Course Overview

This class will provide students with an introduction to some of the most influential authors in the American literary tradition. Through many of these works, we will discuss the conflicts between the community and the individual that they share.

Objectives

Over the semester, I expect students to achieve the following goals:

• Understand and interpret texts by great American authors from a variety of literary genres and time periods.

• Discuss these texts in the context of a classroom discussion or smaller group discussions.

• Write convincing arguments about the meanings of these texts in examinations and essays.

• Recall key facts about the works in question including but not limited to the date of publication, the author, the title, general topics.

• Produce papers about literature that are interesting, articulate and well organized.

• Revise drafts of such papers before turning them in as finished products.

• Proofread papers effectively.

• Format papers according to MLA format and the conventions of college academic work.

• Discuss strengths and weaknesses of classmates' working drafts as a means of helping them produce better final essays.

To reach these goals, students will need to do the following:

1. Write a short analysis of a poem. (3-5 pages) DUE FEBRUARY 10TH.

2. Write an essay analyzing a longer work of literature and providing readers with an argument about how to interpret that work. (5-7pages) DUE APRIL 28TH.

3. Complete a midterm examination including identification, short-answer and longer essay questions. ON FEBRUARY 24TH.

4. Complete a final examination covering material from the entire semester and following a format similar to that of the midterm. ON MAY 11TH.

5. Attend class regularly and contribute to class discussion and group activities.

6. Bring a typed, complete draft to class on peer-editing days, and provide classmates with carefully considered comments on their own drafts on those days.

Grade Breakdown

Your grade will depend primarily on your written work and the understanding of the material that you convey through that work. A command of standard written English and the ability to present a clear argument will also contribute to the determination of your grade. Any infractions against UMD's Scholastic Dishonesty provisions in the Student Conduct Code as stated in the UMD catalogue will receive serious attention and appropriate penalties.

Individuals who have any disability, either permanent or temporary, which might influence their ability to perform in this class, are encouraged to inform me at the start of the semester. I can make special adaptations of teaching methods, assignments, materials, or testing as required to provide for equitable participation in the course. The Access Center is also available to assist students with disabilities. It is located in the Kirby Student Center and on the web at <http://www.d.umn.edu/access>.

Required Texts

Frost, Robert. Poems by Robert Frost: A Boy's Life, North of Boston. New York: Penguin, 1972.

Haruf, Kent. Plainsong. New York: Random House, 2000.

Kerouac, Jack. On the Road. 1957. New York: Penguin, 1972.

McClatchy, J. D., ed. The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Poetry. Second Edition. New York: Vintage, 2003.

Morrison, Toni. Sula. 1973. New York: Plume, 1982.

Wharton, Edith. House of Mirth. 1905. New York: Random House, 1999.