ENGLISH 2327 COURSE SYLLABUS
Part I: Course Information
When the student is ready, the teacher appears. (ancient proverb)
In self-trust, all the virtues are comprehended. Free should the scholar be—free and brave.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The American Scholar,” 1836)
Instructor
Name: Mr. Jeff Lindemann
Office location: Office # 221, West Loop Campus
Office hours:
Monday/Wednesday: 9:30 – 11:00, 2:00 – 3:00
Tuesday/Thursday: 9:00 –12:30
Friday: by appointment
Office phone: 713-718-8853
E-mail: Jeff.Lindemann@hccs.edu
Learning Web: http://sw-plone.hccs.cc/members/jeff.lindemann
English 2327 Course Description
English 2327 is a critical study of major American writers from 1630 to 1865. This
course requires substantial reading and research. Students who enroll in this course are
strongly advised to have passed English 1302 with a grade of “C” or better. Prerequisite
is English 1302. Three credit hours (Three lecture).
Textbooks
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, seventh edition, volumes A and B
Modern Language Association (MLA) Handbook (optional) or other English
recent (2009, 2010, 2011) or handbook with MLA section for documentation.
Other Materials
Three ring binder for syllabus and handouts
Pocketed paper folder for researched essays
Grade Percentages
Five exams:
Essay #1: (20%) Puritan Literature (Out-of-class 750 word essay)
Essay #2: (20%) The American Enlightenment (Out-of-class 750 word essay)
Essay #3: (20%) The Dark Romantics (In-class 500-750 word exam essay)
Other grades:
Exam #1: (10%) The Scarlet Letter (Exam)
Exam #2: (10%) Transcendentalists, Douglass, and Dickinson (Final Exam)
Daily grades: (20%) Daily quizzes, research checks, paragraphs
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Grading Scale
A = Excellent (90-100): A+ = 100, A = 95, A- = 93
B = Good (80-89): B+ = 88, B = 85, B- = 83
C = Adequate (70-79): C+ = 78, C = 75, C- = 73
D = Needs work (60-69): D+ = 68, D = 65, D- = 63
F = Unacceptable (0-59): F+ = 58, F = anywhere between 0 – 57
(NOTE: FX = failure due to excessive absences)
Other Abbreviations
L = Late (minus 10 points or a letter grade)
R = Revise (for no higher than 75)
P = Plagiarized (0 for the assignment/no opportunity for revision)
? = Question about assignment (See me!)
Grading Components (rank ordered with meaningful content earning the most
points)
1. Content
2. Organization
3. Sentences
4. Diction (effective word choice and correct usage)
5. Punctuation, capitalization, and manuscript mechanics
Note on Major Sentence/Grammar Errors
Major grammar errors include fragment, comma splice, run-on, awkward/garbled
sentence, and subject-verb agreement errors. These errors will cause you to lose
valuable points on your essay. By the time you are a sophomore, you should not
be making these errors. We have on-site tutors and AskOnLine, our 24/7 on-line
tutoring service to help you with your out-of-class-essays before you submit them
to me. In-class essays of only 500 words leave you plenty of time to self-edit for
these errors.
Attendance Policy
Regular attendance is required at Houston Community College. HCCS class
policy states that a student who is absent more than 12.5% (6 hours) of class may
be administratively dropped. Students who intend to withdraw from a course must
do so themselves by the official last day to drop. After the official drop date, I am
unable to assign you a grade of “W”; I have no other option but to assign you a
grade of “F” or “FX” due to excessive absences.
First Two Class Sessions
Students who miss the first two class sessions are automatically dropped. These
students should register for a second start course.
Withdrawal Policy
The State of Texas has begun to impose penalties on students who drop courses
excessively. For example, if you repeat the same course more than twice, you
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have to pay extra tuition. Beginning in the Fall of 2007, the Texas Legislature
passed a law limiting first time entering students to no more than six total course
withdrawals throughout their academic career in obtaining a certificate or
baccalaureate degree. There may be future penalties imposed.
You should visit with me, an HCC counselor, or HCC Online Student Services to
learn what, if any, HCC interventions might be offered to assist you to stay in
class and improve your performance. Such interventions could include tutoring,
child care, financial aid, and job placement. We want you to succeed!
International Students
Receiving a “W” in a course may affect the status of your student visa. Once a
“W” is given for the course, it will not be changed to an “F” because of the visa
consideration. Please contact the International Student Office at 713-718-8520 if
you have any questions about your visa status and any other transfer issues.
Student Course Reinstatement Policy
Students have a responsibility to arrange payment for their classes when they
register, either through cash, credit card, financial aid, or the installment plan.
Students who are dropped from their courses for non-payment of tuition and fees
who request reinstatement after the official date of record can be reinstated by
making payment in full and paying an additional $75.00 per course reinstatement
fee. The academic dean may waive the reinstatement fee upon determining that
the student was dropped because of a college error.
Please note: If you are dropped for non-payment, you run the risk of not being
able to renter the course you selected because it filled to seat capacity before you
were ready to pay.
HCC Student Email Accounts
All students who have registered and paid for courses at HCC automatically have
an HCC email account generated for them. Please go to the following website
http://www.hccs.edu/students/email/ to review how to send email using this
account. You must use your HCC email account when you want to contact the online tutors.
Daily Grades
Daily grades are worth twenty percent of your grade. They are usually ten
multiple-choice questions on the homework readings. I give no make-ups on
daily quizzes. On some days, I give two daily quizzes. I do not give early daily
quizzes before class or late quizzes after class. You may drop two quiz grades.
Free English Tutoring
The Southwest College offers you free tutoring at our tutoring centers where you
will receive individual attention with any of your writing concerns. Check with
me for location, dates, and times of tutoring. Signs will be posted once the hours
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have been established for the semester. Electronic tutoring is also available 24/7
at www.hccs.askonline.net.
Special Conditions
Any student with a documented disability (e.g. physical, learning, psychiatric,
vision, hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations must
contact the Disability Services Office at the Southwest College at the beginning of
each semester. Faculty members are authorized to provide only the
accommodations requested by the Disability Support Services Office. You may
contact Dr. Becky Hauri, counselor for the Southwest College Office of
Disabilities at becky.hauri@hccs.edu .
Open Computer Lab
You have free access to the Internet and word processing in the open computer
lab. Check on the door of the open computer lab for hours of operation.
Remember to bring a print card so you can pay for your printing. You can
purchase a print card at the cashiers office on the main hallway.
Library
The West Loop Library homepage (for hours) is
http://swc2.hccs.edu/swc/0506/library/westloop_lib.php .
The HCC Library homepage (for research) is
http://www.hccs.edu/system/library/library.html .
Student Organizations
Two organizations of interest to students taking English classes are Southwest
Writers, a group of students who write and read their works (in a public forum as
well as on the Internet) and receive peer support and constructive criticism.
Students in this group create a supportive network to create poetry, fiction, drama
and non-fiction prose. Contact faculty advisor Dr. Christopher Dunne at
Christopher.Dunne@hccs.edu. Or contact Helen Jackson at
Helen.jackson@hccs.edu.
Phi Theta Kappa is the honor society of two-year colleges. Students must earn a
3.5 grade point average and accumulate 12 credit hours at HCCS. HCCS has a
very active chapter called the Omega Sigma Chapter. For contact information
visit www.omegasigma.org or contact the Southwest College faculty advisor Ms.
Eunice Kallarackal at Eunice.Kallarackal@hccs.edu.
The Gender Studies Club meets each month and online to discuss the roles of
women and men in society and to investigate how sexual differences and cultural
constructions of gender may affect identity. The organization promotes awareness
of gender issues on campus, encourages research and discussion of gender issues,
hosts prominent speakers in the field, and serves the community. Faculty advisors
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are Ms. Marie Dybala at Marie.Dybala@hccs.edu and Ms. Amy Tan at
Amy.Tan@hccs.edu.
Inclement Weather
During inclement weather conditions, monitor major local channels for updates
on school closings.
Due Dates and Make-Up Exams
All essays have due dates. Out-of-class essays turned in late are docked a letter
grade (ten points). In-class essays taken late (for any reason) are docked a letter
grade.
Grade of “I”
An “I” is assigned for a missed final due to an emergency, not for unfinished
coursework such as a research paper. All work must be submitted by the end of
the semester, even if it is not finished. A student has 60 days to complete the
missed final. After 60 days a grade of “I” incomplete becomes an “F.” I am
unable to give a final after 60 days.
My Course Policies (Reasonable Behavioral Guidelines)
1. Please come to class on time. Time missed before class is subtracted from the
12.5% attendance policy. Leaving class early or arriving late also results in time
subtracted from the 12.5% attendance policy.
2. Sorry! No sleeping or heads on desks permitted. If you fall asleep, I’ll wake
you up by tapping on your desk.
3. Please do not ever ask, “Are we doing anything important in class today?” The
answer always is “Yes! We are!”
4. If you must leave early, please tell me before class starts.
5. No food allowed in class. Beverages are fine. Please throw away trash at end of
the class session.
6. I dismiss class ten-fifteen minutes early so you can take a break before another
class; therefore, do not pack books before I dismiss class.
7. Please do not chat with class colleagues during discussion. Let us listen to what
our class members have to contribute.
8. Do not bring small children to class.
9. An 89.4 average at the end of the semester is a B. A 79.4 average at the end of
the semester is a C.
10. The time to discuss an essay grade is after it is returned, not at the end of the
semester.
11. The out-of-class essays must be typed. The in-class essays will be written
either in blue books purchased in the bookstore or on the computer in the
computer lab or library classroom.
12. If for some reason, I am more than fifteen minutes late, class is dismissed.
Follow your course calendar and complete any assignments for the next session.
13. When you email me, please use correct English. Proofread your message. Use
correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Do not send a message with
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shortened words such as “Can’t b in class 2day have to pay fine b4 car taken away
pleze snd any assignment.”
14. Save an electronic copy of out-of-class essays and the final draft of your
research paper.
15. The HCC Southwest English Department believes that a turn-around time in
grading a set of essays should be no more than two weeks.
16. You must be making an “A” or “B” in order for me to write you a letter of
recommendation during the semester. You must have made an “A” or “B” in the
course in order for me to write you a letter of recommendation after the semester
ends. I do not write “last minute” letters of recommendation. I need two weeks
notice to write you a thoughtful letter and place it on HCC stationary.
17. Good learning attitude, cooperative demeanor, and courteous behavior all go a
long way with me!
Personal Electronics Policies (A Note to the “Thumb Generation”)
1. Turn off and put away all cell phones, beepers, text-messaging devices and
other electronic devices when class starts. The sounds of cell phones ringing
during class are disruptive to me and other students.
2 Students should not leave the class to make a call or answer one (or worse—
answer a call in class).
3. No cell phones or other electronic devices permitted on top of desks.
4. No Bluetooth devices in ears allowed during class.
5. No MP3 players or other music devices with earphones allowed during class.
6. No laptops open during class (except with my permission).
7. No palm pilots used in class.
8. You can answer your calls and make calls before or after class.
9. If you have an impending emergency and need to keep an electronics device
turned on, I would like to know as soon as class starts.
Consequences for Violating Basic and Reasonable Standards of Conduct
I view the use of personal electronic devices during class to be a distraction of the
normal educational process and a failure on your part to abide by basic and
reasonable standards of classroom conduct. If you are text messaging to someone
during class, you are obviously not engaged in the classroom experience.
If I have to ask you to put away a cell phone, text messaging device, or other
electronic communications device, then you will have disrupted the class, and I,
as the instructor, will ask you to leave that day’s class session. (If you have been
asked to leave class and subsequently miss a daily quiz, you may not make up that
daily quiz.)
If you refuse to leave the classroom voluntarily, I will call campus security. (The
consequences for violating my class policies are backed by the Student Conduct
section of the 2006-2009 Student Handbook, pages 34-40.)
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Use of Cameras and Recording Devices
Use of recording devices, including camera phones and tape recorders, is
prohibited in classrooms, laboratories, faculty offices, and other locations where
instruction, tutoring, or testing occurs. These devices are also not allowed to be
used in campus restrooms. Students with disabilities who need to use a recording
device as a reasonable accommodation should contact the Office for Students
with Disabilities for information regarding reasonable accommodations.
Scholastic Dishonesty
According to the 2006-2009 Student Handbook for the Houston Community
College System :
“Students are responsible for conducting themselves with honor and integrity in
fulfilling course requirements. Penalties and/or disciplinary proceedings may be
initiated by College System officials against a student accused of scholastic
dishonesty. ‘Scholastic dishonesty’ includes, but is not limited to, cheating on a
test, plagiarism, and collusion.”
Cheating on a test includes:
Copying from another student’s test paper;
Using materials during a test that are not authorized by the person giving the test;
Collaborating with another student during a test without authority;
Knowingly using, buying, selling, stealing, transporting, or soliciting in whole or
part the contents of an unadministered test; and/or
Bribing another person to obtain a test that is to be administered.
Plagiarism means the appropriation of another’s work and the unacknowledged
incorporation of that work in one’s own written work offered for credit.
Collusion means the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing
written work offered for credit” (34-35).
Please note the possible consequences of such dishonesty, as stated in the 20062009 Student Handbook: Possible punishments for academic dishonesty may
include a grade of “0” or “F” for the particular assignment, failure in the course,
and/or recommendation for probation or dismissal from the College System (35).
EGLS3 -- Evaluation for Greater Learning Student Survey System
At Houston Community College, professors believe that thoughtful student
feedback is necessary to improve teaching and learning. During a designated time,
you will be asked to answer a short online survey of research-based questions
related to instruction. The anonymous results of the survey will be made available
to your professors and division chairs for continual improvement of instruction.
Look for the survey as part of the Houston Community College Student System
online near the end of the term.
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STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES, OBJECTIVES, AND EDUCATIONAL
COMPETENCIES
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: ENGLISH 2327: Early American Literature
1. Explain and illustrate stylistic characteristics of representative works of major
American writers from the colonial period to 1865.
2. Connect representative works of major American writers from the colonial period to
1865 to human and individual values in historical and social contexts.
3. Demonstrate knowledge of various works of major American writers from the colonial
period to 1865.
4. Analyze critical texts relating to the works of major American writers from the
colonial period to 1865.
5. Critique and interpret representative literary works of major American writers from the
colonial period to 1865.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
1. Enjoy the experience of the course!
2. Explain the characteristics and distinguishing features of literary genres:
a. non-fiction prose (sermons, essays, histories, and travel accounts)
b. fiction (short story and novel), and
c. poetry.
3. Use critical contexts within which literature is created and evaluated:
a. formal (elements of literature),
b. biographical,
c. historical,
d. feminist,
e. psychological, and
f. reader response.
4. Make and defend critical judgments about literature.
5. Stretch the imagination.
6. Practice and refine research skills.
7. Write a research paper.
8. Practice and improve study skills.
9. Learn on your own. (“Learn how to learn.”)
10. Work cooperatively with others.
11. Organize time efficiently.
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EDUCATIONAL COMPETENCIES IN HCCS CORE CURRICULUM
Reading: Reading material at the college level means having the ability to analyze and
interpret a variety of printed materials--books, articles, and documents.
Writing: Writing at the college level means having the ability to produce clear, correct,
and coherent prose adapted to purpose, occasion, and audience. In addition to knowing
correct grammar, spelling and punctuation, students should also become familiar with the
writing process, including how to discover a topic, how to develop and organize it, and
how to phrase it effectively for their audience. These abilities are acquired through
practice and reflection.
Speaking: Effective speaking is the ability to communicate orally in clear, coherent, and
persuasive language appropriate to purpose, occasion, and audience.
Listening: Listening at the college level means the ability to analyze and interpret
various forms of spoken communication.
Critical Thinking: Critical thinking embraces methods for applying both qualitative and
quantitative skills analytically and creatively to subject matter in order to construct
alternative strategies. Problem solving is one of the applications of critical thinking used
to address an identified task.
Critical thinking as applied to the study of literature involves
1. connecting patterns and motifs in works of literature,
2. looking for relevant information that supports your assertions,
3. interpreting literature,
4. solving literary problems,
5. drawing conclusions, and
6. tolerating ambiguity and complexity in literature.
Computer Literacy: Computer literacy at the college level means having the ability to
use computer-based technology in communicating, solving problems, and acquiring
information. Core-educated students should have an understanding of the limits,
problems, and possibilities associated with the use of technology and should have the
tools necessary to evaluate and learn new technologies as they become available.
EXEMPLARY EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES FOR HUMANITIES

Demonstrate awareness of the scope and variety of works in the arts and humanities.

Understand those works as expressions of individual and human values within an
historical context.

Respond critically to works in the arts and humanities.
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
Engage in the creative process or interpretive performance and comprehend the
physical and intellectual demands required of the author or visual or performing
artist.

Articulate an informed personal reaction to works in the arts and humanities.

Develop an appreciation for aesthetic principles that guide and govern the humanities
and arts.

Demonstrate knowledge of the influence of literature, philosophy, and/or the arts on
intercultural experiences.
EXEMPLARY EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES FOR CROSS/MULTICULTURAL STUDIES

Establish broad and multiple perspectives in the individual in relationship to the
larger society and world in which we live and understand the responsibilities of living
in a culturally and ethnically diversified world.

Demonstrate knowledge of those elements and processes that create and define
culture

Understand and analyze the origin and function of values, beliefs, and practices found
in human societies.

Develop basic cross/multi-cultural understanding, empathy, and communication.

Identify and understand underlying commonalities of diverse cultural practices.

Analyze the effects of cultural forces on the area of study.
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MY GRADE ROSTER
You can keep a running record of your grades in this course. At any given moment
during the semester, you should have a very good idea what your gfrade is in this course.
Your Exam Grades:
_____ Essay #1 (20%) on Puritan Literature
_____ Essay #2 (20%) on American Enlightenment
_____ Essay #3 (20%) on Dark Romantics
_____ Exam #1 (10%) on The Scarlet Letter (in-class mid-term)
_____ Exam #2 (10%) on Transcendentalists, Douglass, and Dickinson (in-class final)
_____ Daily Grades (20%)
Daily Quiz Grades:
_____ Quiz #1
_____ Quiz #11
_____ Quiz 21
_____ Quiz #2
_____ Quiz #12
_____ Quiz 22
_____ Quiz #3
_____ Quiz #13
_____ Quiz 23
_____ Quiz #4
_____ Quiz #14
_____ Quiz 24
_____ Quiz #5
_____ Quiz #15
_____ Quiz 25
_____ Quiz #6
_____ Quiz #16
_____ Quiz #7
_____ Quiz #17
_____ Quiz #8
_____ Quiz #18
_____ Quiz #9
_____ Quiz #19
_____ Quiz #10
_____ Quiz #20
Reminder: No make-ups on daily quizzes. I will drop the two lowest daily quiz grades (or
missed daily quiz grades) at the end of the semester.
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ENGLISH 2327 COURSE SYLLABUS
Part II: STUDENT CALENDAR
29 CLASS SESSIONS plus FINAL EXAM SESSION
Monday-Wednesday
FALL 2011
WEEK ONE
SESSION #1 (Monday, August 29th )
 Introduction to English 2327
 Course information, objectives, and competencies
 Class policies
 Grading standards
 Overview of English 2327
Assignment for Session #2: Purchase textbooks (optional) and three-ring binder for
handouts you wish to print. Explore our Learning Web:
http://learning.swc.hccs.edu/members/jeff.lindemann.
SESSION #2 (Wednesday, August 31st )
 Background to Puritan literature
 John Winthrop
 Conclusion to Winthrop’s sermon “A Model of Christian Charity”
 Trial of Anne Hutchison (from The Journal of John Winthrop)
Assignment for Session #3: Read brief biography (introduction in text or brief biography
on our Learning Web) on Anne Bradstreet. Read works by Anne Bradstreet: “To My
Dear Children,” “The “Prologue “The Author to Her Book,” “To My Dear and Loving
Husband,” “Upon the Burning of our House July 10th 1666,” and “In Memory of My
Dear Grandchild Anne Bradstreet.”
WEEK TWO
OFFICIAL COLLEGE HOLIDAY: Labor Day (Monday, September 5th )
SESSION #3 (Wednesday, September 7th )
 John Winthrop, continued
 Puritan poetry
 Anne Bradstreet
 Poems by Bradstreet
Assignment for Session #4: Read brief biography on Mary Rowlandson. Read A
Narrative of Indian Captivity.
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WEEK THREE
SESSION #4 (Monday, September 12th )
 Captivity narratives
 Mary Rowlandson
 Mary Rowlandson’s Narrative of Indian Captivity
Assignment for Session #5: Read brief biography on Cotton Mather. Read selection on
Martha Carrier in Wonders of the Invisible World. Read brief biography on Nathaniel
Hawthorne. Read “Young Goodman Brown.” (NOTE: If you are using the text, refer to
Volume B for Hawthorne.)
SESSION #5 (Wednesday, September 14th)
 Literature of the Puritan witchcraft trials
 Cotton Mather
 Wonders of the Invisible World
 Nathaniel Hawthorne
 “Young Goodman Brown”
Assignment for Session #6: Read brief biography on Jonathan Edwards. Read “Sinners
in the Hands of an Angry God.” Read “The Minister’s Black Veil.”
WEEK FOUR
SESSION #6 (Monday, September 19th)
 Jonathan Edwards
 “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
 Nathaniel Hawthorne
 “The Minister’s Black Veil”
Assignment for Session #7: Read brief biography on Edward Taylor. Read “Prologue”
and “Huswifery.”
SESSION #7 (Wednesday, September 21st)
 Edward Taylor
 Poems by Taylor: “Prologue” and “Huswifery”
 Writing an essay on literature
 Exam #1 topics
Assignment for Session #8: Write take-home exam #1: Essay on Puritan literature.
WEEK FIVE
SESSION #8 (Monday, September 26th)
 Essay #1 is due at beginning of class session
 Electronic research using HCCS data bases
 Using sources in researched writing
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Assignment for Session #9: Read The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 1-6 (NOTE: Skip the
“Introduction” called “The Custom House.”)
SESSION #9 (Wednesday, September 28th)
 Nathaniel Hawthorne
 The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 1-6
Assignment for Session #10: Read The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 7-12.
WEEK SIX
SESSION #10 (Monday, October 3rd)
 The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 7-12
Assignment for Session #11: Read The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 13-18. Continue
research.
SESSION #11 (Wednesday, October 5th)
 The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 13-18
Assignment for Session #12: Read The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 19-24.
WEEK SEVEN
SESSION #12 (Monday, October 10th)
 The Scarlet Letter, Chapters 18-24
Assignment for Session #13: Review for The Scarlet Letter mid-term exam.
SESSION #13 (Wednesday, October 12th)
 Exam #1: The Scarlet Letter (mid-term exam)
Assignment for Session #14: Read brief biography on Ben Franklin.
WEEK EIGHT
SESSION #14 (Monday, October 17th)
 Introduction to the American Enlightenment
 Ben Franklin
 “Poor Richard’s Almanaks”
Assignment for Session #15: “The Speech of Polly Baker” (Learning Web), “The Way to
Wealth.”
SESSION #15 (Wednesday, October 19th)
 “The Speech of Polly Baker”
 “The Way to Wealth”
Assignment for Session #16: Read brief biography on Thomas Paine. Read “Common
Sense” and The Age of Reason.
English 2327, Jeff Lindemann, Southwest College, HCCS, Fall Semester 2011
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WEEK NINE
SESSION #16 (Monday, October 24th)
 Thomas Paine
 “Common Sense”
 The Age of Reason
Assignment for Session #17: Read brief biography on Thomas Jefferson. Read
Declaration of Independence. Read brief biography on Washington Irving. Read “Rip
Van Winkle.”
SESSION #17 (Wednesday, October 26th)
 Thomas Jefferson
 Declaration of Independence
 Washington Irving
 “Rip Van Winkle”
Assignment for Session #18: Read brief biography on Phillis Wheatley. Read “On Being
Brought from Africa to America” and “To His Excellency General Washington.” Read
brief biography on Phillip Freneau. Read “The Indian Burying Ground.” Read brief
biography on William Cullen Bryant. Read “Thanatopsis.”
WEEK TEN
SESSION #18 (Monday, October 31st) Halloween!
 Poetry of the Enlightenment
 Phillis Wheatley
 “On Being Brought from Africa to America” and “To His Excellency General
Washington”
 Phillip Freneau
 “The Indian Burying Ground.”
 William Cullen Bryant
 “Thanatopsis”
Assignment for Session #19: Write Exam #3: Consult topics on our Learning Web under
the American Age of Reason. Decide on a topic for your 1,000 word critical thinking
essay on the literature of the American enlightenment. Consult the college’s literary data
bases and find two articles relating to your topic. You want to use the articles to help you
prove your theses.
SESSION #19 (Wednesday, November 2nd)
 Incorporating sources into your literary analysis
 Brief introduction to the American Romantic movement
 Introduction to Edgar Allan Poe
Assignment for Session #20: Read brief biography on Edgar Allan Poe. Read “The Tell
Tale Heart.”
English 2327, Jeff Lindemann, Southwest College, HCCS, Fall Semester 2011
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WEEK ELEVEN
SESSION #20 (Monday, November 7th)
 Essay #2 (take-home essay plus sources) is due at the beginning of the class session
 Edgar Allan Poe
 “The Tell-Tale Heart”
Assignment for Session #21: Read “The Fall of the House of Usher.”
SESSION #21 (Wednesday, November 9th)
 “The Fall of the House of Usher”
Assignment for Session #22: Read “The Raven,” “To Helen,” and “Annabelle Lee.”
WEEK TWELVE
SESSION #22 (Monday, November 14th)
 Poems by Poe
Assignment for Session #23: Read brief biography on Herman Melville. Read Billy
Budd, Chapters 1-15. Continue with research project. You have the option of reading
Billy Budd in an electronic hyper-text version at
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/bb/bb_main.html .
SESSION #23 (Wednesday, November 16th)
 Herman Melville
 Billy Budd (Chapters 1-15)
Assignment for Session #24: Read Billy Budd Chapters 16-30. Continue with research
project and prepare folder for research check next class session.
WEEK THIRTEEN
SESSION #24 (Monday, November 21st)
 Billy Budd (Chapters 16-30)
 Research check (in folder: copies of secondary sources, outline, rough draft chunk)
Assignment for Session #25: Read brief biography on Ralph Waldo Emerson. Read “The
American Scholar.” Continue research.
SESSION #25 (Wednesday, November 23rd) No evening classes today!
 Brief biography to transcendentalism
 Ralph Waldo Emerson
 “The American Scholar”
Assignment for Session #26: Read brief biography on Henry David Thoreau. Read
“Where I Lived and What I Lived For.” Read brief biography to Frederick Douglass.
Read “The Meaning of the Fourth of July to the Negro.” Complete Essay #3 on
Hawthorne, Poe, and Melville plus secondary sources.
English 2327, Jeff Lindemann, Southwest College, HCCS, Fall Semester 2011
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WEEK FOURTEEN
SESSION #26 (Monday, November 28th)
 Essay #3 is due
 Henry David Thoreau
 “Where I Lived and What I Lived For”
 Frederick Douglass
 “The Meaning of the Fourth of July to the Negro”
Assignment for Session #27: Read Brief biography on Emily Dickinson. Read poems
Unit I: Introduction to Dickinson
Unit II: The Poet and Her Poetry
Unit III: Nature and Religion
(Poem numbers and titles can be found at the end of the syllabus.)
SESSION #27 (Wednesday, November 30th)
 Emily Dickinson
 Poems by Dickinson
Assignment for Session #28: Read poems by Emily Dickinson:
Unit IV: Love and Marriage
Unit V: Anguish and Insanity
Unit VI: Death and Immortality
(Poem numbers and titles can be found at the end of the syllabus.)
WEEK FIFTEEN
SESSION #28 (Monday, December 5th)
 Poems by Emily Dickinson
Assignment for Session #29: Read brief biography on Walt Whitman. Read “I Hear
America Singing,” “The Dalliance of the Eagles,” “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry,” and
“America.”
SESSION #29 (Wednesday, December 7th)
 Walt Whitman
 Poems by Whitman
Assignment for Final Exam: Prepare for final exam (Exam #5: In-class exam on
transcendentalism, Emerson, Thoreau, Douglass, Dickinson, and Whitman).
FINAL EXAM WEEK
FINAL EXAM SESSION
 Exam #2: In-class final exam (Monday, December 12th from 11:00 – 1:00)
English 2327, Jeff Lindemann, Southwest College, HCCS, Fall Semester 2011
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POEMS BY EMILY DICKINSON
Read textbook brief biography on Emily Dickinson. Read the following Dickinson
poems:
NOTE: The first number you see is the new numbering system by R. W. Franklin
(1999); the second number you see in parentheses is the old numbering system by
Thomas Johnson (1955). Any poem number with an asterisk is in the reading guide on
our Learning Web. I have retained Dickinson’s original capitalization. All titles are the
first lines of her poems. Dickinson titles only a few of her nearly 2,000 poems.
Unit I: Brief biography to Dickinson:
260 [288]: “I’m Nobody! Who are you?”
(486)*: “I was the slightest in the House”
519 [441]: “This is my letter to the World”
409 [303]: “The Soul selects her own Society”
[1705]* Volcanoes be in Sicily”
Unit II: The Poet and Her Poetry:
1263 [1129]: “Tell all the truth but tell it slant”
446 [448]: “This was a Poet”
448 [449]: “I died for Beauty”
788 [709]: “Publication—is the Auction”
Unit III: Nature and Religion:
236 [324]: “Some keep the Sabbath going to Church”
[668]* “Nature is what we see”
359 [328]: “A Bird, came down the Walk”
1668 [1624] “Apparently with no surprise”
1489 [1463] “A Route of Evanescence”
Unit IV: Love and Marriage:
269 [249] “Wild nights—Wild nights!”
225 [199] “I’m ‘wife’—I’ve finished that”
194 [1072] “Title divine, is mine”
1773 [1732] “My life closed twice before it’s close”
Unit V: Anguish and Insanity:
372 [341] “After great pain, a formal feeling comes”
340 [280] “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain”
620 [435] “Much Madness is divinest Sense”
Unit VI: Death and Immortality:
English 2327, Jeff Lindemann, Southwest College, HCCS, Fall Semester 2011
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591[465] “I heard a fly Buzz—when I died”
479 [712] “Because I could not stop for Death”
124 [216] “Safe in their Alabaster Chambers”
373 [501] “This World is not conclusion”
(* indicates poem is on reading guide on Learning Web)
English 2327, Jeff Lindemann, Southwest College, HCCS, Fall Semester 2011
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