Lake-Sumter State College Course Syllabus
Course Information:
Course Prefix/Number: AML 2020
Course Title: American Literature from 1865 to Present
CRN: 30145
Credit Hours: 3
Semester: Summer A
Class Days, Location, Time: Online
Course Description: This course examines literature of the United States written from 1865 to the
present. Readings will be drawn from a mixture of canonical and marginal figures, and will include a
mixture of essays, fiction, and poetry as well as longer works. The emphasis in the course will be on texts
and contexts; that is, on the works we read and on the cultural, historical, economic, and political
contexts in which those works were produced and disseminated. The course includes literary analysis,
written exposition, and interpretation.
Instructor Information:
Name: Matt Kennedy
E-Mail: [email protected]
Office Location: 2-233 South Lake
Phone: 352-536-2244
Office Hours:
Mon: 11:00-2:00 (Online)
Vital Communication Information:
For e-mail, please note that all students are required to use Lakehawk Mail for official college e-mail
communications. See the college webpage for instructions on activating Lakehawk Mail
(http://www.lssc.edu/lakehawk/Pages/default.aspx).
Sending a private message using the MESSAGES tool in Blackboard is always the most secure method of
contacting your Instructor.
Please remember that any phone contact with your Instructor should be of a professional nature.
Please always leave a clear, concise, but detailed message with your contact and class information.
Always follow up a phone call with a written account via BB Message or e-mail.
Prerequisites/Co-requisites:
Prerequisites: C or higher in ENC 1102 or ENC 2210 or ENC 2300
Co-requisites: None
Textbook & Other Course Materials:
Baym, Nina. Ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature-Volumes C, D and E. Eighth edition. New
York: W.W. Norton, 2012.
Technology Requirements:
Blackboard is a required component of this course. Students unfamiliar with Blackboard are expected to
complete the Blackboard Orientation from LSSC’s website (http://lssc.edu/dl/Pages/default.aspx) within
the first week of classes.
Major writing assignments need to be created and saved in a file format that is compatible with
Microsoft Word. If using a word processing program other than Word, it is the student’s responsibility
to adhere to all formatting and submission requirements. Please ask for help if you are unsure how to
save a file in a Word-compatible format.
Please see the LSSC Lakehawk Page for information on how to obtain Microsoft Office 365 as an LSSC
Student (http://www.lssc.edu/lakehawk/Pages/default.aspx).
Student Learning Outcomes:
The following outcomes will be assessed in this course. An “outcome” is defined as something students
take with them beyond this course. After successful completion of this course, the student will:
Outcomes: Demonstrate analytical thinking skills with the ability to conduct close readings and to
interpret and analyze passages of literature.
Competencies: Read about and identify intercultural experiences in essays and literature, learning from
and synthesizing the information.
Apply basic principles of critical analysis in the development of a coherent and unified argument.
Outcomes: Demonstrate the ability to select appropriate academic sources of literary criticism and to
incorporate literary theory into critical analysis essays based on literature employing an accepted
academic documentation system.
Competencies: Write formal research paper(s) utilizing proper MLA Style for format & documentation
and utilize academically accepted resources in the creation of research project(s).
Outcomes: Write an essay that uses critical analysis and interpretation which illustrates college-level
language and communication skills.
Competencies: Write & edit essays that are free of surface issues, including grammar, spelling, &
punctuation issues. Write & edit essays that employ accepted Standard English, use appropriate
connotation/denotation, adopt an academic level of formality, and avoid clichés, jargon, slang,
doublespeak, etc.
Outcomes: Identify and discuss, major periods, authors, themes and works in literature.
Competencies: Understand and apply critical reading skills in responding to and critically analyzing
written text.
Utilize appropriate modes of rhetorical development, i.e. analysis and argument and apply literary theory
in written assignments.
Outcomes: Recognize the importance of planning and creating projects in a timely manner to meet both a
list of criteria and a deadline.
Competencies: Use the writing process to follow through a major research project: choosing an
appropriate topic, formulating a valid thesis, outlining a project, gathering resources, producing the
paper/project, revising it thoroughly, & proofreading it effectively.
Course Objectives:
Objectives are defined as what the course will do and/or what the students will do as part of the course.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
To examine the historical, political, cultural, and personal contexts surrounding a writer’s works
and manifested within those works.
To examine the characteristics of the genres of realism, modernism, and postmodernism and to
explore several works within this context.
To develop an awareness of the complex interplay among divergent voices in the nation’s literature,
discovering relationships among the nation’s literary past and present.
To recognize and understand literary conventions and themes within these works and to become
better readers of literature.
To continue to develop skills in analysis, interpretation, and comparison of text and authors’ work.
To think critically about the literature using several frameworks and to articulate responses,
interpretations, and arguments in writing.
To increase knowledge of and practice with research techniques and the use of MLA
documentation.
Institutional Policies & Procedures:
Academic Integrity:
The successful functioning of the academic community demands honesty, which is the basis of respect
for both ideas and persons. In the academic community, there is an ongoing assumption of academic
integrity at all levels. There is the expectation that work will be independently thoughtful and
responsible as to its sources of information and inspiration. Honesty is an appropriate consideration in
other ways as well, including but not limited to the responsible use of library resources, responsible
conduct in examinations, and the responsible use of the Internet. (See college catalog for complete
statement. http://www.lssc.edu/students/Pages/Current/CourseCatalog.aspx)
Important Information for Students with Disabilities:
Any student with a documented disability who requires assistance or academic accommodations should
contact the Office for Students with Disabilities immediately to discuss eligibility. The Office for Students
with Disabilities (OSD) is located on the Leesburg Campus, but arrangements can be made to meet with
a student on any campus. An appointment can be made by calling 352-365-3589 and specific
information about the OSD and potential services can be found at www.lssc.edu, then go to “Quick
Links” and click on Disability Services.
(http://www.lssc.edu/academics/disabilityservices/Pages/Default.aspx)
Privacy Policy (FERPA):
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part99) is a Federal law
that protects the privacy of a student’s education records. In order for your information to be released,
a form must be signed and in your records located in the Admissions/Registrar’s Office.
Zero-Tolerance for Violence Statement:
Lake-Sumter State College has a policy of zero tolerance for violence as stated in College Board Rule
2.17. Appropriate disciplinary action will be taken in accordance with Board Rule 2.17.
Attendance/Withdrawal Policies:
Institutional Information:
Once the Add/Drop period passes, students deciding to discontinue class attendance and/or online
participation have the responsibility for formal withdrawal by the withdrawal deadline.
Withdrawal Deadline:
6/8
Instructor Policies:
Blackboard Email is the quickest way to receive help. You can email your instructor at any time at
[email protected]. I will check once a day (Mondays-Fridays). Messages sent in the afternoon will be
answered the next business day.
Please do not send messages through Lake Hawk mail. Blackboard Mail is the only system that is not
public record, so I can’t discuss class issues on any other format.
Plagiarism will result in complete and total failure of this course. Please follow all rules of academic
honesty. Give credit where credit is due, and ask your instructor if you need help understanding what
plagiarism is.
Late Work/Extensions:
Late work is not accepted in this course. Please pay attention to due dates and plan accordingly.
Classroom Etiquette:
Follow all rules of etiquette. Treat your instructor and classmates with kindness and respect. Believe the
best of everyone until you have reason to believe otherwise, and even then, treat your instructor and
classmates with kindness and respect.
Grading Information:
Grading Scale:
A 90-100%
B 80-89%
C 70-79%
D 60-69%
F 59% and below
Methods of Evaluation:
Each project will be graded electronically using a rubric provided when the assignment is given. Your
work will be judged against accepted academic standards for writing and documentation.
Assignment Overview & Grade Breakdown:
Category
Description
Points or %
AML 2020 Essay
This literary analysis essay explores the themes of a
major work of American Fiction.
300
Author Power Point
Present information about an important American author.
100
Dramatic Character
PowerPoint and Oral
Presentation
This is an analysis of the characters and themes of a
major work of American Drama. Includes an oral
presentation.
150
Category
Description
Points or %
Class Participation,
Discussions,
Quizzes,
Students will complete discussions and quizzes on
Blackboard, based on the assigned reading. Students will
also complete the Drama Analysis worksheet.
350
Final Exam
To be completed on Blackboard
100
TOTAL: 1,000
Total Points
Course Calendar: Subject to change at the instructor’s discretion.
Unit
Begins
Ends
Objectives & Reading Assignments
Items Due
Intro
Unit
5/8
5/10
Read Course Syllabus & Policies
DUE 5/10: Complete
Introduction Discussion
Complete Introduction Discussion
Select an Author for your Author PowerPoint
Presentation. Choose any author from the book
and create a thread with the author’s name in
“Discussions/ Author Selection Forum”
Norton Volume C
Introduction: The Transformation of a Nation (316)
Select a novel to read for the AML 2020 Essay.
The Awakening (561-652) by Kate Chopin
Or
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (130-309)
by Mark Twain
Unit 1
5/11
5/21
Work on Author PowerPoints for your selected
author.
DUE 5/21: Author
PowerPoints Due
Read the following in Norton Volume C:
DUE 5/21: Complete Unit
1 Assignments and Quiz
Kate Chopin: Biography (550-551)
Dèsirèe’s Baby (551-555)
The Story of an Hour (555-557)
Mark Twain: Biography (118-121)
The War Prayer (334-336)
Walt Whitman Biography (20-23)
When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d (7985)
Emily Dickinson Biography (89-93)
Poems (93-109)
Unit
Begins
Ends
Objectives & Reading Assignments
Unit 2
5/22
5/28
From Norton Volume C:
Items Due
Ambrose Bierce: Biography (398)
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (399-405)
DUE 5/28: Complete Unit
2 Assignments and
Quizzes
Sarah Orne Jewett: Biography (525-526)
A White Heron (526-533)
Work on Fiction Essay
Edith Wharton: Biography (813-814)
Roman Fever (828-836)
Jack London: Biography (1042-1043)
To Build a Fire (1047-1058)
Booker T. Washington: Biography (673-675)
From Up from Slavery (675-697)
W.E.B Du Bois: Biography (883-885)
From The Souls of Black Folk (885-901)
Work on Fiction Essay
Unit 3
5/29
6/4
Norton Volume D
Introduction: The Two Wars as Historical
Markers (3-20)
Zora Neale Hurston: Biography (528-530)
The Gilded Six Bits (541-549)
Edwin Arlington Robinson: Biography (40)
Poems (41-44)
Robert Frost: Biography (230-231)
Poems (231-250)
H.D. (Hilda Doolittle): Biography (350-351)
Poems (352-357)
T.S. Eliot: Biography (365-367)
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (368-371)
The Hollow Men (391-394)
Langston Hughes: Biography (869-871)
Poems (871-880)
Edna St. Vincent Millay: Biography (633)
Poems (633-636)
Countee Cullen: Biography (892-893)
Poems (893-897)
Work on Fiction Essay
DUE 6/4: Complete Unit 3
Discussion and Responses
DUE 6/4: Fiction Essay
Due
Unit
Begins
Ends
Objectives & Reading Assignments
Unit 4
6/5
6/11
Norton Volume E
Introduction: The United States and World
Power (3-15)
Items Due
Due 6/12: Submit Drama
Analysis Worksheet
Tennessee Williams: Biography (90-93)
Arthur Miller: Biography (236-238)
August Wilson: Biography (927-928)
Work on Character
PowerPoint and Oral
Presentation
Choose ONE of these plays to read:
A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee
Williams (93-155)
Or
Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller (238-303)
Or
Fences by August Wilson (929-975)
Work on Drama Analysis Worksheet,
Character PowerPoint, and Oral Presentation
Unit 5
6/12
6/18
From Norton Volume E:
Theodore Roethke: Biography (37-38)
Poems (38-50)
Gwendolyn Brooks: Biography (322-323)
Poems (323-333)
Sylvia Plath: Biography (623-624)
Poems (625-635)
Billy Collins: Biography (829-830)
Poems (830-837)
Kurt Vonnegut: Biography (372-374)
From Slaughterhouse Five (375-385)
Raymond Carver: Biography (736-737)
Cathedral (737-747)
Alice Walker Biography (920-921)
Everyday Use (921-927)
Work on Character PowerPoint and Oral
Presentation
DUE 6/18: Complete Unit
5 Discussion and quiz
DUE 6/18: Character
PowerPoint and Oral
Presentation
Unit
Begins
Ends
Objectives & Reading Assignments
Unit 6
6/19
6/20
Review for the final Exam.
Finals
6/21
6/22
Final Exam open from 6/21 –6/22
Items Due
Final Exam Due: 6/22
Syllabus Disclaimer:
Information contained in this syllabus is, to the best knowledge of this instructor, considered correct and
complete when distributed to the student. The instructor reserves the right, acting within policies and
procedures of Lake-Sumter State College, to make necessary changes in course content or instructional
techniques without prior notice or obligation to the student.