Carleton University
Fall/Winter 2010-11
Department of English
ENGL 1000E: Genre, Text, Context
[Precludes additional credit for FYSM 1004]
Schedule: M/W 8:35 -9:55 a.m.
Location: Please confirm location on Carleton Central
Instructor: Matt Brillinger
Office: Dunton Tower 1913
Office Hours: Wednesday 10:30-Noon
Phone: (613) 520-2600x2320
email: [email protected]
Description
Why do people write—and read—poems, plays and novels? One approach to answering these
questions involves focusing on what literary works do, both for the individual and for society.
Poems astonish and inspire; plays challenge and criticize; novels educate and amuse. Reading a
range of British and American poems, plays and novels, we will analyze how literary works
shape the reader and society, linking effects to causes as we explore literature’s psychological
and social functions. Studying in turn eight aspects of fiction—form, setting, characterization,
genre, theme, narration, humour and culture—we will begin to understand both what literature
does and how it does it. This is a writing-attentive course (see definition below).
Required Texts
Any edition is acceptable. Books will be available at Octopus Books, 116 3rd Avenue.
J. D. Salinger, Nine Stories
Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums
John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men
Robert Penn Warren (editor), Six Centuries of Great Poetry
Muriel Spark, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Walter Mosley, Little Scarlet
Edith Wharton, The House of Mirth
Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea
Margaret Edson, Wit
Jerzy Kosinski, Being There
Amy Tan, The Joy Luck Club
Schedule
FALL TERM
September 13
September 15
September 20
September 22
September 27
September 29
October 4
October 6
October 11
October 13
October 18
October 20
October 25
October 27
November 1
November 3
November 8
November 10
November 15
November 17
November 22
November 24
November 29
December 1
December 6
Introduction
Form; “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”
Jack Kerouac; The Dharma Bums
The Dharma Bums
The Dharma Bums
Setting; “Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut”
John Steinbeck; Of Mice and Men; Essay #1 due
Of Mice and Men
Statutory Holiday
Essay Writing
Neoclassicist Poetry
Neoclassicist Poetry
Romanticist poetry
Romanticist poetry
Characterization; “Just Before the War with the Eskimos”
Muriel Spark; The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Genre; “The Laughing Man;” Essay #2 due
Walter Mosley; Little Scarlet
Little Scarlet
Little Scarlet
J. D. Salinger and Short Fiction
Review
Movie
WINTER TERM
January 3
January 5
January 10
January 12
January 17
January 19
January 24
January 26
January 31
February 2
February 7
Theme; “Down at the Dinghy”
Edith Wharton; The House of Mirth
The House of Mirth
The House of Mirth
Narration; “For Esmé—with Love and Squalor”
Jean Rhys; Wide Sargasso Sea
Wide Sargasso Sea
Wide Sargasso Sea
Drama; “Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes;” Essay #3 due
Margaret Edson; Wit
Wit
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February 9
February 14
February 16
February 21
February 23
February 28
March 2
March 7
March 9
March 14
March 16
March 21
March 23
March 28
March 30
April 4
Wit
Movie
Essay Writing
Reading Week
Reading Week
Humour; “De Daumier-Smith’s Blue Period”
Jerzy Kosinski; Being There
Being There
Being There
Culture; “Teddy”
Amy Tan; The Joy Luck Club; Essay #4 due
The Joy Luck Club
The Joy Luck Club
Modernism and Postmodernism
Literary Criticism
Review
Terms of Evaluation
Components of Grade: Essay #1 = 10%; Essay #2 = 15%; Essay #3 = 10%; Essay #4 = 15%;
Exam #1 = 20%; Exam #2 = 20%; Attendance/Participation = 10%
Essays
Essay #1 Why does Seymour Glass commit suicide? (1000 words)
Essay #2 Choosing a poem from Robert Penn Warren’s book, identify the poem’s Neoclassicist
and/or Romanticist elements. (1500 words)
Essay #3 Answer one of the following questions (1000 words):
A. Why does Sandy betray Jean Brodie?
B. How does Easy Rawlins explain (i.e. account for) the Watts uprising?
C. Why does Lily Bart never marry?
Essay #4 Choosing one of Salinger’s Nine Stories, discuss three of the story's key elements.
(Form; setting; characterization; genre; theme; narration; dramatic devices; humour; culture.)
(1500 words)
Submitting Essays: Assignments may either be submitted in class or dropped off at the English
Department drop box (18th floor of Dunton Tower). Do not email essays without prior permission.
You are required to keep a backup copy of any work you submit.
Confirmation essay was received: Once I have your essay, I will enter a note in the WebCT
gradebook indicating your essay arrived safely.
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Late Essays: A penalty of 2% is deducted each day an essay is late. Essays finished on Saturday
or Sunday may be submitted by email.
Grade Scale:
Letter
%
A+
90-100
A
85-89
A-
80-84
B+
77-79
B
73-76
B-
70-72
C+
67-69
C
63-66
C-
60-62
D+
57-59
D
53-56
D-
50-52
F
0-49
Exams
Exam #1 Formal Exam at end of Fall Term (three hours)
Exam #2 Formal Exam at end of Winter Term (three hours)
Books on Library Reserve
An Introduction to Fiction
X. J. Kennedy
Studying the Novel
Jeremy Hawthorn
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WHAT IS A “WRITING-ATTENTIVE” COURSE?
Students will write a minimum of two graded writing assignments per term, in which they are
expected to do the following:
develop an argumentative thesis across an essay
develop complex ideas using correct and effective expression according to academic
English practice
use and cite evidence from primary texts appropriately
develop literary skills through close critical analysis of texts from a variety of genres
develop fluency in genre-specific literary terms of analysis
Students will be introduced to issues in secondary research (such as critical evaluation of and
citation of secondary materials).
A portion of class time will be devoted to developing and improving essay writing skills.
Student Services
Students with disabilities requiring academic accommodations in this course must contact a
coordinator at the Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities to complete the
necessary Letters of Accommodation. After registering with the PMC, make an appointment to
meet and discuss your needs with me in order to make the necessary arrangements as early in the
term as possible. Please note the deadline for submitting completed forms to the Paul Menton
Centre is November 15th, 2010 (for fall and fall/winter term courses) / March 11th, 2011 (for
winter term courses).
Other helpful resources include the Writing Tutorial Service (404ML), Student Life Services
(501 Unicentre), and the Student Academic Success Centre (302 Tory).
Plagiarism and Instructional Offenses
Please see the section on “Instructional Offenses” in the Undergraduate Calendar.
The Undergraduate Calendar defines an act of plagiarism as an attempt “to use and pass off as
one’s own idea or product the work of another without expressly giving credit” to the original
author. Any act of plagiarism will be prosecuted to the full extent of the guidelines set our in the
Undergraduate Calendar. Penalties may include expulsion from Carleton University; they will
certainly include expulsion from this course.
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The Undergraduate Calendar specifies that the act of submitting “substantially the same piece of
work to two or more courses without the prior written permission of the instructors from all
courses involved” constitutes an Instructional Offense punishable under the guidelines set out in
the Undergraduate Calendar. Please note: “Minor modifications and amendments, such as
changes of phraseology in an essay or paper, do not constitute a significant and acceptable
reworking of an assignment.” No piece of work written for another course will be accepted for
credit in this course.
For Religious Observance:
Students requesting academic accommodation on the basis of religious observance should make
a formal, written request to their instructors for alternate dates and/or means of satisfying
academic requirements. Such requests should be made during the first two weeks of class, or as
soon as possible after the need for accommodation is known to exist, but no later than two weeks
before the compulsory academic event. Accommodation is to be worked out directly and on an
individual basis between the student and the instructor(s) involved. Instructors will make
accommodations in a way that avoids academic disadvantage to the student.
Students or instructors who have questions or want to confirm accommodation eligibility of a
religious event or practice may refer to the Equity Services website for a list of holy days and
Carleton’s Academic Accommodation policies, or may contact an Equity Services Advisor in the
Equity Services Department for assistance.
For Pregnancy:
Pregnant students requiring academic accommodations are encouraged to contact an Equity
Advisor in Equity Services to complete a letter of accommodation. The student must then make
an appointment to discuss her needs with the instructor at least two weeks prior to the first
academic event in which it is anticipated the accommodation will be required.
General Guidelines
Turn off cell phones upon arrival at class.
Do not arrive late to class. If you arrive late due to unforeseen circumstances, minimize the
disturbance by finding a seat close to the door.
Students are encouraged to make use of the instructor’s office hours.
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