MONTGOMERY COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Blue Bell and Pottstown, Pennsylvania
English 211 ONLN
Professor James P. Cooney
American Literature I
Fall 2011
Welcome to an on-line version of a classic American college course:
American Literature I--Beginnings through the Civil War.
Required Course Materials
Textbook: Cooney, James P. American Literature: A Custom Publication. Boston:
Pearson, 2011. [ISBN – 10-0-558-62431-6] This is a new edition of the textbook.
Previous editions are different.
This textbook is available exclusively at the Central Campus bookstore of MCCC Barnes
and Noble bookstores. {All page numbers in Schedule of Readings are to this text.}
Film: The Mission, a Warner Brothers Goldcrest Film. Written by Robert Bolt and
starring Jeremy Irons and Robert DeNiro. This film will be available on our
Blackboard site where you may view it for free. However, the quality of the on-line
version is not nearly as good as the DVD version. Accordingly, you may prefer to
purchase the DVD version.
The DVD copies are available at the MCCC Barnes and Noble Bookstore, Central
Campus, Montgomery County Community College. This version comes with a
supplemental disk that provides very useful and fascinating information about how the
movie was made.
[Inquiries about the availability of The Mission and Professor Cooney’s
book may be directed to:
MCCC Barnes and Noble Bookstore
Store Manager –
Email: sm405@bncollege.com
Phone: 215-641-6600
Fax: 215-619-7669]
Materials supplied by professor: Some course readings will be found in the On-line
Textbook on the Blackboard platform. Students are required to check the Announcements
page and the Course Syllabus several times a week. One advantage of an on-line course is
that it is dynamic. Changes in the reading schedule can be suggested by the students and
will sometimes be made as the semester proceeds. Some required readings might be
added. Additional materials may also be added to the On-line Textbook to buttress the
required materials.
The reading of all the material included in the print textbook for this course (not just the
material required on the Syllabus) is strongly recommended. The reading of material not
specifically required is optional.
Schedule of Readings and Assignments
This is a condensed course; consequently assignments and due dates come more
quickly than you might expect. Accordingly, you should review the schedule below
carefully and PLAN AHEAD. If you don’t, you will almost certainly fall behind and
not pass the course.
Please note:
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Written Discussion Board contributions, the papers, and exams are all
required and due on time. To receive full credit, assignments must be posted
by midnight of the unit due date. (Midnight comes at the end of a day, not
the beginning.) Extra discussion contributions may be published after that
date, but you will be evaluated on the basis of postings by the due date and
time.
It is best to post well before the due date so that you have the opportunity to
react to each other in your postings.
Being late does not absolve you from the requirement to submit your work.
STUDENTS WHO DO NOT POST TO EVERY DISCUSSION FORUM
AND SUBMIT EVERY ASSIGNMENT WILL NOT PASS THE COURSE.
You must have viewed and commented on The Mission 10/14 -- and must
submit a paper reviewing the movie two days later.
Melville’s story, “Bartleby the Scrivener,” is a fascinating study of human
nature, but poses difficulties for some readers. You will have the opportunity
to consult a hypertext version of the story. If you choose to do so, this will
make the reading much easier for you, but also more time-consuming. Since
a paper on the story will be required for the final exam, get going on it early.
If you have any problems with the Blackboard site, be sure to consult the IT
staff at the College Help Desk (215-641-6495). It is the student’s
responsibility to deal with and solve technical problems promptly.
Always go back to check that your Discussion Forum postings actually
appear; you may have to click on the “Expand All” button to see all of the
postings in a thread.
Unit # (Due Date)
1) (9/30 - 10/4)
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Readings and Assignments Due
Introductions
Read Course Syllabus (twice) in its entirety.
* Read paperback textbook introduction (p. 1).
* Tour the Blackboard site. Note especially where to find the instructor’s
Compectures. You will need to read at least one of these in conjunction with
every course unit.
* Review the On-line Textbook. There is a wealth of good material here--some
of it required reading for the course.
* Write: A short, biographical paragraph and include addresses and phone
numbers. Send this information from your COLLEGE E-MAIL ACCOUNT [ends
in @students.mc3.edu] to my college e-mail address: jcoooney@mc3.edu
Sending this information means that you have read the syllabus with care,
understand the approach the course will take, accept the “Grading Policy
and Criteria,” and understand your responsibilities as a student in ENG 211
ONLN.
[Note: I have set up a special e-mail folder to which all student email is directed. For this to work, you must mail me all
assignments and correspondence from your MCCC e-mail
account. Doing so will prevent your assignments and messages
from being buried in the numerous other messages I receive
daily.]
* Post a short introduction of yourself to the Welcome Forum you will find in
the Discussion Board section of Blackboard.
2) (10/9)
The Meeting of the Cultures I
(A lot of interesting and important reading here: Please get started
immediately.)
* Read Native American materials (pp. 4-10).
* Read Native American Oral Poetry and excerpt from Howard Zinn: [Both are in
the On-line Textbook section of Blackboard].
* Read Columbus (American Literature text pp. 11-21).
* Post at least six (minimum two each on Indians, Zinn, and Columbus) substantive
contributions to the Discussion Forum.
3) (10/14)
Meeting of the Cultures II
* Read Smith (22-28)
* View film: The Mission. (A link to the video will be supplied.)
* Read On-line Textbook Review of The Mission.
* Read Compectures # 1, # 2, and # 3.
* Post at least three substantive contributions to the Discussion Forum about Smith
and three about The Mission.
4) (10/16)
Movie Review Due
* Write: Send review of The Mission (600 to 800 words) from your college email address (@students.mc3.edu) to instructor’s college address:
jcooney@mc3.edu. {Compectures # 2 and #3 serve as good model reviews.}
Remember: This is an English course. Your paper should be carefully
organized with an introduction, distinct areas of development, and a
conclusion. Be sure to make use of topic sentences and be certain that your
paragraphs are unified and coherent. Careful revision and correction should
be done so that in the final draft, your sentences are efficient, effective, and
free of errors grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, and spelling.
5) (10/21)
Colonial New England Leaders
* Read: Bradford (29-57); Williams (58-66), and Bradstreet (80-95 - and check
On-line Textbook for helpful supplementary material).
* Read: Compecture # 4 and Compecture # 5.
* Post: Make at least six substantive contributions to the Discussion Forum (at
least two for each writer).
6) (10/23)
Ourstory: The Peach Gang
* Read: Required video: View Streaming Video—The Peach Gang [about
35 worthwhile minutes – link found in On-line-Textbook]
* Read: Bonus Guest Compecture: Jennifer L. Aultman (in Compectures
section)
* Post: Post three reactions to the film, including the answer to this
question: Who is most responsible for the death of Richard Stinnings?
7) (10/29)
Yearning for Revolution and Defining America
* Read: Franklin (96 -115), De Crevecoeur (116 – 134), and Jefferson (135
-141.
* Read: Compecture # 6 and Compecture # 7.
* Post: Make at least two substantive Discussion Forum contributions about
Crevecoeur’s vision of America, two about Franklin’s works, and two about
the Declaration of Independence. (Total of nine posts.)
8) (11/2)
Irving
American Romanticism --The Harbinger: Washington
* Read: Irving (168 - 184).
* Read: Compecture #8.
* Post: Make at least four substantive contributions to the Discussion Forum.
9) (11/3 – 11/8) Mandatory Mid-term Exam. Submit Part I by 11/6 at
Midnight. Make appointment for Part II by calling the college. [Blue Bell: Testing
Center (215) 641-6646; Pottstown: (610) 718-1906].
10) (11/13)
The Thinkers: Emerson and Thoreau
* Read: Emerson (190 - 202); Thoreau (203-213).
* Read: Compecture #9 and Compecture # 10.
* Post: Make at least six substantive contributions to the Discussion
Forum, at least three on each writer.
11) (11/20)
Fruition of Fiction I: Hawthorne
* Read: Hawthorne (215 - 248).
* Read: Compecture #9.
* Post: Make at least six substantive contributions to the Discussion
Forum, at least three on each story.
12) (11/30)
Mid-Century Poets
* Read: Longfellow (278 - 295); Melville (296 - 317); Whitman (318 - 341)
* Read: Compecture #10.
* Post: Make at least six substantive contributions to the Discussion Forum, two
on each writer.
14) (12/7)
Fruition of Fiction III: Herman Melville
* Read: Melville “Bartleby the Scrivener.”
* Post: Make at least four substantive contributions to the Discussion
Forum.
15) (12/8 – 12/14) Final Exam
Part I (Bartleby essay) due by midnight 12/11– Mail from your
college e-mail account to the instructor’s college e-mail address:
jcooney@mc3.edu.
* Call: College to make appointment for Part II [Blue Bell Testing
Center: (215) 641-6646; Pottstown Testing Center: (610) 718-1906.]
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Mission Review
Your movie review is my first opportunity to judge how well you think and write. Give a
great deal of thought to what you will say about the film.
Do not use the first person perspective; keep your assessment objective. Avoid the
impersonal “you” as well. Objective third person is always best when you writing
about anything other than yourself.
Be sure to make specific references to the action and dialogue of the film to support any
judgments you make about it. Always remember: Specific detail is the lifeblood of good
writing.
Your Mission Review and exam papers must be carefully written and carefully
revised to be essentially error-free. After all, this is a college English course. Papers
replete with grammar and punctuation errors and sloppy usage will not receive high
grades.
Uses of Other Sources of Information
The stipulated readings from our custom designed textbook, American Literature, are
required. I have so selected the readings as to make it possible for you to complete all
course requirements without having to make use of sources of information other than
American Literature: A Custom Publication, the resources in the On-line Textbook, and
my Compectures. It should not be necessary for you to make use of any other sources
of information to complete this course in your posted comments and assignments
submitted for this course. This is not a research course and I expect your work to be
your original reactions to the things you have read.
However, should you choose, on your papers or in Discussion Forum contributions,
to make use of ideas or ways of explaining things that you have found in another
book or on an Internet site, you must document your source[s]. That is, you must cite
the source[s] parenthetically in your essay and provide complete bibliographical
information including title, author, publisher, and date of publication. For Internet
sources, the complete URL for the site should be provided. Any information taken from
another source “word for word” must also be put in quotation marks, even if it is only a
part of a sentence. In all cases, you should follow the documentation guidelines of the
Modern Language Association (MLA).
Also please be careful not to plagiarize from the introductory matter in our own
text. Any time your essay or exam paper paraphrases so closely as to be almost
indistinguishable from the wording of our text (or my Compectures), you should provide
parenthetical documentation (e.g. supply the page number in our text or source
identification where your paraphrase is taken from). Any time you are conveying material
word-for-word from our text or other course resources, even if it is only a half a sentence,
you should put that material in quotation marks, as well. Failure to do this can result in
lower grades.
Policies in the Student Academic Code of Ethics (see:
http://www.mc3.edu/policy/aa/ethics.htm) will be strictly adhered to.
Forum Contributions
On-line participation, asking questions and making comments for your fellow students,
are essential features in making this course a quality experience. Your contributions take
the place of the classroom interaction you would get in a classroom course. You should
offer substantive comments, questions, or reactions on every unit, as I have directed
in the schedule. Be thoughtful in the comments you make and in the questions you pose.
Be careful to respond intelligently.
My involvement in the Forums, beyond monitoring them, will be ONLY
OCCASIONAL—when I see the need to offer direction or advice. The Discussion
Forums are places for you and your fellow students to discuss matters with each other. I
will jump in from time to time, however, and you are required to read my contributions.
I will be communicating with you individually in my comments on your Mission Paper
and in my reaction to your Mid-term Exam.
Compectures
I have posted a series of Compectures (my coinage for a combination of the two words
“Computer” and “Lectures”) that address the writers and works dealt with in this course.
Become familiar with them and read about a particular writer soon after reading the
textbook material about that person and before writing your essay. (For some units, you
may find that several writers are dealt with in one Compecture. Some Compectures also
may have information about a writer not being studied in this semester’s course.)
On-line Textbook
This course contains a supplementary textbook consisting of material available on
Blackboard and/or on the Internet. This valuable resource consists of primary source
material and critical information about the writers, their ideas, and works. In some cases,
other professors have given me permission to use their course materials. Consulting this
material will not usually be required. It is designed to be supplementary and optional.
However, it also can be very valuable, and you should certainly be quick to consult the
On-line Textbook whenever you feel the desire or need for more information.
Since the course is designed to be dynamic, the drift of our discussions may prompt me to
require that you read something from the supplementary textbook that I did not initially
put on the syllabus. If and when, I make such an assignment, it will become a part of the
course.
NB: You may also suggest that something be added to the On-line Textbook for the
benefit of your fellow students and future students of American Literature I. So,
please be alert to information in your reading that might be useful supplementary
material for this course. When you spot something, let me know immediately, and I
will consider adding it to the On-line Textbook.
Mid-term and Final Examinations
Students must take a Mid-term and a Final Examination. Part II of the two-part exams
must be taken in the Testing Center of the Blue Bell (Central) campus or at the Pottstown
(West) campus. Upon showing satisfactory photo identification, the student will be
given the exam by the testing proctor.
Each exam will require specific knowledge of assigned materials conveyed in two
carefully organized and presented essays, one submitted to the instructor electronically
and the other written in the Testing Center.
Students in remote locations and/or unable to present themselves for examination at
MCCC must arrange with a testing center, library, or academic institution in their area to
supervise their tests. Name, professional position, and address of the proctor must be
available on an institutional Internet site. Please contact me immediately if you need to
apply for this privilege, and I will provide your proctor our prescribed procedures
and a form to sign. The deadline for arranging for an off-campus proctor for this
course is October 8. Students who have not contacted me about special
arrangements for testing by that date and are unable to make it to Blue Bell or
Pottstown for the scheduled examinations will have to drop the course.
Study sheets for the Mid-term and Final Exams will be posted to Blackboard.
Students with Disabilities
“Students with disabilities may be eligible for accommodations in this course. Contact
the Director of Services for Students with Disabilities in the Counseling Center, College
Hall, at 215 641-6575 for more information.” If you require such accommodations, you
must inform me by October 8, if you wish to take advantage of them for this semester.
Grading Policy and Criteria
Substantive Discussion Forum Contributions are required. Any student who does not
post the minimum number of Discussion Forum Contributions for each unit by the due
date will receive a grade of F for the course. No other paper grades, exam grades, or
considerations will be counted if this obligation is not fulfilled. If circumstances cause
you to miss a deadline, contact the instructor by e-mail within 24 hours of having missed
the deadline to avoid being penalized. The missed postings must be made up.
The Discussion Forum requirements fulfilled, grades for the Mission Review will
constitute approximately 20% of the grade for the course. The grades for the Mid-term
and Final Exams will constitute approximately 40% each.
That “grade inflation” has manifested itself in college courses over the years is an
established fact. I am pleased to report that I have been unaffected by this
phenomenon. The grade you receive in ENG 211 ONLN will be a true indication of
the quality of your work as judged against standards I have developed over a college
teaching career now in its 45th year.
Each student starts with a presumption of C level abilities; that is each student is
assumed to have the ability to read and understand the course material and to give
clear, error free, expression to his or her ideas in writing.
A grade of B will be assigned only when, in my judgment, the student demonstrates
an above-average grasp of the material and presents evidence of that above-average
sensibility in clear and effective writing.
A grade of A indicates a superior grasp of the material and an ability to present the
material in an exceptionally effective way.
Like a baseball umpire’s call, my judgments, though subjective, are reflective of
long training and experience -- and are final in all cases.
Professor Contact Information
Professor James P. Cooney
Professor of English
Montgomery County Community College
Blue Bell, PA 19422
Office location: Room 435 Parkhouse Hall, Blue Bell Campus.
Phone: 215-641-6357
E-mail: jcooney@mc3.edu
Literature is supposed to be, in the first instance, entertaining. Try not to lose sight
of that fact, even though you are reading this material for academic credit and
trying to gain important knowledge along the way.
(If you have noticed any errors or omissions in this syllabus, please notify the
instructor immediately.)