Office hours: MWF 8:30-9:30 A.M.;(&12:45-12:55 P.M. until November); TR: 8:30 - 9:30 A.M.; 6:00 - 6:45 P.M.& by appointment; e-mail: lesc@elmhurst.edu ext 3106
*NOTE : The College will
make reasonable accommodations for persons with documented disabilities.
If you have a disability that may have some impact on your work in this
course, please contact the Director of Advising at 103 Goebel Hall (617-3450).
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
a. from the LITERATURE Category of General Education:
* Increased ability to understand and appreciate the nature and uses of language.
* Increased awareness of the historic, cultural, spiritual, and personal contexts of literature.
* Increased appreciation of the unique opportunities for life-long learning afforded by reading and thinking about literary texts.
b. from my list:
*To gain an understanding of literature as such (see below)
*To enhance your understanding of humankind
*To increase your appreciation of writing
*To express yourself on literature
*To confront major issues raised in literature (war & peace,
love, death, etc.)
BOOKS TO BUY at Book Cellar--(All are in English)
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS & PROCEDURES
1. Quiz at the beginning of every Tuesday session on groups of stories at the beginning of our discussion (i.e., not yet discussed) Most questions will be of the "Did you read it" and "Did you read it carefully?" variety. Lowest (whole) quiz is thrown out. Missed quizzes are not made up. This quiz routine is meant to help you to read ahead, and thereby to know what your fellow students are talking about. One quiz grade is thrown out. If you miss a quiz, you must write a 1-1/2 page paper on some of the works discussed on the day you were absent.
2. Study Questions will be provided on-line for almost every work. You do not hand these in, but you should read them as you read your assignments, for these reasons:
a] They alert you to aspects the instructor thinks important; b] They are often used as quiz questions, and groups of them are the basis for some exam questions;
c] They act as a memory aid and compass for interpreting what you read.
3. Class contribution, including your presence and active participation in discussion. A note on attendance:
this class consists partly of
people who are employed during the day, and partly of people who are day
students here. If you're working in Brazil, your absence is excused; if
you're on campus and absent, I'll want to know why. Many faculty members
have taken steps to spell out consequences of excessive unexplained absences.
In this class, your third unexplained absence will start to erode your
grade average. In the case of an extended illness (or Brazil trip) contact
me to explain your situation and to get assignments. *If you are absent
for any reason, please write a one page paper which uses the study
questions to interpret the work(s) discussed in your
absence.*
3. Writing Assignments.
a. Journal. Optional in evening section. You are encouraged to write down your reactions to each work as you read. What thoughts does it provoke? What is the main character like? If helpful, include some answers to study questions. (See Suggestions for Study.) Staple the entries together or use a special notebook. The purpose of the journal is to give you practice in expressing yourself freely about literature; therefore it will not be graded for content.
b. Paper. Please think of this as a process. Stage 1: read the work, and write study questions on the work (like those I give you in class).
Stage 2: Write draft of about 1/3 of what you plan to write, as per guide sheet which you will receive. Stage 3: Write up and hand in the final draft.
(I) Content. You have the following options:
OPTION (a): Read an outside work by one of the following authors: (i) any author we read in class; OR
(ii) any of these authors: from France--Balzac, Flaubert, Maupassant, Mérimée, Zola, Colette, Gide, Camus, Sartre, Duras; from Germany--Kleist, Hoffmann, Tieck, Keller, Hauptmann, Zweig, Kafka, T. Mann, Handke, Böll, Wolf; from Italy: Calvino, Ginzburg, Moravia, Pirandello; from Africa--Bâ, Laye, Ousmane, Achebe. From Canada: Yves Thériault, Michel Tremblay.
Some authors, such as Kafka and
Balzac are well represented in our library. For others, you may have to
use interlibrary loan or try another library. I tell you this so you can
plan ahead if you have an interest in an author who is less well known.
Also, some well known authors’ novellas are in collections, with titles
such as Five Great German Stories, Twelve German Novellas,
German
Short Stories or German Stories/Deutsche Erzählungen(or
equivalent in Italian). The work you choose must be in PROSE, but may be
a novel, novella, or group of short stories, if they total 50 pages
or more. Consult with me to get the project approved and to get suggestions
on how to proceed.
Include in your paper these 5 components 1. a short plot summary (1-2 pages maximum), 2. a discussion or extended reference to an in-class work, 3. your interpretation of the work or one aspect of the work (cf. Suggestions for Study), 4. a short report on one piece of criticism. If you are unable to find criticism on your chosen work, you may substitute relevant historical or social background, or relevant a report on criticism of another work by the author, with instructor permission. 5. (required!) A list of sources used, with quotations properly attributed. LENGTH: 7-12 pp.
OPTION (b): With instructor permission, you may view and report on a movie which is based on a work by one of our authors. You will need to borrow the video cassette and story from a public library (you'll need a public library card) or rent it. Include outside sources--criticism of the film and a discussion of the important differences between film and prose narration. Read the story, or portions, if a novel. Components 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5 all apply here also. LENGTH: 7–12 pages.
FORM: Please follow the form you learned in English 105-106, for example, the MLA form. You must give credit for thoughts and words of others through footnotes. Published thoughts are legal property. *Note re on-line sources: Use hard copy (as in books) as first resort. All on-line information MUST have an author and organization listed. Hand in all web addresses consulted. Get librarian help. Expensive, RESPECTABLE on-line sources (databases) are available only through our COLLEGE library website, or at the library. Use these, if you do use on-line sources, and not newspaper reviews, or popular magazine articles. Questions?________
When you have written a draft, proofread to see that you used complete sentences (but not run-ons), and that spelling, punctuation and grammar are correct. Have someone else read the draft to check for errors and to give his/her reaction to the content.
Thurs. 11 October;*Final draft is due on Thurs. 29 November.
- - - --- - - - - - -
GRADING: Mid Term = 25%
; Final - 25%; Class Participation and Quizzes = 35%; Paper 15%.
SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY:
1. Ask questions--while reading and in class. Some general ones are these: What is literature? (and what isn't?) What is it good for? How should we tackle a work in order to understand it? Why do we like some works better than others? What should we like?
2. Try to give each work a fair trial before judging it. Look for the positive, even in works you don't like, and expect to learn something from each one.
Include in your paper these 5 components 1. a short plot summary (1-2 pages maximum), 2. a discussion or extended reference to an in-class work, 3. your interpretation of the work or one aspect of the work (cf. Suggestions for Study), 4. a short report on one piece of criticism. If you are unable to find criticism on your chosen work, you may substitute relevant historical or social background, or relevant a report on criticism of another work by the author, with instructor permission. 5. (required!) A list of sources used, with quotations properly attributed. LENGTH: 7-12 pp.
3. Read the first paragraph twice, and also the first page or so, before going on to the rest. When you have read to the end, look at the beginning again to see how the work fits together.
4. Consider different ways of approaching literary texts. Here are some of the most common:
a. The work in and of itself. We look at the work as an object and describe what it is. We look at structure, themes, type or genre, and rhetorical devices.
b. The work and its relationship to the world. These are ways in which literature copies, reproduces, interprets its subject. Here we look at the relationship of the work to its contemporary culture, and consider the audience the author had in mind.
d. The work as an expression
of the author. Here we look at the relationship of the author to his
work. We investigate the author's biography to see how it affected this
particular work.
6. What happens? Do psychological
or spiritual events dominate? social events? Are the events symbolic--do
they suggest other areas or planes of existence than those on (in) which
they take place? Is there change or is the accent on permanence
despite temporary variations?
7. With help from the instructor
and class discussions, ask yourself how the work is put together--what
is its structure? Who tells the story? How much does the narrator
know? (everything?) Can you trust the narrator? Is the author's approach
generally speaking more narrative (told by someone) or dramatic (presented
in scenes so that the characters speak for themselves?) Does any particular
character seem to speak for the author? Is the plot tight or loose,
more or less important than other features, probable? Are the characters
convincing? Are they individualized or types?
8. Together, we will deal with
the question of the theme of the work. Sometimes it will be easy
to put this into a sentence or two. What concerns keep coming back? What
is stated and/or implied about the justice of the state of affairs envisioned
in the work? the desirability? Does the situation at the end differ from
the situation at the beginning? How does style relate to theme?
Sequence for Fall 2001. There
are quizzes every Tuesday, based on study questions I'll give you
and "did-you-read-it" questions. There will be an essay mid-term and a
final. You will write a paper as described above.
Academic Calendar FL 209-51
Tues. 28 Aug FL 209-51 1st day intro, oral lit: myth, tales, fairy tales
Assign: A. Read Grimm Fairy Tales on-line: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~spok/grimmtmp/ Read these tales: 1. "The Three Spinners": http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~spok/grimmtmp/011.txt (=2 pp); 2. Faithful John: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~spok/grimmtmp/005.txt\ ; 3. "The Three Languages": http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~spok/grimmtmp/025.txt;
B. Aesop’ Fables -- Section I -- at this address:
http://classics.mit.edu/Aesop/fab.1.1.html -- Read the 1st 8 (ca. 2 pp):
The Wolf and the Lamb ; The Bat and the Weasels ; The Ass and the Grasshopper
The Lion and the Mouse ; The Charcoal-Burner and the Fuller ; The Father and His Sons ; The Boy Hunting Locusts ; The Cock and the Jewel.
Thurs. 30 Aug. Discuss oral lit, fairy tales, begin Voltaire;
Assign: Voltaire's Candide pp. 1 - 50].
Tues. 4 Sept. Quiz on Voltaire to p. 50] & possibly fairy tales; then discuss Voltaire.
Assign.: Voltaire's Candide pp. 50 - 70].
Thurs. 6 Sept. Discuss Voltaire.
Assign: Voltaire's Candide pp. 70 - 93] (23) = End; Begin Kleist
book Marquise of O. story "Earthquake in Chile" 51-67] (17) "Marquise
of O." 68 - 79]top (11)
Tues 11 Sept. Quiz on Voltaire 50 - 93] & Kleist-2 stories to 79]top.
Assign.: Kleist "Marquise of O. cont. 79]top - 100] (21)
Thurs. 13 Sept.Discuss Kleist.
Assign.: Kleist "Marquise of O. cont. 100 - 113] (14); "Beggarwoman
of Locarno" 214-216] (3); "The Betrothal in Santo Domingo" 231 - 260] bottom
(30);
Tues. 18 Sept. Quiz on Kleist (M of O 79] on + Rest), Balzac & Chekhov, as assigned.
Assign.: "The Betrothal in Santo Domingo" 260 bottom - 269] (10);
"The Foundling" 270 - 279]top; (9)
Thurs. 20 Sept.
Assign.: "The Foundling" 279] top - 286]; (8) -End of Kleist.
Balzac's "Facino Cane" on-line: ftp://ibiblio.org/pub/docs/books/gutenberg/etext99/fcane10.txt; (14pp)
Balzac's "Atheist's Mass" on-line: ftp://ibiblio.org/pub/docs/books/gutenberg/etext98/athms10.txt
(ca.17 pp)
Tues. 25 Sept. Quiz on Chekhov as assigned. Meet in library. Library orientation and outside project selection.
Assign.: Chekhov book: "Black Monk" 1 -20] (20)
Thurs. 27 September
Assign.: Chekhov book: "Black Monk" 20 - 31] (13);"House with a Mezzanine"
30 - 44] (15); ; "Lady with the Toy Dog" 81 - 94] (13) =End of Chekhov;
Begin Maupassant book The Necklace …: Begin "Ball-of-Fat" 1 - 12]
(12);
Tues. 2 October Quiz on Chekhov, as assigned.
Assign: Finish Maupassant's "Ball-of-Fat" 12 - 31] (19);
Thurs. 4 October
Assign.: Maupassant: "Mme Tellier's Establishment," 43 - 63] (21) "The
Horla" 100 - 119] (19); Begin Hesse's Demian, Prologue & ch.
1.
Tues. 9 October Quiz on Maupassant, as assigned.
Assign.: Hesse's Demian, ch. 2(17); Have paper topic chosen
by next time.
Thurs. 11 October. Deadline for choosing paper topic.
Assign.: Hesse's Demian ch's 3 - 5 (51)
Tues. 16 October Quiz on Hesse, as assigned.
Assign.: Study for Mid-Term Exam
Thurs. 18 October Midterm Exam -- Open Book, includes all works up to Duras topics and pages discussed in class.
Assign.: Hesse's Demian ch's 6 - 8 (50) =END of Demian.
Tues. 23 October Quiz on Hesse, ch's 6 - 8.
Assign.: Kafka on-line: A HUNGER ARTIST http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~n9648471/kafka/khungerartist.html Also very short Kafka stories as hand-outs.
(25).
Thurs. 25 October
Assign.: Begin Duras's The Lover pp.3 - 62] (58);
Tues. 30 October Quiz on Kafka, & Duras, as assigned above.
Assign.: Duras's The Lover pp.62 - 89] (27)
Thurs. 1 November
Assign.: Duras's The Lover pp.89 - 117] (27); Robbe-Grillet-short
hand-outs (3); Begin OXFORD Book of Japanese Short Stories: Mori
Ogai, "Sansho the Steward" 1 - 21]
Tues. 6 November Quiz on Duras, as assigned.
Assign.: OXFORD Book of Japanese Short Stories: Finish "Sansho
the Steward" 21 - 27] (7); Satomi Ton, "Blowfish" 74 - 78] (5); Akutagawa
Ryunosake, "In a Grove" 95 - 102] (8) ;
Thurs. 8 November
Assign.: OXFORD Book of Japanese Short Stories:
Miyazawa Kenji, "The Bears of Nomotoko" 103 - 111] (9); , Sakaguchi Ango,"In the Forest, Under the Cherries in Full Bloom" 187-205] = (18); Inoue Yasushi, "Passage to Fudaraku" 206 -223] (18);
Tues. 13 November Quiz on Duras, Robbe-Grillet & assigned Japanese stories.
Assign.: Oxford Book of Japanese Short Stories, Nakajima Atsushi,
"The Expert" 232 - 239] (8) ; "Unzen" 252 - 263] (12).
Thurs.15 November
Assign.: Oxford Book of Japanese Short Stories, "Mr. Carp" 334
- 343]; "Prize Stock" 351 - 390] (50) =End of Japanese Stories
Tues. 20 November *Quiz on the week's assigned Japanese stories.
Assign.: Houseboy pp. 1 - 53] (53)
(Thurs.-Fri. 22-23 November THANKSGIVING RECESS)
Tues. 27 November Quiz on Japanese Short Stories, as assigned.
Assign: Paper due next time;
Thurs. 29 November. Hand in your paper.
Assign.: Houseboy pp. 53 - 102] (50)
Tues 4 December Quiz on Houseboy, as assigned.
Assign.: Finish Houseboy pp. 102 - 122].
Thurs. 6 December LAST REGULAR CLASS. Discuss Oyono; Review.
Tues. 11 December Final Exam, on Demian ch's 6-8; Kafka, Duras, Japanese stories, and Houseboy.