Course Calendar & Presentations

How To Use The Course Calendar
Using all of this information requires a bit of organization, so follow these general instructions. For each week, begin by reading assigned work from the hard text. There will be rhetoric and source material from Booth and Mays. The works themselves, listed by title and author, are also in Booth. You are then to view the Web pages for the authors and topics for that week, listed as a link on the English Internet Resource List section of the Web site (not all are covered). That means all you have to do is click on the colored (usually blue) label of the name or address of the site. Following that, read the online presentation of the format strategy for the week (Org & Outline, Quoting Your Sources, How To Take A Test, etc.). You are also required to read the thematic presentation for that week in Online Presentations (Character, Theme, Irony, etc.). Finally, read Questions for Reading and Writing. This will allow you to follow the schedule and be topical in the chat room. Read the directions. The following calendar lists the reading assignments. Written assignments and due dates for papers and tests are posted on the Message Board. Most of this syllabus is self-explanatory. The following is a plan for the summer semester.

Tentative Schedule

Week 1

Introduction
ASSIGNMENT:

Writing About Literature, 1-16, 982-3, 1755-56, 1759-1796
Objectivity in Analysis
What I Expect on Out of Class Papers
MLA Formatting, 1797-1808
Poetry, 618-19, 779-81, 824-26
Lyrics
Owen, Disabled
Mary, Lady Chudleigh, To The Ladies
Criticism, 1818-20
Formalist/New Criticism, 1820-22
Historical & Biographical Criticisms, 1826-28,1833-34
Purpose and Thesis: Theme I
Thomas, Do Not Go Gentle...
Birney, Irapuato
Primary Sources
Organization and Outlines
Taking a Timed Essay Test

Week 2

ASSIGNMENT:

Gender Criticisms, 1835-38
Imagery and Symbolism, 761
Cultural Criticisms, 1838-40, 1841-42
Brooks, We Real Cool
Howe, Practicing
Secondary Sources
Argumentation,
Supporting the Point: Analysis of Criticism/Evaluating Evidence
Simile
Metaphor
Cofer, The Changeling
Personification
Apostrophe
Poe, The Raven
Walcott, Far Cry From Africa
Irony,
Pastan, Marks

Test One
Message Board Discussion Group One Due

Week 3

ASSIGNMENT:

Psychoanalytic Criticism, 1828-29
Theme
Reader Response Criticism,1832-33
Deconstruction Criticism, 1824-25
New Historicism,1840-41; Marxist, 1833-35;and Myth Criticisms, 1829-30
Irony,
Pastan, Marks
Jarrell, The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner

Paper One Due

Week 4

ASSIGNMENT:

Narration: Writing About Fiction
Explication
Analysis: Interpretation and Evaluation
Plot, Character, Theme III
Kincaid, Girl
Description: Point of View

Makeup Test
Message Board Discussion Group Two Due

Week 5

ASSIGNMENT:

Deductive vs. Inductive Reasoning
Symbolism
Term Paper Idea due
Carver, Cathedral
Outline for Term Paper due
Note Cards for Term Paper due
Causal Analysis and Logical Fallacies
The Term Paper: Getting Started
Message Board Discussion Group Three Due
Term Paper due/Final Test Prep

Week 6

Finals Week: Final Exam

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photo of boogie boarder at Bolsa Chica S.B.

Questions for Reading and Writing

Something to keep in mind in your essays for this class:

Be able to answer these four questions somewhere in the context of your essay. Please don't merely list the answers... make them part of your general discussion of the work.

What is the message? Clearly state it and support your response from the text itself. There can be more than one answer.
Who is the speaker of the message? Be as specific as you can. This is NOT necessarily the author. Authors will create characters or "voices" to tell a story or give a viewpoint. In lyrics, this often makes singer appear to be a different person than they really are or hold different values than they really do. In drama, that is all you get... all characters, no narrator.
Who is the audience of the message? There can be more than one, often linked to the message...or a single message may have different audiences with different expected results. Again, be specific and use text for support.
What methods does author use? Be specific, using terms from ENGL 101 -- irony, symbolism, theme, conflict -- and new terms from this course.
- In poetry, the use of meter and rhyme and condensation of ideas into brief images is common.
- In drama, the use of character, dialogue and setting are often important.
- In literature, all of these aspects may be factors.

Once you've gotten this information into your paper, then we apply the critical approaches to discuss HOW EFFECTIVELY the message was delivered by author.

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