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Dr. Briallen Hopper
briallen.hopper@yale.edu
Office: 35 Broadway, #207M
Office Hours: TBD
English 114: Friendship
“Wherever you are it is your own friends who make your world.” William James
From ancient Greece to the Facebook era, questions about friendship have obsessed thinkers and
writers. What is friendship, and why does it matter? How has it changed, and how has it
remained the same? How is it important, both personally and politically?
In answering these questions, we will watch The Social Network, and we’ll read theories of
friendship by Aristotle, Cicero, Emerson, and Thoreau, autobiographical writing by awardwinning novelist Ann Patchett, and op-eds on friendship from the Chronicle of Higher Education
and the New York Times. We’ll also draw on scholarship in history, literary studies, gender
studies, and philosophy as we embark on our own original research projects. And we’ll learn to
write in a variety of academic genres, from the short textual analysis to the research essay.
This class is designed to prepare you for college writing in all classes and departments. The
assignments will teach you how to read closely, state a claim, assemble and interpret evidence,
and pursue research at the library. We will also spend a lot of time on revision, and (as in all
sections of 114) you will rewrite everything you write.
Like friendship, writing is a social practice: we write for others, and we depend on trusted
readers to help us improve our work. In keeping with the class’s emphasis on the social network,
you will also be reading and commenting on your peers’ writing throughout the semester. By the
end of the class, you will be equipped for the range of writing that college will bring.
Required Texts
Available at the Yale Bookstore:
Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Birkenstein. TheySay/ISay: The Moves that Matter in Academic
Writing. 2nd edition. Norton.
Strunk, William, E.B. White, and Maira Kalman. The Elements of Style. Illustrated edition.
Penguin. (We will use TEOS for in-class exercises.)
The Social Network will be screened in class and will also be available to view on reserve at the
Film Studies Center. You are encouraged but not required to purchase it in DVD or instant
streaming formats so you can re-watch it from the comfort of home. You can find it used for
about $7.
Essays, Exercises, and Drafts
You will write four essays in this class. Before writing the revised version of an essay, you will
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submit writing exercises and a complete draft. Exercises and drafts are important aspects of your
work in the class, and the more you invest in them, the better your revised version will be.
When you submit your essays (both drafts and revisions) you should include a cover letter to me
in which you:
1) begin with a greeting;
2) summarize your essay in a sentence or two, including your thesis;
3) describe an aspect of your essay that you think works well;
4) describe an aspect of your essay that still needs work;
5) conclude, and sign your name.
You should be able to accomplish all this in a paragraph or so, though you are welcome to write
more.
Always double-space your work and use 12-point font, 1-inch margins, and page numbers. All
drafts and revisions must be submitted both electronically and in hard copy. Submit the
electronic copies of your essays via email in docx or pdf format, and name your file as follows:
[lastname][essay#][D for draft or R for revision]. For example, my draft for the second
assignment would be named Hopper2D.docx or Hopper2D.pdf. Submit the hard copies of your
essays in class.
Workshops
In a spirit of friendship, you will workshop your classmates’ drafts in class, give them spoken
and written feedback, and learn to be a good editor of others’ work as well as of your own.
An important note: Editing does not mean proofreading. Proofreading means correcting spelling
and grammar. Editing means offering substantive suggestions to clarify an author’s ideas and
their expression. You are expected to read your classmates’ essays with an attentive,
sympathetic, and skeptical editorial eye. You’re more than welcome to proofread their prose as
well, but proofreading alone is not enough.
Help
Each student must meet with me at least once before the revision of Essay 2 is due to discuss
your work. I am always happy to meet with you during office hours as well.
Academic Honesty
You must give appropriate credit when you use someone else’s words or ideas. When in doubt,
cite. Plagiarism could result in very serious consequences including failure to receive credit for
the class. You can find further information and links at
http://www.yale.edu/yalecol/publications/transfer/academics/honesty.html.
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If you have any questions about this, please come talk with me.
Grading
Come to class prepared to discuss the readings and participate in activities and workshops. You
can’t make up in-class work, so attendance is absolutely essential. More than one unexcused
absence will lower your grade.
Late exercises drafts, and revisions will lower the final assignment grade one-third of a letter
grade for each day late. Late work may not receive written feedback.
This is the grading breakdown:
Essay 1 (close reading, 4-5 pages) 10%
Essay 2 (analysis, 5-6 pages) 25%
Essay 3 (researched argument, 8-10 pages) 30%
Essay 4 (cultural criticism, 3-4 pages) 20%
Participation (includes attendance and contributions to class discussion; exercises; responses to
peers’ work; etc.) 15%
All assignments must be completed to receive a passing grade for the course.
Other Important Information
Library orientation: You need to familiarize yourself with Yale’s Library resources at
http://www.library.yale.edu. Click on Workshops & Tutorials, and then browse the tutorials.
Yale Writing Center: The Yale Writing Center’s web pages have many useful resources for
English 114 students. See their web site at http://www.yale.edu/bass.
Special needs: If you need assistance or accommodation due to physical, learning, or language
issues, please contact me privately as soon as possible.
Course Calendar
Essay 1: A Reading of The Social Network
“Some people have a large circle of friends while others have only friends they like.” Laurence
J. Peter
Week 1
Monday, 7-9
Introductions
Essay 1 assigned
The Social Network screening (part 1)
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Wednesday, 7-11
The Social Network screening (part 2)
TSIS, 141-144
Film discussion
Friday, 7-13
Essay 1 Draft due
Bring 2 copies of your paper to class!
Peer review and writing workshop
Essay 2 assigned
Essay 2: An Analysis of a Theory of Friendship
“The scholar sits down to write, and all his years of meditation do not furnish him with one good
thought or happy expression; but it is necessary to write a letter to a friend—and, forthwith,
troops of gentle thoughts invest themselves, on every hand, with chosen words.” Ralph Waldo
Emerson
Week 2
Monday, 7-16
William Deresiewicz, “Faux Friendship” (online)
Samuel Johnson (online)
Aristotle (in-class handout)
Cicero (in-class handout)
TSIS, 1-29
“Choosing a research topic” homework assigned
Tuesday, 7-17
Essay 1 Revision due
Wednesday, 7-18
“Choosing a research topic” homework due
Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Friendship” (online)
(note: this is a complex essay—begin reading several days prior to
discussion)
Thoreau, Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers (excerpt—in-class
handout)
“Finding Sources” homework assigned
Essay 3, research proposal, annotated bibliography, and evidence
homework assigned
Friday, 7-18
Essay 2 Draft due
Peer review and writing workshop; bring 3 copies of your paper to
class
TSIS, 30-51
Essay 3: A Research Paper
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“A library is a collection of friends.” Lyman Abbott
Week 3
Monday, 7-23
John T. Lysaker and William Rossi, Emerson and Thoreau: Figures of
Friendship (online)
Carroll Smith Rosenberg, “The Female World of Love and Ritual”
(online)
TSIS, 55-77
Library research workshop
“Finding Sources” homework due
Wednesday, 7-25
Essay 2 Revision due
Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, “Between Men” (excerpt) (online)
Writing workshop: structuring your research paper
TSIS, 78-91
Thursday, 7-26
Research paper proposal and annotated bibliography due via email
Friday, 7-27
Readings: A primary source for your research essay AND a secondary
source for your research essay (bring to class)
TSIS, 92-101
Week 4
Monday, 7-30 Essay 3 First Draft Due
Peer review (part 1) and writing workshop: bring two copies of your paper
to class
Writing workshop: Evidence
TSIS, 105-120
Wednesday, 8-1
Tutorial Meetings with Instructor: No class meeting
TSIS, 121-128
Friday, 8-3
Essay 3 Second Draft Due
Peer review (part 2): bring two copies of your paper to class
Sample Paper discussion
Writing workshop: Polishing your paper
Essay 4: Public Writing on Friendship
“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” Martin Luther King,
Jr.
Week 5
Monday, 8-6
Essay 3 Revision due
Ann Patchett, “The Face of Pain”
Emily Rapp, “Transformation and Transcendence: The Power of
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Female Friendship”
TSIS, 129-138
Paper #4 assigned
Wednesday, 8-8
Essay 4 Draft due; peer review and writing workshop
William Deresiewicz, “A Man. A Woman. Just Friends?”
Elizabeth Bishop, “North Haven”
TSIS, 145-155
Friday, 8-10
Essay 4 Revision due
Presentations
Course conclusion