ENG 201, sections Q7 and S3: Advanced Writing I
Spring 2005
Tamara Rabe
Baldy 667, TTH 9-10:30 and by appointment Monday afternoons
645-3381 X 265
Home: 837-4705 (leave message before 9 PM)
Email: rabe@acsu.buffalo.edu
Required Equipment:
A Pocketful of Prose: Vintage Short Fiction II, David Madden, ed.
A Pocketful of Prose: Contemporary Short Fiction, David Madden, ed.
Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage, Muriel Harris
A sturdy two-pocket folder
What is the definition of fiction? How do we identify with fiction to create or expand our
own realities? As a group, we will read a variety of classic and contemporary examples
of short fiction to help us respond to these questions.
English 201 is a research writing course. We will explore the relationship between
reading fiction and conducting research. What is the nature of research and what does it
reveal? How do we know what we know, and how can we verify that knowledge?
Examining the short stories will pose questions about the connections between history
and fiction, between reality and art.
This is a class in reading as well as writing. We will work on developing and refining
critical, organizational, and rhetorical skills. Communicating effectively in writing is the
ultimate goal of this course.
Requirements:
Three short papers (5-7 pages, 3 outside sources minimum) will be assigned. The course
will culminate in one longer paper (10-12 pages, 7 sources minimum). All of the papers
will include use of outside sources, MLA-style in-text citations, and MLA-style Works
Cited lists. The short papers may grow out of mini-research projects, but each short paper
must relate directly to the literature assigned. The longer paper may be on a subject of
each writer’s choosing but should relate to a topic discussed in class.
Throughout the course, mini-research projects will be assigned to each writer. These
projects will require an annotated bibliography (MLA style) of sources, both the useful
and the useless. Each writer will be expected to examine a minimum of four sources for
each project. Each writer will give a brief presentation of what he or she has found,
explaining the relevance of the research.
The formal essays will result in typed final drafts and will be submitted on designated
due dates. All final drafts must be accompanied by all notes and previous drafts. DO
NOT throw away any writing. FAILURE TO SUBMIT NOTES AND DRAFTS WILL
RESULT IN A ZERO GRADE FOR THE FINAL DRAFT. You may not email papers
unless such an arrangement is agreed upon beforehand.
Any plagiarized material will be grounds for failure in this course and possible
disciplinary action from the University. Plagiarism is the use of another person’s work, in
whole or in part, without acknowledgement or citation. Even single words and phrases
must be cited; in addition, poor paraphrasing, even with proper citation, is technically
considered plagiarism.
Attendance:
Three absences will be tolerated. After three absences, your final grade will drop by a
plus or minus for each session missed. If you must be late or absent, you are still
responsible for the work in class that day and any assignments for the following session.
Grading:
Seventy percent of your final grade will be based on the final drafts of the writing
assignments. Short exercises, including the mini-research projects, will count for 10%;
engagement and participation will count for 10%; and the presentation of the final
portfolio will count for 10%.
The Incomplete grade may only be given to students who have (1) fulfilled the attendance
requirement for the course and (2) completed all but one of the written assignments.
Notes about papers and presentations in 201:
There will be no specific questions assigned for papers. Part of honing your analytical
sills is learning to formulate questions for yourself that you believe will interest and
inform your readers. You will be required to write analyses, not simple reviews, of the
works you choose.
For the presentations, you will initially be assigned mini-research topics. As the semester
progresses, you may choose to do more than one presentation for extra credit, and feel
free to suggest topics.
There are no secrets about what I am looking for in your papers:
1. Competency in finding, analyzing, and synthesizing material from various sources
into your writing.
2. Ability to use research strategies for specialized assignments, employing
appropriate citation formats.
3. Ability to read writing-in-progress, identifying rhetorical patterns that work for
specific writing tasks and expanding your stylistic repertoire.
4. Ability to write well-organized, unified, coherent research-based papers and
persuasive essays that include a clear thesis and supporting material. Longer
essays that demonstrate more complex revision, greater control of structure, and
more fluency with standard English than expected in ENG 101 are requirements.
All of this means careful drafting and revising. Use the scheduled due dates for drafts
to guide you; use me, The Writing Place, and your peers to help you see how others
are seeing and responding to your work.
The following is a proposed schedule and is subject to change:
Week 1: Introduction; One page definition and response to each of the following
words: mystery and research; Read Poe’s “Cask of Amontillado.”
Week 2: Read Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “Premature Burial”; Bring in
handbooks.
Weeks 3 and 4: Crichton; Mini-research presentations; Drafts of Paper #1 due
Monday 1/26.
Week 5: Mini-research presentations; McTiernan’s The 13th Warrior (film); Final
drafts of Paper #1 due; First drafts of Paper #2 due.
Week 6: Finish with Crichton and McTiernan; Conferences begin.
Week 7: Conferences finish; Final drafts of Paper #2 due; Read Mosley and Oates.
Week 8: Mini-research presentations; Read McKee, Pelicanos, and DeNoux; Drafts
for Paper #3 due; Proposals for Research Paper DUE.
Week 9: Read Phillips, Tinti, and Wood.
Week 10: Final drafts of Paper #3; Read Leonard, Dexter, Cooke.
Week 11: Read Lovecraft; Draft for Research Paper DUE.
Week 12: Mini-research presentations; O’Bannon’s The Resurrected (film).
Weeks 13 and 14: Final conferences and revision workshops.