MWF 9:40-10:30 (#72597) and 10:40-11:30 (#59065) in LL 114
Dr. Obermeier v Critical Reading and Writing about Literature
Office Hours: MWF 11:40-12:30, T 5:15-5:45, and by appointment in LL 214A
( and voice mail: 480.965.7736
Email: Anita.Obermeier@asu.edu
Website: http://www.public.asu.edu/~agaah/
Mailbox on office door and in Main English Department Office on 5th Floor
Required Texts
Beaty and Hunter, eds. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 7th ed. Long Version.
Barry, Peter. Beginning Theory. Manchester UP, 1995.
English Department Guide to Style. Newest Edition. MU Copy Center.
Fussell, Paul. Poetic Meter and Poetic Form. McGraw-Hill. 1979.
Harmon, William and C. Hugh Holman. A Handbook to Literature. 8th ed. 1999.
Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Ed. Frances E. Dolan. Bedford, 1996.
Twain, Mark. A Connecticut Yankee at King Arthur’s Court. Penguin, 1986.
Reserve file in Hayden Library.
Recommended Texts
See the English Department Guide to Style for additional reading suggestions English majors should be familiar with.
Course Requirements
3 3-page papers worth 10% each
1 In-class final worth 10%
1 5-page paper worth 20%
1 6-page paper worth 25%
Class Participation worth 15%
Tentative Syllabus
Unless otherwise indicated, all pages numbers refer to the Norton Introduction to Literature
| M 8.21 | Introduction to the Course. |
| W 8.23 | Reading Literature: Norton Introduction to Literature (A5-A29). Reading Exercise: Mark anything in Maupassant's "The Jewelry" (14-20) that you think imparts meaning. |
| F 8.25 | Critical Approaches to Literature: Barry, Chapter 1; Introduction to the Short Story: Faulkner, "A Rose for Emily" (502-509). |
| M 8.28 |
O’Connor, "Passages from Essays and Letters" (408-414); "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" (359-371); "The Lame Shall Enter First" (372-397). |
| W 8.30 | Writing about Literature: Norton Introduction to Literature (A31-55). Read English Department Guide to Style. Discuss Paper # 1. |
| F 9.1 | Mansfield, "Her First Ball" (214-18); Munro, "Boys and Girls" (422-32); Kincaid, "Girl" (449-50). |
| M 9.4 |
Labor Day. Class Excused. |
| W 9.6 | Kafka, "A Hunger Artist" (196-202); Marquez, "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" (440-45); Lawrence, "The Rocking Horse Winner" (343-53). |
| F 9.8 | Chopin, "Story of an Hour" (438-40); Gilman, "The Yellow Wallpaper" (630-42); Joyce, "Counterparts" (218-26). |
| M 9.11 |
Paper # 1 due. Introduction to Poetry: Coleridge, "Metrical Feet" (973); Fussell, Chapters 1- 2. |
| W 9.13 | Fussell, Chapter 3; Scansion Homework: Keats, "On First Looking" (1067). |
| F 9.15 | First Paper Evaluation: Bring Guide to Style. Unrestricted Withdrawal Deadline |
| M 9.18 |
Scansion Exercise continued; Fussell, Chapter 7. |
| W 9.20 | The Sonnet: Fussell, Chapter 7 continued; Constable, "My Lady’s Presence" (1019); Sidney, "When Nature" (1030); Shakespeare, "My Mistress’ Eyes" (1030). |
| F 9.22 | The Sonnet continued; Fussell, Chapter 8. |
| M 9.25 |
Discuss Paper # 2. Fussell, Chapters 4, 9. |
| W 9.27 | The Dramatic Monologue: Donne "The Flea" (874); Marvell, "To His Coy Mistress" (884); DeVries, "To His Importunate Mistress" (1131). |
| F 9.29 | Sentence Structure Exercises. |
| M 10.2 |
Paper # 2 due. Sentence Structure Exercises. |
| W 10.4 | Sentence Structure Exercises. Barry, Chapter 6. |
| F 10.6 | Women’s Voices I: Bradstreet "To My Dear and Loving Husband" (810); Millay "I, being born woman" (1190); Dove, "Daystar" (875). Fussell, Chapter 5. |
| M 10.9 |
Women’s Voices II: Smith, "Annunciation" (1180); Angelou, "Africa" (1144); Rosenberg, "The Silence of Women" (1182). |
| W 10.11 | Mythology in Poetry: Tennyson, "Ulysses" (1139); Waddington, "Ulysses Embroidered" (1141); Millay, "An Ancient Gesture" (1142); Heaney, "The Tollund Man" (Handout). |
| F 10.13 | Biblical Mythology in Poetry: Hollander, "Adam’s Task" (1136); Donnelly "Eve Names the Animals" (1136); Rossetti, "Eve" (1137); Wright, "Saint Judas" (Handout). |
| M 10.16 |
Discuss Paper # 3. |
| W 10.18 | Student Poetry Selection Day; see Course Policies. |
| F 10.20 | Barry, Chapters 4-5. |
| 10.23-31 | Preregistration for Spring 2001. Note that the administration determines the cancellation of underenrolled courses at the end of preregistration. If you want a course you need to "make," you should preregister for it. |
| M 10.23 |
Paper # 3 due. Introduction to the Novel. Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Intro-Chapter 1 (not in Norton). |
| W 10.25 | Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Chapters 2-8. |
| F 10.27 | Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Chapters 9-16. Restricted Course Withdrawal Deadline. |
| M 10.30 |
Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Chapters 17-25. |
| W 11.1 | Discuss Paper # 4. Barry, Chapter 8. |
| F 11.3 |
Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Chapters 26-33. |
| M 11.6 | Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Chapters 34-40. |
| W 11.8 | Twain, A Connecticut Yankee, Chapters 41-end. |
| F 11.10 | Veterans Day. Class Excused. |
| M 11.13 |
Introduction to the Drama: Norton Introduction to Literature (1353-61). Shakespeare, Taming of the Shrew, Act 1 (not in Norton); Barry, Chapter 7. |
| W 11.15 |
Paper # 4 due. Discussion of Research Methods for Paper # 5. |
| F 11.17 | Shakespeare, Taming of the Shrew, Act 2. |
| M 11.20 |
Shakespeare, Taming of the Shrew, Act 3. |
| W 11.22 | Shakespeare, Taming of the Shrew, Act 4. |
| F 11.24 | Thanksgiving Break. |
| M 11.27 | Shakespeare, Taming of the Shrew, Act 5. |
| W 11.29 |
Hellman, The Little Foxes, Act 1 and 2. |
| F 12.1 | Hellman, The Little Foxes, Act 3. |
| M 12.4 | Paper # 5 due. Barry, Chapters 9-10. Final Exam Prep. |
| M 12.11 | Final Exam at 7:40-9:30 for 9:40 section. Final Exam at 12:20-2:10 for 10:40 section. |
Course Objective
This course is the first “professional” course for the English major; it is both a methods and skills course. The class intends to introduce the student to the profession of literary study, its terminology, methods, history, and modes of interpretation. Thus the aim of the course is to develop the student’s ability to understand and explain to someone else how words convey meaning in literary texts.
It is imperative that you obtain all the required texts of the course and bring the appropriate texts to class. Classes will be conducted mostly by discussion of the texts, with brief lectures where necessary. You will be expected to prepare for class by reading and thinking about the assigned material; if you do not have the text with you, you will be lost and bored stiff during the discussion. Most importantly, you are NOT LIKELY TO PASS THE COURSE.
Course Policies
1. All Papers must conform to the presentational guidelines set forth in the English Department Guide to Style or the MLA. Each paper should represent your best effort and will be graded accordingly. Please note that I encourage you to discuss topics, outlines, and rough drafts with me during my office hours. You will be given a separate instruction sheet for each assignment.
2. Papers have to be submitted on time. Please note that I will accept one late paper during the semester. On the day that paper is due, you should submit a note explaining that you are exercising your late paper option. The paper must then be submitted no later than one week after the original due date. Papers # 1 and # 5 may not be submitted late.
3. Readings: you are responsible for all the introductions and definitions in your texts, especially in the Norton Introduction to Literature. All readings are to be finished before class on the day indicated. Since you do not have an excessive amount of reading to do in this course, I expect you to read the poetry at least twice.
4. Reading Journal: I encourage you to keep a reading journals, jotting down informal responses and questions as you prepare the texts for class.
5. Attendance is mandatory. Since your progress in the course will depend a great deal on what we discuss in class, I expect class attendance and participation. I will pass out attendance sheets, and it is your responsibility to sign the sheets. So if the sheet missed you, come up to the desk and sign at the end of class. Your participation grade will be affected after 5 unexcused absences (from a B+ to a B for one additional absence, etc.). An excused absence is a doctor’s note, letter from an employer, etc. If you have an emergency situation, you can leave a message on my voice mail or email. Note: While you are welcome to check with me on what you have missed, I do not "reteach" class periods you missed during my office hours or over email. Please consult with your fellow students for notes.
6. Assignments: Students must attempt all assignments to pass the course. This means that you cannot simply skip an assignment because you are happy with your grade at the time; hence, you cannot, for instance, skip the final.
7. Student Selection Day:
Procedure: In your usual group setup (three to four students per group), select a poem that is not on the syllabus and that you would like to discuss. Then tell me on what page we can find it. If the poem is not in our Norton Introduction to Literature, give me a copy 2 class periods before and I will have it copied. The students in each group should meet before the student selection date and discuss what they are going to say about the poem (structure, diction, figurative language, overall interpretation, etc.).
Presentation: Each group presents the poem to the class, which will be done in an informal atmosphere. The group should ask the class questions, as I usually do. Also, each member of a group has to participate, and everyone in class has to read all the poems. Please note that this is not a graded assignment--although it counts towards your participation grade--but a chance for you to get a word in edgewise and to show me that you can work independently.
8. Pertinent Web Sites: My own website will be under construction all semester. I will keep you apprised as to the availability of materials from the website. The English Department website address is http://www.asu.edu/clas/english. One of the pages I recommend to check is the page about career paths for English majors.
9. Plagiarism: Don’t do it! For clarification, see statements #4-9 in English Department Guide to Style.