ENG 2213.007 (13334): TR 9:30-10:45, MB 1.208
ENG 2213.007 Literary Criticism and Analysis
Syllabus – Fall 2009
Instructor: Elaine Wong
Email: elaine.wong@utsa.edu
Office Location: MB 2.306E
Office Phone: 458-7884
Office Hours: T11:00 a.m.–12:00 nn., W 4:15–5:15 p.m., and by appointment
Required Texts
Booth, Alison, J. Paul Hunter, and Kelly J. Mays, eds. The Norton Introduction to Literature.
Portable Edition. New York & London: W. W. Norton, 2006. ISBN: 0-393-92856-X.
Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. Critical Edition. New York & London: W. W. Norton, 2008.
ISBN: 978-0-393-93219-5.
Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. Critical Edition. New York & London: W. W. Norton, 2005.
ISBN: 0-393-92636-2.
Shakespeare, William. King Lear. Critical Edition. New York & London: W. W. Norton, 2008.
ISBN: 978-0-393-92664-4.
Course Description
ENG 2213 provides a study of poetry, fiction, and drama, with close attention to literary terms,
literary criticism, and the characteristics of each genre. This course includes intensive reading and
extensive writing requirements and is designed to prepare students who intend to take advanced
courses in literature and other students who have a commitment to the rigorous study of literature.
-- adapted from UTSA 2008-2010 Undergraduate Catalogue.
Learning Objectives
This course facilitates students to
1. cultivate critical understandings of literature,
2. obtain sound and basic knowledge of major literary genres and theories,
3. strengthen close reading, analytical, and research skills, and
4. develop coherent and cogent presentation of ideas in writing and speech.
Class Policy
1. Observe Scholastic Integrity: Scholastic integrity is of utmost importance in the academic
community. Everyone does his/her own work to achieve educational and personal developments.
No plagiarism, collusion, or other forms of scholastic dishonesty will be tolerated in this course.
According to the Student Code of Conduct, “‘Plagiarism’ includes, but is not limited to, the
appropriation, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any means another’s work and the
submission of it as one’s own academic work offered for credit” while “‘Collusion’ includes, but
is not limited to, the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing academic
assignments offered for credit or collaboration with another person to commit a violation of any
section of the rules on scholastic dishonesty.” Scholastic dishonesty will result in automatic
failure in the course and possible dismissal by UTSA. See Section 203 of the Code for UTSA’s
policy on scholastic dishonesty.
2. Classroom Etiquette: Be a considerate class participant. Arrive on time. Turn off all electronic
devices before class begins, including mobile phones, pagers, PDAs, laptops, and others. As the
class requires all students’ constant and active engagement, please refrain from using laptops.
Bring your own textbooks and handouts. Be attentive and participate in class.
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ENG 2213.007 (13334): TR 9:30-10:45, MB 1.208
“As members of the University community, students share in the obligation to maintain a
classroom environment that is conducive to learning. Accordingly, students are prohibited from
engaging in any behavior that obstructs, disrupts, or interferes with any class. Inappropriate
behavior in the classroom may result, at a minimum, in a request to leave class. Such behavior
also violates the Student Code of Conduct and may result in disciplinary action.” (Source: Student
Judicial Affairs, UTSA)
3. Absence Policy: Each student can have one excused absence and one unexcused absence not
reflected in his/her grade during the semester. For each subsequent absence, whether excused
or unexcused, 1.25% will be deducted from the 10% attendance grade.
Excused absences include sicknesses with doctor’s notes, mandatory attendances at University
functions with documentation, and other documented emergencies. All other absences fall into the
“unexcused” category. Notify me of foreseeable absences beforehand and emergencies asap via
email or on Blackboard.
Occasional late arrivals in class can be excused; however, habitual tardiness will lead to a
deduction in the attendance grade.
Each repeated failure in bringing texts/handouts for the day will be treated as an unexcused
absence.
4. Late Policy for Assignments: All assignments are expected to be turned in on time. If you
experience difficulties in meeting deadlines, let me know asap—not on the due date or the
evening before—and we can arrange an extension. However, if a student displays habitual
procrastination, no extension will be given. Any late submissions without extension will result in
the deduction of 1/3 of a letter grade or 3 points in a 100-point scale for each calendar day.
5. Format of Written Assignments: Unless otherwise specified, type all take-home written
assignments and follow MLA formatting and documentation styles. MLA formatting: 12-point
Times New Roman, doubled-spaced, one-inch margin on all sides. Put your last name and page
number on the right side of the header. MLA documentation: see Blackboard. All written
assignments should at least reach the minimum word limit. Failing to do so will lead to a
grade deduction.
6. Achieve Progress: You are expected to learn from your work and improve as the course
proceeds. I am more than happy to discuss your work in this class and answer any questions
during office hours, by appointment, on Blackboard, and via email.
7. Services for Disabilities: This course provides accommodation for students with disabilities who are
registered with the Office of Disability Services and receive an accommodation letter from the Office.
Grading Policy
Attendance
10%
Class Preparation & Participation
10%
Dialectic Journals, Microanalyses, & Blackboard discussion 14%
3 Written Analyses (w/ Writing Journals)
21%
Oral Presentation & Annotated Bibliography
10%
Mid-term Exam
10%
Research Paper
15%
Final Exam
10%
Total
100%
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ENG 2213.007 (13334): TR 9:30-10:45, MB 1.208
1. Attendance (10%): See page 2 for absence policy.
2. Class Preparation & Participation (10%): In every class, I expect you to contribute to
constructive discussion while respecting other people’s views. Always read the texts to be
discussed and come prepared, and participate actively in all class activities. Grades for in-class
assignments and possible pop quizzes will also be incorporated.
3. Dialectic Journals, Microanalyses, & Blackboard Discussion (14%): Dialectic Journal
(DJ)—an informal but thoughtful response to the readings to be covered in that week. See further
instructions on Blackboard. Microanalyses—a one-page (300 words) analysis of one or two
poems focusing on a specific aspect, such as language use and tone. Blackboard Discussion—
follow-up discussion for King Lear performance. Each student will post a comment (250-300
words) on Blackboard and respond to three other comments.
4. Written Analyses with Writing Journals— Blackboard submission (21%): You will write one
analysis (900-1,500 words) for each of the following genre: poetry, drama, and fiction. Discuss
technical details as comprehensively as possible and incorporate your own critical view. Refer to
the guidelines for the analysis of each genre on Blackboard for texts to be chosen and genrespecific requirements. All written analyses must follow the MLA style in format and
documentation. Secondary sources can be used and should be properly documented when used,
but are not required. Append a ½- to 1-page journal to your analysis and let me know how you
feel about the writing exercise, especially if you have encountered any difficulties. I strongly
encourage you to finish the draft early and consult a tutor at the Writing Centre (HSS 2.02.22,
http://www.utsa.edu/twc/) before submission.
5. Oral Presentation & Annotated Bibliography (10%): You will select an article from a reading
list on Blackboard and work out your own annotated bibliography (see guidelines on Blackboard).
You will then work with another student who read the same article and give a 10- to 15-minute
presentation on the article. At the presentation, give a brief summary of the article, discuss the
author’s position and argument, and state your team’s position (whether you agree or disagree
with the author; any disagreement among yourselves) using some of the texts we read as
examples. You are encouraged to use multimodal components, such as Powerpoint and handouts.
Missed presentations cannot be made up for unless due to emergencies.
6. Mid-term Exam (10%): A short exam on definitions and poetry analyses.
7. Research Paper— Blackboard and hard-copy submissions (15%): You will integrate the
knowledge and skills learned in this class in writing a 2,000- to 3,000-word research paper
(approx. 7-10 pages excluding works cited page) toward the end of the semester. You may
develop your own topic or follow one of the set prompts. The research paper should include at
least four secondary sources, two of which must be print-based. Full documentation in MLA style
is required. Other details will be provided in the instructions and guidelines on Blackboard.
8. Final Exam (10%): An open-book exam in essay format covering all of the texts and literary
terms/devices discussed in this course.
Final Grade Distribution
A
90% – 100%
B
80% – 89%
C
70% – 79%
D
60% – 69%
F
59% and below
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ENG 2213.007 (13334): TR 9:30-10:45, MB 1.208
Course Outline (subject to changes)
Texts/handouts/guidelines with an asterisk (*) are to be downloaded from LION via lib.utsa.edu.
Those with two asterisks (**) are to be printed via Blackboard.
Week 1
Date
Topic
Texts (to be read before class)
Assignment
due
Introduction
8/27
Week 2
What is literature &
“Introduction.” Norton 1-10.
9/1
how to do literary
studies?
Poetry: introduction
Norton 398-410, 431-40.
DJ1
9/3
& speaker
William Blake. “The Lamb.” Norton 573.
---. “The Tyger.” Norton 573-74.
John Keats. “Ode to a Nightingale.” Norton 595.
Week 3
Poetry: tone
Norton 416-26.
DJ2
9/8
Walt Whitman. “I Hear America Singing.” Norton 626.
**---. Excerpt from “Song of Myself.”
Robert Frost. “The Road Not Taken.” Norton 584.
Poetry: situation &
Norton 446-51.
9/10
setting
Andrew Marvell. “To His Coy Mistress.” Norton 456-58.
Sylvia Plath. “Morning Song.” Norton 460-61.
Paul Laurence Dunbar. “We Wear the Mask.” Norton
582.
W.B. Yeats. “Leda and the Swan.” Norton 633.
Week 4
Poetry: language
Norton 465-71, 475-77.
Microanalysis
9/15
William Carlos Williams. “The Red Wheelbarrow.”
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Norton 472.
e. e. Cummings. [In Just-] Norton 473-74.
Emily Dickinson. [Because I could not stop for
Death—] Norton 577-78.
Poetry:
language
Norton
481, 483-85 (starting from “Marks”), 490-96
9/17
(“Symbol”).
Emily Dickinson. [After great pain, a formal feeling
comes—] Norton 469.
---. [I dwell in Possibility—] Norton 471.
Wallace Stevens. “The Emperor of Ice-Cream.” Norton
614.
---. “Sunday Morning.” Norton 615-18.
Week 5
Poetry: sound
Norton 501-09 (before “Metrical Feet”), 512-13.
Microanalysis
9/22
Emily Dickinson. [A narrow Fellow in the Grass]
2
Norton 517-18.
Robert Frost. “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy
Evening.” Norton 584-85.
Ezra Pound. “In a Station of the Metro.” Norton 610.
** Walt Whitman. “Out of the Cradle Endlessly
Rocking.”
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ENG 2213.007 (13334): TR 9:30-10:45, MB 1.208
Norton 520-31.
Percy Bysshe Shelley. “Ode to the West Wind.”
Norton 535-37.
-
Norton 540-46, 553-59 (“Stanza Forms”).
William Shakespeare. [My mistress’ eyes are nothing
like the sun] Norton 552-53.
Billy Collins. “Sonnet.” Norton 553.
Christopher Marlowe, “The Passionate Shepherd to His
Love.” Norton 601
Sir Walter Ralegh. “The Nymph’s Reply to the
Shepherd.” Norton 610
Thomas Gray. “Elegy Written in a Country
Churchyard” Norton 585-88
** Dionisio Martínez. “Hysteria.”
-
10/6
Mid-term exam
Drama: King Lear
King Lear Act One 3-32.
10/8
Week 8
NO CLASS—attend a performance by Actors from the London Stage on one
10/13
of the following days: 10/7, 10/9, or 10/10, 7:30 p.m., Arts Building Recital
Hall. Buy your ticket in advance at UC Ticketing Center. Make mental notes
during the performance for Blackboard posting.
Drama: plot &
King Lear full text 3-115.
10/15
themes in KL
Week 9
Drama: characters &
King Lear full text 3-115.
10/20
language in KL
Writing:
Norton 1144-74.
10/22
How to write a
Sample research paper. Norton 1175-86.
research paper on
* Instructions for research paper.
literature?
* Guidelines for research paper.
Week 10
Fiction: the basics
Norton 57-62, 106-08, 119-23, 165-66.
10/27
Kate Chopin. “The Story of an Hour.” Norton 314-15.
Jamaica Kincaid. “Girl.” Norton 385-86.
Fiction: plot and
Heart of Darkness full text 3-77.
10/29
setting in HD
* “Introduction: Biographical and Historical Contexts.”
Week 11
Fiction: characters in Heart of Darkness full text 3-77.
11/3
HD
-
9/24
Poetry: internal
structure
Week 6
Poetry: external form
9/29
10/1
Poetry: reading more
poems
Poetry
analysis
Week 7
11/5
Fiction: themes in
HD
Week 12
Fiction: Things Fall
11/10
Apart
Fiction: Things Fall
11/12
Apart
Blackboard
discussion
-
DJ3
-
Drama
Analysis
-
DJ4
Heart of Darkness full text 3-77.
-
Things Fall Apart Chs. 1-12.
-
Things Fall Apart Chs. 13-25.
Fiction
Analysis
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ENG 2213.007 (13334): TR 9:30-10:45, MB 1.208
Week 13
Theory in texts:
11/17
Postcolonialism
11/19
Theory in texts:
New Criticism &
Reader Response
Theory
IDEA survey.
Heart of Darkness & Things Fall Apart full texts.
Norton 1190-91, 1203-04.
Gwendolyn Brooks. “First Fight. Then Fiddle.” Norton
548.
William Faulkner. “A Rose for Emily.” Norton 356-63.
Flannery O’Connor. “A Good Man is Hard to Find.”
Norton 369-80.
Week 14
Theory in texts:
11/24
Marxism &
Feminism
Norton 1205-08.
Nathaniel Hawthorne. “Young Goodman Brown.”
Norton 197-207.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman. “The Yellow Wallpaper.”
Norton 316-27.
Helena Maria Viramontes. “The Moths.”
(http://facweb.stagnes.org/home/pmcfarlin/html/viramontes.html)
NO CLASS—Thanksgiving Holiday.
11/28
Week 15
Theory in texts:
12/1
Ecocriticism
12/3
Course review
* Charles Johnson. “Dr. King’s Refrigerator.”
* Maya Angelou. “On the Pulse of Morning.”
* Leslie Silko. “Preparations.”
* Gary Snyder. “As for Poets.”
* Guidelines for Final Exam.
Research
paper – topic
& thesis
DJ5
Research
Paper –
outline &
sources
-
Research
Paper – 1st 4
pages
RESEARCH PAPER
Final draft due on December 9 by 11:00 p.m. on Blackboard. Absolutely no extension.
FINAL EXAM: December 14 (Monday), 10:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
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