ENGLISH 300, Approaches to Literature: The Practice of Contemporary Theory and Criticism

Spring Quarter, 2000
Merry Pawlowski, FT 201A (664-2142)
Office Hours: T,R 3-4:30pm, W 3:30-5:30pm and by appointment

http://www.csub.edu/~mpawlowski/femchap.html

http://www.csub.edu/~mpawlowski/pcchapter.html

"Cultural Critique at the Fin de Siecle: Marxist Aesthetics, New Historicism, and Cultural Studies"

http://www.csub.edu/~mpawlowski/cultural_critique.html

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/3224/


REQUIRED TEXTS

• Selected Poems and Three Plays, W. B. Yeats
• Villette, Charlotte Bronte
• Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
• The Big Sleep, Raymond Chandler
• Literary Theory: An Anthology, Rivkin and Ryan
• A Handbook to Literature (7th ed), Harmon and Holman

• Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles: A Photographic Survey

COURSE POLICIES
Grading:

• Papers -- 3 critical papers (15% each) chosen from assigned topics; short writing assignments (10%)
  Exams -- Midterm (10%) -- Final (20%)
• Class Participation--(15%) Students will attend a mandatory field trip as part of their research in cultural studies, will be given specific questions to research and topics to discus, and will be encouraged to enter information on this web site.

"I" Grades -- will be considered only in the case of an emergency

Evaluative Criteria:
For each assignment, students will be informed of the criteria used to grade their work. Generally, students should be aware of these criteria for evaluating written work.

• A -- A paper which demonstrates a unique quality of thought and a creative spark, an extremely effective and original thesis, coherent organization and seamless transitions, a lucid and readable style, virtually no errors
• B -- A paper which is very good, but does not demonstrate the superior qualities required for an A grade. This paper will have a strong thesis, effective organization, and few errors
• C -- This paper demonstrates average performance in responding to the topic. It has a thesis which lacks originality and creativity, its organization may be weak in spots, it may have a few major errors and a number of minor ones
• D -- The paper really does not respond to the assigned topic, it has no thesis or a thesis that is very weak and insupportable, and it has a number of errors.

Attendance:
I expect regular, punctual attendance. Students absent for valid, verifiable reasons only will be allowed to make up work; however, absence is not an excuse for a late paper. Students with more than three unexcused or unverifiable absences will lose no less than one letter grade on their final averages.

COURSE CALENDAR

Introduction to Critical Theory
Weeks One (March 28, 30)
An Overview of Theory and Criticism in the Twentieth Century

• Close Reading: The Poetry of W. B. Yeats
• Short Writing Assignment
• Assigned Readings from Part One, Literary Theory

Week Two (April 4, 6)
Deconstruction and Poststructuralist Theory

• Self-Deconstructing Yeats, Selected Poems
• Assigned Readings from Part Five, Literary Theory
• Short Writing Assignment

Weeks Three, Four (April 9-18)
Feminist Theory

• Villette, Charlotte Bronte
• Assigned Readings from Part Six, Literary Theory
• Paper One due April 25

On reserve: "Villette," Judith Newton

Week Five (April 25, 27)
Psychoanalysis, Language, and Self-Construction

• Assigned Readings from Part Three, Literary Theory
• Yeats, Bronte, Feminism, and Psychoanalysis

Midterm Exam

Weeks Six, Seven (May 2-11)
Heart of Darkness: The Dark Heart of Colonialism

• "Heart of Darkness"
• Assigned Reading from Part Four, Literary Theory
• Assigned Reading from Part Nine, Literary Theory
• Paper Two due May 16

On Reserve: "An Image of Africa," Chinua Achebe


Weeks Eight, Nine (May 16-25)
Cultural Studies and The Big Sleep

• The Big Sleep, novel and film
• Assigned Readings from Part Ten, Literary Theory
• Paper Three due

• Required field trip, date to be determined

June 6 Exam Preparation and Closing Discussion

Thursday, June 8 Final Exam 2-4:30pm

DUE DATES
: Papers and midterm are due on the dates listed in the syllabus. Papers should be 5-7 pages typed and will not be accepted late.