Hearing the Unheard: Censorship and Culture
English Composition 101
50:350:101:03
Instructor: Mr. Jude Miller
Spring 2010–MWF 9:05 AM-10:00 AM
Email: judecmiller@gmail.com
Armitage 106
Office: Armitage 427
Office hours: 10:00 AM-11:00 AM Monday, Wednesday, or, preferably, by appointment
Required Texts and Materials:
#1.) Orwell, George. 1984. New York: Signet, 1961
#2.) Burgess, Anthony. A Clockwork Orange. New York: Norton,
1986.
#3.) Nabokov, Vladimir. The Annotated Lolita. New York: Vintage,
1991
#4.) Bacon, Nora. The Well-Crafted Sentence: A Writer’s Guide to
Style. New York: Bedford, 2008
#5.) Lunsford, Andrea A. Easy Writer: A Pocket Reference, 4th ed.
New York: Bedford, 2010
#6.) Graff, Gerald. They Say/I Say, 2nd ed. New York, W. W. Norton
& Company, 2010.
#7.) 1 notebook for journal entries, grammar exercises, and class
notes.
Course Description:
Censorship—the suppression of unacceptable materials in books, movies, music, or other forms
of media—is an extremely powerful tool. From the Motion Picture Association of America to the
Roman Catholic Church’s Index Librorum Prohibitorum to Tipper Gore and the Parents’ Music
Resource Center, censorship of materials for alleged obscenity or profanity has existed across
cultures and generations. But what makes these materials “obscene” or “indecent”? Who
determines that certain things are not acceptable for the general public to consume? Why can’t
we, the members of the public, decide what kinds of culture we can consume?
Throughout this semester we will explore this issue and consider whose voices,
specifically, are suppressed through the enterprise of censorship, while also evaluating the
ideologies and agendas that are promoted through the act of censoring by reading literature that is
not only about censorship, but also by those who have been censored, as well as literature by
those who are doing the censoring. In doing so we will continue to hone your abilities as a
critical writer and thinker, focusing on such skills as summarization, close reading, developing
topic sentences and thesis statements, as well as drafting and revising.
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Grading Scale:
I assign grades to all work so that you and I can measure your progress throughout the semester.
I apply the following grading scale to all quizzes, papers, drafts, and other assignments:
A = 100-90%
B+ = 89-85%
B = 84-80%
C+ = 79-75%
C = 74-70%
D = 69-60%
F = 59-0%
Grade Distribution:
Attendance: 5%
Participation: 5%
Quizzes: 5%
Journals: 5%
Paper One: 20%
Paper Two: 20%
Paper Three: 20%
Paper Four: 20%
Course Policies:
Attendance and Lateness:
Every student is expected to attend every class session. The general college attendance policy
limits absences to a total of four (4) during a fifteen week semester. Therefore, any student who
is absent more than four (4) times during this semester will not receive credit for this course.
Students who arrive to class more than 15 minutes late will receive a half-day absence
which will be factored in with any potential regular absences. To summarize, having nine
latenesses is equivalent to four (4) absences. Since no student is permitted to be absent more than
five times per semester, any student who is late to class more than eight times will not receive
credit for this course. Moreover, since no makeup quizzes will be given, students who arrive late
to class on the day of a quiz (announced or unannounced) will receive an “F” for the
corresponding quiz.
If a student is late or absent, it is that student’s responsibility to contact a fellow student
and review the contents of the class that was missed.
Equally, as this syllabus is subject to change throughout the semester as the professor
sees fit, attendance and punctuality are crucial to finding out about any potential amendments to
the syllabus.
Assignment due dates are not extended for absences. Late assignments are marked down
one-half letter grade (or five points) for every day that they are late. As stated below,
assignments are considered late until I am holding a physical, printed copy in my hands. I will
not accept email transmissions or papers left in my mailbox, unless you have an excuse that is
both documented and University-recognized.
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Submission of Papers:
All papers must be typewritten and in proper MLA format: 12-point font, Times New Roman,
with 1” margins, not 1.25” (the Microsoft Word default setting). All handwritten papers will be
immediately returned until they are typewritten. Moreover, this will cost you a five-point
deduction from your paper grade since it will be marked late.
Please note that I will not accept electronic copies of your work under any circumstances.
The rules for submitting your work are simple and finite: if you would like to receive full credit
for an assignment, you must submit a physical copy to me in class on the day that it is due.
Note also that it is critical to your grade for this course that you submit every assignment
listed on the syllabus. Failure to hand in any one assignment will not only result in a failing grade
for that individual assignment, but also jeopardize your grade for the course.
Sakai:
Our course website at sakai.rutgers.edu provides essential information (syllabus, assignments,
etc.). Develop the habit of regularly checking our Sakai page for announcements, discussion
questions, and new assignments. In an effort to reduce waste, I will post all assignments on Sakai.
I will not distribute paper assignment sheets, although you may print paper assignments from
Sakai for your personal records. Also, I recommend using your Sakai dropbox to save drafts and
revisions, as it is a convenient and stable location to store your work electronically. There will,
furthermore, be a number of mandatory reading assignments posted on Sakai regularly, so it,
again, is utterly imperative that you frequently check our course’s Sakai site to stay on top of the
required reading assignments for this semester. Any readings that will be posted on Sakai are
listed as such on the on the schedule of assignments.
Turnitin.com:
You must post all drafts on Turnitin.com. At the beginning of the semester I will send uploading
directions via email. For each draft due date, you must submit a hard copy in class and an
electronic copy to Turnitin.com.
Email:
It is imperative for this course that you have a NetID account. All information for this course will
be sent to your Rutgers email account. If you haven’t established an account, please visit
http://oit.rutgers.edu/services/account/quick.html and follow the link for Camden students.
Classroom Etiquette:
Please come to every class prepared to participate and learn. Please turn off any and all cell
phones, beepers, pagers, blackberries, devices with a “chirp” feature, sidekicks, iPhones, personal
computers, PDAs, and any other electronic devices that would disrupt the classroom. If you do
arrive late to class, enter the room as inconspicuously and quietly as possible as to not disrupt
those who arrived on time.
Participation:
Your comments and contributions to the class are appreciated and valued. Moreover, your
participation is graded; therefore, it is imperative that you have all the assignments read before
you come to class and are prepared for discussion.
Plagiarism:
Plagiarism is not only unethical, it is illegal. It is, furthermore, a violation of Rutgers
University’s Academic Integrity Policy. When you use someone else’s words or ideas without
properly citing that information as belonging to someone else you have committed theft of
another person’s intellectual property. I am required to bring any potential instances of
plagiarism directly to The Dean, at which point the issue is out of my hands entirely. If you
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would like to familiarize yourself with Rutgers University’s Academic Integrity policy, you can
find it clearly spelled out at the following site: http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/integrity.shtml
Peer Editing sessions:
Peer editing can be an extremely useful activity. We will have mandatory peer edit sessions for
each one of our written assignments in this class. Anyone who fails to bring at least one physical,
printed copy of his or her work to a peer edit session will be asked to leave the classroom and will
not receive attendance or participation points for the day.
Tutoring:
As with my office hours, I hope that you’ll seek additional help at the Rutgers-Camden Learning
Center when you’re having difficulty with grammar and writing. I’ll require that you attend a
mandatory 3-visit tutoring session for specific issues affecting your work in the course should
necessity dictate my intervention. Feel free to schedule an appointment with the RLC at your
personal discretion. To proceed, please go to 231-ATG and schedule a session, or visit
http://accutrack.camden.rutgers.edu/accuweb/ to schedule online.
Health Services:
Rutgers-Camden Student Health Services is a multipurpose resource available to all RutgersCamden students. It provides health care to students, which includes substance abuse counseling,
psychological counseling, health promotion, immunizations, specialist referrals, and student
health insurance. Should you need help with any of the aforementioned concerns, please visit
Rutgers-Camden Student Health Services at 326 Penn Street, on the second floor of the Campus
Center. For more information, call (856) 225-6005 or visit Health Services online at
http://healthservices.camden.rutgers.edu/.
Emergencies:
In case of inclement weather, you may either check the college’s website, www.rutgers.edu, or
call the college’s main number at (856) 225-1766
Tentative Schedule of Assignments and Activities:
This schedule of assignments is tentative. Therefore, the professor has the right to change,
reschedule, remove, and add assignments as he sees fit.
Week #1
Wednesday 1/19
Introduction to course
In-class writing assignment: What It Means to be Censored
Friday 1/21
“Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut (Sakai)
In-class grammar assessment
Week #2
Monday 1/24
“Unhappy Meals” by Micheal Pollan (Sakai)
Wednesday 1/26
Barbara Ehrenriech’s speech for Breast Cancer Action (Sakai)
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Friday 1/28
Clockwork Orange
Grammar Quiz
Week #3
Monday 1/31
Clockwork Orange
Wednesday 2/2
Clockwork Orange
Friday 2/4
Clockwork Orange
Grammar Quiz
Week #4
Monday 2/17
Clockwork Orange
Wednesday 2/9
Clockwork Orange
Friday 2/11
Grammar Quiz
Peer Edit: Paper #1. You must bring at least one (1) printed copy of your work to class.
Anyone who fails to bring a printed copy will be asked to leave and will lose attendance
points for the day.
Week #5
Monday 2/14
“Maslow’s Pyramid” and analysis of ads (Sakai)
Paper #1 Due
Wednesday 2/16
“Maslow’s Pyramid” and analysis of ads (Sakai)
Friday 2/18
“Maslow’s Pyramid” and analysis of ads (Sakai)
Grammar Quiz
Week #6
Monday 2/21
“Maslow’s Pyramid” and analysis of ads (Sakai)
Wednesday 2/23
Lolita
Friday 2/25
Grammar Quiz
Peer Edit: Paper #2. You must bring at least one (1) printed copy of your work to class.
Anyone who fails to bring a printed copy will be asked to leave and will lose attendance
points for the day.
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Week #7
Monday 2/28
Lolita
Paper #2 Due
Wednesday 3/2
Lolita
Friday 3/4
Lolita
Grammar Quiz
Week #8
Monday 3/7
Lolita
Wednesday 3/9
Lolita
Friday 3/11
Lolita
Grammar Quiz
Peer Edit: Paper #3. You must bring at least one (1) printed copy of your work to class.
Anyone who fails to bring a printed copy will be asked to leave and will lose attendance
points for the day.
Spring Break: 3/12-3/20
Week #9
Monday 3/21
Lolita
Paper #3 Due
Wednesday 3/23
Lolita
Friday 3/25
Orwell: “Politics and the English Language” (Sakai)
Grammar Quiz
Week #10
Monday 3/28
1984
Wednesday 3/30
1984
Friday 4/1
1984
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Week #11
Monday 4/4
1984
Wednesday 4/6
1984
Friday 4/8
1984
Week #12
Monday 4/11
1984
Wednesday 4/13
“On Morality” by Joan Didion (Sakai)
“On Keeping a Personal Notebook” by Joan Didion (Sakai)
Friday 4/15
“Kenyon College Commencement Speech” by David Foster Wallace (Sakai)
Week #13
Monday 4/18
“Sex Lies and Conversation” by Deborah Tannen (Sakai)
Wednesday 4/20
Peer Edit: Paper #4. You must bring at least one (1) printed copy of your work to class.
Anyone who fails to bring a printed copy will be asked to leave and will lose attendance
points for the day.
Friday 4/22
This Film is Not Yet Rated
Week #14
Monday 4/25
This Film is Not Yet Rated
Wednesday 4/27
This Film is Not Yet Rated
Friday 4/29
This Film is Not Yet Rated
Week #15
Monday 5/2
Quiz: In-Class Writing Assignment: This Film is Not Yet Rated
Closure and Reflections
Journals due
Paper #4 Due
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