| START Conference Manager |
(Submission #136)
Aims for both English 152 & 152w:
Catalog description: This course is an introduction to the development of American literature from its beginnings to the twenty-first century through a study of selected poetry, drama, fiction, and non-fictional prose.
Through reading, talking about, and writing about a selection of literary texts students will consider how language makes imaginative claims on “America” from the earliest beginnings of colonial North America to the globalized present of the United States. As such, this course offers a window into the development of American literature and culture. Students will grapple with questions such as: What is “American” about American Literature? What qualifies something as particularly “American” (and not, say, more inclusively – a global great work – or more restrictedly – great works of African-American, regional fiction, American women’s literature, etc)? Do canonized works of American literature construct a certain vision of the nation and its cultural histories? Many “great works” students will consider effectively portray distinctively “American” elements while simultaneously critiquing visions of American society and identity. Does this challenge or assist their status as canonized works of American literature? What do these great works of American literature tell us about America? To consider these questions more fully, this course broadly surveys a representative range of texts that have been used to define what it means to be “American” alongside a more diverse body of “great works of American Literature.” By examining a range of writing by women and men from various cultural, ethnic, and political traditions, the aim of this course is to both introduce students to the practices of reading literature as well as to expose them to a sense of the development of what we might call the U.S. experience. In both versions of the class students will read a wide range of works – which may include spiritual autobiographies, travel narratives, slave narratives, poetry, short stories, sermons, political tracts, novels, and essays – to engage in important contemporary debates over slavery, colonialism, changing definitions of race, the emergence of nationalism, and the nature of citizenship.
Additional Aims specific to English 152w:
English 152W offers opportunities to engage the practices, habits, and conventions of college literacies, especially as they often occur in the Humanities. It is a course that emphasizes reading, thinking, speaking, and writing and the interactions among them. Students will practice both how to understand and how to think critically about the ideas and language of others through our reading and through class discussions and how to articulate their own meaningful responses to the ideas and language of others through their writing. Close reading and critical analysis of a wide variety of primary materials of various periods. This course combines the study of literature with continued training in clear and effective written expression.
In the academic year 2009-2010 the English Department would like to offer one section of this course as a jumbo lecture section. We are designing this section as a pilot to see if this version of the course will be a viable pedagogical model for the department and our students. After we have had the opportunity to assess the effectiveness of the lecture course, we may continue to offer one large sized lecture version of English 152 per academic year.
Area of Knowledge and Inquiry: Reading Literature (RL) Context of Experience: United States (US) Extended Requirement: Not Applicable
Credits: 3 Prerequisites: English 110 Existing Course: Existing Existing Course Number: 152 & 152w Course Anticipated to be offered: Every Semester Other (if specified): In the academic year 2009-2010 the English Department would like to offer one section of this course as a jumbo lecture section. We are designing this section as a pilot to see if this version of the course will be a viable pedagogical model for the department and our students. After we have had the opportunity to assess the effectiveness of the lecture course, we may continue to offer one large sized lecture version of English 152 per academic year. Number of Sections: 3 (in Fall 2009 one jumbo course) Number of Seats: 25 in 152w 100 in 152 pilot course
[Justification, Materials, Assessment, Administration (DOC)] [Syllabus/Syllabi (DOC)]
START Conference Manager (V2.56.8 - Rev. 1261)