Print-Friendly Page

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140

We have compiled here several kinds of resources for teachers of ECC140: the official description of the course including its requirements as a state and university core course, sample syllabi, sample exams, paper assignments, and so on. Please be sure to review the core description and requirements; because ECC140 fulfills statewide transfer guidelines, we must ensure that each section of ECC140 meets these curricular guidelines.

We also invite you to submit your syllabus and assignments as well as any other teaching tips that new or continuing teachers of the course might find helpful. We hope that this online resource will grow to include a wide range of resources for all teachers of the course.

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Core Description and Guidelines

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Core Description and Guidelines

We include below the AUCC core description for ECC140. This description, approved by the University Curriculum Committee, lays out the key components of the course.

We also include the same material as it was reshaped for the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. Following a rigorous review process, the CCHE accepted this description of ECC140 as a designated "state core" course guaranteed to transfer to any other state-funded institution of higher education. The CCHE materials are more explicit than the AUCC description about how critical thinking, reading, and writing shape the course.

• AUCC Core Description
• CCHE State Core Details

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 UCC Core Description: ECC140 Introduction to Literature

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

UCC Core Description: ECC140 Introduction to Literature

ECC140 introduces the study of literature as a mode of discourse for defining, exploring, and expressing human experience. By means of significant out-of-class reading, engaging in-class discussions, and frequent writing assignments, ECC140 focuses on learning the skills of reading and writing about literature. To this end students will be introduced to various ways of reading literary texts which highlight the different investments people make when they choose to read in one way rather than another, how different ways of reading lead to different interpretive results, and how certain texts invoke certain types of reading. As such, the course's unifying element will include consistent attention to close reading and to a grasp of basic notions of literary discourse's relationship to genre and models of reading.

The course will cover poetry, drama, and fiction, with attention also paid to literary non-fiction, beginning with instruction in close reading techniques. Thus the class will introduce students to such basic concepts as (for fiction) plot structure, point of view, voice, characterization, imagery and symbolism, setting, tone, irony, and style; (for poetry) persona, denotation/connotation, figurative language, metrics, major verse forms (like sonnet, dramatic monologue); (for drama) protagonist /antagonist, plot, dramatic structure, tragedy, comedy. Along with instruction in close reading, the course considers as well a variety of ways of reading texts in order to show students that reading is not an ideologically free act, that meaning is not automatically within the text but is dependent on the assumptions and questions that the reader brings to the text, that the phenomena observed in close reading can lead to a number of different interpretive possibilities. Instructors may choose to illustrate this by introducing students to the basics of a number of different reading models, as for example from the following not all-inclusive list: New Critical, structural, new historical, biographical, psychoanalytic, archetypal, Marxist, feminist, reader response, cultural criticism, deconstructive. The goal of instruction in multiple ways of reading will be to make students aware how each model of reading places emphasis on different aspects of the text, context, and reader, leading to different interpretations of how literature represents human experience.

Recommended Texts: four anthologies provide reasonably substantial material on different models of reading. They are Birkerts, Literature: the Evolving Canon, 2nd ed. (Allyn and Bacon); Gillespie, Fonseca, Sanger, Literature across Cultures (Allyn and Bacon); Jacobus, Literature: an Introduction to Critical Reading (Prentice Hall); Meyer, The Bedford Introduction to Literature, 4th ed (St. Martin's). (Meyer, we agreed, is the best of these texts, Gillespie the weakest.)

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 CCHE State Core Details

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

CCHE State Core Details

1. State scope of course and the primary concepts or topics it covers.

This course introduces students to a wide variety of literary texts and critical approaches. It covers the major genres - poetry, fiction, drama (and sometimes nonfiction) - and a variety of critical perspectives as well as writers from both sexes and from various countries and racial and ethnic groups. It introduces many of the basic formal elements central to close reading (imagery, point of view, dramatic structure, etc.) and many of the interpretive skills necessary to reading literary texts (identifying what counts as evidence, recognition of repeating patterns, etc.) Finally it introduces students to the possibility of reading texts in a variety of ways, based on a broad sampling of current important theoretical approaches.
Learning how to respond analytically and critically to a variety of literary texts is the center of the course. Students come to

recognize the different characteristics and readerly expectations of the various genres (lyric poetry, short stories, novels, drama),

understand how texts reflect (and critique) various historical and philosophical positions and need to be understood in relation to their historical contexts, and

appreciate in what complex ways language can be used directly and indirectly to convey complex meanings.

2. Describe student outcomes

Students learn the complex ways meaning is constituted in literary text - by recognizing generic conventions, by understanding the relevance of historical/geographical contexts of both writer and reader and how different contexts can result in different readings, by increasing their familiarity with the basic language elements of literary texts (imagery, repeating patterns, meter, symbolism, point of view, etc.). Students learn of the possibilities of different modes or perspectives on reading texts (for example, feminist, historical, biographical). Students learn to critique specific interpretations offered by their classmates, their teacher, and other critics. Students learn to articulate their own readings of a text both orally and in writing, using relevant textual support and cogent argumentation.

3. Describe how students demonstrate and develop critical thinking in this course.

Helping students to construct cogent interpretations of literary texts is a central goal of ECC140 that involves all the aspects of critical thinking skills:

identifying major questions and arguments about literature and its interpretations (information acquisition),

questioning the merits of different critical approaches to texts (application),

recognizing relevant textual details to develop cogent arguments (synthesis),

synthesizing those details into an interpretive concept,

identifying the stated and unstated assumptions of their own and others' interpretive positions (analysis),

critically comparing said interpretations (analysis),

forming arguments for or against other interpretive views (communication), and

evaluating various interpretive strategies.

These critical thinking skills are integrated into lectures, class discussions, oral presentations, and writing assignments.

4. Describe how students demonstrate and develop reading competency

Developing students' skills as close and sophisticated readers of texts is central to the course's concerns. Students come to recognize how generic considerations affect and control their readings, how historical contexts influence how a text is produced and how it is read, how a differing historical context of the reader can result in a reading widely at variance with readings within the writer's historical context, how meaning can be conveyed through a variety of indirect methods (irony, figurative language, etc.), how their readings can be related to their own lives and experiences, and how to construct and convey their interpretive ideas.

Specifically, ECC140 examines purposes, expectations, conventions, and relations to meaning of such genres as the epic, drama, the novel, etc. (information acquisition). Students come to recognize basic elements of each genre and explain how those elements affect meaning in the work as a whole (application). Moreover, as students work closely with selected texts, they explore personal interpretations of texts and their themes/ideas (synthesis). Class discussion and written work demand that students be able to focus on specific aspects of the texts relevant to different thematic concepts (evaluation), to summarize central ideas (analysis), and to communicate them to others (communication).

5. Describe how students demonstrate and develop written communication competency

Writing - in journals, short-paragraph responses, in-class and out-of-class essays - occupies a major role in this course. Students learn how to use relevant textual sources (information acquisition), to examine others' critical responses to literature and critically evaluate those interpretations (analysis), to form hypotheses with full textual support (synthesis), to develop arguments (communication), to relate their own ideas with those of others (synthesis), to articulate clearly their ideas (application), and to revise their written work in light of both peer and instructor feedback (evaluation). For example, refer to Myers' "mini-essay" assignments that call for students to formulate the problem of a text. Students then go on to connect the text to its cultural or historical perspective, examine the text in light of its connection to students' experiences, analyze the interaction of formal elements of the text, or examine the text from a specified critical perspective.

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Sample Syllabi

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Sample Syllabi

View sample MWF Syllabi:

• Sample MWF (Feinberg)
• Sample MWF (Myers)
• Sample MWF (Bailey)

View sample TR Syllabi:

• Sample TR
• Sample TR (Kennedy)
• Sample TR (McGoldrick)

ECC140.03 Syllabus Outline

Please note: Read ahead whenever possible. Also, as the semester progresses it is possible that the reading schedule may change slightly. (Check your email for updates.)

SYLLABUS-Fall 2002 26 August 2002

E140.6 in C337 Clark at 210-3 MWF

Dr. Bailey, 555 Eddy, Office hours:12-1 MWF or by appointment

Changes made to syllabus in response to perceived class needs will be announced in class.

We will read short fiction, then poetry, then drama. See the short story and poetry list, part of this syllabus. We will discuss them in the order they are listed; so it is important to stay current with reading.

26 Aug-18 Oct. Short fiction-see list. 28 Aug: Twisted Lip/30 Aug. Speckled Band

2 Sept. Labor Day; no class

4 Sept.: "The Cask of Amontillado": See Short Story List.

9 Oct.: MID-TERM

11 Oct.: READING DAY, no class

21 Oct.-15 Nov: Poetry-see list

30 Sept; 30 Oct; 6 Dec. Essay due- One date will be assigned to each student by 2 Sept.

18-22 Nov: Antigone

25-29 Nov. THANKSGIVING; NO CLASS

2-6 Dec. Othello

9-13 Dec. A Doll's House

19 Dec: FINAL at 3:40-5:40 p.m.

REQUIRED TEXTS:

Beaty & Hunter: The Norton Introduction to Literature (Shorter 8^th ed.)

Doyle: "The Man with the Twisted Lip" & "The Adventure of the Speckled Band." Print out at the following website: <http://www.citsoft.com/holmes3.html>.

Stevenson: Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Dover

NOTE: Designated Reader assignments will be given at beginning of the semester and are due on the date that we discuss the assigned work in class.

Attendance is required. Attendance will be taken by a sign-up sheet passed around class (no retroactive signing). Perfect attendance (defined as no more than one absence) earns a bonus of 5 points added to the final point total. Four absences are allowed to cover athletics, illness and personal business. With the fifth absence, no more than a "C" may be earned for the course and then only if total points earned add up to a "C." Missed in-class activities may not be made up and late papers are not accepted. If there is a problem in meeting a deadline, contact me prior to the event (e-mail will document this) and consult me about your options.

Disability: If you have a permanent or temporary disability, please let me know right away so that we may confer to make accommodation.

Assignments: Always bring the text to class since we will refer to it during discussion. There will be one designated reader presentation, one essay, a mid-term, a final and short quizzes.

Plagiarism, the copying of words or ideas or both from a source (including the internet!) without appropriate documentation or punctuation, will receive an "F" for the assignment and an "F" for the course.

Exams: The mid-term and the final will contain both objective and essay questions. Objective questions include, but are not limited to, authors' names, the titles of their works, the dates those works were written or published and what genre the work falls under-short story, essay, poem, play. It is also a good idea to annotate your text both as you are reading and especially in class. I draw some test questions from passages we emphasize in class.

Grades:

Essay = 100 possible pts earned points

Designated Reader Presentation = 80 possible pts earned points

Mid-term = 125 possible pts earned points

Quizzes = 70 possible pts earned points

Final exam = 125 possible pts earned points

Total = 500 pts possible earned total

Perfect Attendance Extra Credit = 5 pts possible earned total

450-500 = A

400-449 = B

350-399 = C

300-349 = D

299 & below = F

Plagiarism receives an "F" for the assignment and an "F" for the course. Plagiarism is defined as copying work---words or ideas or both, including material from the internet--without documenting or using the appropriate punctuation.

28 August 2002

Short Stories: in Norton unless otherwise indicated. Read the discussions on the elements of fiction (plot, point of view, characterization, setting, symbols, theme) and be familiar with the terminology.

Plot: read pg. 15

The Man with the Twisted Lip- website

The Speckled Band -website

Narration & Point of View: read pg. 66

The Cask of Amontillado-70

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge-513

Character: read pg. 102

Sonny's Blues-41

Why I Live at the P.O.-107

Bartleby the Scrivener-116

Setting: read pg. 157

The Secret Sharer-253

Symbol: read pg. 186

A Rose for Emily-425

Odour of Chrysanthemums-549

Young Goodman Brown-189

Theme: read pg. 214

The Yellow Wallpaper-537

Araby-395

Everything that Rises Must Converge-360

The Story of an Hour-403

The Use of Force-417

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Dover Edition)

Poetry List -in Norton, to be read in order-bring your text to class! 28 Aug. 2002

They Flee from Me-656

I Being Born a Woman and Distressed-919

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love-876

The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd-883

Raleigh Was Right-884

To His Coy Mistress-674

The Flea-664

Still to be Neat-705

Delight in Disorder-705

My Mistress' Eyes Are Nothing Like the Sun*

That Time of Year -717

The Ruined Maid-640

My Last Duchess-915

London-625

The Chimney Sweeper*

Ozymandias*

The Charge of the Light Brigade*

Dulce et Decorum Est-911

Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night-805

Because I Could Not Stop for Death-970

Death Be not Proud-972

Dover Beach-671

Daddy -926

Aunt Jennifer's Tigers-628

We Real Cool-658

To a Daughter Leaving Home-666

A Red Red Rose-722

One Perfect Rose-735

The Sick Rose-735

The Red Wheelbarrow-703

Ulysses-995

Kubla Khan-968

The Windhover-981

Harlem: A Dream Deferred-908

The Negro Speaks of Rivers-893

Leda and the Swan-1009

*Found on the poetry hand-out.

DRAMA:

Antigone-1620

Othello-Dover

A Doll's House-1101

DESIGNATED READER GUIDELINES -E140.6-Dr. Bailey 26 Aug. 2002

The Designated Reader presentation is an opportunity for personal response to the literary work. It is appropriate to discuss what was liked or disliked, as long as an explanation is given. Problems with the work, its current relevance to today's readers, its "realism" or lack of it, even difficulties with understanding the piece are all possible areas of response. There should be 4 parts to the written presentation:

1. A brief summary of the work (no more than one short paragraph); or, if a poem, read the poem to the class.

2. Give an interpretation, and the approach you think should be taken: historical, psychoanalytic, cultural, feminist and so on.

3. What you liked or disliked about the work and why.

4. Questions you believe the class should focus on in discussion.

This assignment will be graded on a good-faith effort to meet these guidelines-not on whether you are "right" or "wrong," so feel safe in responding honestly-and stay away from critics!

Length: 2 to 3 full pages; typed Times New Roman, 12 font, no right justification, 1" margins, double-spaced. Be sure to proofread. Give a copy to me before you read the presentation.

READER RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Introduce yourself (I am. . . . and my response is to ......). Read, rather than extemporize the response to the class.

• Stand in front of the class; follow the usual public speaking standards-no hats, sunglasses, or gum. Speak clearly, slowly and project.

• Avoid repetition (I liked it; it was interesting; I enjoyed it and so on). Also avoid slang unless referring to the language used in the work.

• Answer questions/comments in response to the presentation. Be knowledgeable about names, plot, symbol, appropriate aspects of the literature to which you are responding.

• Don't forget to provide specific questions for the class to use in discussion.

AUDIENCE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Quiet attention to the speaker.
• Be prepared to comment on the questions and main points made by the speaker.

Note: The points/questions from the designated reader presentations may appear on exams.

E140 Daily Syllabus

(Subject to Change)
Assignments must be completed by the day for which they are listed. Read all of the pages indicated.

Unit One: Ways of Reading And Responding

Week 1: 8/21-23

T Introduction to course.

R Reading Imaginative Literature, 1-6; Reading Fiction Responsively, 9-10; Chopin, The Story of an Hour & Student Essay, 10-17; Critical Thinking, 2021-2023. Plot, 60-61; Character, 97-98; Setting, 143-145; Theme, 243-246.

Week 2: 8/28-30
Reading for Realism

T Point of View, 174-179; Dubus, "Killings" & "On Morality and Revenge" 81-95.

R Minot, "Lust" 290-297

Week 3: 9/4-6
Reading for Structure

T Formalist Strategies, 2025- 2027; Mythological Strategies, 2037-2039; Joyce, "Eveline" 512-515

Week 4: 9/11-13
Reading for Experience

T Reader-Response Strategies, 2039- 2041; Bambara, "The Lesson" etc., 179-185.

Week 5: 9/18-20
Reading Suspiciously

Week 6: 9/25-27
Reading for Culture

Week 7: 10/2-4

Unit II: Putting It All Together!

Week 8: 10/9-11
Reading for Realism and Structure

Week 9: 10/16-18
Reading For Experience And Suspicion

Week 10: 10/23-25
Reading for Culture

Week 11: 10/30-11/1

Week 12: 11/6-8

Week 13: 11/13-15

Week 14: 11/20-22
Thanksgiving Break

Week 15: 11/27-29

Week 16: 12/4-6

Final Exam Period: TBA

Kennedy
ECC 140.008: Introduction to Literature
Fall 2003 Course Calendar: Reading and Writing Assignments

ecc140.008

Tuesday, Thursday 8:00-9:15
Instructor: Rebecca McGoldrick
Office: Eddy 555
Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday 2:30-4:00
e-mail: Rebecca.McGoldrick@talk.net

Course Description: In ECC140, The Study of Literature, we will read, write about and discuss literature of a variety of genres (drama, fiction, and poetry). The literature we study will come from a variety of historical periods and from a variety of cultural perspectives--we will read work by writers of both sexes, from various countries, of various racial and ethnic groups. Our focus will be as much on how we read as it is on what we read. That is, we will consider and practice some of the numerous ways of critically reading a literary text. This class will help you develop your skills as a reader, writer, critical thinker, and speaker. You will use and develop your abilities to work both independently and collaboratively. All of these skills will help you be prepared to take future literature and creative writing courses, and they will help you critically read any text you encounter: in other college courses, and in your non-academic pursuits.

Materials:

Coursework: Reading assignments and written homework will be given at least weekly. In addition, there will be a midterm and a final exam.

Grading: The two exams will be marked with a letter grade/percentage (e.g. B/85% or C+/77%). All other work will receive a check if it is satisfactory, a check plus if it exceeds expectation, and a check-minus if it does not meet expectations. In addition, for each class session you will receive a "class activity" grade: a ( if you are present and engaged, a (+ if you contribute positively to class, and (- if your in-class activity contributes negatively to the class session.

The percentage breakdown for your course grade is as follows:

Homework: 20%
*Participation: 20%
*Attendance: 10%
Midterm Exam: 20%
Final Exam: 30%

*For explanations of participation and attendance, see "Course Policy," below.

Course Policy

Participation: Participation, minimally, means being engaged with class on a regular basis. Good participation is being both engaged and active in class. In terms of the course grade, there is a lot of emphasis on participation because participation is essential to a positive, functional classroom and a sense of community. Included in your participation grade will be all in-class writings, quizzes, group work, and class activity grades.

Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. Your attendance grade (10% of your final grade) begins as an A+/100%. Each absence* lowers your attendance grade by 20%. After 5 absences an attendance grade would be a 0%, and for each additional absence, 10% would be deducted from the participation grade. Note that a good attendance record can boost your grade quite a bit.

*An absence is a missed class (for any reason), a missed conference or scheduled appointment, or three tardies/earlies. A tardy is arriving to class after 8:00am and an early is leaving class before 9:15am (unless the entire class begins late or ends early).

Missed/Late Work: Missed in-class work cannot be made up. All work is due when I call for it in class, unless, prior to class, you have arranged an alternative date and time to turn the assignment in. At my discretion, all other late work will receive half or no credit.

Plagiarism: Plagiarism is theft. Any plagiarism is grounds for failing the course, and it can involve expulsion from the university. For a detailed explanation of plagiarism, visit https://writing.colostate.edu.

Technology: As is the case in any class, the use of a cell phone (or other personal electronics device) in any capacity is distracting and rude. Any text-messaging, game playing, voicemail-checking, rings, beeps, songs, vibrations, talking, etc. will severely and negatively impact your participation grade. If you need to have your phone or pager on for a particular reason, let me know.

Computer and printer problems will not excuse you from turning in an assignment on time. Make sure you give yourself enough time that, if need be, you can do you work at a computer in one of the many labs on campus.

Grade Questions: At any time, feel free to come to me with questions about grades: the grading system, your grade in the class, or your grade on a particular assignment. I am happy to discuss grades with all students--provided that the discussion is adult: calm and rational. Such discussions are best had in office hours rather than during class time. However, if you fear you will not be able to have an in-person discussion about grades without becoming upset, please send an email.

Helpful Resources

The following are resources that can help you meet your goals for this course:

The Writing Center: At the Writing Center (Eddy 6) you can work one-on-one with a writing tutor. Writing tutors are friendly and approachable English graduate students. The writing center is free, and you don't need to make an appointment.

Morgan Library: At the library you can find books, journal articles and other texts to use to help inform your reading, and for studying for exams. You can get assistance from reference librarians, and use computers for internet access and word processing.

Eddy Computer Lab: (Eddy 300) has many computers well equipped with internet access, word processing, etc. You can print for free in the Eddy Lab.

Conferences and Office Hours: By all means, take advantage of the individual attention I can give you during my office hours or a scheduled conference.

Special Circumstances: If you have any special needs or documented learning disabilities, please let me know during the first week of class so we can make arrangements.

AGREEMENT

Your decision to remain in this section demonstrates your agreement to abide by the policies and conditions of this section.

Calendar

Week 1: 8/24 & 8/26: Course Introduction

Week 2: 8/31 & 9/2: Reader Response Criticism.

Week 3: 9/7 & 9/9: Reader Response Criticism.

Week 4: 9/14 & 9/16: Formalist Criticism.

Week 5: 9/21 & 9/23: Formalist Criticism.

Week 6: 9/28 & 9/30: Biographical Criticism.

Week 7: 10/5 & 10/7: Biographical Criticism and MIDTERM (Thursday 10/7).

Week 8: 10/12 & 10/14: Historical Criticism.

Week 9: 10/19 & 10/21: Historical Criticism.

Week 10: 10/26 & 10/28: Feminist Criticism.

Week 11: 11/2 & 11/4: Feminist Criticism.

Week 12: 11/9 & 11/11: Deconstructionist Criticism.

Week 13: 11/16 & 11/18: Deconstructionist Criticism.

FALL BREAK

Week 14: 11/30 & 12/2: Review for Final Exam.

Week 15: 12/7 & 12/9: Review and FINAL EXAM (Thursday 12/9).

E CC 140.008: Introduction to Literature
Fall 2003

Instructor:
Rebecca Kennedy
Office:
Eddy 555 555-5555 rebecca.kennedy@talk.net
Office Hours:
11:00-12:30 T/Th
2:00- 3:30 T/Th
or by appointment

Goals:

• To introduce students to a variety of literary genres: poetry, prose, short fiction, long fiction, and drama

• To review the traditional literary terms of fiction, poetry, and drama

• To teach literary analysis as a means of studying literature

• To teach students how to annotate a piece of fiction

• To teach basic literary criticism and approaches for writing a literary essay: biographical approach, formalist approach, historical and sociological approach, reader-response approach, feminist/gender approach, Marxist approach, mythological approach, psychological approach

• To teach writing about literature as a process of pre-writing, drafting, and revision

• To encourage students to become advocates for fictional forms and subjects they find most compelling

Overview:

ECC 140 introduces the study of literature as a mode of discourse for defining, exploring, and expressing human experience. By means of significant out-of-class reading, engaging in-class discussions, and frequent writing assignments, students will learn the skills of reading and writing about literature. The syllabus calls for students to read 44 literary selections (28 short stories, 3 plays, 2 essays, 1 novel, and 20 poems) from an anthology and electronic reserve materials. You are required to read every selection and to become an advocate for the kind of fiction you find most effective. You will respond in writing to much of what we read, and here, too, you are expected to explain the elements of literature that affect you most as a reader and argue forcefully for fiction you value most highly.

Class Discussions:

Even though the class may serve 45-50 students, you will still be expected to engage in discussion and to respond to questions I may pose to you individually. I will make every effort to make this class a community of readers and writers, but your participation is essential to this end. I also expect you to respond to others in the class in thoughtful, judicious, and respectful ways.

Response Papers:

For every assigned reading, you should annotate the text. These annotations will help you complete the response papers that you are expected to write for every class. You should check the course calendar (from the syllabase program) to find questions that you may use to guide your short responses to the fiction we read. On days when we read two or more fictional pieces, you should choose one of the selections to respond to in writing. These short responses (½-1 page only) must be typed and brought to class every day. At the beginning of class, I will flip a coin: heads means the responses must be submitted for a grade; tails means the responses will stay in your folders. These response papers, while informal pieces of writing, should still be grammatically and syntactically correct; I expect you to use language precisely, to support your response with specifics from the fiction, to write with style, and, yes, to spell correctly. Be sure to specify which selection you are responding to in the title or heading. No late responses will be accepted, but I will drop the two lowest responses before averaging the others to figure the 40% of the final course grade. Additionally, I will have a folder check at mid-term and at the end of the semester, which will enable you to get extra credit for writing the responses that were not turned in for a grade (when the coin was tails).

Midterm and Final Exams:

The midterm exam will be an objective/short answer test over the fiction we read during the first half of the semester; the final exam will be an objective/short answer test over the fiction we read during the last half of the semester.

Essays #1 and #2:

During the semester you will write two essays; specific assignments will be given out later during class. Your essays will be judged as formal pieces of writing and will be graded on the clarity and complexity of your argument, the details you choose to support it, the organization of your ideas, and the application of what you have learned in class lectures or discussions. I will be happy to read a revised draft of your first paper before it is due for a grade, but you must give me the draft before November 10 th if you want my feedback.

Textbook:

R. S. Gwynn, Literature: A Pocket Anthology

Thomas Hardy, The Mayor of Casterbridge, Bantam edition

10 short stories; 2 essays, on electronic reserve

several poetry handouts

Plan to bring the appropriate text to every class meeting.

Materials:

pocket folder for writing assignments, responses, handouts, etc.

computer disks

spiral notebook or legal pad

Attendance:

Students are expected to attend every class and are responsible for all material covered in class. Since attendance and participation in class discussions affect a student's final grade, and since the instructor will not repeat lectures or information on reading or writing assignments, it is to the student's advantage to attend all classes. The final course grade will be lowered one letter grade for students with more than four absences.

Instructional Resources:

The SyllaBase course page (https://writing.colostate.edu/syllabase) and Writing @CSU (https://writing.colostate.edu) will be used in this course. Students' facilitation with these resources is required.

Grades:

Grades in the course will be based on the plus/minus system; the breakdown is as follows:

Response papers---------------- 40%

Midterm Exam------------------ 15%

Paper #1--------------------------- 15%

Paper #2--------------------------- 15%

Final Exam------------------------ 15%

Due Dates:

All due dates for assignments are firm. All writing assignments are due at the beginning of the class period on the due date, and all assignments must be completed in order for a student to pass the course. Students will be penalized one letter grade for each day a formal paper is late.

Notes/Drafts:

Save all brainstorming, notes, outlines, and drafts for each reading or writing assignment and class lecture or discussion. These notes or drafts may be useful during office visits or for deciding on a thesis or argument claim for your longer essays. Your notes will also serve as study material for the mid-term and final exams.

CSU Academic Honesty Policy:

We will discuss the finer points of what constitutes plagiarism in class, but you are expected to know that it will not be tolerated in this class. For details about the university's academic honesty policy see Colorado State University Handbook, available from the Office of the Dean of Students.

Office Hours/ Writing Center:

Please take advantage of my office hours for help with your writing or to discuss the reading. If you can’t come at the regularly scheduled times, please make an appointment for another time. If I recognize specific deficiencies in your writing, I may recommend or require individual counseling in the English Department Writing Center (Eddy 6). You may also seek help in the Writing Center on your own.

Withdrawal Policy:

No W's will be assigned after the university’s official drop date deadline: October 20, 2003

Students with Special Needs:

Students with special needs or disabilities that require specific accommodations for the successful completion of this course must notify the CSU Office of Disability Services and the course instructor by the middle of the second week of classes. Failure to do so may jeopardize the student’s ability to receive the necessary academic adjustments and auxiliary aids to facilitate his/her participation and performance in the classroom.

ECC140.003: Introduction to Literature

Required Texts:

This Boy's Life, by Tobias Wolff

Maus, by Art Spiegelman

Interpreter of Maladies, by Jhumpa Lahiri

M Butterfly , by David Henry Hwang

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

House of Leaves, by Mark Z. Danielewski

White Noise , by Don DeLillo

Course Description:

E140 is an introduction to different ways of approaching literature. In this course we will be reading a variety of different literary genres including fiction, poetry, drama, graphic novels, and non-fiction. The goal of this course (besides learning to love and appreciate literature) is to show you a variety of ways of reading a text, all of which will reveal to us something new and different about that same text. By the end of this course, you will have become a skillful critical reader who will be able to interpret works of literature in a creative, intelligent, and insightful manner.

E140 is not necessarily a class in “great authors.” Nor is it primarily a class about terms and techniques used by literary scholars. It is a class about the process of reading literature, and the different ways in which people go about making meaning of it. It is also a class about asking questions. The stories we’ll read all do a terrific job of raising difficult issues—both about the works themselves and the society that produced them. Therefore, the focus of this course will not be on how to answer easily measurable fact-based questions (i.e. What is the rhyme scheme of a sonnet?), but rather on how to ask questions that truly shed light on the meaning and artistry of a story (or at least lead to a discussion that will).

Daily Reading Assignments

As you can probably guess, there will be a great deal of reading expected from you in this course. Look ahead in the syllabus so that you can stay on top of your daily reading assignments. I would suggest that you budget your time wisely, and read ahead whenever possible. And don’t forget to always bring the text we are covering with you to class.

Daily Participation

The success of this course relies heavily upon your willingness to participate in class. Your reactions to a text and your responses to the opinions of others are essential to generating an interesting, relevant, and informative exploration of a work of literature. (And sadly, if you don’t contribute your ideas, how can I be sure you have completed the day’s reading assignment?)

If you actively participate in class (contribute to class discussions, place effort into group work and presentations, etc.), you will receive full credit for participation. If you are unprepared, are absent from, or are uninvolved in class, your participation grade will be adjusted accordingly.

Attendance Policy

Because of the strong emphasis we place on in-class discussions and group work, attendance is mandatory. However, you are allowed to miss four class periods with no questions asked. After that, unexcused absences will cause your final semester grade to be lowered. The penalty will be a 5% deduction for each additional absence over your limit. Please note that the only absences that may be excused are school-sponsored activities, medical and family emergencies (for medical issues, a doctor’s note is required). In addition, under no circumstances will more than 4 “emergent” absences be excused.

If you are absent, it is your responsibility to contact another student to find out what we covered in class. Exchange phone numbers with a couple of classmates so that you may (1) collect any missed notes, assignments, and handouts and (2) return to class prepared.

Tardiness

Please note : Tardiness is distracting. If a student receives three tardy markings in the attendance book, they will be counted as one full absence. If you are not present when the attendance sheet is passed around, you will be counted absent. It is your responsibility to inform me after class if you have arrived late so that I can add your name to the attendance record as tardy instead of absent.

Late Assignments:

Out of fairness to all students, late assignments will be penalized. You are expected to come to class prepared each day, even if you were absent during the previous class period. Daily homework assignments will not be accepted late, and missed quizzes cannot be retaken. It’s simple: If you miss the class in which the assignment is due, then you have missed the deadline! In the event of a serious emergency that prevents you from handing in an assignment on time, you must contact me at least 2 hours prior to the start of class.

If circumstances prevent you from attending class when an assignment is due, you may submit the assignment via email for full credit (provided it gets to me by the start of that day’s class period).

Text Analysis papers will be accepted one class period late, but only at ½ credit.

Evaluation:

Your final grade will be determined by the following:

Midterm Exam 25%

Final Exam 25%

Text Analysis Papers 20%

Group Presentation 10%

Reading Quizzes 15%

Participation 5%

Final Grades : final grades will be calculated using the +/- system.

Plagiarism: All writing must be your original work. The minimum penalty for improper documentation is an "F" for the assignment. More serious cases of plagiarism warrant dismissal from the class and possible disciplinary action from the university.

Writing Center: Eddy Hall, Room 6 or http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/WritingCenter

The Writing Center is a wonderful resource available to all students free of charge. Feel free to stop by or utilize online tutorial service located at the above address.

SyllaBase:

SyllaBase is an online resource that we will be using from time to time throughout the semester. You may access SyllaBase at: https://writing.colostate.edu/syllabase/

Your user name is your email address, and your password is your social security number (with no dashes). To find our class page, simply log in and scroll down to “ECC140: Introduction to Literature” with your section number (003) and click on it.

Open Door Policy:

If at any time you have questions or concerns, please contact me. I am always available during my scheduled office hours: MWF 1-2 pm (other slots are available by appointment only). However, if your question is brief and specific, the best way to get a hold of me is through e-mail. If you prefer this method to a face-to-face conference, contact me at:

tiffany.myers@talk.net

E140 Section 9

Aylesworth C111, 3:35-4:50 TR
Instructor: Robert White
Office: 555b Eddy Hall
Phone: 555-5555
Office Hours: TWR 11-12 & by appointment
email: rowhite@lamar.colostate.edu

Computer Writing Lab: 300 Eddy Hall

The Writing Center: 6 Eddy Hall

Required Materials:

• Meyer, Michael. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. 6th Edition.
• Haruf , Kent . Plainsong.
• Kundera, Milan. The Unbearable Lightness of Being.
• 2 pocket folders for submitting assignments

Course Description: This course is designed to move you to bitter tears, bawdy laughter, dangerous rage, or, short of that, to get youthinking about literature and the discipline of studying it with a new appreciation. We will accomplish this by closely reading, analyzing, and discussing a wide variety fiction, drama, and poetry. Keep in mind, however, that fiction will be our primary focus as there are introductory courses for the other two genres. We will also learn to examine literature through various critical perspectives in an effort to recognize that there are many ways of reading a text, some of which may surprise, please, or irritate you, just as they have done to me. Ideally, this class will become a semester-long conversation about literature and I urge you to make your voice heard. I look forward to open, honest, lively discussions based upon curiosity and careful thought. I also urge you to challenge yourself to risk thinking new thoughts. You will have ample opportunity to test and express your ideas if you participate well in this course.

Keep in mind that the reading load for this class is heavy. If you're not much of a big fan of reading, then you'll do yourself a favor by taking a different class--or better yet, challenge yourself to become a big fan of reading!

Attendance & Tardiness : Although I do not have any specific attendance policy, students are expected to attend all class sessions and work only on E140 assignments during class. Because this class is based heavily on discussion, it is necessary to be here to be successful on quizzes and tests. You are expected to come to class prepared each day, even if you were absent the previous class period. Tardiness is an irritating distraction to me and to your classmates. If you foresee a good deal of tardiness or attendance problems with regard to this class, it would be wise to drop the class now and take it again at a more opportune time. Oh, and, uh…please shut off the cell phones.

Late Assignments: Out of fairness to all students, I will not accept late assignment. You are welcome to submit assignments early, of course.

Evaluation: Your grade will be determined by the following assignments:

1. Response Essays (20%): These brief essays are designed to get you writing to learn what you think about the readings and discussions. They will allow you to write regularly without worrying as much about mechanics or research, and provide you with a record of your insights and reactions to the texts we read and the ideas we discuss in class. You will receive credit for these essays if they reflect a sincere effort and a careful reading of the text. They should be 2-3 pages, typed. Keep a folder containing all your entries. You will be allowed to use these on exams, so a strong effort here will pay off there. These must be typed.

2. Reading Quizzes (15%): These quizzes will be given regularly as an incentive to keep up with the readings and to ensure that you have a basic understanding of the materials. They also serve as an incentive to attend class and to show up on time. As such, they will be frequent and unannounced.

3. Midterm Exam (30%): This will be a combination of short answer and essay questions designed to assess your comprehension of the short fiction readings.

4. Final Exam (35%): This is be similar in form to the midterm exam, covering the material (including critical theory) which we encounter in the second half of the semester.

Writing Center, 6 Eddy Hall

I encourage you to use the Writing Center. Whenever you need extra help for any writing assignment, the Writing Center is available to you without charge for special tutoring help. All tutors are currently writing instructors. Hours: M-Th 10-4, and W, Th 6-9pm. 491-0222. On the web at writing.colostate.edu, and email at writing@lamar.colostate.edu.

Plagiarism: All writing must be your own work. All forms of plagiarism result in an "F" for the assignment and possible dismissal from the class.

Now, on that note, Good Luck! Let's have a great semester.

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Five Ways of Reading

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Five Ways of Reading

• Each with its own set of underlying assumptions about the nature and role of literature, authors, readers, critics, human nature . . .
• Each with its own kinds of questions
• Each revealing more about some kinds/pieces of literature than others

1. Reading for Realism
2. Reading as Experience
3. Reading for Structure
4. Reading Suspiciously
5. Reading for Culture

Reading for Realism

• Literature is realistic in one way or another, though not always obviously, and not always in relation to the same idea of reality


• Literature is about the human condition; it's a repository of cultural wisdom; authors are particularly insightful about "human nature"


• When we read, we focus on things like plot, character, setting, point-of-view, theme


• Our readings are based on belief rather than suspicion: we believe what the author/book tells us


Questions:
Some of these are the questions we ordinarily consider when we talk about a piece of literature as if its characters were real people-combined with some simple questions about structure, such as how plots help embody themes.

• What's happening here? Why? How do we know? So what?


• What motivates these characters? How do we know? So what?


• What's this piece really about? Love? Hate? Families? Growing up? Loneliness? Loss? How do we know? How realistic is the treatment?


• What does this piece tell us about human nature? Life?


Some are more complicated questions, moving beyond what we might consider a "common sense" notion of "realistic."

• What kind of realism are we dealing with here? What's the text's view of reality? What kinds of gaps are there between text and world? What kinds of techniques does the author use to represent reality?


Reading as Experience

• Literature is the experience its readers have while reading


• In thinking about texts this way, we focus on how they manipulate their readers both on small and large scales-how our experience changes from page to page, moment to moment, whether our expectations are fulfilled or not, how we automatically fill in gaps in the text


• We may assume a kind of "generic" reader-the one the text or author "wants" for itself or the "ideal" reader who knows all the references and sees all the nuances


• We might also focus on experiences of particular kinds of readers-individuals with their idiosyncracies and private psyches; readers from the text's original historical contexts; readers grouped by age, gender, race, class, kind of education, place in the world, etc.


Questions:
The big question here is always some version of what does this piece of literature do?
• How does this text manipulate its readers, word by word, line by line, chapter by chapter? Does the way it works match what it says? How do the large structural elements work? If the plot is not chronological, how do the mismatches manipulate the reader's experience?


• Where does the text set up expectations? Do these get satisfied or frustrated? So what?


• Does the reader's experience parallel the characters'? Contrast? Do we learn at the same time as the characters do, before, or after? To what effect?


• What might the experience have been for the text's earliest/original readers? Would they have been more surprised? Less? To what effect? What did the work do to the genre expectations of its own time? To general cultural values? To hot issues?


• What kind of reader does the work want for itself? How does it construct/assume this reader? What kinds of info would this text's ideal or educated reader have?


• How does the experience of different kinds of readers differ? How do the reader's time period, culture, class, race, ethnicity, gender, education matter? What are the options for resisting as readers?


Reading for Structure

• Literary works are carefully structured objects whose formal details are significant; which details matter & how varies from type to type


• Some deliberate attention to details grounds most other ways of reading; different details matter in each context


• We might focus on plot, on language and imagery and the unity of the text, on the structural "skeleton" and big underlying oppositions, on literary conventions such as genre and sub-genre, on versions of often-shared stories such as myths


Questions:

• What are the elements of the story? (consider plot, character, setting, etc.) How does each function? What if we were to take some out or rearrange them?


• Which of these elements are often found in other pieces of literature, and is their function always the same? If they are common, why? Because they are central to human life? Because they belong to dominant cultures? Because they are central literary conventions?


• What are the image patterns? What other special uses of language are here, and what do they contribute to the effect and meaning of the piece?


• Is there irony? Ambiguity? What holds the piece together as a unit? How does each detail contribute to the whole?


• Can big underlying structural issues and/or oppositions be identified-light and dark, life and death, good and evil, man and woman, individual and society? If so, how do the text's details contribute? What does the text conclude about any major oppositions, if anything?


• What role might this textual treatment of such issues play in a culture's ability to maintain itself? Are these issues common to all humans at all times? Why/not?


• Are there any underlying myths here? What kinds? Freudian myths about family relations? Myths about gender? Myths about heroes & quests? Myths about cultures & minds? Myths about class values, about history, about nature? Popular culture myths? If so, how do they function in the text, and what does the text say about them?


Reading Suspiciously

• Literature can reveal much more than is on the surface; every text and every reading is partial (biased & incomplete) and ideological; authors, texts, readers, language can't be trusted to tell the whole truth, but always hide some things while revealing others


• Here we read with a focus on the workings of personal, cultural, and textual unconscious/subconscious-the way we repress things (gaps, slips, lies), the shapes of compulsions (repetition), the way we disguise things through displacements/condensations/symbols/etc.


• We might question everything about the text-the main terms, oppositions, assumptions/values; we read for gaps, textual self-contradictions, stray details that don't seem to fit, oddities; we ask what's at stake with various elements of the text; we try to keep our interpretations unsettled


Questions:

• Are there any apparent or hidden contradictions here? Is there anything in the text that might contradict or complicate the writer's main points? Is the text ever self-critical? To what effect?


• Does the text tell us anything the writer might not have wanted it to? Can we see the writer's own personal or cultural limitations? Where and how? Might he/she have been expected-given the time period and culture-to see what we can see, or not?


• Does the text reveal any major social/cultural problems/ issues the writer might not have recognized? What are the text's ideologies?


• Does the text assume basic categories we might not assume? Does it break down/critique/analyze its own categories? If so, does it do so deliberately or accidentally? Does it critique any major cultural assumptions/values?


• Does the structure of the text seem at all to follow the structures of unconscious forces (dreams, repressions, desires, etc.)? Does it hint at hidden meanings different from the obvious meanings? If so, of what kinds? Authorial? Cultural?


• What meanings/values/assumptions seem stable here? At what cost? What's silenced to leave room for what's said?


Reading for Culture

• Literature takes part in cultural conversations about issues; forces of influence go all directions (to and from literature, to and from the rest of the world); other cultural expressions (including popular culture) may be equally relevant & useful; literature is part of the negotiations between individuals and cultures


• Here we read with a focus on how texts represent things (historically contextualized); how texts participate in the construction of the "real"; how texts might undermine or critique certain cultural representations/ assumptions/ideologies; we look at the detailed historical circumstances of both writing & reading


• These readings depend on all the strategies above, including especially those based on suspicion


Questions:

• How are categories like "femininity" or "masculinity" or "whiteness" or "blackness" or "civilization" or "nature" represented? What are the historical & cultural circumstances of these representations?


• How does the text participate in the cultural construction of categories/meanings like these? Is the text's position straightforward and single, or complex and multiple? Does it match and support the dominant views of its time, or criticize them, or subvert them?


• What does the text say about major economic systems like capitalism? What is its position re class? Race?


• What other cultural expressions of the same time might be relevant/similar? What does this text contribute that's different from or like these other things?


• What historical events/circumstances are present in this text in traces, between the lines, behind or beneath the pages? What might original readers have known that later readers, or those from different cultures or groups, would not know, and what differences would this information make to their understanding of the text? What kinds of research might one have to do to understand a text's full historical context?


• How do the issues of the reader's time & place affect his/her interpretations of texts, and in what ways are our own cultural circumstances hard to move beyond?

*(Thanks to Sue Ellen Campbell for this portion of the guide's content.)

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Text Analysis

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Text Analysis

Below are sample text analysis assignments:

• Text Analysis Papers Description "Handout"
• Sample Essay Assignment "Two Options"
• Sample Assignment "Novel Response" (Kennedy)
• Sample Essay Assignment "Literary Analysis Paper: Critical Comparison of Short Fiction" (Kennedy)
• Sample Essay Assignment "Literary Analysis Paper: Constructing a Canon" (Kennedy)

ECC140: Text Analysis Papers

For each text we read, you will be expected to hand in one text analysis paper. A text analysis paper will focus upon an area of the work that you find interesting, significant, or feel merits discussion. A text analysis paper should be fairly formal, and should genuinely attempt to shed light on one or more aspects of the work. You may discuss the significance of character, plot, setting, symbol…whatever catches your fancy. Overall, I am looking for interesting and original insights concerning the reading assignment.

An ideal text analysis will be from 1-2 pages in length, double spaced, typed. Your paper will explore a problem or point of interest created by a work of literature (this includes, but is not limited to, character motivation, thematic elements, symbol, irony, etc.). Your ideas and insights will be based on information from the pages in the text we have read so far (outside research is encouraged, but not at all necessary), calling upon specific examples to illustrate the idea or issue you are exploring. Your grade will be based on the quality and depth of your insights, and on the use of specific textual evidence as support. (Avoid the obvious! Take risks! Make it interesting! This is an issue that the class may be asked to discuss at a later date.)

Possible starting places for your text analysis include an author’s life, politics, the social context of the work, philosophical musings, how and why the work evokes a particular feeling in you, cultural relevance, or the components of the text such as the significance of setting, narrative voice, imagery, or symbolism. Or, perhaps you will read a critical approach to the text and use it as a springboard for your own ideas (the library database ContemporaryLiterary Criticism Select is often a nice starting place). Or, you may wish to explore the relationship between elements of the text (How does setting influence character?). As we move on into the later weeks of the course, you may even wish to direct your questions toward identifying patterns between texts, and asking what the significance of these patterns might be.

The Dos and Don’ts of Text Analysis Papers:

**Remember: Text analysis papers must be typed and submitted on time. They will be evaluated on the basis of focus, development, use of evidence, creativity, and level of insight. They will count as 20% of your final grade, and be marked in the following manner:

++ Excellent!! Top Notch!! (100%)
+ Very insightful & original (95%)
+ Good, but less support or originality (85%)
Satisfactory (75%)
- Poor, but acceptable (65%)
- Unacceptable (40%)

E CC 140 Essay Assignment

Due: November 21, 2003

Requirements: 4-6 pages. Stapled. Double-spaced. Times New Roman 12 point font. All citations will be MLA Parenthetical citation.

Option #1: A common type of literary analysis asks you to compare and contrast elements of two different texts. For example, you could analyze the similarities and differences between two characters, or you could examine how one theme is handled in similar and dissimilar ways in two different texts.

For this assignment, you will draw on the writing skills that you have practiced in your interpretive responses up until now. You will focus your response, you will develop it, and you will use specific textual evidence. The difference is that you will be writing about two texts instead of one.

You may choose from any of the readings we have done this semester including poetry, short fiction, and drama. You may also choose two texts from two different genres to write about. For example, you might discuss the theme of a master narrative in The Bluest Eye and “Death of a Salesman.” While comparing these texts, the evidence you use for each one may be different because you will look to drama in different way than a novel.

Option #2: Instead of comparing two written texts, you may extend your reading skills into the “texts” of the everyday by comparing and contrasting your reading of an assigned text with a reading of a “text” in popular culture. So, for example, you could talk about constructed ideas of beauty in The Bluest Eye and use your reading of that text (supported with specific textual examples) to explore the nature of beauty (or identity) in a popular magazine or television show. Does this popular text reinforce or challenge the systems of beauty and identity that Morrison creates in her text? You will need to provide specific evidence from both texts to support your overall thesis.

Both of these options have a lot of flexibility. Feel free to meet with me to talk through some ideas early in your writing process, or send me an email to get some feedback on specific ideas you are thinking about.

For Monday November 10:

#1 Please answer one of the following topics:

--Choose one character in Death of a Salesman and consider how this character uses doublethink to interpret the world around them. Spend some time explaining what doublethink is, then apply it to Death of a Salesman. Why do these characters rely on doublethink?

--Compare and contrast the experiences of Pecola Breedlove and Willie Loman. What is their relationship to the culture around them? Who’s writing the narrative of their experience and their sense of self?

#2 Please generate one discussion question about the Jackson Katz movie and bring it to class on Monday. Feel free to type it or write it on your response essay.

Kennedy
ECC140

In lieu of the writing prompts on the syllabase calendar, I want you to consider writing your responses for the novel using the suggestions below. This list of writing possibilities is varied and broad, but it is by no means comprehensive or exclusive. As always, you may have your own ideas for responding to the reading, and you may write in any appropriate vein.

Formalist Approach:
characterization
theme
setting and atmosphere
imagery
irony
conflict
style
humor/pathos/emotional devices
structure
narrative devices/flashbacks
diction/language/dialect
foreshadowing

Philosophical Approach:
existentialism
fatalism
moral turpitude
truth vs. illusion
violation of moral order
ethics

Feminist/Gender Approach:
powerful women
male vs. female roles
male-female relationships

Psychoanalytical Approach:
examination of id, ego, or super ego
examination of spirit vs. appetite
examination of reason vs. emotion
co-dependency
inner child
state of arrested development
personality disorders
family dysfunctions
pathological lying
alcoholism/addictions
alienation without integration
suicide
male bonding

Marxist Approach:
social classes (wealthy, middle, poor)

Historical or New Historical Approach:
the agrarian age vs. industrial age
primitive rituals/folklore/superstitions
politics
economic market: supply/demand
music/songs/dances

Mythological/Archetypal Approach:
archetypes
the Goddess of Fortune
tragic hero
the anti-hero
the mentor/mystic guide
the revenge motive

Biographical Approach:
Hardy’s life as inspiration

Deconstructionist Approach:
textual inconsistencies/contradictions

Reader Response Approach:
reader’s personal connections

Kennedy
ECC 140
Fall 2003

Assignment: Literary Analysis Paper: Critical Comparison of Short Fiction

Length: 5-7 double-spaced pages; about 1200-1500 words

Format: Typed, double-spaced, manuscript form with standard margins; Works Cited page; stapled

Due: at the beginning of class on Wednesday November 19, 2003

Prompt: In her 1964 essay, “Against Interpretation,” Susan Sontag writes: “Real art has the capacity to make us nervous.” Of the 28 short stories we have read, choose two or three short stories with common themes or two or three which fall under a type of critical approach that might make readers nervous. Think about writers who succeed in telling stories that are likely to unsettle readers, to shake them from their preconceived notions, to uncover an experience that they might not otherwise see. Please write a formal essay in which you compare and contrast the way the writers use narrative forms to shape their stories and develop their themes or ideas or characters. Feel free to choose any combination of stories we discussed. (You may find the groupings in the Appendix of our text on pages 1405-1417 helpful.) You should anchor your essay with one of the various critical approaches to studying literature. (See handout and Appendix pp. 1417-1422) Be sure to focus your argument with a strong, clear thesis, and support your claim with ample evidence from the fiction. (Your selections/ approach/ thesis must be approved by instructor, no later than Thursday Oct 29, 2003.)

I do not want you to do outside research for this assignment. I am interested in your own critical thinking and writing. Your in text references and your Works Cited page with simply reflect the fiction pieces you are analyzing in this comparative paper. You should not be investigating or need to reference any outside sources. You need to consider fictional selections that you find similar when looking at them under the lens of one of the following critical approaches:

Formalist Approach:

Biographical Approach:

Historical or Sociological (New Historical) Approach:

Marxist Approach:

Feminist or Gender or Ethnic Approach:

Mythological Approach:

Psychoanalytical Approach:

Reader Response or Deconstructionist Approach:

Kennedy
ECC 140
Fall 2003

Assignment: Literary Analysis Paper #2: Constructing a Canon

Length: 5-6 double-spaced pages; about 1000-1250 words

Format: Typed, double-spaced, manuscript form with standard margins; stapled

Due: at the beginning of class on Wednesday December 10, 2003

Prompt: You’ve been appointed the student member of a university-wide committee to revise the core curriculum. The committee has decided to require that all students enrolled in Colorado State University must take ECC140, and you have been asked to nominate 8 to 10 fiction selections that will be required reading for at least one section of the course. (By strange coincidence, the list from which you are to choose these selections is the list of selections we have read this semester.) You are, in other words, constructing the canon.

Think carefully about what constitutes the kind of literature that college students should be reading. Then, write an essay of 1000-1250 words nominating the 8 to 10 selections from among those we have read this semester. Your essay should have a clear thesis which suggests how you have made your choices. Your essay paragraphs should open with topic sentences giving the title and author and genre of each of your selections, and these paragraphs should be developed with your specific justification of each of your choices (why you have chosen these selections). You may take into account the following issues:

• To what extent will your choices be made on aesthetic grounds? What are your criteria for excellence in fiction? Have you considered how your own cultural background and past reading affect what you consider aesthetic grounds?
• Would you describe your choices as traditional? Experimental? Modernist? Eclectic? Classics? Should such labels matter when creating a canon?
• Will your choices span centuries? Or will you choose only contemporary fiction from the last 40 or 50 years? What will you expect the stories to demonstrate about the times in which they are written?
• Will your choices represent a range of writers (male and female, black, white, Hispanic, Native American, straight, gay, American, British, Russian, French, Irish, Greek, Norwegian, and so forth)? Why or why not?
• Are themes or thematic connections important to you? Should all selections center around a single thematic construct, such as “the move from innocence to experience”?
• Are social issues important to you? Should the fiction selections reflect a variety of social issues: racism, homosexuality, poverty, sexism, alcoholism, and so forth?
• Is the list you’ve been given sufficient? Are there choices you’d like to make that aren’t included on our syllabus?

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

• In-class Activities
• Group Presentations

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 In-class Activities

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

In-class Activities

There's room for lots of innovation here, so use your imagination and don't be afraid to experiment.

Think about group size & space & sound-level issues; sometimes group students yourself according to skill, talkativeness, interests; sometimes let them choose their own groups (you can make changes if you see these not working); try to make groups accountable for their work, though having each one report out doesn't necessarily work; you'll probably have to stay active during small group work to keep them on the job; can link groups (have one group write 3 questions the text raises, pass them to the right, add 3 more, pass again, answer all 6); can assign roles within small groups (time-keeper, discussion leader, recorder/reporter, etc.)

Have pairs or threes of students share their reponses and confusions with each other at beginning of class; when nobody answers a big general question, try this; ask them what's confusing, write it down; sometimes works for warmup with slow class, lets them get their brains in gear.

Consider alternative kinds of assignments, such as

• drawing or other art work-design a cover for the text; a set for the play; a conceptual map
• have a mock trial for a character like Oedipus, where guilt is an issue (or several, so more students take part), then have them write it up and hand it in
• have students choose the texts they want to study (stories from a collection or poems ditto)
• acting-have them write a skit based on choice of your scenarios that mix characters from 2 or 3 texts, then perform it; have them walk through a brief scene; run an in-class audition for a play; get volunteers by asking who has acted before, who'd like to act; choose a short chunk of text, have the class work as director; have them decide who they'd cast in a film of the text (and why), also how they'd handle setting, mood, etc.
• write letters or postcards between characters; have one group write questions one character would ask the author, the reader, another character, then pass them to the next group who must answer them from those three perspective

Shift at some point into fast (2-5 minutes) personal questions about students' related experiences (could you relate to this? How?); then 5-8 minutes writing on specific instance of similar experience; ask for volunteers to share & summarize

Try taking an extreme interpretive position (e.g., Oedipus is a twit), but phrase it to show them how to take a position they don't necessarily believe (What if I said that O is a twit; Could we make an argument that O is a twit; Did anybody here think at any moment that O is a twit)

Try overhead writing prompts; have them write down or say aloud all the questions they have about something, then separate them into types of questions (in groups first?)

Buy yourself some crayons and big newsprint paper to use in small groups, or if you have a room with lots of chalkboards, use them

Read aloud, especially poetry (and poems probably at least twice); try reading and annotating with the overhead projector; try prereading (again, maybe overhead); have students read aloud, alone or as a group chorus

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Group Presentations

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Group Presentations

The purpose of the group presentation is to seek out and report information concerning a text that will be valuable to our class discussions. The presentations will provide an introduction to the work, and help others in the class identify what is interesting/controversial/artistic about the text.

For the purpose of these presentations, it will not be necessary to read the book in its entirety. If you wish to read ahead, you may. Yet please be aware that you are only required to present on the basis of the characters and events that appear in the reading that has been assigned to the class so far.

The information that you are expected to present includes the following:

1) Biographical information
What happened in the author's life that may have influenced his/her writing? (For example, Mary Shelley experienced quite a bit of death and tragedy in her life. How may this have influenced her when writing Frankenstein?) Be sure not to merely list the timeline of the author's life. Rather, discuss significant biographical events and explain why/how they may have influenced the writing of a specific text.

2) Historical context
Discuss at least one of the following: 1) What was going on in the world at the time the work was written? 2) What was going on in the world at the time the novel or story was set?

As in the biography section, be sure to cover more than just "timeline." In addition to explaining significant historical events, discuss why/how they may have influenced the writing of the text.

3) Close Reading: Character and Plot
This section should be divided between two group members. The first group member will look closely at several major characters present in the work, sharing with the class ideas or insights about the chosen characters. Among some of the questions to be answered are: What drives or motivates these characters? What thematic purpose do they serve? Why did the author choose to include these characters?

The second group member will be responsible for analyzing plot. Look closely at the scenes or events in the story, and determine why or how they are significant. Delve into major themes presented through the story, and point to any events of particular importance (clarifying symbols, irony, etc.)

Remember: Materials that you present to the class should not be a simple re-telling of events that occurred in that day's reading. Do not just summarize the text, or create character sketches. Rather, analyze the significance and thematic importance of the plot and characters. Tell us something about the plot and characters that a "casual reader" may fail to understand, or miss entirely. Remember, your job is to analyze and interpret the text on a meaningful (and interesting) level.

4) Critical Approaches
You will be asked to find a critical essay that discusses the work at hand, and summarize the essay's main ideas to the class. Clearly identify the essay's major insights into the text, and explain its criticisms. It is your group's responsibility to choose an interesting, relevant essay. Critical essays can occasionally be found online, but are not always very informative or scholarly. Appropriate essays can be found in the reference section of the Morgan Library, or through the library's online databases (such as Contemporary Literary Criticism Select). If you are having trouble locating a critical essay, don't hesitate to ask a reference librarian for assistance.

Remember: Reviews are not the same as critical essays. Reviews are typically superficial ("Spellbinding!" A must-read!"), and don't go into the kind of depth we're looking for. An ideal critical essay will analyze the historical significance, content (major themes, hidden meaning), and craft (use of symbols, imagery) of a work.

5) Insights & ideas for discussion
After gathering all this information, create at least five interesting and open-ended questions for discussion and pose them to the class. These questions will come at the close of your presentation, and will kick off class discussion (which you will be in charge of!). Ideally, these questions will incorporate some of the ideas you have mentioned in you presentation.

Please note: you must turn in a typed list of questions to your instructor before the start of the presentation. (This will insure that if time runs out for this section of the presentation, your questions can be used at a later date.)

Poor question: What is the name of the main character in White Noise? Good question: Should White Noise be classified as a satire? If so, what cultural attitudes does DeLillo seem to be poking fun at?

Length, Task Division, and Evaluation

Unless otherwise specified, presentations will be given on the first scheduled class date for the work you have chosen. They are expected to last at least 35 minutes (but with discussion, will usually take up the entire class period). Although the workload should be divided equally between all members, the speaking responsibility may be shared in whatever manner you see fit. Each member of the group will be given the same grade on the presentation, and it will amount to 10% of your final grade.

One the day after you present, you must submit a group presentation self-evaluation detailing the cooperation between group members. This form is located on SyllaBase. (From our class page, click on "Course Information." From there, click "Description of Assignments.")

Be creative, informative, and enthusiastic! Keep the group's attention, and use visual aids whenever possible.

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Study Questions

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Study Questions

Below are Study Questions:

• Sample Study Guide (McGoldrick)
• Sample Final Review Study Guide (Review Sheet)

ECC140 Study Guide (by week)

ECC140 Study Guide #1:
Reader-Response Criticism (Weeks 1, 2 and 3)

Theory
Subjectivism
Subject
Object
Subjectivity
Objectivity
Thought

Criticism
Reading as a creative act
Ambiguities and contradictions
Gaps
Interpretation: the story of the reader’s encounter with the text
Experiencing language, the text, and meaning
Expectations
Assumptions
Associations
Meaning (W. Iser)
Meaning (related to imagination)
Texts direct readings; readers construct meaning
Reception Theory

Literary Terms and Techniques
Repetition
Imagery
Point of View: 1st, 2nd, 3rd person
Surrealist
Image
Genre (poem, story, cross-genre)

Authors and Works
O’Brien, “The Things They Carried”
Browning, “How Do I love thee? Let me count the ways”
Dickinson , “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain”
Stein, “Susie Asado”
Kumin, “The Excrement Poem”
Harjo, “She Had Some Horses”
Breton, “Free Union”
Williams, “The Red Wheelbarrow”
Piercy, “Barbie Doll”
Kincaid, “Girl”
Chopin, “The Story of an Hour”

ECC140 Study Guide #2:
Formalism (Weeks 4 & 5)

Theory
Text as object
Aristotle: “orderly arrangement of parts”
Romanticism: fascination with nature
Text as organism/body
“Art for art’s sake”
Subject (the reader) isn’t of concern

Criticism
Close reading
Systematic, scientific study
Interrelationships
Intrinsic/Extrinsic concerns

Authors and Works
1. William Wordsworth: “A slumber did my spirit seal”
2. William Blake: “ London”
3. Ezra Pound: “Canto 1”
4. Sandra Cisneros: “The House on Mango Street”

ECC140 Study Guide #3:
Biographical Criticism (Weeks 6 & 7)

Criticism
Biography/Text Relationships
Biographical Questions
Biographical Evidence
Autobiography
Memory and Creativity

Biographies
Cisneros
O’Brien
Browning
Harjo
Chopin
Kincaid
Plath
Olds
Komunyakaa
Forche
Daniels

Literary Terms and Techniques
Persona
“Spots of Time”
Romanticism
Modernism
Confessional Poetry
Prose Poem

Authors and Works
S. Cisneros, “The House on Mango Street”
Sandra Cisneros, “Twister Hits Houston”
Sandra Cisneros, “Curtains”
S. Cisneros, “I Am on My Way to Oklahoma”
Anonymous, “Hymn to the Fallen”
William Wordsworth, “The Prelude”
Sylvia Plath, “Daddy”
Sharon Olds, “I Go Back to May 1937”
Yusef Komunyakaa, “Facing It”
Carolyn Forche, “The Colonel”
Jim Daniels, “Short-order Cook”

ECC140 Study Guide #4:
Feminist Criticism (Weeks 9 & 10)

Theory
Patriarchy
“Othering”
Gender Roles
Ecofeminism

Criticism
Representations of women
Gender roles: challenged/reinforced
Women’s experiences
Literary canon
Gynocriticism: Elaine Showalter, “a world of their own”, feminine texts, feminist texts, female texts

Characters (gender roles) Nora, Anne Marie, Emmy, Mrs. Linde Dr. Rank, Ivar & Bob, Torvald Krogstad, Connie

Literary Terms and Techniques
Drama: Dialogue/Text, Action/Subtext, Offstage Situations, Motif and Theme Act and Scene
Fiction : Character, Setting, Plot; Character-driven fiction; Tension; Crisis; Point; Scene/Summary
Poetry : Anaphora, Stream of Consciousness, Speaker (Gender?)

Authors and Works
Ibsen: “A Doll House”
Oates: “Where Are You Going, Where have you been?”
Q. Elizabeth I: “When I was fair and young”
Brontë: “Riches I hold in light esteem”
Sexton: “Cinderella”
Atwood: “Woman Who Could Not Live. . .”
Waldman: “Makeup on Empty Space”

ECC140 Study Guide #5:
Historical Criticism (Weeks 11 & 12)

Theory
Assumptions:
-Literature provides us with nuances of a historical period that can’t be perceived through other sources
-Literature reflects, produces, or is produced by its social conditions
-A literary work remains part of the past in which it was composed

Criticism
Traditional Historical Criticism:
Hippolyte Taine
Learn History through Literature
Cultural Criticism:
Popular Culture
“High”/ “Low” Art
Variety of methods
Social, Political, Economic Contexts
Marxist Criticism:
Race, Class, Power, and Culture
Marxist Critics’ Aims
Money & Power vs. Morality & Justice
(Capitalism vs. Socialism)
New Historicist Criticism:
Multidimensionality
Writing and Reading as Social Acts
Interaction between historical context & a reader’s interpretation

Literary Terms and Techniques
Scene
Summary
Character
Psychology

Authors and Works
Hawthorne : “Young Goodman Brown”
Melville: “Bartleby, the Scrivener”
Parker: “Bartleby” (film)
Putnam’s Monthly Magazine
Roethke: “My Papa’s Waltz”
Brooks: “The Bean Eaters”
Johnson: “On My First Son”
Bambara: “The Lesson

ECC140 Study Guide #6:
Deconstructionist Criticism (Weeks 13 & 14)

Theory:
Jacques Derrida
Binary Opposition
Ferdinand de Saussure
Linguistics
Paul de Man
Imprecise Language

Authors and Works
Atwood: “Woman Who Could Not. . .”
Kincaid: “Girl”
Stein: “Susie Asado”
Mura: “Grandfather-In-Law”
Shakespeare: Sonnet 130
Yeats: “Among Schoolchildren”
Jarrell: “Woman at the Washington Zoo”
Roethke: “My Papa’s Waltz”
“Clydsedale” Bank Statement
Berrigan: Sonnets Hejinian: from “My Life”
Violi: “Index” and “Rifacimento”
Corso: “Marriage”
Ashbery: “Farm Implements. . .”
Notley: “Jack Would Speak. . .”
Trinidad : “Double Trouble”

Criticism:
Close Reading
Examining Language
Author’s Intent
Aporic Junctures
Plurality of Meaning—derived from language
Jouissance

Literary Terms and Techniques
Figurative Language
Metaphor (Tenor & Vehicle)
Metonymy
Ambiguity
Obscurity
Aporia
Undecidability
Undecidable Narrative
Undecidable Syntax
Unanswerable Questions
Found Form
Closure
Indeterminacy

E140 Final Exam Review Sheet

Identification :

Be able to match authors, titles, and characters of all the stories we’ve read so far. Also, know the key historical figures, genres, literary movements, conventions, etc.

Literary Terminology:

Know the definitions of the following terms. You will be asked to define terms in your own words and provide examples of them from the stories we have read, briefly explaining why that example is appropriate.

plot
flashback
motivation
rising action
conflict
round character
climax
denouement or
protagonist
irony (3 types)
Feryag's triangle
theme
setting (3 functions)
huris
Realism
Tragedy
hamartia

character
characterization
omniscient
dynamic character
static character
flat character
stock character
subplot
symbolism
conventional
allegory
literary
catharsis
representational
exposition
foreshadowing
recognition
reversal
resolution
antagonist
dichotomy
tone
diction
antihero
Theater of the Absurd
problem play
tragicomedy

Theme:
Know how to state the theme of a story and support it with specific references to a text. You will be given direct quotes from the stories and asked to identify each quote and explain how that quote relates to a theme of the story. The best way to study for this section is to identify different themes within each of the stories and then to look for a key quote or two that would illustrate that theme. If you’re familiar with the stories and can support your answer well, you should do fine with this section. Here’s an example:

County Attorney (as one turning from serious things to little pleasantries): Well, ladies, have you decided whether she was going to quilt it or knot it?

This quote is from Trifles and serves to emphasize the social roles of and relationships between the men and women of the play. As the play’s title suggests, the women of this play (and perhaps women everywhere in this culture that Glaspell is critiquing) are looked upon by the men as little more than big children who spend their time in silly, unimportant pursuits while the men keep the world turning, maintain law and order, and make history. This quote emphasizes that idea as the County Attorney takes a brief moment from his “serious” murder investigation, to which the women can contribute nothing, and checks in on what the ladies have been up to in the kitchen, their trifling “little pleasantries.” The central irony of the play, of course, is that the “ladies[‘]” examination of the quilt, which the CA so patronizingly refers to, has actually revealed one of the most crucial clues, but only to the eyes that are capable of seeing it. The men are blinded by their foolish arrogance, whereas the women, by not offering their discovery, have begun a quiet resistance that the men may never perceive, but that—for the audience of the play—turns gender stereotypes on their head. The theme revealed in this quote is that the arrogance and ignorance associated with the masculine sense of power is can be quietly, yet effectively, undermined by those who refuse to passively accept it.

How well does this answer respond to the question?
What are some other possible answers to this question?

Take-Home Essay Question:

The purpose of the essay question is to get you to synthesize and apply what you have been learning. For the essay, you will need to state a thesis that responds to the question posed and support that thesis with relevant, specific examples from the story—as with the Response Essays!

An effective answer to an essay question will demonstrate the following:

• A response to the question asked--not just information about the story in general.

• A solid understanding of the texts and concepts addressed.

• A focused response which sticks to the question at hand.

• Textual facts and specific, relevant, explained examples. Support!

• Clear, readable organization and style.

Please note: this exam is open notes. However, you may not use handouts, copies or the textbook itself, except on take-home questions.

Please bring your pocket folder to put everything in.

Good luck!

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Alternative Assignments

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Alternative Assignments

• Homework

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Homework

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Homework

Some thoughts on homework for ECC140 from Rebecca McGoldrick:

The two major purposes for the homeworks are: 1) to get the students applying the "ways of reading" ideas to the reading, and 2) to make sure students are reading and that discussion therefore is possible. To those ends, I tell students that the homeworks are in large part for them, and that I won't be scrutinizing them for "right" ideas or for organization, mechanics, etc. I manage the paper load by using a completion mark grading system, and by making sure students realize that I won't always make comments on the papers. And indeed I don't--when, as I'm skimming through, I have a thought that I am compelled to note down, I note it. Normally I spend an hour or two after class going over the homework, and using strengths/weaknesses I notice in it to help plan for the next class. Students understand that the homework enables them to participate more easily in discussions, and that, if they want to discuss it further, they can do so during office hours. A few students complained on evaluations that there was too much work, but others verified that the homework was beneficial and, actually, enjoyable.

• Sample Homework Assignments (McGoldrick)

ECC140 Homework Assignments

Readings come from Literature: A Portable Anthology and from e-reserve. The texts on e-reserve are:

Chopin. “In Sabine”
Pound. “Canto 1”
Wordsworth. From “The Prelude” (lines 258-390)
Anonymous. “Hymn to the Fallen”
Breton. “Free Union”
Cisneros. “Twister Hits Huston”, “Curtains”, “I Am on My Way to Oklahoma. . .”
“Deconstructionism” definition from The Bedford Glossary of Literary Terms (p.75-83)
Corso. “Marriage”
Berrigan. “Sonnet LXXXVIII” and “Sonnet II”
Hejinian. From “My Life” (first section)
Violi. “Index” and “Rifacimento”
Ashbery. “Farm Implements and Rutabagas in a Landscape”
Notley. “Jack Would Speak through the Imperfect Medium of Alice”
Trinidad . “Double Trouble”

ECC140 Homework 1: Due Thursday, August 26

Read “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien (p. 332). Type a one-page response, thinking about any of the following:

1. What is the effect of the narrator’s repetitive listing of the things the soldiers carry? How does it make you feel as a reader?
2. Which character in the story stands out most in your mind? Why?
3. Why does Jimmy Cross burn all of Martha’s letters and photos? How does he change after he burns them? Is this change good?
4. What does the story tell us about shame and courage?
5. How does the story make you feel about war?
6. What does the story get you thinking about?

ECC140 Homework 2: Due Tuesday, August 31

Read the following poems:

(Read the poem silently, read it aloud, look up unfamiliar words, write notes in the margins)

p. 457, Browning, “How Do I love thee? Let me count the ways”

p. 488, Dickinson, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain”

p. 512, Stein, “Susie Asado”

p. 571, Kumin, “The Excrement Poem”

p. 674, Harjo, “She Had Some Horses”

Choose one of the poems and write a 1-page response describing your experience of reading it. You might write about the language or imagery that was very vivid, you might consider what confused you and why, you might compare your expectations with your actual experience of reading the poem.

ECC140 Homework 3: Due Thursday, September 2

Read “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid (p. 347), and type a one-page response to any of the following:

Describe what happens when you (the subject) encounter the text (the object).

In what ways are you participating in creating the text as you read it?

What techniques has the writer used to help direct your reading of the text?

Is this a poem, or a story? Why?

What images are the most vivid? Why might they be?

ECC140 Homework 4: Due Tuesday, September 7

1. Read “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin
2. In a paragraph (typed, please), describe Mrs. Mallard’s reaction to the news of her husband’s death.

ECC140 Homework 5: Due Thursday, September 9

In response to Kate Chopin’s story “In Sabine” a reviewer from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1894 told his readers that the story is “full of humor”. Read the story and then write a response that answers the question: what could have caused this reviewer to view the story as humorous? Think about the text itself—did Chopin use any techniques that might suggest lightness or humor to her readers? Think about the reviewer—what might have been his purpose in reviewing the book? What might his “horizon of expectations” been? What else might have influenced his reading?

ECC140 Homework 6: Due Tuesday, September 14

A slumber did my spirit seal;

I had no human fears;

She seemed a thing that could not feel

The touch of earthly years.

No motion has she now, no force;

She neither hears nor sees;

Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course,

With rocks, and stones, and trees.

Read this poem (yes; this is the whole poem) closely, and answer all of the following questions:

1. What does “slumber” mean in line 1? What does “earthly” mean in line 4?

What do “motion” and “force” mean in line 5? What does “diurnal” mean in line 7?

2. Describe the rhythm and rhyme scheme.

3. What does the speaker tell the reader?

4. Between stanzas, there is a gap (a literal gap as well as a gap in the poem’s narrative).

What happens in that space/time?

5. How do the concepts of sleep, motion, time and earth work in the poem?

6. What are some of the poem’s soft sounds (those that are easy to say; that are fluid)?

What are some of the harsh sounds of the poem (those that require more effort to pronounce)?

ECC140 Homework 7: Due Thursday, September 16

Read “ London” by William Blake (p. 422), and respond to all of the following questions:

1. Note down the denotations and the connotations of:

Chartered, ban, mind-forged manacles, appalls, hapless, harlot, blights, and hearse.

2. Describe the poem’s rhythm and its rhyme scheme.
3. What are the literal events of this poem’s narrative?
4. What colors do the poem’s images suggest?
5. In what ways is sound important in this poem?
6. Describe the tone of the poem.

ECC140 Homework 8: due Tuesday, September 21

Read “Canto 1” by Ezra Pound.

Answer the following questions:

1. Who is speaking the poem?
2. What is the narrative (the series of events) in the poem?
3. Describe the poem’s tone.

Then, for the section of the poem you were assigned in class, do a close reading:

1. Look up all nouns, adjectives and verbs. What are the denotations? What are the connotations?
2. Look up (research) all allusions.

ECC140 Homework 9: Due Thursday, September 23

Read “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros (page 358).

Do a close reading of the story, thinking about Formalism in fiction:

• What is the narrative?
• What is the tone?
• Who is the narrator?
• What language recurs? Why might it recur?
• Are there any symbols? The house, perhaps? The nun?
• What motifs are within the story?
• How is the story significant beyond its narrative?

ECC140 Homework 10: Due Thursday, September 30

Choose from any of the texts we read during weeks 1-5. Re-read the text, and make a list of biographical questions that the text raises. Then, in the library or online, research the author. Find answers to your questions. Note down anything about the text that your research illuminates.

Then, type a 1-page summary of your questions, your research and your conclusions.

ECC140 Homework 11: Due Tuesday October 5

Memory Poem

This assignment comes from poet Lynn Emanuel and "is meant to invite writers to move away from the present and to engage with remembrance, to work with material that straddles memory and invention."

Choose a quiet place where you won't be interrupted (too much anyway!).

1. Draw a blueprint of the first house you can remember living in. If you still live in that house, or if the memory of the house is uninteresting or vague, you may choose another house from early childhood: a grandparent's house, an aunt and uncle's house, a babysitter's house, etc.

The blueprint doesn’t have to be stellar art; it’s to help prompt your memory. Begin drawing each of the rooms. Include, if they existed and were important to you, the yard, attic, basement, garage. Draw in shapes for furniture, trees, whatever stirs your memory. Don't worry about what you don't remember. The important thing is to keep going. Doing this should feel a little like being in a dream--objects and events will present themselves to you.

2. After finishing the blueprint, free write about this house. Put your pencil on a pad of paper (or type if you prefer) and write as fast as you can--without stopping--for 10 to 15 minutes. Write down whatever memories occur to you; again, act as though you are transcribing a dream. Write out/about scenes, objects, places, clothing, someone's hair, the plum tree in the back yard, the greasy place on the cement floor of the garage where the motor oil spilled,

etc. Respond to each of the 5 senses. Specifically, what do you see, hear, smell, taste, touch--including what touches you. You should write so quickly that only you can read the handwriting. Forget about grammar, spelling, punctuation. If you get stuck in your remembering, write the last word in the last sentence again and again until your memory jogs forward. Don't stop. You should have 5 to 10 pages at the end of a session of strenuous free writing.

3. After you finish your free writing, put it away. The next day, take it out and read it; as you are reading it, underline phrases, bits of language, moments that seem interesting. At this point, you can do one of two things. Before you go further, you can generate more material by putting some of those interesting bits of material at the top of a new page and free write more about them. Or you can begin to construct the first draft of your poem.

4. In order to construct the first draft, don't worry about how to put all this material together. Your first draft should be a list poem. Start every line or every new sentence with the same phrase. It can be as simple as "I remember." Or you might try "What I loved best" or "Here are the secrets of . . ." or "Here are some things I didn't know then . . . " or "I was always afraid of . . . ." You get the picture. One of Emmanuel's favorite first lines in this exercise is "What I loved best about the Cook Street house in Denver was my father's belt hanging on a nail in the dark bathroom." Go for long lines and go for length. This draft should be at least a page to a page and 1/2 long. Here's one more thing you should do: Tell at least one lie. It should be a lie so well done, however, that we won't know it from truth. How do you know the line about the belt isn't a lie?

5. After you do this draft, you should return once more to the poem. Take our some of the "I remembers" or whatever phrase you choose to begin your lines. You might put some of them in the middle or at the ends of lines. Do this so the poem doesn't sound quite so mechanical.

6. Bring the typed poem to class--along with your free write, earlier drafts and your blueprint. Don't worry; I won't be reading your free write--just flipping through it to see how you approached the assignment.

ECC140 Homework 12: Due Thursday, October 7

Read the following poems:

Plath: “Daddy” (602)

Olds: “I Go Back to May 1937” (639)

Komunyakaa: “Facing It” (657)

Forche: “The Colonel” (669)

Daniels: “Short-Order Cook” (704)

Then, choose one poem to focus on and generate a list of biographical questions (at least 4) that the text raises. Research the author (internet or library) to find answers. Finally, ask yourself: “so what?”—how does your research affect your reading of the poem? What does it tell you about the poem?

ECC140 Homework 13: Due Tuesday, October 19

(No Class Thursday, October 14—English Department Reading Day)

Read A Doll House by Henrik Ibsen. (p. 885-943)

Type a one-page response to any of the following:

1. Describe the society in which the characters have grown up and live.
2. Why might Ibsen have titled the play “A Doll’s House”?
3. Think about the character of Nora, and discuss the aspect(s) of her that you found to be the most interesting.

ECC140 Homework 14: due Thursday, October 21

From “A Doll House” choose a female character on whom to focus, and answer all of the following questions:

• What is Ibsen’s attitude towards her?
• What is your attitude towards her?
• How do (at least 2) other characters view her?
• How does she view herself?

ECC140 Homework 15: Due Tuesday, October 26

Read “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”

by Joyce Carol Oates (276-290).

In a 1-page response, give your thoughts on the following:

How are traditional gender roles challenged and/or reinforced in the story?

ECC140 Homework 16: Due Thursday, October 28

Read all of the following poems:

Queen Elizabeth I: “When I was fair and young” (375)

Brontë: “Riches I hold in light esteem” (466)

Sexton: “Cinderella” (591)

Atwood: “The Woman Who Could Not Live with Her Faulty Heart” (625)

Waldman: “Makeup on Empty Space” (649)

Then, choose one poem on which to focus, and write a 1-page response to any of the following:

• Who is speaking the poem? Is it necessarily a female speaker? How do we know/how can we infer?
• What is the speaker’s attitude?
• What are the poem’s surprises?
• What are the poem’s goals? Is it attempting to disrupt any accepted norms?
• How are women represented in the poem?
• Does the poem challenge and/or reinforce traditional gender roles?
• Without knowing the author’s name, would we know that a woman wrote the poem? Why/why not?

ECC140 Homework 17: Due Tuesday, November 2

Read “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne (3-13).

In a 1-page response, consider any of the following:

1. Discuss gender roles in the story.
2. In what ways could this story be considered an artifact of history?
3. What does this story teach us about history?
4. What do we learn about New England from this story that we don’t learn from a history textbook? Or, how does a story teach us differently than a history book?
5. Does Nathaniel Hawthorne have the responsibility to portray the characters and events in the story accurately?

ECC140 Homework 18: Due Thursday, November 4

Read “Bartleby, the Scrivener” by Herman Melville (p.20-50)

In a page, respond to the following questions:

1. What is the nature of the narrator’s business?
2. Describe Bartleby’s character “development”. How does he change throughout the story?
3. Are there any connections between the narrator’s business and Bartleby’s development? Or, why does Bartleby change the way he does?

ECC140 Homework 19: due Tuesday, November 9

Compare the short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener” with the movie “Bartleby” (Parker, 2003). Write a one-page cultural criticism response, considering one of the following:

1. What do the two works reveal about their respective cultures?
2. Does Jonathan Parker’s movie make attempts to cross boundaries between “high” and “low” art?
3. Compare the ways contemporary audiences might respond to the story and to the movie.
4. How is color used in the story? How is color used in the movie? What is significant about this?

ECC140 Homework 20: Due Thursday, November 11

Choose a text: either from our book or from another source. Be a cultural critic—one who considers any artifact of culture to be a text for critical “literary” analysis—and choose a text that can show us a lot about its cultural context.

In a one page response, consider the following:

What does this work reflect about its historical, social, political and/or economic context? You may focus on race, class, power, cultural values and beliefs, historical events, the author’s biography, gender, psychology, etc.

ECC140 Homework 21: Due Tuesday, November 16

1. Read “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara (beginning on page 304).
2. Choose one of these Historical Criticism questions, and write a one-page response:

Traditional : How does the work reflect the period in which it was written?

Cultural : What does the work reveal about the cultural behavior contemporary to it?

Marxist : How are class differences presented in the work? Are characters aware or unaware of the economic and social forces that affect their lives?

New Historicist : How does your own historical moment affect your reading of the work?

ECC140 Homework 22: Due Thursday, November 18

Read the Deconstructionism handout (on e-reserve) and type answers to the following questions:

1. What are some of Deconstructionism’s major characteristics?
2. Explain Jacques Derrida’s ideas on binary opposition.
3. Explain Saussure’s ideas of linguistics.
4. Explain Structuralism.
5. What is “aporia”?
6. Explain ambiguity and undecidability.
7. Why do some people disagree with Deconstructionism?
8. What are some of the ways in which Deconstuctionism has branched out from literature?

ECC140 Homework 23: due Thursday, December 2

As a Deconstructionist, read “Marriage” by Gregory Corso. Read closely: look up allusions, and the denotations of any words with which you are unfamiliar. Mark connotations that occur to you as you read. Look at the ways Corso uses line, stanzas, space and sound. Make note of striking images. Also, look for moments of aporia within the language (conflicts, contradictions, unanswerable questions, obscure words and images, etc.)

In a one-page response, answer:

-What are the most notable things from your close reading?

-What moments of aporia did you notice?

-What language creates those moments?

-Does this poem’s language contribute to a unified meaning, or to plural meanings?

ECC140 Homework 24: Due Tuesday, December 7

Read poems by Ashbery, Notley, and Trinidad (on e-reserve). Choose one to closely read, as a deconstructionist:

Make note of all allusions

Look up unfamiliar words

Make note of connotations

Make note of the poet’s use of line, form, sound, and space.

Make note of aporic junctures.

In a response, answer: is this a unified text, or a plural text? Use the information you gathered from your close reading to support your answer.

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Tips from the Trenches

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Tips from the Trenches

• Your Classroom Presence
• Running a Discussion
• How to Read a Poem
• Student's Favorite Texts

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Your Class Presence

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Your Class Presence

Make your presence felt, unless you especially want to disappear. You'll probably have to stand at the front or sit on the front desk. Move around. Put your own energy and enthusiasm into the class while staying in touch with the students' reactions. Move away from students who are speaking, so they'll have to speak loudly enough that others will hear (esp. important in front). Keep your voice and face mobile.

Have students move around sometimes; think about bodies in classroom space; have them move foward; try different spatial arrangements, e.g., having everyone turn chairs to face center of room.

Pay attention to sound/noise issues. Shut the classroom doors. Check often that students across the room from speakers (including you) can hear. Watch your own behavior carefully. Avoid anything that students could construe as harassment. Check the CSU policies on sexual harassment at www.colostate.edu/Orgs/FacultyCouncil/ Be careful not to teach to one side of the room (right if you're right-handed)-or to one gender. Chat as students arrive. Move around a lot during group work and during in-class writing/quizzes.

Use the board, but do it quickly (abbreviations), so that your back isn't to the room too long; consider putting a short version of your agenda on the board (in small writing?) so that you don't have to stare at your notes to remind yourself; good warm-up is lists of stuff from class (themes, motifs, questions); let students use boards for group work; consider newsprint and markers/crayons for reporting.

Learn their names early on, and have them learn each other's; also have them link up with 2 others for phone checking on assignments.

Keep the classroom busy. It's a good idea to have at least one plan up your sleeve for variation if the pace flags. If you're giving a quiz, have students who finish look for something specific in the text (or a specific type of thing), and so on. Expect things to take longer than you think they will, at least at first. But have an additional topic ready to go if you get ahead of yourself-perhaps, say, a pile of xeroxed poems or a couple of transparencies.

Think carefully how to handle questions about your authority; how to stop racist or otherwise offensive comments in class; explain assignments (Why do we have to . . .) and judgments (How do you know . . .).

Make sure the students know they need to bring their books. For this to work, they have to really need them. Use them in class.

Maybe give them a few Qs to think about for next day

Consider regular "debriefing" moments: did this work for you? What could we have done differently that would work better?

If they start packing before you're done, say something like "2 minutes please" or "we've still got 5 minutes, hang on" or make a joke.

If the class is really going badly, stop it; send them home or talk about why. If students are unprepared (all or a few), send them home. Pop quizzes can reward those who are prepared. Think about having a mid-term course evaluation session; we could get trained in this by Bill Timpson.

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Running a Discussion

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Running a Discussion

You will need to teach your students how to talk well about literature, and you'll want to engage as many of them as possible in class discussions. Many students who will be reluctant to speak in front of 44 others will be comfortable in groups of 4 or 5, so you'll want to have both whole-class and small-group conversations.

Think about metaphors for the kind of conversation you want your class to have. Not a boxing match. Not a beauty contest. Not a house and garden tour. Maybe a barn-raising. Maybe the kind of game that involves keeping a ball in the air as long as possible. Talk to your class about this. Make it clear by your own example that you want them to feel free to think aloud, toss out possibilities, make jokes, make mistakes, add to or disagree with something another person says. Make it clear that the conversation is about ideas, not personalities or brain power, and that disagreements aren't personal.

Asking the Right Kind of Questions

Vary them: big vague opening questions (what do you think); mid-vague opening questions (what do you like & why, dislike and why); focused opening questions (are there things here you don't understand); open-ended but directed thinking questions Order them: start with something to draw them in, then get more sophisticated Be clear: ask them; restate until they say yes; if you get nowhere, try another angle on the same issue.
Be loud: make sure you're heard & so are they (harder)

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 How to Read a Poem

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

How to Read a Poem

I got this exercise from watching Professor Findlay. He offered an approach for reading poetry

• First, what does it say?
• Second, how does it say it?
• Finally (and only after steps one and two), what does it mean?

I emphasize that reading poetry skillfully means accounting for the words on the page - none of this reading between the lines. They have to actually read the words on the page and so this exercise is really about getting them to slow down, pay attention to the details of the poem, consider how various poetic elements (metaphor, voice, rhythm, pattern, etc.) all come together to create meaning.

NOT WAVING BUT DROWNING (1957) Stevie Smith (1902-1971)

Nobody heard him, the dead man,
But still he lay moaning:
I was much further out than you thought
And not waving but drowning.

Poor chap, he always loved larking
And now he's dead
It must have been too cold for him his heart gave way,
They said.

Oh, no no no, it was too cold always
(Still the dead one lay moaning)
I was much too far out all my life
And not waving but drowning.

NOTE: I use this poem on the first day of introducing poetry. I spend nearly an entire period on just this poem, going over it line by line. What follows is a general outline of the points I cover.

• First, I read the poem aloud.
• Though we observe that the poem doesn't quite make literal sense, we aim for a description of the action of the poem.
• I read each line singularly and ask the students for the word or words from each line that really stand out and grab their attention. I write the words on the board. Once the words are collected (dead, moaning, drowning, cold, heart, etc.), the students get a pretty clear picture of the overall tone of the poem.
• We discuss the oddity of a dead man who moans and that we have clear evidence to suggest we should read the poem as a symbol/metaphor since the poem does not make sense on a realistic level - dead men don't moan!
• Next, we look at voice and describe the character of the voices present in the three stanzas. So, stanza one seems like news reporting: the voice is not involved in the action, it is distant. Stanza two gives us the voices of the drowned man's friends. We get place (England - chap, larking). We get the sense that these people who knew him don't seem to really care all that much. (I push the image: a drowned man on the beach, the friends standing around over him, "poor chap"). In the third stanza, we get the drowned man himself.
• We look at what rhythm adds: the fast pace of "It must have been too cold for him . . ." - how that line is the longest in the poem and yet moves very quickly and has an upbeat bouncy rhythm (which is how I read it to make the point) and that underlines the lack of emotional depth in the response of the friends. We consider how that shallowness is also underlined by the shortest line of the poem following that line, the simple baldness of "They said" (once again our reporter is giving us the facts). Then we look at the weight of "Oh, no no no, it was too cold always" - which is a line that has to be read slow, both because of the heavy use of emphasis (7 out of 10 syllables) and all those long vowels.
• We consider repetition, the slight variations of phrasing between the first and third stanzas and what those differences suggest. We consider "too cold always" and "all my life" and how what started out as a literal, though somewhat bizarre image, has changed and deepened in meaning and feeling.
• We finally start to talk about what this metaphor might mean. And the students get this pretty quickly: the person who always seems to be joking around but who is in fact quite desperate emotionally. We can discuss just what it is that is cold and what he is drowning in. By now, we have really looked at this poem and they can bring up that the coldness the friends mention is actually reflected in their indifference to his suffering. We consider how much of the poem is about both a lack of feeling, a sense of isolation, and a lack of clear communication: the signs he gives are misunderstood but then there doesn't seem to be much emotional drive on the part of those who knew him to understand.
• I might, depending upon the mood of the class, make a few other observations about reading poetry: that a poem often has a fulcrum and we discuss where it is in this poem (generally they agree that it is in the third stanza when we get the impassioned plea of the drowned man).

Students relate well to this poem and that is useful. They don't always want to admit that it is about them, but they have a lot of "friends" that it fits perfectly.

Side note: This poem becomes a useful reference when later in the semester we tackle "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" - all that business about "Till human voices wake us and we drown."

Writing@CSU | Sign In

Sign In

HOME

WRITING

TEACHING

WRITING CENTER

MY ACCOUNT

My Page

Writing

Teaching

Community

Writing Center

Sign In or Create an Account

Home Teaching Guides Teaching Guide: Teaching Resources for ECC140 Favorite Texts

Overview

Core Description and Guidelines

Syllabi

Sample Policy Statements

Five Ways of Reading

Text Analysis Paper Assignments

Groupwork and Other In-Class Activities

Study Questions

Alternative Assignments

Tips from the Trenches

Sample Exams

Materials Grouped by Instructor

Favorite Texts

For the final exam, students were asked to define criteria for selecting a reading list for ECC140 and then to make a recommendation of 8 to 10 required readings for the class (using our reading list to create the selection). The numbers following the work indicate how many students listed it (out of 36 students taking the exam).

Novels:
Sister of My Heart, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (24)
The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien (31)

Plays:
M. Butterfly, David Henry Hwang (24)
Hamlet, William Shakespeare (26)
Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare (10) Note: we watched the film

Short Stories:
"The Lady with the Pet Dog," Anton Chekhov (15)
"The Story of an Hour," Kate Chopin (10)
"Killings," Andre Dubus (7)
"Young Goodman Brown," Nathaniel Hawthorne (14)
"The Horse Dealer's Daughter," D. H. Lawrence (12)
"A Good Man is Hard to Find," Flannery O'Connor (6)

Poetry:
"you fit into me," Margaret Atwood (10)
"The Fish," Elizabeth Bishop (12)
"How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Ways," Elizabeth Barrett Browning (9)
"My Last Duchess," Robert Browning (2)
"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," T. S. Eliot (13)
"Upon Julia's Clothes," Robert Herrick (2)
"Death of the Ball Turret Gunner," Randall Jarrell (4)
"To His Coy Mistress," Andrew Marvell (4)
"Dulce et Decorum Est," Wilfred Owen (10) "Naming of Parts," Henry Reed
"Aunt Jennifer's Tigers," Adrienne Rich (1)
"My Papa's Waltz," Theodore Roethke (8)
"My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun," William Shakespeare (8)
"Not Waving But Drowning," Stevie Smith (7)
"Traveling through the Dark," William Stafford (7)
"Do not go gentle into that good night," Dylan Thomas (12)
"The Red Wheelbarrow," William Carlos Williams (15)