help another student.)
In
this student-centered course, other students are dependent on your work. If you cannot write your short paper or your response
on the assigned day, make arrangements to switch days with another student, and
then notify the instructor.
Rewrites:
Short papers may be rewritten twice, once after you have received the
peer critique and class comments, and once after I have graded the paper. In order to rewrite to raise your grade you
must meet with me to talk about your paper after you have gotten it back with
comments. Then turn in your rewrite with
the earlier draft and my comments.
Highlight all changes that you have made, describe how they address the
problems of the earlier draft, and explain why these changes are substantial
enough to merit a higher grade.
Term
Paper: The major
paper (approximately 8 pages) will be an original essay demonstrating critical
thinking, knowledge of the texts, and research skills by analyzing one of our
texts or making connections between texts.
Topics will normally arise out of the shorter papers and will be
developed in consultation with the instructor.
In order to help with your research, you will be required to write a
description of your paper topic and a summary of your primary evidence; later
you will be required to write a prospectus giving a thesis and an annotated
secondary bibliography listing 7 recent books, book chapters, or scholarly
articles on your topic. Your findings
will be shared with the class in an oral report, which will count as 20% of the
paper grade. (I encourage you to consult
with me regularly as you write the term paper, but you may not rewrite the term
paper after it has been graded.)
Integrative
Essay: On the
final day of class, students will have the opportunity to demonstrate student
progress in critical thinking, as well as mastery of the texts, by pulling
together the works that we have read by writing on one important theme. The class, working with the instructor, will
choose essay topics.
Grading:
Each of the following 4 categories counts 25% of your grade—1) class
participation; 2) quizzes and integrative essay; 3) short papers and critiques;
4) term paper and oral report.
POLICIES
Attendance:
Students are responsible for all materials covered in class, including
assignments, whether or not they are present.
Class instruction and participation are vital components of the
course. Obviously, the more classes you
miss, the more difficult the work will become and the less you will gain from
taking the course. Because life outside
the classroom is complex, if you have an emergency you may miss 1 week without
external penalty. After that, each absence
lowers your final grade 5 points (1/20th of your grade). Note that coming late
counts as an absence.
Any
student who must miss more than one class for other college-sponsored
commitments (athletics, class trips, etc.) should see me at the beginning of
the semester to arrange a way to make up the work. Whether you are present in
class or not, you are still responsible for all work done in class, including
group projects, and for any work that was assigned while you were absent. It is your responsibility to obtain notes and
assignments from another student; then I will be happy to answer any additional
questions that you may have on the material.
Of
course extra consideration will be given in case of emergency, such as
prolonged illness or death in the family. Students who wish extra consideration
for prolonged absence (more than a week) should contact the office of the
Vice-President for Academic Affairs. In
the case of a death in the family, please also notify Campus Ministry; wake and
funeral times will be posted, and you will receive help and sympathy from
faculty and fellow students.
Classroom
etiquette: Be courteous to other students. Arrive on
time. Turn off all phones and other electronic devices before class. Do not eat
during class except for the break, when everyone will share food.
Late
Papers: Late
papers will be accepted up until the last day of class, but will be marked down
one-half letter grade for each week-day late.
Plan ahead. If you choose to submit a late paper, the oral report must
still be given on the assigned day.
Academic
Integrity: Academic
inquiry depends on intellectual integrity.
Students are expected to work diligently to the best of their ability,
to do their own research and writing, to avoid plagiarizing on papers. Note that plagiarism means stealing someone else's words or ideas
and lying to say they are your
own. The difference between research and
plagiarism is the acknowledgment of the other person's words and/ or ideas in
the text, notes, and bibliography.
Scholarship
cannot thrive in an atmosphere of suspicion.
I will assume that you are a person of moral integrity. If instances of cheating or plagiarism do
come to light, however, you will fail this course and be subject to other
penalties as set forth in the Academic Integrity
Catalog Statement and in
the attached English Department Policy on Academic Integrity.
(Please note that any downloaded paper or portion thereof means an automatic F
in the course.)
|
A+ 98 |
A 95 |
A- 92 |
|
B+ 88 |
B 85 |
B- 82 |
|
C+ 78 |
C 75 |
C- 72 |
|
D+ 68 |
D 65 |
D- 62 |
Students
with disabilities: If you have a disability and
require accommodation, please contact me early in the semester so that your
learning needs may be appropriately met. You should also contact the Office of
Services for Students with Disabilities (Foy Hall, Room 109, 783-4239).
Pandemic
Planning: In
case of a college closure, bring home all your books and class materials. If your situation permits, continue with
readings and assignments as scheduled. Plan to use web resources for your term
paper, but if library and web resources are not available, you may base your
term paper solely on your own close reading of the text. I plan to be available via email
on a daily basis (except Sunday). All
readings and papers are essential for receiving credit for the course; however,
we may have to suspend peer critiques if that turns out to be unworkable.
This course will focus on coming of age, as the protagonist
prepares to take his or her place in the world.
Note the entire elapsed time of the narrative, including
flashbacks and foreshadowing. What do we
learn about the scope of the protagonist’s life? In what space of time does the narration
itself occur? What has happened to lead
the protagonist to this point? What
hints do we have about the protagonist’s future?
What tests do the protagonists confront? What do they learn from these difficult
experiences?
What choices does the protagonist make? How does one choice lead to another? What are
the consequences of these choices?
What guides or mentors does the protagonist have? What do they teach?
What opponents does the protagonist have? What does the protagonist learn from them?
Does the protagonist have free will? Is free will limited by divine intervention
or societal constrictions?
What makes an adult man or woman admirable in this culture?
What part does religious faith play in the protagonist’s
development?
What part does gender play in the protagonist’s development?
What part does social class play in the protagonist’s
development?
Does the protagonist define the self in opposition to or in
conformity with the society?
What are the protagonist’s responsibilities to family? to society?
How does the protagonist change from the beginning to the
end of the work?
What similarities and differences do you see among the works
we are reading?
What similarities to and differences from Kite Runner do you see?
How is their process of coming of age similar to and
different from coming of age today?