English 2327 -- American Literature to 1865
Fall 2016
Course Description:
A survey of American literature from the period of exploration and settlement through the Civil War. Students will study works of prose, poetry, drama, and fiction in relation to their historical and cultural contexts. Texts will be selected from among a diverse group of authors for what they reflect and reveal about the evolving American experience and character.
Course Prerequisites: ENGL 1301 or higher
Instructor: Marcia Little Office: Faculty Offices
Office Hours: Before and after class Email: In Canvas or mlittle@nctc.edu
Textbook:
Perkins, George and Barbara Perkins. The American Tradition in Literature, Volume 1. 12th ed. McGraw-Hill, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-07-7239046
Learning Outcomes:
- Students who successfully complete English 2327 will meet the following learning outcomes:
- Identify key ideas, representative authors and works, significant historical or cultural events, and characteristic perspectives or attitudes expressed in the literature of different periods or regions.
- Analyze literary works as expressions of individual or communal values within the social, political, cultural, or religious contexts of different literary periods.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the development of characteristic forms or styles of expression during different historical periods or in different regions.
- Articulate the aesthetic principles that guide the scope and variety of works in the arts and humanities.
- Write research-based critical papers about the assigned readings in clear and grammatically correct prose, using various critical approaches to literature.
Core Objective:
Foundational Component Area: Language, Philosophy, and Culture
*Critical Thinking Skills (CT)- to include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information
*Communication Skills (COM)- to include effective development, interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral, and visual communication
*Social Responsibility (SR)- to include intercultural competency, knowledge of civic responsibility, and the ability to engage effectively in regional, national, and global communities
*Personal Responsibility (PR)- to include the ability to connect choices, actions, and consequences to ethical decision-making
Grading Policy and Procedures:
Elements:
2 Major Exams 100 points each
1 Mini Exam 50 points each
2 Essays 100 points each
Homework/Journals 100 points
Author Presentation 25 points
Scholastic Integrity
Scholastic dishonesty shall include, but not be limited to cheating on a test, plagiarism, and collusion. See Student Handbook “Student Rights & Responsibilities: Student Conduct [FLB- (LOCAL)]” #18.
Disciplinary Actions [Student Handbook, #5] “When cheating, collusion, or plagiarism has occurred beyond any reasonable doubt, the instructor may give the student or students involved an “F” on a particular assignment or in the course. [See Scholastic Dishonesty FLB (Local)] The instructor shall make a written report of the incident and of the planned action to his Department Chair. The Department Chair shall report the incident and action to appropriate instructional dean who shall review the case, notify the student and, if necessary, take further action. This may involve either probation or suspension of the student or students in question. If such disciplinary action is deemed necessary, the Dean of Student Services shall be notified, and the action shall be taken through that office.”
Plagiarism, which should be avoided at all costs, includes the following student actions:
- Turning in someone else's ideas, opinions, theories, or work as your own;
- Unintentionally or inadvertently turning in someone else's ideas, opinions, theories, or work as your own as the result of failing to document sources both internally and in the Works Cited;
- Copying words, ideas, or images from someone without giving credit; Failing to put a quotation in quotations marks;
- Giving incorrect information about the source of information, quotations, or images;
- Changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit;
- Copying so many words, ideas, or images from a source that it makes up the majority of the student's work, whether or not the student gives credit.
Please note: If you plagiarize in my course, you will receive an “F” in the course.
Attendance Policy:
Late work, Attendance, and Class Conduct:
Assignments are due on the date listed. Any assignment not turned in on the due date will be counted as late and points will be deducted. Late essays will lose 5 points immediately and and additional 5 points for every week the essay is late. Quizzes and presentations cannot be made up. No back work will be accepted beyond the 15th week. Attendance is imperative to your success in class. If you miss class, you are responsible for any work covered during your absence. Simply missing class is not an excuse for not having the work completed. Class conduct: This is a college course and I expect students to behave as such. We will share a variety of views, and I expect views to be voice and treated with respect. Failure to do so may result in students being asked to leave class, in which case they will be counted as absent.
ADA Statement:
North Central Texas College does not discriminate on the basis of disability for admission or access to its programs. The College is committed to providing equal access to its students with disabilities by providing appropriate accommodations; a variety of services and resources are made available through the ACCESS Department. Students are responsible for notifying the ACCESS Department of their need for assistance. Students with documented disabilities, such as mobility impairment, hearing or visual impairment, learning, and/or psychological disorders are eligible for services.
Disability Accommodations
The Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) provides accommodations for students who have a documented disability. A disability is anything that can interfere with learning, such as a learning disability, psychological challenge, physical illness, or injury. Accommodations may include extra time on tests, tests in a distraction-reduced environment, volunteer note taker in class, etc.
On the Corinth Campus, go to room 170 or call 940-498-6207. On the Gainesville Campus, go to room 110 in the Administration Building (100) or call 940-668-4209. Students on the Bowie, Graham, Flower Mound, and online campuses should call 940-668-4209 to arrange for an intake appointment with OSD.
North Central Texas College is on record as being committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, ADA Amendments Act of 2009, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-112).
http://www.nctc.edu/StudentServices/SupportServices/Disabilityservices/DisabilitiesFacultyResources.aspx
EEOC Statement:
North Central Texas College does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, or disability in the employment or the provision of services.
Tobacco Free Campus:
NCTC restricts the use of all tobacco products including cigarettes, cigars, pipes, electronic cigarettes, and smokeless tobacco on campus property. NCTC is aware that tobacco use influences underage students, which cumulates unsightly tobacco litter and interferes with assuring clean air for all who come to NCTC. NCTC recognizes the health hazards of tobacco use and of exposure to second hand smoke. Information on a tobacco cessation program is available for students, faculty, staff who wish to stop using tobacco products. We would like to "thank you" for your help in making our campuses Tobacco-Free. For questions or concerns, please contact the Office of Vice President of Student Services at 940-668-4240.
Course Calendar:
The following are the readings for the semester. Readings are subject to change, so if you miss class, be sure to check in with a classmate to make sure you have the correct readings and assignments .
SYSTEMS OF BELIEF/ IDEAS OF ORDER
Week One (August 22)
Tuesday: Introduce class, expectations, and discuss syllabus. Discuss The Scarlett Letter.
Thursday: Discuss John Smith: The General History of Virginia, New England and the Summer Isles, William Bradford: Of Plymouth Plantation
Week Two (August 29)
Tuesday: Discuss Anne Bradstreet: The Flesh and the Spirit; Contemplations; In Memory of Upon the Burning of Our House,
Thursday: Mary Rowlandson: A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration
Week Three (September 5)
Tuesday: Discuss Crosscurrents: Puritans, Indians, and Witchcraft and Jonathan Edwards: all. Begin discussing Essay #1
Thursday: Discuss John Woolman: The Journal of John Woolman
Week Four (September 12)
Tuesday: Discuss Benjamin Franklin: The Autobiography; Poor Richard’s Almanac and
Thomas Paine: Common Sense
Thurs: Discuss Thomas Jefferson (382-390). Continue discussing Essay #1, due October 3rd (Rough draft due October 1st)
Week Five (September 19)
Tuesday: Review for Exam #1 : Mixed question review. How to write an essay exam.
Thursday: Exam 1. Woo hoo.
Week Six (September 26)
Tuesday: Rough draft Essay #1
Thursday: Essay #1 Due.
Week Seven (October 3)
Tuesday: Discuss Phillis Wheatley: On Being Brought from Africa to America; On the Death of the Reverend Mr. George Whitefield
Thursday: Philip Freneau: On the Universality and Other Attributes of the God of Nature
Week Eight (October 10)
Tuesday: William Cullen Bryant: Thanatopsis; To a Waterfowl; A Forest Hymn
Thursday: Crosscurrents: Transcendentalism, Women, and Social Ideals
Week Nine (October 17)
Tuesday: Discuss Hawthorne, “Young Goodman Brown”
Thursday: Begin discussing Ralph Waldo Emerson “Nature”
Week Ten (October 24)
Tuesday: Discuss Thoreau, “Civil Disobedience” (1577)
Thursday: Discuss Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: A Psalm of Life; The Tide Rises, the Tide Falls
Week Eleven (October 31)
Tuesday: Film. Begin reading Douglas, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas
Thursday: Film (cont’d.)
Week Twelve (November 7)
Tuesday: Discuss film and Essay #2. Continue reading Dougla
Thursday: Discuss Whittier, “First Day Thoughts” (1671)
Week Thirteen (November 14)
Tuesday: Discuss Abraham Lincoln, all (1700-1706)
Thursday: Begin discussing Harriet Beecher Stowe (1706-1717)
Week Fourteen (November 21)
Tuesday: Finish Harriet Beecher Stowe and Rough Draft #2 due.
Thursday: Discuss Stowe and Rough Draft.
Week Fifteen (November 28)
Tuesday: Essay #2 due.
Thursday: review for exam.
Week Sixteen (December 5)
Tuesday: FINAL