COM 111: History of Communication Arts Pre-1875
FALL 2015
Dr. Karin Maresh
Office: 014 Burnett
Class Meetings: MWF, 1:00 – 2:05pm
Burnett 003
Phone: 724-503-1001, ext. 3342
Office Hours: M, 12:00 – 1:00pm
T, 1:00 – 2:30pm, or by appointment
Email: kmaresh@washjeff.edu
(This is the best way to reach me outside of class.)
The mission of the Department of Communication Arts is to graduate citizens determined to build productive lives and vibrant communities through skilled communication, artful performance, and purposeful collaboration. Practice in the ancient disciplines of rhetoric and theatre, as well as the recent arts of radio and cinema, can develop habits of perception and expression that guide one toward the rewards of human communication.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Hartnoll, Phyllis. The Theatre: A Concise History . 4 th
ed. New York: Thames &
Hudson, 2012. Print.
Smith, Craig R. Rhetoric and Human Consciousness . 4 th
ed. Long Grove, IL: Waveland
Press, Inc., 2013. Print.
Plays:
Oedipus Rex
Lysistrata
The Tempest
The London Merchant
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
A survey of the history, theories, and practices of the arts of theatre and rhetoric up to
1875. Students will examine the technological developments, ethical issues, and communication practices of specific historical eras, such as ancient Greece and medieval
Europe. This course is an Arts Breadth of Study and Writing Skills course, and it counts toward the Communication Arts major and minor.
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Throughout this semester students will:
 develop skills in inquiry and analysis, information literacy, and global learning by understanding the history, theories, and practices of theatre and rhetoric prior to the Modern Era through examination of primary and

secondary materials.
 develop skills in critical thinking, reading, and global learning by gaining insight into the significant developments and trends that influenced the formation of the arts of theatre and rhetoric leading into the Modern Era.
 develop skills in information literacy, reading, and inquiry and analysis by gaining knowledge of the evidence, written and visual, that most influenced theatre and rhetoric in each of the specific eras studied.
CLASS POLICIES:
1.
No make-up assignments, quizzes, or exams are allowed without documentation of an illness or emergency.
2.
Papers and assignments are to be turned into me at the beginning of class on the scheduled due date. I will only accept hard copies (not via email). Late papers will be penalized by one letter grade for each day (not class period) after the deadline . Papers which are five or more days late will be given an automatic zero.
3.
NO CELL PHONES IN CLASS!!!! Keep your phones in your bags and make sure they are turned off or silenced before class begins. Use of phones during class time will result in a loss of participation points.
ASSIGNMENTS:
1.
Quizzes – Quizzes may be given periodically over course readings. These will be given without notice and will enable me to see that students are keeping up with and understanding the course material, and they serve as quick reviews to aid students in preparation for the exams.
2.
Weekly Writing Assignments – Students will be asked to complete various assignments throughout the semester, some of which are articulated in the syllabus calendar.
3.
Biographical Report – Each student will be complete and present a brief but thorough report on a person of historical significance to the study of theatre and/or rhetoric. These presentations will be staggered throughout the semester and will occur during the class periods appropriate to discussion of each historical person. Students will be expected to provide important biographical information about their assigned person, a succinct explanation of how the individual contributed to and influenced his or her field, as well as visual evidence.
4.
Research Paper – This 10 pg. paper will be written in 4 stages: topic statement, outline and bibliography, rough draft, and final paper. The topic of the paper must be related to the course material, the history of the communication arts, specifically theatre and/or rhetoric. A minimum of 12 sources is required, only 3 of which may be online sources. Please note that Wikipedia is NOT an acceptable source.
Should other projects be assigned throughout the semester, students will be given prior notice.

All written assignments for this class MUST be typed (unless otherwise stated), double-spaced, formatted in Times New Roman 12 pt. font, and PROOFREAD. I will take points off for sloppy grammar.
**Grades for these assignments will be based primarily upon your level of work in four main areas: research, organization, preparation, and creativity (independent thinking).
Work that meets the minimum requirements will earn a “C.” A “B” assignment will show some depth of thought and good use of materials, while an “A” assignment will show significant depth of thought and excellent use of materials.
SAKAI: I will use Sakai this semester to post readings, assignments, and links to relevant and useful web sites. If you miss class, be sure to check the Sakai site in the event I issue an assignment in your absence.
ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION: You are expected to attend all classes. Each class period is worth two points, one for attendance and one for participation. If you miss a class you lose the points available for that day. Attendance is taken at the start of class and tardiness will be noted and can affect your grade. I count five tardies as an absence.
Participation in this class means active involvement in relevant class discussion and group activities. The best piece of advice I can give you is this: In order to critically engage with the material and your classmates, you should take notes and make observations of the course material. Write down all questions that are raised as you read and bring them to class for discussion. This will make the class more interesting for you as well as for the class as a whole. These notes will also be enormously helpful as you study for your midterm and final exams.
GRADING:
Quizzes
Daily Assignments
Report
Topic Statement
50 pts.
50 pts.
40 pts.
10 pts.
Outline/Bibliography
Rough Draft
Final Paper
Midterm Exam
Final Exam
30 pts.
50 pts.
100 pts.
100 pts.
100 pts.
530 pts.*
*The total number of available points for the semester may change depending on the amount of daily work that is assigned.

GRADING SCALE:
A= 93-100 (A), 90-92 (A-)
B= 88-89 (B+), 83-87 (B), 80-82 (B-)
C= 78-79 (C+), 73-77 (C), 70-72 (C-)
D= 68-69 (D+), 63-67 (D), 60-62 (D-)
F= 59 and below
ACADEMIC RESPONSIBILITY: Academic honesty and integrity is expected of all students. I treat cheating of any sort, electronic or human, very seriously. The written work you hand in or present in class must be your own, no matter how small the assignment, and the sources informing both your ideas and prose should be properly acknowledged. I will avail myself of W&J resources to detect digital plagiarism. If a student is found guilty of plagiarism, he or she will receive a failing grade in the course.
If you are confused in any way about this, please see me. Information about
W&J regulations concerning plagiarism and academic misconduct can be found online on the College website and in the College Catalog.
According to the College’s Academic Honesty Policy, “examples of academic misconduct include, but are not limited to :
 Plagiarism, which is representing the fruits of another’s intellectual labor as one’s own, whether this is done with the intention to deceive or is the result of incompetence. Examples include using someone else’s ideas, research results, sentence structure, or phrasing without properly crediting the author, thus leading the reader to assume that they are the student’s own creation.

Fabricating material and representing it as genuine. This includes falsifying research results for a laboratory report or falsifying information for a written essay.

Submitting papers or other academic work in two different classes or other academic settings without full knowledge of the instructors involved and written permission from both instructors. When an assignment asks for original work, the presumption is that the work has not been submitted in a different class or another academic setting.

Knowingly giving or receiving unauthorized aid on a piece of academic work (including tests, papers, research, artwork, etc.). For example, a person knowingly giving answers to another person during a test is as guilty of academic misconduct as the person receiving the answers.

Misconduct in a testing situation, including copying answers from another student’s test, using electronic devices or other unauthorized sources of information during a test, or illicitly collaborating on tests taken outside of the classroom” (Academic Status
Committee. “Academic Honesty Policy.” Spring 2005. 12 August 2005 < http://www1.washjeff.edu/users/committees/coas/ >.).

CALENDAR:
Texts that will be provided by the instructor are noted with an asterisk (*).
Week 1
M 7 Sept. Introduction to the Course
What is theatre? What is rhetoric?
Beginnings
W 9 Sept. The Origins of Theatre and Rhetoric
F 11 Sept. Myth and Narrative
Reading Due: Smith, Chpt. 2
Week 2 The Greeks
M 14 Sept. Readings Due: Smith, Chpt. 3, and Hartnoll, Chpt. 1 (to p. 22)
W 16 Sept. Continue Discussion
F 18 Sept. Discuss Oedipus Rex , Sophocles
Week 3
M 21 Sept. Artistotle
Readings Due: The Poetics * and Smith, Chpt. 4
W 23 Sept. Readings Due: Rhetoric *
F 25 Sept. Continue Discussion of Aristotle
Week 4
M 28 Sept. Discuss Lysistrata , Aristophanes
The Romans
W 30 Sept. Readings Due: Smith, Chpt. 5 and Hartnoll, Chpt. 1 (pp. 22-31)
F 2 Oct.
Week 5
M 5 Oct.
W 7 Oct.
F 9 Oct.
DUE: Topic Statement for Final Paper
Continue Discussion
Case Study: Roman Drama
Wrap-up Discussion of Rome
Fall of Rome and the Rise of Christianity
Readings Due: Smith, Chpt. 6 and Hartnoll, Chpt. 2
Week 6
M 12 Oct. Readings Due: * Dulcitius , Hrosvitha; * Pierre Patelin
Report: Hrosvitha
W 14 Oct. Watch The Second Shepherd’s Play
F 16 Oct. The Medieval Audience
Report: Thomas Aquinas
Week 7
M 19 Oct. Fall Break – No class
W 21 Oct. DUE: Outline and Bibliography for Final Paper
Review for Midterm
Report: Ignatius Loyola

F 23 Oct. MIDTERM EXAM
Week 8 The Renaissance
M 26 Oct. Readings Due: Smith, Chpt. 7
W 28 Oct. Readings Due: Hartnoll, Chpt. 3, 4, and 5
F 30 Oct. Continue Discussion
Week 9
Report: Christopher Marlowe
M 2 Nov. Discuss The Tempest , Shakespeare
W 4 Nov. Focus on the Reformation
F 6 Nov.
Report: Ben Jonson
DUE: Rough Draft of Final Paper
Report: Lope de Vega, Aphra Behn, Giordano Bruno
Week 10
M 9 Nov. Discuss * Tartuffe
, Moliére
W 11 Nov. Continue discussion of the Renaissance and Reformation
F 13 Nov. TBA
Report: Voltaire
Week 11 The Enlightenment
M 16 Nov. Readings Due: Smith, Chpt. 8, and Hartnoll, Chpts. 6, 7, & 8
W 18 Nov. Continue Discussion
Report: Johann Goethe
F 20 Nov. Discuss The London Merchant , Lillo
Week 12
M 23 Nov. Wrap-up Discussion of the Enlightenment
Report: Friedrich von Schiller
25-27 Nov. Thanksgiving Break – No Class
Week 13 The Nineteenth Century
M 30 Nov. Readings Due: Hartnoll, Chpts. 9 & 10
Report: Edmund Burke
W 2 Dec. Continue Discussion
F 4 Dec.
Report: Mary Astell, Laura Keene, or Dion Boucicault
Discuss
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
, Aiken
Week 14
M 7 Dec. Wrap-up Discussion of Nineteenth Century
Report: Victor Hugo and Charlotte Cushman
W 9 Dec. Discuss Final Papers
F11 Dec. Summarize Course and Review for Exam
DUE: Final Papers
Final Exam – Monday, 14 December, 9am-12pm