HUMA 500: Critical Methods in the Humanities
Humanist Practice and Pragmatics: Only Connect
Mondays and Wednesdays 3.40-5.00 pm
MurklandHall G 04
Professor: Georgeann Murphy, Ph.D.
Office: Hood House 217
Office hours: By appointment MW 9.00-3.00 and TR 9.00-4.30
This course is Writing Intensive, and fulfills the requirement both for Inquiry and Discovery in the Humanities. Every class will seek to fulfill the goals of an Inquiry course:
- Inspire curiosity. An Inquiry student will compose open-ended questions that lead to further investigation into increasingly focused problems and issues.
- Develop understanding and perspective-taking. An Inquiry student will explain a central issue or question of the course using at least two unique perspectives.
- Clarify standards of thinking.An Inquiry student will be able to identify, compare, and evaluate different interpretations (hypotheses, explanations) of a given phenomenon.
- Create effective communicators.An Inquiry student will present in clearly organized form the results of the investigation into questions or problems they have posed.
More specifically, this course will
- Provide a practical introduction to several disciplines within the humanities--art and architectural history, drama, history, literature, and philosophy--emphasizing analysis and critical thinking specific to each discipline.
- Introduce both canonical and contemporary “texts” (including painting, architecture, and live theatre as texts that can be “read”) as topics for analytical discussion and writing.
- Articulate the relationship of studentsto humanities, to their special disciplines, and to their post-baccalaureate lives.
- Provide ample practice in every aspect of critical writing, from mechanics to diction to style to rhetorical strategies via the examination of primary and secondary sources.
- Address on-going themes: identity, education, and the uses of humanities.
Required Texts to be Purchased (all available at the Durham Book Exchange):
The Oresteia, Aeschylus, Rbt. Fagles translation, Penguin, 978-0140443332, paperback
The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare, ed. Bevington, Bantam, 0-553-21306-7, paperback (other editions acceptable with permission from the instructor)
Pride and Prejudice, Austen, FOURTH Norton Critical Edition, 978-0-393-26488-3, paperback
Suggested Texts:
Students should either purchase or have access to the MLA Handbook, 8th edition.
Grading:
20%average of 10 weekly writing assignments
20%art analysis essay
20%comparative play analysis
20%attendance and quality of class participation—attendance is required at all classes and at a performance of A Man’s World, playing 2-6 November
20%final project (25% research proposal; 25% presentation; 50% paper)
Requirements
- Ten weekly writing assignments(20%; 2% each).Brief assignments made in class and due on most Wednesdays. You will hand them in via two routes: you will bring a hard copy to class, and you will email me another copy. I need an electronic version so that I can print out the paper, or parts of the paper, for the whole class to discuss. Whatever gets shared with the class will be anonymous. We will spend part of Monday’s classes editing, reviewing, and discussing aspects of these papers.
- Art analysis essay, due 19 October (20%)
- Research Proposal (25% of final research project grade, which counts 20% of the total course grade) dueNovember 2. This proposal should statethe topic of your paper, your research questions, your hypothesis, and provide a preliminary bibliography; detailed instructions to follow.
- Comparative play analysis, due 28 November(20%)
- Final Paper due 7 December(50% of final research project grade, which counts 20% of the total course grade)
- In-class research presentation, on 17 December (25% of final research project grade, which counts 20% of the total course grade)
- Class preparation and participation (20%). You must come to class having read the material and having thought about it. Bring any questions you have, both answerable and not. You are responsible for looking up the definitions of any unfamiliar words or terms from the readings in a dictionary. You must bring a copy or print-out of the text for the day with you to class. You may not use computers in class.
Policies
Plagiarism
The University of New Hampshire defines plagiarism as:
The unattributed use of the ideas, evidence, or words of another person, or the conveying of the false impression that the arguments and writing in a paper are the student's own. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to the following: 1.The acquisition by purchase or otherwise of a part or the whole of a piece of work which is represented as the student's own; 2.The representation of the ideas, data, or writing of another person as the student's own work, even though some wording, methods of citation, or arrangement of evidence, ideas, or arguments have been altered; 3.Concealment of the true sources of information, ideas, or argument in any piece of work.
Plagiarizing in this class will result in failure and will be reported to the Dean of your home college.
You may, and are encouraged to, study with fellow classmates, but all written materials must be your own work. For further information, see the link below and consult with the instructor. We will discuss plagiarism in one of the class sections.
Documented Disabilities
The University is committed to providing students with documented disabilities equal access to all university programs and facilities. If you have a disability requiring accommodations, you must register with Disability Services for Students (DSS). Contact DSS at (603) 862-2607 . If you have received an Accommodation Letter for this course from DSS, please provide it to me privately so that I can review those accommodations with you.
Emotional or Mental Health Distress
Your academic success in this course is very important to me. If, during the semester, you find emotional or mental health issues are affecting that success, please contact the University’s Counseling Center (Smith Hall, 3rd floor; 603-862-2090), which provides counseling appointments and other mental health services.
Classroom Behavior Expectations
To ensure a climate of learning for all, disruptive or inappropriate behavior (walking in and out of class, disrespect for the ideas of others, etc.) may result in exclusion from the class. Cell phones and other electronic devices may not be used during class.
Course Schedule
Why are you here?M 29 Aug class introduction; get assignment 1
W 31 Edmundson (on line); submit assignment 1; get assignment 2
M 05 SeptLABOR DAY
History and DramaW 07 Oresteia, Agamemnon; submit assignment 2; get assignment 3
M 12 “ The Libation Bearers
W 14 “ TheEumendides; submit assignment 3;get assignment 4
M 19 On the Media (on line)
FriendingW 21 Aristotle (on line); submit assignment 4; get assignment 5
M 26 “ (on line); Museum collection up as of this date
W 28 “ (on line); submit assignment 5; get assignment 6
ArtM 03 Oct Museum Visit / painting exercise with Sara Zela
Interpreting art (on line)
W 05 How to look at a painting (on line); submit assignment 6; get assignment 7
M 10 Oct(TBD); get art paper assignment
ArchitectureW 12 architecture (TBD); submit assignment 7; get assignment 8
M 17 “ / MIDTERM
PoetryW 19 poetry (on line)/ art analysis due;
get research proposal & paper assignment
M 24 poetry (on line)
DeathW 26 Everyman (on line); submit assignment 8; get assignment 9
M 31 “ “ ; book A Man’s World, 2-6 November;Raina Ames
Visit
Gender RolesW 02 Nov AMan’s World (on line); PCAC theater tour;research proposals due
M 07 “ “ “ “ “
W 09 “ “ “ “ “ submit assignment 9; get assignment 10
M 14The Taming of the Shrew, act 1; get plays essay assignment
W 16 “ “ “ “ “ acts 2-3; submit assignment 10
M 21 “ “ “ “ “ acts 4-5
W 23 NovNO CLASS: Thanksgiving Break
M 28Pride and Prejudice, vol. 1; plays essay due
W 30 “ “ “ , vol. 2
M 05 Dec “ “ “ , vol. 3
Why you were hereW 07 Coetzee essay (on line); Bostic essay (on line); final research papers due
Saturday 17 Dec, 1.00-3.00 pm: Research presentations
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