Introduction to the Profession of American Studies
Course identifiers:
AN3005MA, Fall 2010
Time & place:
Thursday 14:00-15:40 in GÖCS Bldg., Room 208
Instructor:
Zoltán Simon (zsimon@dragon.unideb.hu)
Room 118 (: 512-900 / 22069)
Office hours:
Monday and Wednesday 14:00-15:00
Description:
As the title indicates, this course is intended to provide students – coming in
some cases with undergraduate degrees in other than English – with an
introduction to the field of American Studies and in particular the nuts and
bolts of the practice of this profession. After some review of the emergence
and history of American Studies as a discipline, situating it in a broader
academic context, as well as examining its most recent developments, the
course will focus on a variety of practical issues, ranging from research
methodology, American Studies in Hungary, Europe and around the world
with special attention to major organizations, research centers, conferences,
reference literature and other important print and online resources. Topics
including academic English, formulating and developing a thesis, researching
a topic using traditional and online techniques, the mechanics of
documentation, avoiding plagiarism, and others will be also discussed.
Requirements:
Most of the class sessions are to be based on the discussion of the topics at
hand, introduced and moderated by the instructor and/or a student giving a
presentation and being in charge of that topic, and facilitated by way of
common reading materials. Each student will give two 10-minute
presentations during the semester on pre-approved topics, prepared on the
basis of the instructions discussed during the first class. There will be a midterm test checking familiarity with the concepts and readings discussed during
the course. The final project for the course will be a 4000-word academic
paper in the field of American Studies, designed in observance of the
guidelines and using the resources discussed in class, laid out and properly
documented in accordance with the MLA style sheet, and ready for
submission to an academic journal. Their quality permitting, these papers will
be published in the online journal of the course, and will count – for most, it is
assumed – as a first (albeit unrefereed) publication.
Evaluation:
The final grade will be calculated from the grades assigned on class
participation (20%), presentations (2 x 15%), mid-term test (20%) and
the final project (30%). More than three absences will result in a “not
fulfilled” grade. Missing a scheduled presentation date will result in 0 points
for that part; missing both will result in a “not fulfilled” grade. Grades will be
assigned according to the following conversion formulae: 0-60% = fail; 6170% = satisfactory; 71-80% = average; 81-90% = good; 91-100% = excellent.
Texts:
Reading assignments will be distributed in class or made available electronically,
via the instructor’s website (http://ieas.unideb.hu/simon), under “Course
Materials.” Compiling a bibliography of materials relevant to the topics
discussed (and subsequently serving as a list of recommended readings) will be
one of the tasks in the seminar.
Weekly schedule of topics:
Week 1 (Sep. 23): Orientation
Week 2 (Sep. 23): American Studies as a(n inter)discipline - its history, present, and future
 Roy Harvey Pearce: “American Studies as a Discipline” (JSTOR)
Djelal Kadir: “Introduction: America and Its Studies” (JSTOR)
Week 3 (Sep. 30): Fields of inquiry within American Studies
Individual research and presentation on an area of the student’s choice
 Bruce Kuklick: “Myth and Symbol in American Studies” (JSTOR)
Week 4 (Oct. 07): Professional associations in American Studies - in Hungary, Europe and
around the world
 Federmayer Éva: “American Studies in Hungary” (IEAS website)
Stephen H. Sumida: “Where in the World is American Studies?“
(recommended) (JSTOR)
Week 5 (Oct. 14): Using the library: traditional and online resources in American Studies
We’ll meet in the Institute library this week (Main Bldg., Room 101).
Week 6 (Oct. 21): Library workshop: searching in online databases
Visit at the Main Library of the University of Debrecen.
Week 7 (Oct. 28): Conducting research in American Studies (workshop) - Readings: TBA
 Chapter 1 (“Research and Writing”) of the MLA Handbook
Week 8 (Nov. 04): Consultation week (no class)
No readings.
Week 9 (Nov. 11): Participating at the 8th Biennial Conference of HAAS
Please let me or any of the organizers know if you wish to volunteer.
Week 10 (Nov. 18): Academic English, the language of literary and cultural scholarship. The
MLA, Chicago and APA styles. Academic writing (workshop)
 Review chapters 5 and 6 of the MLA Handbook
Week 11 (Nov. 25): In-class written exam
Week 12 (12/02): Genres of scholarly publications in American Studies: identifying
publication outlets, contacting editors/publishers, submitting manuscripts
Week 13 (12/09): Conferences, symposia, and other scholarly forums in American Studies.
Keeping track of CFPs, writing abstracts, registration and obtaining funding.
Week 14 (Dec. 16): American Studies MA Students’ Mini-Conference (workshop)