Final reserved for Hifsa

1

SYLLABUS: ENGLISH 120 / Spring 2021 / Instructor: Richard Gold

Course Syllabus

ENG 120-20322 – Critical Writing

Adjunct Associate Professor Richard Gold

[email protected]

Required Text: Hacker, Diana, and Nancy Sommers. Rules for Writers. New York:

Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. 9th ed.

For a digital rental of this textbook, click on this link:

https://www.vitalsource.com/student-etextbooks

Required Text: Miller, Henry. Tropic of Cancer. New York: Grove Press, 1961.

For a digital rental of this book, click on this link:

https://www.vitalsource.com/student-etextbooks

Required Text: Baldwin, James. The Fire Next Time. New York: Vintage, 1963.

For a digital rental of this book, click on this link:

https://www.vitalsource.com/student-etextbooks

Required Text: Toole, John Kennedy. A Confederacy of Dunces. New York: Grove Press, 1980.

For a digital rental of this book, click on this link:

https://www.vitalsource.com/student-etextbooks

Required Text: Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor Books, 1997.

(no digital version available from Vitalsource)

Supplemental Required Texts: Texts for the three short writing assignments on Song of Myself, Howl, and Chapter One of Walden can be found on the Internet. Links are provided in the respective Assignments.

(BARNES & NOBLE COLLEGE TEXTBOOK PRICE MATCH PROGRAM: Click this link for more information on the B&N textbook Price Match Program available through our online campus bookstore: http://facultyenlight.com/price-match )

COURSE OVERVIEW: In this writing course we will explore various approaches to interpreting and analyzing fiction and non-fiction texts. The course will be organized around the general theme of the relationship between the outsider/rebel/nonconformist antihero and society at large in 20th century American literature. Within this broad framework the selected texts will enable us to explore a wide range of topics including but not limited to: Censorship and what is permissible in art; the concept of physical and spiritual self-exile; male chauvinism in literature and its feminist critique; the question of race and racism in America; the intellectual and artistic individualist as social critic and observer; the role of human sexuality and its repression as an instrument of artistic expression; the role of language in subverting the status quo; comedy as a vehicle for social criticism; the power of art to shock and challenge its audience; and the relationship between the individual and nature in the modern world. You will also be strongly encouraged to develop and express in writing your own original thematic insights inspired by reading the assigned materials; this could include how the texts under discussion relate to current issues of interest to you and your fellow students.

ASSIGNMENTS OVERVIEW: All students will write at least two of three assigned short essays (Whitman, Ginsberg, with Thoreau optional). All students will write a final research paper (see below). All students will write the first assigned main essay (Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer).

Students will then have the option of writing two of the remaining three assigned main essays based on the required texts. However, students may write all three of the remaining assigned main essays (four total) for extra credit. This means that your lowest-graded of four main essays will be eliminated in calculating your final grade. If there is no difference between any of those grades, you will still receive positive consideration for effort.

The three (or four) main essays should be three to four double-spaced pages long. Students will have the opportunity to revise and edit two of their main essays for the possibility of a higher grade (see below), and they are encouraged to do so. In addition to our reading and discussion of the four main required texts, we will also be reading and discussing selections from supplemental texts that influenced or are related to the required texts. These supplemental texts will be the basis of three short writing exercises of about two pages each. We will also have open book participatory grammar and style exercises.

FINAL RESEARCH PAPER: As noted above, instead of a final exam you will be required to submit a research paper between 1250-2000 words (five to eight pages) long. The course is designed so that you will be able to use one or more of your previous essays as a solid foundation for development into a research paper. A good research paper should cite and synthesize the findings and opinions of three to five outside sources with your own critical arguments. Students will have the opportunity to submit preliminary drafts of their end-term research papers, but they will not be permitted to revise their research paper final submissions. Students are advised to start thinking about their research papers as soon as possible. Research papers are expected to conform to MLA format as outlined in Rules for Writers.

Research papers may focus on one topic, or might be structured as a compare-and-contrast essay. Topics might include: The influence of Walt Whitman on Henry Miller; the feminist critique of Miller’s writing, and its defense; Miller and Ignatius J. Reilly (A Confederacy of Dunces) as literary antiheros; Whitman, Henry David Thoreau, Into the Wild and the literary celebration of escapes into nature; Allen Ginsberg and James Baldwin as postwar protest writers; James Baldwin, Richard Wright, and African-American literary identity; Baldwin and Miller as literary exiles; a comparison of The Fire Next Time and Ta-Nehesi Coates’s recent bestseller, Between the World and Me, which was directly influenced by it. Into the Wild and the genre of literary journalism; A Confederacy of Dunces as social satire; Tropic of Cancer, Howl, and literary censorship in the United States. These are just a few of the many research topic possibilities offered by our required texts. Class time will be devoted to discussion and development of these and other ideas – including your own.

ATTENDANCE and LATENESS POLICIES: Students are permitted two absences during the semester. If you are going to be absent, I would appreciate notification via e-mail. Students who exceed two absences risk the penalty of reduction in their final grades.

All students are expected to arrive on time. If you are going to be late, I would appreciate notification via e-mail. Students who are habitually late risk the penalty of reduction in their final grades.

PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is a serious academic violation, which occurs when you take ideas or words from another source and present them as your own. Penalties for plagiarism are severe, up to and including expulsion from the University. The English Department’s official statement on plagiarism is posted on our CLASSES website in the Course Documents section, and will be discussed in class.

GRADING STANDARDS: English Department grading standards are posted on our CLASSES website in the Course Documents section, and will be discussed in class.

STUDENT EVALUATION CRITERIA: Because this is a writing course, your final grade will largely be based upon your performance on your writing assignments. Your research paper will count for 25 percent of your final grade. The four main essays will count for 50 percent of your final grade. The three short writing exercises will count for 25 percent of your final grade. Attendance, punctuality and classroom participation will also figure in the calculation of your final grade. Clear evidence of progress over the course of the semester will also be a factor in determining your final grade. These evaluation criteria will also be discussed in class.

HOW TO SUBMIT ESSAYS: All essays must be uploaded to the appropriate Assignments slot on our CLASSES website. To do this, click on “Assignments” in the “Activities” menu; then click on the hyperlinked title of the appropriate Assignment, and then click on “Add a File” to upload and attach your essay. Then click “Submit.” If there is a problem with CLASSES, you may e-mail me your essay, but you must still post it on CLASSES once the problem is resolved. Hardcopy essays will not be accepted. Essays will be returned to students via e-mail as soon as they are graded. Please make sure that your Pace e-mail account is set up to “push” your messages to your personal e-mail accounts. If you have not done so already, simply log-on to adam.pace.edu and follow the instructions for e-mail forwarding. Please consult University tech support if you need additional assistance.

All essays must be submitted in MICROSOFT WORD .doc or.docx format.

OPTIONAL ESSAY REVISIONS: Students who submit their essays on time will be given the opportunity to revise two of their papers for the possibility of a higher grade. Please note that revised papers must be clearly improved from the original in order to receive a higher grade. Preferably, revised essays should be posted within three days after you’ve received the graded copy of your original submission. In most cases, late submissions will not be eligible for revision.

CLASS SCHEDULE: This class meets online weekly on Monday evenings from 5:40 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. As circumstances permit, all or part of the fourth hour of each week’s class may be reserved for in-class work on writing assignments, and for individual conferences with students. In some cases, I may schedule meetings with specific students, but you are free to schedule time with me during this hour whenever you’d like.

ZOOM ETIQUETTE: Students are requested to mute their Zoom sound on entering the virtual classroom. Students are strongly encouraged to turn their Zoom cameras on.

ELECTRONIC DEVICES: Students are permitted to use their laptops for taking notes, and for in-class writing exercises. Students with open laptops may occasionally be called upon to do quick searches related to questions that come up in class. Students are requested not to engage with social media in class and to refrain from texting. Persistent violations of this policy will be noted unfavorably.

UNIVERSITY DISABILITY POLICY: The University disability policy requires that students seeking an accommodation for a disability must contact the Office of Disability Services at 212-346-1526.

WEEK 1: January 25

SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Read Walt Whitman’s poem Song of Myself. (http://www.daypoems.net/poems/1900.html)

By Thursday 2/4 write a 350-400 word essay that conveys your impression of this poem. You are encouraged to offer your own insights, but might consider some of these thematic questions: What is Whitman’s view of the individual’s place in the larger world and in the universe? What is Whitman’s attitude toward nature? How does the poet’s view of nature compare with his view of human society? What is Whitman’s view of love, sex and the procreative impulse? What is the purpose of the poet’s mixed use of concrete and abstract language? How does Whitman use allusions to historic events? How does Whitman respond to the burning racial issues of his time? What mysteries is the poet seeking to understand? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

Various recorded readings of this poem: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=walt+whitman+song+of+myself+&oq=whitman+son&gs_l=youtube-reduced.1.1.0j0i5l3.818409.822551.0.825299.24.21.0.1.1.6.447.2016.17j3j4-1.21.0...0.0...1ac.kwBC1D4fJrg

Begin to read Tropic of Cancer. Your essay on this novel will be on Thursday 2/18. See Week 2 below for suggested guidelines on this assignment.

WEEK 2: February 1

Short essay on Whitman’s Song of Myself is due on Thursday 2/4.

ASSIGNMENT: By Thursday 2/18 write a 750-1000 word critical essay on Tropic of Cancer. You are encouraged to offer your own insights, but you might consider some of these thematic questions: Is this a novel in the conventional sense, or is it a hybrid of fiction, memoir and opinion? Is the book’s frank depiction of sexuality shocking by today’s standards, and does the fact that the sexuality is conveyed in language rather than moving images enhance its impact? What is Miller saying when he calls himself “the happiest man alive”? Discuss how Miller uses bursts of freewheeling lyrical language to convey his sensual responses to the world around him? How do Miller’s poverty and self-exile filter his worldview? How does Miller view the role of the artist, and the writer in particular? Miller expresses great admiration for Walt Whitman; what similarities in style and outlook do these two writers share? Is Miller’s attitude toward women patriarchal and sexist, romantic and idealized, or a mixture of both? What do Miller’s feminist critics, such as Kate Millett (author of Sexual Politics) and Jeanette Winterson (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/books/review/renegade-henry-miller-and-the-making-of-tropic-of-cancer-by-frederick-turner-book-review.html?pagewanted=all)

have to say about Miller’s worldview? Can Miller’s view of sex and women be explained in part as a manifestation of the author’s times and the culture that formed him? Does Miller’s relationship with Anais Nin, and her advocacy for his writing, mitigate the notion of him as sexist? What do Miller’s champions, such as Karl Shapiro, in the book’s forward, and George Orwell, in the critical essay “In the Belly of the Whale,” Parts 1 and 3 (http://www.ourcivilisation.com/smartboard/shop/orwellg/whale.htm), see as his unique, distinguishing qualities? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

For additional background, watch the motion picture Henry and June , based on the published diaries of Miller’s principal patron, Anais Nin. (Right-click to open link in new tab, and, if prompted, sign into the Pace Library page with your Pace username and password.)

WEEK 3: February 8

Continue to read Tropic of Cancer.

WEEK 4: February 15

Essay on Tropic of Cancer is due on Thursday 2/18.

SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Read Allen Ginsberg’s poem Howl:

http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/179381

By Thursday 3/4 write a 350-400-word essay that conveys your opinion of this poem. You might consider some of these thematic questions: About whom is Ginsberg writing here? What attitudes are conveyed by the poet’s explicit references to sex and drugs? What is the poet’s attitude toward American society at large during the late 1940s and the 1950s, and how was that attitude affirmed by the censorship trial that the poem provoked? What is the artistic effect of the poet’s freewheeling verse and linked clusters of imagery? What is the purpose of the poet’s invocation of “Moloch”? How does this poem compare to Whitman’s Song of Myself and Miller’s Tropic of Cancer? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

Howl, Parts I & II with audio of Ginsberg reading: (http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15308)

For additional background about Ginsberg, the Beat movement, and the censorship trial triggered by this poem watch the motion picture Howl: Howl (Right-click to open link in new tab, and, if prompted, sign into the Pace Library page with your Pace username and password.)

Videos featuring Allen Ginsberg: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=allen+ginsberg&oq=allen+gins&gs_l=youtube.1.0.0l10.141095.145818.0.147829.21.19.0.1.1.2.104.1325.18j1.19.0...0.0...1ac.WrA-5be-wZA

WEEK 5: February 22

Continue to read Howl.

.

WEEK 6: March 1

Short essay on Howl is due on Thursday 3/4.

ASSIGNMENT: By Thursday 3/18 write a 750-1000 word critical essay on The Fire Next Time. You are encouraged to offer your own insights, but you might consider some of these thematic questions: What are the principal arguments that Baldwin is making in this extended autobiographical essay? How does the first part of the book, “My Dungeon Shook,” set up and amplify the second part, “Down At The Cross”? From the perspective of the year 2017, are the author’s concerns in 1962, just as the Civil Rights movement was gathering steam, still relevant today? If so, how and to what extent? What is Baldwin’s view of religion, and how does he use his experiences as an adolescent preacher to advance that view? How did Baldwin’s intellectual awakening impact his faith? What elements in the African-American church of his youth most appealed to Baldwin? What connections does Baldwin draw between his budding teenage sexuality and his religious vocation? What is the purpose of Baldwin’s account of his meeting with Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam? What is Baldwin’s view of the white majority population in the America of his time? Does Baldwin’s rhetoric seem angry, and if so, to what purposes is that anger deployed? Is Baldwin hopeful or pessimistic about the future of race relations in the United States? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

For additional background, watch this 1969 talk on the black experience in America delivered by Baldwin in London:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryuAW_gnjYQ

WEEK 7: March 8

UNGRADED ASSIGNMENT: FINAL RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSAL: By Thursday 3/25 submit a one-to-two page proposal for your final research paper. Ideally, this should include a thesis statement and a few supporting paragraphs or main points of interest in outline form. If you are undecided about your topic, or think that you may want to base it on assigned texts we have not yet covered, you should let me know and begin to explore those texts. The research paper proposal will not be graded, but it will be evaluated for approval and it is required prior to our library research training session. Please see page 2 of this syllabus for more details on the assignment and some suggested topics.

WEEK 8: March 15

Essay on The Fire Next Time is due on Thursday 3/18.

WEEK 9: March 22

Research paper proposal is due on Thursday 3/25.

ASSIGNMENT: By Thursday 4/1 write a 750-1000 word essay on A Confederacy of Dunces. You are encouraged to offer your own insights, but you might consider some of these thematic questions: Is the novel’s antihero, Ignatius J. Reilly, a sympathetic or unsympathetic figure – or a combination of the two? Is Ignatius’ mother a sympathetic or unsympathetic figure – or a combination of the two? How does the relationship between mother and son evolve during the course of the novel? What is Ignatius’ essential life dilemma as he sees it? What is the significance of Ignatius’ corpulence and his gargantuan appetite? What is the significance of Ignatius’ long-distance relationship with Myrna Minkoff? How do Ignatius’ intellectual leanings conflict with his place in the contemporary world? How does the author, John Kennedy Toole, use the ambience of New Orleans and its colloquial dialect to evoke the novel’s self-contained world? How does the novel use humor and satire to address the social concerns of the 1960s, particularly through the character of Burma Jones? What does Walker Percy mean when he writes in the Foreword that this comic novel “is also sad”? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

WEEK 10: March 29

Essay on A Confederacy of Dunces is due by Thursday 4/1.

WEEK 11: April 5

OPTIONAL SHORT WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Read Chapter One (“Economy”) of Henry David Thoreau’s Walden (click hyperlink).

This is an assignment in selective reading. You do not need to read every word of Chapter One (although it would be nice) to extract the gist of what Thoreau is saying, and to express it in a clear, concise short essay. The assignment is intended as a companion/introduction to our final in-term essay on Into the Wild. Some of you may wish to write a final research paper based on these last two assignments. If so, let me know.

By Thursday 4/8 write a 350-400 word essay conveying your impression of Thoreau’s writing. You are encouraged to provide your own original insights, but you might consider some of these thematic questions: What is Thoreau’s general attitude toward society at large? What is the purpose of his experiment with independent living in the woods at Walden Pond? What are Thoreau’s attitudes towards work, materialism, consumerism and material possessions? What is Thoreau’s view on self-sufficiency? How does Thoreau use historical and literary references to reinforce the points he is making about his own time and place? When Thoreau celebrates the various economies he achieves through his self-sufficiency what larger point is he making? Does Thoreau seem to like other people, or to have little use for them? To what degree are Thoreau’s concerns relevant to our own time? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

For additional background, watch this short video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhP7PKoRmmY

WEEK 12: April 12

ASSIGNMENT: Read Into the Wild, and by Thursday 4/15 write a 750-1000 word essay on the book. As always, you are encouraged to provide your own original insights, but you may consider some of these thematic questions: How does the story of Christopher McCandless fit into the American tradition of self-discovery in nature embodied by Thoreau? According to the author, Jon Krakauer, what were McCandless’s reasons for setting off on his Alaska adventure? In your opinion, was McCandless’s journey a greater defiance of society and cultural norms than Thoreau’s? What journalistic techniques does Krakauer employ in reconstructing McCandless’s story? What is your impression of the section in which Krakauer draws parallels between his own life story and McCandless’s? Does the author succeed in making his own autobiography relevant to the story that he’s telling? Does Krakauer succeed in evoking McCandless’s state of mind, and if so does his journalistic technique seem legitimate to you? How does this text relate to current issues of interest to you and your generation?

For additional background watch the film version of the book: Into the Wild (Right-click to open link in new tab, and, if prompted, sign into the Pace Library page with your Pace username and password.)

WEEK 13: April 19

Library research training. Be prepared to focus on your chosen topic.

MLA Style review

OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT: Submit a working outline or first draft of your final research paper by Thursday 4/22. Ideally, it will include a strong thesis statement, some supporting paragraphs, and an indication of some or all of the sources you intend to incorporate. These outlines/drafts will not be graded, but will be evaluated with comments on your progress. Students are strongly advised to take advantage of this opportunity, because there will be no opportunity to revise your final research papers after they are submitted.

Final research papers are due at the latest by the end of day on Monday 4/26. No deadline extensions or incompletes will be allowed. Early submissions are welcome. Post one copy on the appropriate CLASSES assignment slot, and please also e-mail me a backup copy.

WEEK 14: April 26

ASSIGNMENT: FINAL RESEARCH PAPER: All final research papers are due at the latest by the end of the day on Monday 4/26.

No deadline extensions or incompletes will be allowed. Early submissions are welcome. Requirements for this paper have been detailed on page two of the syllabus, in classroom discussions, in feedback on your proposals, in our library research training, and in the drafting process.

Remember that the paper should be 1200-2000 words (five to eight pages), and that it should cite and synthesize the findings and opinions of three to five outside sources with your own critical arguments. Research papers are expected to conform to MLA format as discussed in class and outlined in Rules for Writers.

Post one copy on the appropriate CLASSES Assignments slot, and please also e-mail me a backup copy.

Meeting ID

924 2174 4108

Passcode: 371191

Invite Link

https://pace.zoom.us/j/92421744108