ENL 102 - Critical Thinking & Writing II



LKamm
Office Hours: I, 352; T, W, R, 9:30 - 11, after class, or by appointment
Email: lkamm
Phone: x8336

Required Texts
Course Goals
Course Requirements & Responsibilities
ENL 102 Syllabus
Essay Evaluation Scale

To Lew Kamm's Welcome page
UMass Dartmouth homepage


If your browser does not support "mailto" the following link will not work. EMail comments to: LKamm@umassd.edu

Comments? Select this!

Required Texts: Abcarian & Klotz, Literature: The Human Experience (Shorter Edition)
Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
(Dictionary & Thesaurus)

Return to Main Menu

Course Goals: This course seeks to reconcile the theoretical, objective analysis of literature and your subjective response to literature by providing you with the necessary instruments of reference--namely, the constituent elements of poetry, fiction, and drama. The course aims to study and determine the quality of literature in its ability to convey faithfully the literary values of form, meaning, and symbolism, and the literary interplay between thought and language. In the process, the course seeks to convey the heightened appreciation of the individual qualities of a literary text: its intellectual, moral, and aesthetic features; its central motif and organic structure; its effectiveness in revealing and comunicating an author's purpose, motivation, imagination, and psychology. Finally, the course seeks to increase your ability to write effective critical and analytical essays about literary works. Return to Main Menu
Course Requirements:
  1. Attendance & Participation: this course is constructed on the premise that becoming a better writer, reader, critic, and thinker requires continuous attention to the process. As a result, I do not tolerate absences or tardiness: more than 2 absences and/or repeated tardiness will result in a significant lowering of your grade. Should you become seriously ill or have an emergency, please let me know as soon as possible and be prepared to provide proof of the situation. In any event, you are expected to come to class fully prepared, having completed the assigned readings and related work, and to submit all assignments on the due dates. I do not accept late work, and I will assign the final grade of I (Incomplete) only in rare and unusual circumstances and only when I am convinced that the student will be able to make up the work within a mutually agreed upon reasonable time frame.

  2. Reading Response Journals: You are required to keep a journal based on your assigned readings. Topics/suggestions are often indicated in questions following some of the readings. However, you are free to respond/write in any way that you feel is appropriate. See pages 934-936 for guidelines. The primary two-fold purpose of the journal is to facilitate your understanding and appreciation of the readings and to make it easier for you to deal with the assigned papers. I will collect the journals three times during the semester for evaluation. The final grade for your journals will be based on the number of pages you have written, assuming that they are responsibly related to the various topics at hand, as well as on the regularity of your entries. In other words, writing 40 pages on week 3, for example, would not suffice or guarantee you a grade of "C" as indicated by the "length parameters" given below; writing 3 or 4 pages on virtually every chapter would be more responsible and guarantee a solid relationship between journal length & journal grades: 50 or more pages=A; 45-49 = B; 40-44 = C; 35 - 39 = D; fewer than 34 = F.

    The journals should either be maintained on a computer word processor and double spaced or handwritten in some kind of sturdy composition book--not a spiral-bound notebook. If you choose to write your journals by hand, they will need to be 30%-40% longer than the typed journals, single-spaced, and easily readable. I will not accept work that I cannot read with ease.

  3. Peer Editing: This course requires each of you to edit other classmates' writings. Each of the papers that a student writes (except for the last one) must include a rough draft, a peer edit, and a final draft. As editor, sign your name on the top of each essay you work on. Note: the job that you do editing counts toward your final course grade, so you should take it seriously and relate your evaluative comments to the various criteria we will be discussing and reading about.

  4. Individual Conferences: Each of you is required to meet with me for a 10-15 minute conference in my office within the first 2 weeks of classes. Be sure to make an appointment with me or through my secretary, Alcina Galego. I will also expect to have a mid-semester conference with each of you (earlier if necessary) to discuss your progress in the course. Here again, you are responsible for making the appointment. Additional individual conferences will be scheduled as needed.

    Grades: BASED ON MY EVALUATION AND CONSIDERATION OF YOUR PAPERS, JOURNAL, ATTENDANCE AND PREPARATION, AND PEER EDITING.

    Writing/Reading Center: The Center (I-220A) is available free of charge to help you with questions, problems, or assignments related to this course. Take advantage of the qualified tutors to help you with your writing and with other class issues that we may raise during individual conferences.

    Plagiarism & Academic Dishonesty: All work submitted must be your own; outside sources should be properly acknowledged. Academic dishonesty includes using the work of another writer or student as your own, copying, allowing a tutor to write part or all of your paper, or allowing someone else to use your work in a similar manner. The penalty for plagiarism is failure in this course. If you are not sure about your work in this regard, please be sure to see me before you submit your work.

    Other Information: In all cases, I encourage you to communicate with me both on a personal level (before and after class and during office hours) as well as electronically through e-mail. Should a problem arise or if you have a disability or emergency medical information that could impact on your ability to complete the assignments, please let me know immediately.

    On average, you should expect to spend approximately 2 to 3 hours preparing each assignment. However, since some assignments are longer than others (or may take some of you longer than others), I encourage you to plan ahead. It is much easier to complete a 3-hour homework & writing assignment over 2 or 3 days than in looking at the assignment for the first time the night before class and hoping to complete it all in one sitting.

Return to Main Menu
SYLLABUS
  1. Introduction

  2. Critical Approaches, 921-33; Arnold, 407; Glossary of Terms, 1018-29 (to be used throughout the semester)

  3. Elements of Poetry, 893-903 and Thomas, 102, Marvell, 529, Frost, 789, Thomas, 801, Reed, 303, Blake, 530

  4. Elements of Poetry, 893-903 and Frost, 97, Donnne, 527, Burns, 531, Eliot, 537, Dickinson, 784.

  5. Elements of Fiction, 885-88; Joyce, 27-32; 888-92.

  6. Elements of Drama, 904-13; Sophocles, 323-54

  7. Explication & Analysis. Organization & Writing, 934-50; Ellison, 258-66, Thomas, 801; 956-61.

  8. Paper 1 Draft: 2-4 page explication on poem, prose, or drama passage of your choice. In class peer-review.

  9. Innocence & Experience Poetry: Blake, Wordsworth, Frost, Smith, Hopkins, Kennedy, Hogan, Peacock, McAlpine, Anderson; Submit Journals

  10. Revision of Paper 1. Innocence & Experience Fiction: Crane, O'Connor, Bambara,

  11. Innocence & Experience Drama: Hwang

  12. Thurs, March 6 -- Paper 2 Draft. 2-4 pages on topic of your choice from p. 205. You are free to substitute works for those that are suggested or to choose a variation of one of the topics on pp. 951-55 as long as you focus on the innocence/experience theme.

  13. Conformity & Rebellion Poetry: Wordsworth, Tennyson, Lowell, Stevens, Auden, Reed, Ferlinghetti, Baker, Lennon/McCartney

  14. Paper 2 Revision. Conformity & Rebellion Fiction: Melville, Thurber, Gordimer, Ellison, Lopez

  15. Conformity & Rebellion Drama: Ibsen

  16. Paper 3 Draft on Conformity & Rebellion, p. 464. See comment from assignment 12.

  17. Love & Hate Poetry: Marlowe, Shakespeare, Donne, Marvell, Blake, Sexton, Plath

  18. Paper 3 Revision. Love & Hate Fiction: Chopin, Faulkner, Moravia, Shaw, Houston.

  19. Love & Hate Drama: Shakespeare. Submit Journals

  20. Paper 4 Draft on Love & Hate, p. 689. See comment from assignment 12.

  21. Death Poetry: Donne, Housman, Owen, Roethke, Davis, Brock, Ginsburg, Fenton

  22. Paper 4 Revision. Death Fiction: Tolstoy, Malamud, Head, Spiegelman

  23. Death Drama: Sartre & Allen

  24. Paper 5 Draft on Theme of Death, p. 883. See comment from assignment 12.

  25. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 1-76

  26. Paper 5 Revision. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 77-146

  27. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 147-229

  28. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 230-303. Submit Journals

  29. Concluding Remarks and Final Expectations

    Due at the beginning time of Final Exam: 5-7 page research paper: Discuss one of the four major themes of this course as it emerges in In the Lake of the Woods. Your paper should include evidence of your having read another work by O'Brien and/or research from the various authors and works indicated in his footnotes in In the Lake of the Woods. Return to Main Menu

    Essay Evaluation Scale

    All essays will be evaluated with regard to intent, content, reasoning, language, neatness, accuracy, effort.

    A The essay demonstrates the balance among purpose, audience and topic necessary for effective communication. The writer achieves this through the manipulation of content--integration of thought and research--tone and voice/persona, unique and controlled thesis/message, form, and logical development. The individual purpose and creative approach sustained throughout the text provides the reader with an intellectual exchange of ideas that goes beyond the confines of the text and assignment. Unified, insightful exposition or argument, well-supported throughout by relevant and concrete detail. Anticipates the audience's response and is immune to counter-example. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflect a consistency with standard usage and structure.

    B The essay communicates one controlling thesis/message to a specific audience. This communication and the writer's purpose are revealed through the writer's manipulation of topic and content, form tone and voice/persona, and integration of materials. Shows little ingenuity in execution and presentation, but does not contain generalizations or unexplored assumptions. The reader sees the writer's perspective and follows the thinking; the writer is aware of the rhetorical relationship between the writer and reader. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflects a consistency with standard usage and structure.

    C The essay reflects the writer's understanding of confinement of topic, one controlling thesis/message, logical purpose, understanding the needs of the audience, consistent tone and voice/persona, appropriate and logical form, develop of content, and integration of materials. The reader leaves this text understanding writer's point-of-view and can follow the logic of the support and development but leaves the text with questions unanswered. Contains unexplored assumptions and generalizations. Generally coherent but undistinguished in diction, structure, and style. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflect a consistency with standard usage and structure.

    D The essay fails to control and/or express ideas in one or more of these ways: confinement of topic, controlling thesis/message, logical purpose, understand the needs of the audience, consistent tone and voice/persona, appropriate and logical form, development of content, and integration of materials. The reader is confused about the writer's point and does not see the relationship between the writer's perspective and the documented support and/or writer's explanation and illustration of it. The grammar, mechanics, and style may not be consistent with standard usage and structure and may interfere with the reader's ability to identify the thesis or comprehend the argument.

    F The essay is totally unacceptable for one of the following reasons: failure to turn in the essay on time, failure to make an effort on the assignment or failure to take the assignment seriously, failure to type and double space the essay, failure to follow the assignment's written guidelines which I handout prior to the rough draft deadline, or any combination of these.

    Return to Main Menu


    If your browser does not support "mailto" the following link will not work. EMail comments to: LKamm@umassd.edu

    Comments? Select this!

    Lew Kamm
    Chancellor Professor of French Literature & Computer Science
    University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
    285 Old Westport Rd.
    N. Dartmouth, MA 02747-2300
    LKamm@umassd.edu

    This HTML document created by: Lew Kamm
    On: May 9, 1997
    Last Revised:
    /logoformalhalf.gif">

    ENL 102 - Critical Thinking & Writing II



    LKamm
    Office Hours: I, 352; T, W, R, 9:30 - 11, after class, or by appointment
    Email: lkamm
    Phone: x8336

    Required Texts
    Course Goals
    Course Requirements & Responsibilities
    ENL 102 Syllabus
    Essay Evaluation Scale

    To Lew Kamm's Welcome page
    UMass Dartmouth homepage


    If your browser does not support "mailto" the following link will not work. EMail comments to: LKamm@umassd.edu

    Comments? Select this!

    Required Texts: Abcarian & Klotz, Literature: The Human Experience (Shorter Edition)
    Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
    (Dictionary & Thesaurus)

    Return to Main Menu

    Course Goals: This course seeks to reconcile the theoretical, objective analysis of literature and your subjective response to literature by providing you with the necessary instruments of reference--namely, the constituent elements of poetry, fiction, and drama. The course aims to study and determine the quality of literature in its ability to convey faithfully the literary values of form, meaning, and symbolism, and the literary interplay between thought and language. In the process, the course seeks to convey the heightened appreciation of the individual qualities of a literary text: its intellectual, moral, and aesthetic features; its central motif and organic structure; its effectiveness in revealing and comunicating an author's purpose, motivation, imagination, and psychology. Finally, the course seeks to increase your ability to write effective critical and analytical essays about literary works. Return to Main Menu
    Course Requirements:
    1. Attendance & Participation: this course is constructed on the premise that becoming a better writer, reader, critic, and thinker requires continuous attention to the process. As a result, I do not tolerate absences or tardiness: more than 2 absences and/or repeated tardiness will result in a significant lowering of your grade. Should you become seriously ill or have an emergency, please let me know as soon as possible and be prepared to provide proof of the situation. In any event, you are expected to come to class fully prepared, having completed the assigned readings and related work, and to submit all assignments on the due dates. I do not accept late work, and I will assign the final grade of I (Incomplete) only in rare and unusual circumstances and only when I am convinced that the student will be able to make up the work within a mutually agreed upon reasonable time frame.

    2. Reading Response Journals: You are required to keep a journal based on your assigned readings. Topics/suggestions are often indicated in questions following some of the readings. However, you are free to respond/write in any way that you feel is appropriate. See pages 934-936 for guidelines. The primary two-fold purpose of the journal is to facilitate your understanding and appreciation of the readings and to make it easier for you to deal with the assigned papers. I will collect the journals three times during the semester for evaluation. The final grade for your journals will be based on the number of pages you have written, assuming that they are responsibly related to the various topics at hand, as well as on the regularity of your entries. In other words, writing 40 pages on week 3, for example, would not suffice or guarantee you a grade of "C" as indicated by the "length parameters" given below; writing 3 or 4 pages on virtually every chapter would be more responsible and guarantee a solid relationship between journal length & journal grades: 50 or more pages=A; 45-49 = B; 40-44 = C; 35 - 39 = D; fewer than 34 = F.

      The journals should either be maintained on a computer word processor and double spaced or handwritten in some kind of sturdy composition book--not a spiral-bound notebook. If you choose to write your journals by hand, they will need to be 30%-40% longer than the typed journals, single-spaced, and easily readable. I will not accept work that I cannot read with ease.

    3. Peer Editing: This course requires each of you to edit other classmates' writings. Each of the papers that a student writes (except for the last one) must include a rough draft, a peer edit, and a final draft. As editor, sign your name on the top of each essay you work on. Note: the job that you do editing counts toward your final course grade, so you should take it seriously and relate your evaluative comments to the various criteria we will be discussing and reading about.

    4. Individual Conferences: Each of you is required to meet with me for a 10-15 minute conference in my office within the first 2 weeks of classes. Be sure to make an appointment with me or through my secretary, Alcina Galego. I will also expect to have a mid-semester conference with each of you (earlier if necessary) to discuss your progress in the course. Here again, you are responsible for making the appointment. Additional individual conferences will be scheduled as needed.

      Grades: BASED ON MY EVALUATION AND CONSIDERATION OF YOUR PAPERS, JOURNAL, ATTENDANCE AND PREPARATION, AND PEER EDITING.

      Writing/Reading Center: The Center (I-220A) is available free of charge to help you with questions, problems, or assignments related to this course. Take advantage of the qualified tutors to help you with your writing and with other class issues that we may raise during individual conferences.

      Plagiarism & Academic Dishonesty: All work submitted must be your own; outside sources should be properly acknowledged. Academic dishonesty includes using the work of another writer or student as your own, copying, allowing a tutor to write part or all of your paper, or allowing someone else to use your work in a similar manner. The penalty for plagiarism is failure in this course. If you are not sure about your work in this regard, please be sure to see me before you submit your work.

      Other Information: In all cases, I encourage you to communicate with me both on a personal level (before and after class and during office hours) as well as electronically through e-mail. Should a problem arise or if you have a disability or emergency medical information that could impact on your ability to complete the assignments, please let me know immediately.

      On average, you should expect to spend approximately 2 to 3 hours preparing each assignment. However, since some assignments are longer than others (or may take some of you longer than others), I encourage you to plan ahead. It is much easier to complete a 3-hour homework & writing assignment over 2 or 3 days than in looking at the assignment for the first time the night before class and hoping to complete it all in one sitting.

    Return to Main Menu
    SYLLABUS
    1. Introduction

    2. Critical Approaches, 921-33; Arnold, 407; Glossary of Terms, 1018-29 (to be used throughout the semester)

    3. Elements of Poetry, 893-903 and Thomas, 102, Marvell, 529, Frost, 789, Thomas, 801, Reed, 303, Blake, 530

    4. Elements of Poetry, 893-903 and Frost, 97, Donnne, 527, Burns, 531, Eliot, 537, Dickinson, 784.

    5. Elements of Fiction, 885-88; Joyce, 27-32; 888-92.

    6. Elements of Drama, 904-13; Sophocles, 323-54

    7. Explication & Analysis. Organization & Writing, 934-50; Ellison, 258-66, Thomas, 801; 956-61.

    8. Paper 1 Draft: 2-4 page explication on poem, prose, or drama passage of your choice. In class peer-review.

    9. Innocence & Experience Poetry: Blake, Wordsworth, Frost, Smith, Hopkins, Kennedy, Hogan, Peacock, McAlpine, Anderson; Submit Journals

    10. Revision of Paper 1. Innocence & Experience Fiction: Crane, O'Connor, Bambara,

    11. Innocence & Experience Drama: Hwang

    12. Thurs, March 6 -- Paper 2 Draft. 2-4 pages on topic of your choice from p. 205. You are free to substitute works for those that are suggested or to choose a variation of one of the topics on pp. 951-55 as long as you focus on the innocence/experience theme.

    13. Conformity & Rebellion Poetry: Wordsworth, Tennyson, Lowell, Stevens, Auden, Reed, Ferlinghetti, Baker, Lennon/McCartney

    14. Paper 2 Revision. Conformity & Rebellion Fiction: Melville, Thurber, Gordimer, Ellison, Lopez

    15. Conformity & Rebellion Drama: Ibsen

    16. Paper 3 Draft on Conformity & Rebellion, p. 464. See comment from assignment 12.

    17. Love & Hate Poetry: Marlowe, Shakespeare, Donne, Marvell, Blake, Sexton, Plath

    18. Paper 3 Revision. Love & Hate Fiction: Chopin, Faulkner, Moravia, Shaw, Houston.

    19. Love & Hate Drama: Shakespeare. Submit Journals

    20. Paper 4 Draft on Love & Hate, p. 689. See comment from assignment 12.

    21. Death Poetry: Donne, Housman, Owen, Roethke, Davis, Brock, Ginsburg, Fenton

    22. Paper 4 Revision. Death Fiction: Tolstoy, Malamud, Head, Spiegelman

    23. Death Drama: Sartre & Allen

    24. Paper 5 Draft on Theme of Death, p. 883. See comment from assignment 12.

    25. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 1-76

    26. Paper 5 Revision. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 77-146

    27. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 147-229

    28. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 230-303. Submit Journals

    29. Concluding Remarks and Final Expectations

      Due at the beginning time of Final Exam: 5-7 page research paper: Discuss one of the four major themes of this course as it emerges in In the Lake of the Woods. Your paper should include evidence of your having read another work by O'Brien and/or research from the various authors and works indicated in his footnotes in In the Lake of the Woods. Return to Main Menu

      Essay Evaluation Scale

      All essays will be evaluated with regard to intent, content, reasoning, language, neatness, accuracy, effort.

      A The essay demonstrates the balance among purpose, audience and topic necessary for effective communication. The writer achieves this through the manipulation of content--integration of thought and research--tone and voice/persona, unique and controlled thesis/message, form, and logical development. The individual purpose and creative approach sustained throughout the text provides the reader with an intellectual exchange of ideas that goes beyond the confines of the text and assignment. Unified, insightful exposition or argument, well-supported throughout by relevant and concrete detail. Anticipates the audience's response and is immune to counter-example. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflect a consistency with standard usage and structure.

      B The essay communicates one controlling thesis/message to a specific audience. This communication and the writer's purpose are revealed through the writer's manipulation of topic and content, form tone and voice/persona, and integration of materials. Shows little ingenuity in execution and presentation, but does not contain generalizations or unexplored assumptions. The reader sees the writer's perspective and follows the thinking; the writer is aware of the rhetorical relationship between the writer and reader. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflects a consistency with standard usage and structure.

      C The essay reflects the writer's understanding of confinement of topic, one controlling thesis/message, logical purpose, understanding the needs of the audience, consistent tone and voice/persona, appropriate and logical form, develop of content, and integration of materials. The reader leaves this text understanding writer's point-of-view and can follow the logic of the support and development but leaves the text with questions unanswered. Contains unexplored assumptions and generalizations. Generally coherent but undistinguished in diction, structure, and style. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflect a consistency with standard usage and structure.

      D The essay fails to control and/or express ideas in one or more of these ways: confinement of topic, controlling thesis/message, logical purpose, understand the needs of the audience, consistent tone and voice/persona, appropriate and logical form, development of content, and integration of materials. The reader is confused about the writer's point and does not see the relationship between the writer's perspective and the documented support and/or writer's explanation and illustration of it. The grammar, mechanics, and style may not be consistent with standard usage and structure and may interfere with the reader's ability to identify the thesis or comprehend the argument.

      F The essay is totally unacceptable for one of the following reasons: failure to turn in the essay on time, failure to make an effort on the assignment or failure to take the assignment seriously, failure to type and double space the essay, failure to follow the assignment's written guidelines which I handout prior to the rough draft deadline, or any combination of these.

      Return to Main Menu


      If your browser does not support "mailto" the following link will not work. EMail comments to: LKamm@umassd.edu

      Comments? Select this!

      Lew Kamm
      Chancellor Professor of French Literature & Computer Science
      University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
      285 Old Westport Rd.
      N. Dartmouth, MA 02747-2300
      LKamm@umassd.edu

      This HTML document created by: Lew Kamm
      On: May 9, 1997
      Last Revised:
      /logoformalhalf.gif">

      ENL 102 - Critical Thinking & Writing II



      LKamm
      Office Hours: I, 352; T, W, R, 9:30 - 11, after class, or by appointment
      Email: lkamm
      Phone: x8336

      Required Texts
      Course Goals
      Course Requirements & Responsibilities
      ENL 102 Syllabus
      Essay Evaluation Scale

      To Lew Kamm's Welcome page
      UMass Dartmouth homepage


      If your browser does not support "mailto" the following link will not work. EMail comments to: LKamm@umassd.edu

      Comments? Select this!

      Required Texts: Abcarian & Klotz, Literature: The Human Experience (Shorter Edition)
      Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
      (Dictionary & Thesaurus)

      Return to Main Menu

      Course Goals: This course seeks to reconcile the theoretical, objective analysis of literature and your subjective response to literature by providing you with the necessary instruments of reference--namely, the constituent elements of poetry, fiction, and drama. The course aims to study and determine the quality of literature in its ability to convey faithfully the literary values of form, meaning, and symbolism, and the literary interplay between thought and language. In the process, the course seeks to convey the heightened appreciation of the individual qualities of a literary text: its intellectual, moral, and aesthetic features; its central motif and organic structure; its effectiveness in revealing and comunicating an author's purpose, motivation, imagination, and psychology. Finally, the course seeks to increase your ability to write effective critical and analytical essays about literary works. Return to Main Menu
      Course Requirements:
      1. Attendance & Participation: this course is constructed on the premise that becoming a better writer, reader, critic, and thinker requires continuous attention to the process. As a result, I do not tolerate absences or tardiness: more than 2 absences and/or repeated tardiness will result in a significant lowering of your grade. Should you become seriously ill or have an emergency, please let me know as soon as possible and be prepared to provide proof of the situation. In any event, you are expected to come to class fully prepared, having completed the assigned readings and related work, and to submit all assignments on the due dates. I do not accept late work, and I will assign the final grade of I (Incomplete) only in rare and unusual circumstances and only when I am convinced that the student will be able to make up the work within a mutually agreed upon reasonable time frame.

      2. Reading Response Journals: You are required to keep a journal based on your assigned readings. Topics/suggestions are often indicated in questions following some of the readings. However, you are free to respond/write in any way that you feel is appropriate. See pages 934-936 for guidelines. The primary two-fold purpose of the journal is to facilitate your understanding and appreciation of the readings and to make it easier for you to deal with the assigned papers. I will collect the journals three times during the semester for evaluation. The final grade for your journals will be based on the number of pages you have written, assuming that they are responsibly related to the various topics at hand, as well as on the regularity of your entries. In other words, writing 40 pages on week 3, for example, would not suffice or guarantee you a grade of "C" as indicated by the "length parameters" given below; writing 3 or 4 pages on virtually every chapter would be more responsible and guarantee a solid relationship between journal length & journal grades: 50 or more pages=A; 45-49 = B; 40-44 = C; 35 - 39 = D; fewer than 34 = F.

        The journals should either be maintained on a computer word processor and double spaced or handwritten in some kind of sturdy composition book--not a spiral-bound notebook. If you choose to write your journals by hand, they will need to be 30%-40% longer than the typed journals, single-spaced, and easily readable. I will not accept work that I cannot read with ease.

      3. Peer Editing: This course requires each of you to edit other classmates' writings. Each of the papers that a student writes (except for the last one) must include a rough draft, a peer edit, and a final draft. As editor, sign your name on the top of each essay you work on. Note: the job that you do editing counts toward your final course grade, so you should take it seriously and relate your evaluative comments to the various criteria we will be discussing and reading about.

      4. Individual Conferences: Each of you is required to meet with me for a 10-15 minute conference in my office within the first 2 weeks of classes. Be sure to make an appointment with me or through my secretary, Alcina Galego. I will also expect to have a mid-semester conference with each of you (earlier if necessary) to discuss your progress in the course. Here again, you are responsible for making the appointment. Additional individual conferences will be scheduled as needed.

        Grades: BASED ON MY EVALUATION AND CONSIDERATION OF YOUR PAPERS, JOURNAL, ATTENDANCE AND PREPARATION, AND PEER EDITING.

        Writing/Reading Center: The Center (I-220A) is available free of charge to help you with questions, problems, or assignments related to this course. Take advantage of the qualified tutors to help you with your writing and with other class issues that we may raise during individual conferences.

        Plagiarism & Academic Dishonesty: All work submitted must be your own; outside sources should be properly acknowledged. Academic dishonesty includes using the work of another writer or student as your own, copying, allowing a tutor to write part or all of your paper, or allowing someone else to use your work in a similar manner. The penalty for plagiarism is failure in this course. If you are not sure about your work in this regard, please be sure to see me before you submit your work.

        Other Information: In all cases, I encourage you to communicate with me both on a personal level (before and after class and during office hours) as well as electronically through e-mail. Should a problem arise or if you have a disability or emergency medical information that could impact on your ability to complete the assignments, please let me know immediately.

        On average, you should expect to spend approximately 2 to 3 hours preparing each assignment. However, since some assignments are longer than others (or may take some of you longer than others), I encourage you to plan ahead. It is much easier to complete a 3-hour homework & writing assignment over 2 or 3 days than in looking at the assignment for the first time the night before class and hoping to complete it all in one sitting.

      Return to Main Menu
      SYLLABUS
      1. Introduction

      2. Critical Approaches, 921-33; Arnold, 407; Glossary of Terms, 1018-29 (to be used throughout the semester)

      3. Elements of Poetry, 893-903 and Thomas, 102, Marvell, 529, Frost, 789, Thomas, 801, Reed, 303, Blake, 530

      4. Elements of Poetry, 893-903 and Frost, 97, Donnne, 527, Burns, 531, Eliot, 537, Dickinson, 784.

      5. Elements of Fiction, 885-88; Joyce, 27-32; 888-92.

      6. Elements of Drama, 904-13; Sophocles, 323-54

      7. Explication & Analysis. Organization & Writing, 934-50; Ellison, 258-66, Thomas, 801; 956-61.

      8. Paper 1 Draft: 2-4 page explication on poem, prose, or drama passage of your choice. In class peer-review.

      9. Innocence & Experience Poetry: Blake, Wordsworth, Frost, Smith, Hopkins, Kennedy, Hogan, Peacock, McAlpine, Anderson; Submit Journals

      10. Revision of Paper 1. Innocence & Experience Fiction: Crane, O'Connor, Bambara,

      11. Innocence & Experience Drama: Hwang

      12. Thurs, March 6 -- Paper 2 Draft. 2-4 pages on topic of your choice from p. 205. You are free to substitute works for those that are suggested or to choose a variation of one of the topics on pp. 951-55 as long as you focus on the innocence/experience theme.

      13. Conformity & Rebellion Poetry: Wordsworth, Tennyson, Lowell, Stevens, Auden, Reed, Ferlinghetti, Baker, Lennon/McCartney

      14. Paper 2 Revision. Conformity & Rebellion Fiction: Melville, Thurber, Gordimer, Ellison, Lopez

      15. Conformity & Rebellion Drama: Ibsen

      16. Paper 3 Draft on Conformity & Rebellion, p. 464. See comment from assignment 12.

      17. Love & Hate Poetry: Marlowe, Shakespeare, Donne, Marvell, Blake, Sexton, Plath

      18. Paper 3 Revision. Love & Hate Fiction: Chopin, Faulkner, Moravia, Shaw, Houston.

      19. Love & Hate Drama: Shakespeare. Submit Journals

      20. Paper 4 Draft on Love & Hate, p. 689. See comment from assignment 12.

      21. Death Poetry: Donne, Housman, Owen, Roethke, Davis, Brock, Ginsburg, Fenton

      22. Paper 4 Revision. Death Fiction: Tolstoy, Malamud, Head, Spiegelman

      23. Death Drama: Sartre & Allen

      24. Paper 5 Draft on Theme of Death, p. 883. See comment from assignment 12.

      25. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 1-76

      26. Paper 5 Revision. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 77-146

      27. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 147-229

      28. In the Lake of the Woods, pp. 230-303. Submit Journals

      29. Concluding Remarks and Final Expectations

        Due at the beginning time of Final Exam: 5-7 page research paper: Discuss one of the four major themes of this course as it emerges in In the Lake of the Woods. Your paper should include evidence of your having read another work by O'Brien and/or research from the various authors and works indicated in his footnotes in In the Lake of the Woods. Return to Main Menu

        Essay Evaluation Scale

        All essays will be evaluated with regard to intent, content, reasoning, language, neatness, accuracy, effort.

        A The essay demonstrates the balance among purpose, audience and topic necessary for effective communication. The writer achieves this through the manipulation of content--integration of thought and research--tone and voice/persona, unique and controlled thesis/message, form, and logical development. The individual purpose and creative approach sustained throughout the text provides the reader with an intellectual exchange of ideas that goes beyond the confines of the text and assignment. Unified, insightful exposition or argument, well-supported throughout by relevant and concrete detail. Anticipates the audience's response and is immune to counter-example. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflect a consistency with standard usage and structure.

        B The essay communicates one controlling thesis/message to a specific audience. This communication and the writer's purpose are revealed through the writer's manipulation of topic and content, form tone and voice/persona, and integration of materials. Shows little ingenuity in execution and presentation, but does not contain generalizations or unexplored assumptions. The reader sees the writer's perspective and follows the thinking; the writer is aware of the rhetorical relationship between the writer and reader. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflects a consistency with standard usage and structure.

        C The essay reflects the writer's understanding of confinement of topic, one controlling thesis/message, logical purpose, understanding the needs of the audience, consistent tone and voice/persona, appropriate and logical form, develop of content, and integration of materials. The reader leaves this text understanding writer's point-of-view and can follow the logic of the support and development but leaves the text with questions unanswered. Contains unexplored assumptions and generalizations. Generally coherent but undistinguished in diction, structure, and style. The grammar, mechanics, and style reflect a consistency with standard usage and structure.

        D The essay fails to control and/or express ideas in one or more of these ways: confinement of topic, controlling thesis/message, logical purpose, understand the needs of the audience, consistent tone and voice/persona, appropriate and logical form, development of content, and integration of materials. The reader is confused about the writer's point and does not see the relationship between the writer's perspective and the documented support and/or writer's explanation and illustration of it. The grammar, mechanics, and style may not be consistent with standard usage and structure and may interfere with the reader's ability to identify the thesis or comprehend the argument.

        F The essay is totally unacceptable for one of the following reasons: failure to turn in the essay on time, failure to make an effort on the assignment or failure to take the assignment seriously, failure to type and double space the essay, failure to follow the assignment's written guidelines which I handout prior to the rough draft deadline, or any combination of these.

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        Lew Kamm
        Chancellor Professor of French Literature & Computer Science
        University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
        285 Old Westport Rd.
        N. Dartmouth, MA 02747-2300
        LKamm@umassd.edu

        This HTML document created by: Lew Kamm
        On: May 9, 1997
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