UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO

LITERATURE INTO FILM

HUM 3403.001/ENG 4953.001

MW 4:00-5:15 MB 0.226

FALL SEMESTER 2008

INSTRUCTOR: DR. RALPH MILLIS

OFFICE: MB 2.248J

OFFICE HOURS: TBA

E-MAIL:

TELEPHONE: 698-5113 (H) 10:00 a.m.-5:00 M-F ONLY;

Leave message on the answer machine

COURSE DESCRIPTION: After reading novels and a classic short story and viewing movies based on these works, we will identify the themes at their core. Patriotism; racism and chauvinism; leadership; revenge and justice; friendship; the nature of evil; and romantic, filial, and familial love are just some of the elements of human life we internalize and examine as we live our lives. Most of us confront the business of living not by perusing books of philosophy but by finding our experiences limned in “fun” reading, movies, happy-hour drinks with friends, and other “unimportant” activities. “The unexamined life is not worth living” has always had a whiff of presumptiveness about it, but we’re going to examine stories and movies to discover how they represent the truths and values that animate our lives. They are the 21stcentury manifestations of the fables, the legends, the truths sung by minstrels around warm fires in cold castles that unite us as human beings and give us purpose.

TEXTS:

The Bridge on the River Kwai. Pierre Boulle

Harp of Burma. Michiko Takeyama

Kim. Rudyard Kipling

Shane. Jack Schaefer

The Third Man. Graham Greene

“Tomorrow.” William Faulkner

Women in Love. D. H. Lawrence

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

One essay midterm examination. 225 pts.

One 8-10 page documented research essay. 400 pts.

One essay final examination. 225pts.

In-class participation and presentations. 150 pts.

Additional out-of-class readings, via Internet/library

ATTENDANCE: If you have more than two unexcused absences, I will lower your final grade 5% for each, including the first two. If you must miss class for school activities such as athletics, band, etc., you must bring to me a list, signed by the appropriate faculty or athletic department member, of the dates this absence(s) will occur. Medical emergencies, verified by a doctor’s note are excusable. Regularly scheduled doctor or dentist appointments are not.

LATE ASSIGNMENTS: The research essay is due at the beginning of class on the due date. If you submit it after the beginning of class but by 5:00 p. m. on the due date, it will be penalized 10%. For each academic day it is late after that, a further 10% penalty will be assessed. All other scheduled work that is late or incomplete will be penalized in the appropriate grading area.

PLAGIARISM/ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: Don’t even THINK about committing this. You can receive an “F” for the course if you cheat on or plagiarize an assignment. In addition, other bad things—such as forced sterilization, so that you can’t pass on this loathsome gene to a succeeding generation—can happen. There is NO excuse for submitting work that is not yours. According to the UTSA Handbook of Operating Procedures, here is the definition of:

2.37 Scholastic Dishonesty

Part I, Chapter VI, section 3.22 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System provides the following: Any student who commits an act of scholastic dishonesty is subject to discipline. Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts.

Please familiarize yourself with the materials on scholastic dishonesty in the UTSA Student Code of Conduct.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: The University provides support services, including registration assistance and equipment, to students with documented disabilities through the Office of Disabled Student Services (DSS), MS 2.03.18

SEXUAL HARASSMENT AND OTHER FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION POLICY: It is the policy of this institution that there shall be no unlawful discrimination against any individual in employment or in its programs or activities at the University of Texas at San Antonio because of race, color, religion, sex, age, national or ethnic origin, disability or status as a veteran. The University prohibits sexual harassment of any form in all aspects of employment and in its programs and activities and prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual and racial or ethnic orientation in employment and admissions.

CONDUCT AND OTHER NEAT STUFF:

  1. Teaching this class is my job, my profession. Your job is to be a student, a

good one: if you blow this off, you insult me. And I take insults personally. So, here is a partial recipe for failure:

  1. Don’t read the assignments. Don’t study for the midterm and the final.
  2. Flaunt an “I Don’t Give a Damn” attitude. I especially like students who sleep, yawn and/or apply makeup in class.
  3. Just sit there with a “Thousand Yard Stare” if I call upon you in class.
  4. Talk loudly about the hot guy/gal down front, or whatever, with your neighbor once class has begun.
  1. Class begins at precisely at the posted time. If you arrive after class has

begun, well, enjoy your day off.You are absent and will be counted, and penalized, as such. Seventy-five-minute periods are very short, and any interruptions rob me and your classmates of our time. Don’t even consider entering the classroom and distracting us. Remember, attending class is your job. What happens to you when you are late for your non-university, “real world,” job? Does the boss give you a pass?

  1. No electronic devices in class (exceptions: watches, pacemakers). If your

hidden cell phone goes off, you may answer it—out in the hall after you have exited the classroom in ignominy and been docked 3% of your final grade for interrupting the class and wasting its time. No laptops: they are distractions—work on your penmanship, or calligraphy instead. Ipods or MP3 players bring an automatic death sentence.

  1. No food in the classroom. You can bring in canned drinks, plastic bottles, or

beverages in sports containers. I’ll probably have a Diet Coke in my hand most days.

  1. No baseball or smokeless tobacco hats. If you wear it with the bill to the

front, I can’t make eye contact, especially in a large classroom. If you wear it with the bill to the back you just look goofy, like a Yogi Berra imitator, and that distracts me. Caps belong at tractor pulls, not in the classroom. I’m not impressed with fashion statements, and I’m the one in the classroom you need to impress, not that hot guy/gal you don’t stand a chance with. Ditch the cap and learn the comb-over.

  1. Other Major “Don’ts”:
  2. Suddenly disappear without telling me, only to show up two (or more)

weeks later.

  1. Insult or put down your colleagues (including me, for that matter).
  2. Ask for special treatment, although we all know how special you surely are.
  3. Start stuffing your backpack ten minutes before class ends. That makes me sad, knowing I have failed to hold your interest.
  4. Refuse to ask for help if you have a legitimate reason for doing so. “I don’t understand this, Dr. Millis. Can I see you after class?” is good.

“Dr. Millis, I know I’ve missed the last five class meetings. Can I borrow your class notes?” isn’t.

  1. Inform me that you will be ten minutes late every class meeting

because the professor teaching your class immediately preceding mine always goes over the allotted class time, and that class is on the other side of campus. Solution: Tell that professor you must leave when the clock strikes midnight so you will not lose your glass slipper and be late for my class.

THE UNIVERSITY CATALOG: All regulations regarding academic conduct, responsibilities, and rights, as they appear in the current university catalogue, apply in this course.

GRADING SCALE

100-90 = A

89-80 = B

79-70 = C

69-60 = D

Below 60 = F

Note that “C” means “Average” university work. It means you have performed acceptably; you have met the minimum standard. It does not mean you have failed or that you are a failure as a human being. I understand that many of you must maintain a certain minimum GPA to retain scholarships or other financial aid. To achieve this you should plan on working hard, rather than trying to slow roll me into giving you a grade higher than the one you earned.

SCHEDULE: We will view specific movies in class on the days indicated. You should have read the novel/short story by the first day the movie is shown. On the days where no specific assignment is indicated, we will cover materials/assignments that reflect the current direction of the course.

Aug 27 / Introduction to the course
Sept 3
Sept 8 / The Bridge on the River Kwai
Sept 10 / The Bridge on the River Kwai
Sept 15
Sept 17 / The Harp of Burma
Sept 22 / The Harp of Burma
Sept 24
Sept 29
Oct 1 / Kim
Oct 6 / Kim
Oct 8
Oct 13
Oct 15 / Midterm Examination
Oct 20 / The Third Man
Oct 22 / The Third Man
Oct 27
Oct 29
Nov 3 / Shane
Nov 5 / Shane
Nov 10
Nov 12 / Women in Love
Nov 17 / Women in Love
Nov 19 / Essay due
Nov 24 / Tomorrow
Nov 26 / Tomorrow
Dec 1
Dec 3

Final Examination Dec 12, 1:30-4:00