ENG/AAS 264-001: Major Black Writers (Spring’05)

Course Syllabus

“Race, Gender, and Class in the African Diaspora”

REQUIRED TEXTS AND MATERIALS:

· Douglass, Frederick.  Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave.  1845.  Ed. David W. Blight.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2003.  ISBN: 0-312-25737-6.

· Jacobs, Harriet.  Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl.  1861.  New York: Signet Classic, 2000.  ISBN: 0-451-52752-6.

· Larsen, Nella.  Passing.  1929.  New York: Penguin, 1997.  ISBN: 0-141-18025-0.

· Hughes, Langston.  Selected Poems of Langston Hughes.  New York: Vintage, 1990.  ISBN: 0-679-72818-X.

· Wright, Richard.  Uncle Tom’s Children.  1936.  New York: Harper Perennial, 1993.  ISBN: 0-060-81251-6.

· Baraka, Imamu Amiri (a.k.a. LeRoi Jones).  Dutchman and the Slave: Two Plays.  1964.  New York: Perennial, 2001.  ISBN: 0-688-21084-8.

· Morrison, Toni.  The Bluest Eye.  1970.  New York: Plume, 2000.  ISBN: 0-452-28219-5.

· Kincaid, Jamaica.  Lucy.  1990.  New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002.  ISBN: 0-374-52735-0.

· Murfin, Ross, and Supryia M. Ray.  The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2003.  ISBN: 0-312-25910-7.  Recommended.

· Lunsford, Andrea A.  The St. Martin’s Handbook.  5^th ed.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2003.  ISBN: 0312413149.  Lunsford, Andrea A.  The St. Martin’s Handbook.  5^th ed.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2003.  ISBN: 0-312-41314-9.  Recommended.

· A package of 4’x 6’ index cards.

· COPIES ON RESERVE at the W.T. Young Library (also available online through InfoKat, under “Course Reserve Search”: http://infokat.uky.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?DB=local&PAGE=rbSearch.

· Articles and documents available on the course’s web site.

· A working e-mail account, which you should check periodically throughout the semester (at least once a week).

 

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:

· read and analyze literary texts critically and contextually;

· form a thesis about a literary text and argue persuasively for that thesis;

· read and discuss various types of texts in the literary canon of the African Diaspora;

· read and discuss fiction, autobiography, and critical texts from the Black canon in relation to each other;

· discuss what institutions and traditions shaped the culture of the African Diaspora and determined its power relations to other cultures;

· respond intelligently and respectfully to differing opinions.

 

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

This course requires: attendance, completing all readings on time, participation in class discussions, pop-quizzes, mid-term and final identification/essay exam, two essays, and an annotated bibliography.  In order to pass this course, you must satisfactorily complete all major assignments (essays #1 and #2, and mid-term and final exam) on time.  Additionally, notice the “attendance” section on p. 4 of this syllabus, since absences can significantly affect your final grade.

 

¨ “W” SECTION POLICIES:

Students wishing to receive W credit for this course a) must be enrolled in the W section, b) must submit all formal writing assignments, and c) must receive a grade of C or higher on each assignment.  NOTE₁: Assignments or requirements other than the formal writing become a factor in the final determination of W course grades only if you have achieved a grade of C or higher on all formal writing assignments.  NOTE₂: For assessment purposes, you are required to submit two copies of your final paper for this course.  The assessment takes place after the semester is over and does not figure into the determination of your final grade.  NOTE₃: Questions about the W option should be referred to the Director of the UK Writing Initiative, Prof. Janet Carey Eldred, eldred@uky.edu, 257-4831, Funkhouser Building #211B.

 

The breakdown of grades will be as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

¨ DRAFTS for ESSAYS #1 and #2: Before you submit your Essays, you will have to submit a draft of them for teacher’s review.  Each of those drafts will contain a) a tentative introduction for the essay (including your thesis), b) a detailed outline of the rest of the essay, and c) a tentative bibliography with correct MLA-style citations.

 

¨ ESSAYS #1 and #2: You will write two argumentative essays (5-6 pages each), in which you will demonstrate your analytical, reading and writing skills as you apply them to at least one of the readings assigned in the course.  I will provide you with some topics and more details in a separate handout.  You should incorporate at least two academic (non-fictional) sources in your analysis and consider the guidelines and grading criteria I will later give you.  To aid your successful completion of this task, we will discuss methods of reading and writing about literature throughout the semester.  If you need extra help, use my office hours and/or the Writing Center services.

 

¨ MIDTERM and FINAL EXAM:  You will have both a midterm and final exam for this course.  These non-cumulative exams will test your ability to identify significant characters, passages, symbols, concepts, and themes, as well as to relate concepts to certain literary works.  Please see the schedule for the dates of the exams.  It is your responsibility to be present for these exams.  If you know in advance that you will be absent, and it is excused, you need to make arrangements to make up the exam you miss.  If you must unexpectedly miss an exam, and it is excused, contact me as soon as possible after your absence to schedule a time to take the exam.

 

¨ CLASS PARTICIPATION and DAILY WORK: Daily work will be comprised by a series of different activities, such as in-class writing, group work, peer reviews, and discussion cards.  In order to foster class participation, every day you will be responsible for bringing to class an index card in which you should write at least two questions/comments/passages about the assigned reading in order to contribute to class discussion.  You can include anything you consider relevant: from a passage that strikes you as interesting to a question about something you do not understand.  “Plot summary questions” will not suffice.  Be prepared to read and discuss your selection thoroughly and critically with the rest of the class.  Pop-quizzes may be given throughout the semester to make sure that you keep up with the reading and class discussions.  NOTE: Attendance does not necessarily equal to participation.  In other words, in order to receive a grade for participation, simply showing up for class will not suffice.  Make sure you always make a serious attempt to participate in class discussions and activities.

 

STANDARD FORMAT FOR OUT-OF-CLASS WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS:

Aside from additional requirements specified on each assignment, all written assignments produced outside of class must conform to the following format:

q Essays more than one page must be paginated and stapled.

q Your name, the course name and section, the assignment due date, and my name should appear in the upper left-hand corner.

q Clearly label each assignment appropriately (i.e., Annotated Bibliography, Draft, Final Essay, etc.)

q All essays must be typed in standard 12-point size (Times New Roman), double-spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides, and include a TITLE.

 

GRADING CRITERIA and SYSTEM:

· Essay assignments are averaged, with some consideration given to significant changes in the quality of the student’s work (i.e., improvement or decline).

· I will use a 100-point grading scale for your written assignments.  On your papers I will indicate your grade with a letter as outlined below.  Remember that evaluating writing is not the same as evaluating math.

 

 A- = 90-93                    A = 94-96                     A+ = 97-100

B- = 80-83                     B = 84-86                      B+ = 87-89

C- = 70-73                     C = 74-76                      C+ = 77-79

D- = 60-63                     D = 64-66                      D+ = 67-69

E = 59 and below

 

· Your final grade will be calculated on an ABCDE scale.  No +/- final grades will be assigned in this course.

 

COURSE POLICIES:

¨ PUNCTUALITY: I expect you to come to class on time and stay for the whole period.  Coming in late may disrupt the class, so please be on time out of respect for your classmates, your instructor, and yourself.  Moreover, you cannot make up any work missed due to tardiness or early departure.  NOTE: If you show up in class more than 15 minutes late, that will count as ½ absence.

 

¨ ATTENDANCE: By enrolling in this course, you make a commitment to attend each class session and to participate in the work we do.  If an absence is excused (appropriate written documentation must be submitted), you can make up missed work.  If an absence is unexcused, you will receive a zero for missed work, including work done on the day of the absence.  Regardless of the type of absence, you are still responsible for collecting materials, notes, handouts, and assignments from the missed day.  In addition, because attendance is mandatory, for the third and each subsequent unexcused absence, the final average will be lowered by half a letter grade.  Six (6) unexcused absences will result in a course grade of “E.”  Students who accumulate six (6) excused absences must petition their college dean or the dean’s representative for a “W” in the course.  Students who accumulate a combination of six excused and unexcused absences may consult the dean of their college or the dean’s representative, who will determine the appropriate action.

 

¨ LATE WORK: Work is due at the beginning of the class period, unless specified otherwise.  Late written assignments will be marked down one letter grade for each day late, including Saturday and Sunday.  Daily work will not be accepted late.  Freebie: I will allow one late essay without penalty.  In this case, “late” means within 24 hours of the due date.  Nevertheless, if you want to use your “freebie,” you must let me know at least one day in advance of the paper due date and arrange a time to submit the essay.  NOTE: I sympathize with computer problems; however, they are not a legitimate excuse for late work.  Save often, keep a back-up disk, and print your work early.  No computer malfunction, printer problem, or virus will be accepted as an excuse for late work.

 

¨ PLAGIARISM & CHEATING: Plagiarism and cheating will not be tolerated.  The minimum penalty for cheating is an automatic “E” in the course.  Accidental plagiarism (i.e., an error in citing a source properly) will affect your grade severely.  Intentional plagiarism (i.e., the representation of somebody else’s ideas or words as your own) will result in a grade of zero on the essay and possible failure of the course.  The best way to avoid plagiarism is to consult the latest edition of the MLA Handbook and/or approach me with any questions you may have about the correct citation or proper use of sources before you submit the assignment.  A definition for plagiarism and cheating can be found in the current edition of the Student Rights and Responsibilities booklet, and on the web at www.uky.edu/StudentAffairs/Code/

 

¨ OFFICE HOURS: I am always happy to meet with students in my office to discuss any problems they may be experiencing with the course readings or assignments.  Please, take advantage of my office hours (listed above).  If you need to meet with me but cannot make those hours, we can schedule an appointment at a time that is convenient for both of us.  I am happy to discuss my grading of assignments, essays, or exams, but I will not discuss any grade until you have taken 24 hours to read my comments thoroughly.  This time will allow you to bring specific questions to our meeting.

 

¨ CLASSROOM CONDUCT: I expect you to be active participants in class, to refrain from any behavior that disrupts the learning environment of the class, and to respect your peers, yourself, and the instructor.  I will ask you to leave the classroom if you are being disruptive, disrespectful, or rude.  Everyone in the class has the right and responsibility to express their own ideas freely during class discussions.  At the same time, you should demonstrate respect for your fellow classmates.

 

¨ FOOD & DRINKS: Eating during class time may be a distraction.  Out of respect for your peers and instructor, food is not allowed during class time.  However, you can bring water, soft drinks, coffee, or other beverages.

 

¨ PAGERS, CELL PHONES, MUSIC, and NEWSPAPERS: All pagers, cell phones, and music must be turned off during class time.  Unless part of in-class activities, you should not read newspapers or magazines during class time.

Frederick Douglass

Harriet Jacobs

Nella Larsen

Langston Hughes

                 Léon Damas

Aimé Césaire

Nicolás Guillén

Richard Wright

Amiri Baraka

Toni Morrison

Jamaica Kincaid