MacLean 12
Uconn ECE: English 1011- Seminar in Writing through Literature
Robert E. Fitch High School
2015-2016
Instructor: Ms. Alyssa MacLean Room: 2212
Email:
Office Hours: I am always available most days; please make an appt.
Course Overview:
This college level English course approved by the University of Connecticut provides students with an opportunity to earn four college credits in English Literature while in their senior year of high school. This is an intensive course focused on reading and writing assignments which emphasize literary analysis. Students will learn the skills of academic writing and close reading. Students will be expected to interpret, analyze, argue, and reflect upon several different types of texts through varied writing assignments.
Uconn ECE English 1011 is designed to include the following:
-Both formal and informal extensive writing about literature
-Class discussions to encourage meaningful and active participation in the analysis of literature
-An intensive study of American, British, and World texts
-Readings on literary criticism, historical background, and different intellectual movements
-Writing workshops emphasizing revision and reflection of writing
-Analysis of short stories, poems, film, and art
-Composition of writings on a regular basis on a variety of texts
-Completion of passage analysis to understand how an author uses text structures to convey meaning
-Using MLA format to prepare formal papers and to document the use of outside sources
-Utilizing ICONN and other research databases to support your and deepen your ideas
What is the UCONN First Year Writing Program (FYW)?
The UCONN First Year Writing Program encourages intellectual curiosity and exploration in critical thinking, reading, and writing. The courses are not meant to communicate a particular set of facts to students, but instead help students learn to practice and engage in academic discourse.
COURSE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES, UCONN ENGLISH DEPARTMENT:
Critical Literacy
● understands that academic writing is grounded in inquiry
● the ability to distinguish one’s own ideas from the ideas in readings
● the ability to integrate one’s own ideas with ideas from readings
● understands how academic argument works
● works with writing assignments as a series of intellectual tasks
Rhetorical Knowledge
● understands the power dynamics in particular writing situations
● understands reader expectations
● negotiates the demands of reader expectation and writing purpose
● responds appropriately to assignments
Logic and Use of Academic Writing Conventions (as reflected in finished papers)
● a central idea or controlling purpose (a thesis) that requires detailed argument and development
● careful contextualization of the thesis in light of the readings that ground the assignment
● paragraphs that develop the thesis in any number of ways, from offering examples with explanations, to citing authorities, to critically examining a claim from the reading, to comparing/contrasting, to offering a logical chain of reasoning, to defining and redefining terms, and so on
● paragraphs that relate to each other in an intellectually coherent and logically competent way
● sentences that move fluently and fluidly in sequence
sources that are properly documented and quotations that are properly punctuated
● typed prose edited for expression and proofread for correctness
Writing and Reading Processes that Work for the Student (or what students should understand about writing and themselves as writers)
● their characteristic strengths and weaknesses as writers
● writing processes or strategies that work for them
● the possibilities and limitations of collaboration in reading and writing
● the connection between writing and academic inquiry
● the need to continue to work on their writing throughout their academic careers
Required Texts/Materials:
Anthology/Reference
Sadlier-Oxford Vocabulary Level “G” ($24.00)
Strunk and White. The Elements of Style ($10.00)
You are responsible for returning each individual text you receive. ($10-$15). You will receive an accountability if books are not returned.
Course Theme and Texts: Identity, Influence, and the Search for Self
In this course, we will examine the construction and destruction of individual identities through our study of fictional characters and the societal pressures these characters face. Through the literature we read, we will look at various pressures--familial, cultural, and societal—and their impacts upon the identity of these characters. We will also study Existentialism to deepen our understanding of what it means to exist in the world and what role (s) our own actions play in constructing and defining our existence and identity. The major essays you write will focus on aspects of this theme and you will be working to link your ideas about the literature to our society and yourself. Your thoughts are very important since these papers should not emphasize what has already been written about the texts, the topics, and the themes. These papers work to bring your thoughts into the existing academic discourse. You will begin an inquiry, follow with an argumentative thesis, question the ways in which the texts represent identity and influence, and ground that inquiry in research. Your thinking will move beyond observation as you use the texts and academic research to present the implications of your argument. You will learn how to use one text as a “lens” with which to view and re-interpret other texts.
Texts:
Albee, Edward. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Film (dir. Mike Nichols).
O’Neill, Eugene. Long Day’s Journey Into Night
Beckett, Samuel. Waiting for Godot
Roy, Arundhati. The God of Small Things
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness
Plato. “The Allegory of the Cave”
Shakespeare. The Tempest
Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray
Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World
Various handouts will accompany each text. We will be using critical commentary (Betty Friedman, Adrienne Rich, and Camille Paglia, etc.) and critical theory (feminism, deconstruction, Freudian, etc) to complement our readings. We will also be examining historical contexts, author biographies, and intellectual movements that inform certain texts as part of a detailed study to illuminate and enrich our study of literature.
Essential Questions:
The following essential questions will guide our discussions and work to introduce the ideas and concepts presented in the texts. The questions are geared toward studying specific sets of texts together. However, some questions are applicable to all texts.
Each assignment sequence below will consist of many shorter essays and one culminating essay assignment overview. You will receive a detailed assignment sheet and rubric for each essay below.
Dysfunctional Families and the Search for Identity
Texts by author: Albee, O’Neill, Beckett, Pirandello, Roy
1. Is it better to escape or face reality?
2. Can ideals survive catastrophe?
3. Does fate control our lives?
4. What can fix society’s problems?
5. Is emotion stronger than reason?
6. Why do people fear change?
Culminating Essay Assignment Overview: In this essay you will explore the ways in which your understanding of Existentialism and Waiting for Godot cause you to view either Roy’s, Albee’s, or O’Neill’s texts differently. Using non-fiction articles on philosophy, database research, and evidence from the texts, you will uncover how it is you have arrived at a new perception of either work. You will use this insight as the basis for your own argument about the way social boundaries work in the world.
Evil and Its Impact on Identity
Texts by author: Conrad, Wilde
1. When is innocence better than knowledge?
2. What challenges does an individual face when reality is (re)defined?
3. What is the place for the good individual in a corrupt world?
4. What characterizes evil behavior, and what can be done to address such behavior?
5. Why are the strong compelled to overtake the weak, and when is such an action justifiable?
6. What threats are posed by change and difference?
Culminating Essay Assignment: For this assignment, you’ll study the nature of influence and evil as an influence. You will use the texts above and the research you gather to write an essay on the ways in which evil runs through each text and influences each character’s identity.
Human Nature, Knowledge, and Identity
Texts by author: Plato, Shakespeare, Huxley
1. How is social class an indicator of power?
2. What motivates an individual to desire what s/he cannot have?
3. Is the price of progress ever too high?
4. Does everyone have a “dark side”?
5. What drives human behavior?
6. Is emotion stronger than reason?
7. Why do people seek power?
8. Can science tell us how to live?
Culminating Essay Assignment: In what ways does Plato’s allegory apply to Brave New World, The Tempest, and ourselves? You will decide on a topic of concentration from the list (or generate your own) to discuss how the allegory relates to the characters’ journeys out of the cave into enlightenment and your own. Your inquiry will also focus on the role identity plays in that journey as well.
Papers (Revision): The University of Connecticut Freshman English Course requires that 30 pages of polished writing be completed by the end of the course. Students will complete several lengthier literary analysis essays (10-15 pages). All papers must be typed, double spaced, and in correct MLA format. All formal writings involve the production of multiple drafts and revision. Students will work in intensive small group revision workshops, one-on-one conferences with the teacher, and/or one-on-one intensive revision sessions with a classmate before a final draft is due. Teacher feedback will be provided before, during, and after the submission of a polished final draft. Informal writing assignments do not involve intensive planning and revision. These assignments are one page essays in class analyzing short stories, poems, film, and art. Informal writings also include dialectical journals, homework journals, in-class reflections, and in-class warm-up assignments. However, on selected informal writing assignments, students will get the chance to revise these as a means of growth in the writing process.
You receive two grades for this course:
The Uconn ECE grade is comprised mostly of your writing and improvement upon your writing, while your Robert E. Fitch grade is based upon all of the components below.
Grading Policy: Robert E. Fitch High School Grading Policy: Uconn ECE
30%- Literary Analysis/Critical Stance Papers, Tests, Projects Major papers: 80%
20%- Quizzes and Journals In-class responses: 10%
20%- In-class Participation and Class Work Final Reflection: 10%
20%- In-Class Writing—Timed Writes and Practice AP Essays
10%- Homework
In-Class Writing: At the beginning of most classes I will ask you to compose a one page response to a prompt pertaining to the assigned material. Your answers should include specific references from the text. You will be allowed to use your text, but you will only have 5-10 minutes to compose your response. You will be scored according to the following rubric:
Score 3 (90-100): Answer addresses the question and goes beyond it by exploring related issues and questions. This is an interpretive and insightful response anchored by a strong thesis.
Score 2 (70-80): Answer addresses the question thoroughly and includes an interpretive thesis. Answer supports assertions with specific references from the text.
Score 1 (50-60): Answer fails to address the question and lacks insight/thesis. Answer cites no specific references from the text.
Papers:
The University of Connecticut Freshman English Course requires that 30 pages of polished writing be completed by the end of the course. Students will complete three major essays (10 pages each) to fulfill the Uconn FYW requirement. All papers must be typed, double spaced, and in correct MLA format. These papers will often require you to examine a primary text in the context of secondary text(s). For example, as a unit culminating assignment you may write a paper on how your view of a specific moment or theme in Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf has altered as a result of readings on Existentialism and Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. Before you write this paper, you will write shorter papers on both plays and Existentialism. You will also write proposals (1.5-2 pages) before each 10 page paper to show how you plan on approaching your subject of inquiry.
Revision:
All formal writings involve the production of multiple drafts and revision. Each major paper will go through significant revision, and you are expected to put the appropriate time and effort into your work.
Small group revision: Students will work in intensive small group revision workshops with a group of students for the year. This will give you the opportunity to work closely with the same group of students as you engage in constructive revision techniques.
Conferences: You will be expected to have conferences with me about your writing in all of its stages. I will assign you a conference time either during class, during advisory, or after school. Be prepared with your work and specific questions/concerns you have about your essay. Teacher feedback will be provided before, during, and after the submission of a polished final draft.
Informal Writing Assignments: Informal writing assignments do not involve intensive planning and revision. These assignments are one page essays in class analyzing short stories, poems, film, and art. Informal writings also include dialectical journals, homework journals, in-class reflections, and in-class warm-up assignments. However, on selected informal writing assignments, students will get the chance to revise these as a means of growth in the writing process.
Information Literacy: As part of Uconn’s general education requirements, students are expected to learn the practices of university research and academic discourse. In this course, you will not only use the library resources that we have here (ICONN and other academic journal databases), but you will also use your UCONN Net ID and password to access the university library catalog and databases. This course serves as an introduction to that system.
Final Reflective Response: Students will compose a response essay due in place of a final exam. In this essay, you will look back at all of your written work to see how your writing and your thinking has changed. What have you noticed about your writing? Yourself? Your world? Society? This is why it is important that you keep all of your essays (first drafts through final papers) so that you can reference what you have done this year.
Procedures:
Notebooks: Pen (black/blue)/pencil
Classroom Text
3 Ring Binder