SUNY Fredonia
Division of Arts and Humanities
English 209-01 Novels and Tales
Fall 2016
Instructor: Daniel Laurie
Office: 238 Fenton Hall
Phone: 673-3846 or 785-2530
Email:
Office Hours: MWF 11:00-1:30 & by appointment
Class Meets: MWF 9:00-9:50 Fenton Hall 166
Course Description
In the English Department, Novels and Tales courses offer a study of long and short fiction of several kinds, including myth, fable, and realistic narrative from a variety of places and times, and their relation to their different cultures. In this particular section, we will be focusing on ideas of immortality. We will read a wide variety of works that involve characters questing to live forever, maintain their youth, and avoid death. The vast majority of cultures throughout recorded time have myths and stories that involve immortality and we will explore as many of those as we can. Our discussions will range from the ethics of living forever to questioning why we fear death. The central question that you will be asked repeatedly is, “would you like to live forever?”
Rationale
In ENGL 209, as in most courses offered by the English Department, students from a range of majors, minors, and concentrations interact, and the goals of the professional programs are integrated with specific course goals. Achieving these goals will require students to foster academic skills and intellectual habits of reading closely and attentively, thinking critically and creatively, listening actively and carefully, and writing clearly and engagingly--skills and habits of importance to everyone, regardless of major.
Texts
Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
The Postmortal by Drew Magary
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Variety of myths, religious stories, and supplemental articles
Course Attributes
CCC Humanities, XGCP Arts and Humanities, SUNY Humanities
Course Objectives and Outcomes
· Read attentively, closely, and critically (departmental learning outcome #1)
· Write thoughtfully, coherently, and persuasively through analytical essays and mechanics homework (departmental learning outcome #2)
· Become familiar with principal structural and stylistic features of the short story, the novel, and other forms of fiction as they are represented through different cultural traditions (CCC humanities aim)
· Expand our definitions of self, community, culture, and belonging (CCC humanities aim)
· Develop creative connections among texts of different styles, genres, and eras (departmental learning outcome #1 and CCC humanities aim)
· Build meaningful connections between one’s own values and those of diverse eras and cultures (CCC humanities aim)
Evaluation and Grade Assignment
The methods of evaluation and grade assignment for this course are:
- Response Papers: Every two weeks we write a short paper between 2-3 pages. The topics will vary by text and where our class discussions take us. As we move through the semester the topics of these assignments will become increasingly based on your own discussion questions and arguments. Response papers must be turned in on time and are cumulatively, along with you final paper, worth 50% of your grade. Papers will be assigned grades based on depth of analysis, completeness, and use of correct punctuation/grammar.
- Final Paper: Near the end of the semester you will write a long paper (6-7 pages) developed around one of our main focal points (otherness, gender, etc). You will use at least three of our texts in your essay. We will discuss this paper in much more detail later on in the semester. This final assignment is combined with your response papers to make up 50% of your grade. This particular paper counts as two of the shorter, biweekly papers.
- Reading Quizzes: Throughout the semester I will give you quick reading quizzes at the beginning of class. If you are reading the assigned material these will be easy points for you. If you are not keeping up with our reading, I wish you the best of luck. These quizzes will be given at the will of the instructor and will cumulatively equal 25% of your final grade
- Participation & Discussion: We will try to vary how we cover our course material. Some class days will be all large group discussion, and other days will be more like a lecture. Your task is to be prepared for anything by completing the scheduled reading, actively engaging yourself in the discussion, and completing any homework that was assigned. Failure to read, discuss, and/or contribute will cause you to lose points. Please also keep in mind that negatively influencing our classes will cost you participation points. Arriving late, using your phone, being a distraction, and other “jerk” moves will specifically be penalized. Participation & Discussion is worth 25% of your grade.
To summarize, your final grade will be based on the following:
Papers (Weekly & Final Combined) 50%
Reading Quizzes 25%
Participation & Discussion 25%
The following scale will be used for the determination of final grades:
96-100 A 84-86 B 74-76 C 64-66 D
91-95 A- 80-83 B- 70-73 C- 61-63 D-
87-90 B+ 77-79 C+ 67-69 D+ 60- 0 F
Course Policies
a. Late or Missing Work: I am willing to accept one late paper from each of you. Consider it your “freebie” paper, but if you need more time for an essay please let me know! Assignments that you turn in late, besides the “freebie,” will receive half credit. Papers that never get turned in will receive no credit.
b. Attendance: It is your responsibility to come to class with the assignments completed and be prepared to participate in class discussion for that day. You can miss up to 4 classes with no penalties. However, if you miss a 5th class, your participation grade automatically drops 10 points. Each successive absence will subtract another 3 points. So, if you miss 6 classes, your grade will have dropped 10 points from the fifth absence and will go down another 3 points for that 6th class. That would means the highest you can score for participation is 7/25. The bottom line is you need to come to class.
If you miss more than 6 classes you will receive a failing grade for this course.
c. Plagiarism: To plagiarize is “to steal or pass off as one’s own the ideas or words of another.” (Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary.) Examples of plagiarism include presenting the ideas of another in one’s own words without citing the source; copying sentences, paragraphs or pages from a source without explicit references to the pages from which the words were taken; and, of course, presenting another’s entire work as one’s own. If a student is not certain whether a particular practice may be considered plagiaristic, it is his/her responsibility to consult the instructor for whom he/she is writing the assignment. SUNY Fredonia strongly condemns plagiarism and takes severe action against those who plagiarize. (See section on plagiarism in the college catalog.)
d. Essay Format: Unless otherwise noted, please use MLA style format for our assignments. This means, 12-point, Times New Roman font with one-inch margins. We will go over MLA format in class.
e. Respect: You are in school to learn. I am here to help you do that. If you are texting, sleeping, not working, coming to class late, or just generally being inconsiderate it will be seen as a sign of disrespect for everyone else in our room. Act like an adult and don’t do that. Failure to comply with this policy will cost you participation points.
----English and English Education Majors: Do not forget to make yourselves aware of the English Department’s guidelines for portfolio submissions.
Course Schedule
----This schedule is subject to change. We will discuss our exact reading schedule in class and determine how much reading is appropriate for each text. You will have to be in class to not miss anything, and I promise that our schedule WILL change.
Week 1 (Aug 22- 26) Syllabus, get-to-know-you activities, Introductory stories & articles.
Week 2 (Aug 29- Sep 2) More stories & articles. Response Paper #1, Begin Jitterbug Perfume
Week 3 (Sep 5-9) No classes Monday, Jitterbug Perfume
Week 4 (Sep 12-16) No classes Tuesday. Finish Jitterbug Perfume
Week 5 (Sep 19- 23) Response #2, Begin Picture of Dorian Gray
Week 6 (Sep 26- 30) Picture of Dorian Gray
Week 7 (Oct 3- 7) Response #3. Picture of Dorian Gray
Week 8 (Oct 10- 14) Finish Picture of Dorian Gray & Fall Break: No classes Thursday or Friday
Week 9 (Oct 17- 21) Response #4. Begin reading The Postmortal. Extra
Credit: Ruterbusch Memorail 5k @ 10:00 Saturday
Week 10 (Oct 24- 28) The Postmortal
Week 11 (Oct 21- Nov 4) Response #5, The Postmortal
Week 12 (Nov 7-11) Finish The Postmortal
Week 13 (Nov 14- 18) Response #6. Begin Tuesdays with Morrie
*** November 21-25 is Thanksgiving Break. No classes ***
Week 14 (Nov 28- Dec 2) Finish Tuesdays with Morrie
Week 15 (Dec 5-9) Short stories and final paper assignment
Finals Week (Dec 12-16) Final Meeting TBA
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