ENGL 2XX: Fictional Journeys
Fall 20XX
DAYS [TIME]
Instructor: Kristine Wilson
Office location: HEAV 214
Office hours:
Office phone: 765-494-3785
Email: wilson67@purdue.edu
Course Description
Literature travels across time and space to locate us at the precise moment at
which we read it. When it reaches us, we might find ways to relate in a deeply
intimate way with characters, people, places, and situations we thought were alien or
remote. Or we might find an opportunity for escape into a new and unfamiliar world,
to undertake a journey outside of ourselves and into our imaginations.
In this class, we will explore how twentieth century fiction engages with
various types of journeys, how those journeys affect the characters and the texts, and
how they impact or parallel the readers’ journey through the texts. The primary
types of journeys that will comprise the theme of this course are: adventures,
explorations and quests; colonialism and expatriation; and immigration and exile.
However, we will also study how physical journeys are often used as metaphors for
spiritual, intellectual, and psychological journeying in these texts.
Objectives
By engaging in a variety of reading, discussion and writing assignments, students will:
Ô become familiar with a culturally diverse range of twentieth century fiction
and authors;
Ô become familiar with the conventions of fiction and literary criticism;
Ô learn how to analyze literary texts in order to become more adept critical
readers, critical thinkers, and critical writers;
Ô examine connections among the literary texts, as well as between literature
and extra-textual world, using “the journey” as a guiding theme;
Ô interrogate the ethics of the characters we encounter, using their journeys as a
touchstone, and discuss the implications of their motives and actions, within
and outside of the framework of the text;
Ô develop academic writing skills by presenting analyses and syntheses of our
readings, discussions and class activities in essay form.
K. Wilson
ENGL 2XX
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Required Texts
Ô Muller, Gilbert H. and John A. Williams. Ways In: Approaches to Reading and
Writing about Literature and Film.
Ô Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. Herland.
Ô Allende, Isabelle. Eva Luna.
Ô Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness.
Ô Salih, Tayeb. Season of Migration to the North.
Ô Alvarez, Julia. How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents.
Ô Short stories in course pack (see calendar)
Recommended Resources
Ô Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th ed.
Ô Literature Online database (access through library website)
Ô Literature Resource Center database (access through library website)
Grading
Ô
Ô
Ô
Ô
Ô
Ô
Ô
Reading journal
Weekly response posts
Short analytical paper
Critical paper
Final examination
Author presentation
Class participation
10%
15%
15%
20%
25%
5%
10%
Assignment Descriptions
Ô Reading Journal
You will keep an informal reading journal throughout the semester in which you record
summaries of all the texts you read, your initial impressions about these texts, what they
remind you of (in other literature, other courses, your own life, etc.), and at least one
question or comment for each text to bring to class for discussion. This is also a good place to
record any brilliant insights you have about the text(s) and any paper ideas that occur to you as
we are reading/discussing each text.
Ô Weekly response posts
Each week, you will write a brief response (around 300 words) in which you evaluate one of the
week’s readings. These responses will be posted electronically on the class discussion forum.
You may respond to another student or create your own thread, but the content of the post
must show adequate reasoning and development, including examples. You are advised to pick
a single, specific meaningful image, technique, passage, character, or other element to
analyze in your post, rather than picking a motif or other topic that is too complex to cover
adequately in 300 words. (If you choose, you may use your reading journal entry as a starting
place and simply modify or expand it for your post.) The class will be divided into two groups
and each group will be responsible for posting a response for one class day each week. The
posts will be due by noon the day before class (Monday or Wednesday) to give us all a chance
to read them before we meet.
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ENGL 2XX
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Ô Short analytical paper
In a short paper (750-1000 words), you will analyze the author’s use of one or more narrative
conventions/techniques in a single text. You might, for example, discuss the significance of
plot, setting, characterization, point of view, tone, symbol, or use of imagery. This paper
serves as a take-home mid-term. It is your chance to demonstrate what you have learned
about literary craft and the elements of fiction, and to demonstrate your competence at
writing academic essays. However, it is not weighted as heavily as the critical paper or final
exam. Your instructor will use the overall results of this paper in planning how to better
prepare the class for the final exam and the critical paper.
Ô Critical paper
For the critical paper (1,500-2,000 words), the only definite “rules” are that you write
comparatively about two-three texts and that you submit an abstract to the instructor for
approval no later than November 19th. Ideally, this paper should be a well-developed
explication de texte, perhaps analyzing how two of the texts we’ve studied engages with the
theme of the journey, comparing some other theme or motif (such as racism, sexism, the
fantastic, the insider/outsider motif, etc.), or applying one of the critical approaches we’ve
discussed (psychological criticism, historical criticism, social criticism, feminism,
postcolonialism, etc.) to the fiction we’ve read. With the instructor’s approval, you could also
choose to compare one of the assigned texts to another story or novel we did not read in class.
Ô Final examination
The final examination will be comprehensive, consisting of a variety of matching, short answer,
and short essay questions. In keeping with the course theme, the final will take a “choose your
own adventure format” that allows you to decide which questions to answer and which to skip.
Each question will be assigned a point value, and you can answer as many or as few as you like
to achieve the score you desire. The only caveats are that the attempted points must add up
to no fewer than 70 points, the maximum points awarded will be 105 (regardless of how many
questions are attempted), and you must attempt at least one short essay question. The topics
of the short essay questions will be provided during the final review week so that you can
better prepare to respond to these questions (they’ll be worth the highest point-value). I will
also explain the format of the final exam in more detail during the review week.
Ô Author presentation
During the first week of class, each student will sign up to give a ten minute presentation on
one of the authors we are studying this semester. (Because we have more students than
authors, there will be two presenters for a few of the authors.) An author presentation will
precede the discussion of each text we read. The presenter will be expected to include
biographical information about the author, including all of the elements on p. 38 in Ways In
(second full paragraph). The format of the presentation is up to you – be creative! You are
encouraged to make use of technology (computer, projector, audio/visual) according to your
preference and aptitude. You can make a collage, create a Powerpoint presentation, enlist
friends/classmates to perform a skit, develop a class activity, or explore some other
presentation format of your choice. Students who are “performance-shy” should not be
discouraged – the better use you make of visual aids and handouts, the less “talking” you’ll
have to do! Please email me an outline of your plans no later than one class period before
your scheduled presentation. (Give me at least one week notice if A/V equipment is needed!)
Ô Class participation
You will receive a participation grade for the frequency and quality of your contributions to
class discussions, in-class activities (incl. reading quizzes), homework, extra forum
posts/responses, and peer feedback. This grade will be based, in part, on weekly selfassessments.
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Policies
Ô Attendance
Attendance is mandatory. Moreover, it is in your best interest to attend class; the daily inclass discussions of the texts will help you write your papers and complete the final exam. The
only types of absences that count as “excused” are documented illnesses, emergencies, or
university-related events. Religious holidays will also be excused if the instructor is notified of
the date(s) in writing before the end of the second class meeting. For each unexcused absence
after four, you will forfeit 2% of your final course grade.
Tardiness is disruptive, annoying, and disrespectful to other students and to the instructor.
Because many classes will begin with a student presentation, tardiness in this class is
particularly unacceptable. Therefore, every two tardies will count as one unexcused absence.
Likewise, students who are “mentally absent” (e.g., sleeping in class, working on other
coursework, listening to music, checking email on their laptop, text messaging their friends)
will be counted absent for the day.
Ô Late and Missed Work
It is the student's responsibility to check Blackboard for information about missed work and
upcoming homework assignments. After doing so, the student may contact the instructor with
any further questions. Regardless of absence, I expect you to check Blackboard and/or email
daily for any updates or announcements!
I will not accept late in-class assignments or late out-of-class homework assignments. I allow
one extension, either on the short analytical paper or the final critical paper; however, the
student must sign a written agreement with me regarding the terms of the extension before
the original due date. Papers requiring an extension will receive an automatic deduction of ½letter grade. No further extensions will be granted (i.e., if the paper is not submitted by the
new deadline, usually no more than one week after the original due date, it will receive a
zero).
Ô Academic Integrity
Plagiarism and other forms of cheating will not be tolerated. Plagiarism includes: submitting
work written by another person as if it were your own; using a quotation, that is, the exact
words of a source, without quotation marks and documentation; paraphrasing ideas or passages
from a text without documentation; including information that is not known to the general
public without documenting the source; and following the structure or style of a secondary
source without documentation. The minimum penalty for plagiarism is a failing grade on the
plagiarized paper. It is best to avoid the temptation to plagiarize by planning your time wisely
and seeking the instructor’s assistance immediately if you are having difficulty with a paper.
Ô Disabilities
Students who require accommodations for disability must present the instructor with the
appropriate documentation from the Office of Student Disability Services.
Ô Technology Requirement
This class requires consistent access to the Internet, MS Word and a printer. Not having access
to a computer is not an acceptable excuse for missing or late work. Papers submitted in a
format other than Word will not be accepted. Be sure you have access to technology and that
you complete your assignments ahead of schedule so you can use the university’s computing
equipment if needed. Be sure to back up all of your work on an external hard drive, removable
disk, or online file management system in case your computer is compromised.
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ENGL 2XX
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Tentative Calendar
Week 1
Tue 8/25
Ô In-class writing activity
Ô Syllabus & introductions
Week 2
Tue 9/1
Begin unit on Adventure, Exploration, and
Quest
Ô Mini-lecture on adventure and quest
literature
Ô Author presentation on Woody Allen
Ô Discuss “The Kugelmass Episode”
Week 3
Tue 9/8
Ô Read description of eugenics,
reform socialism, and feminism
Ô Group work: discuss how these
relate to Herland
Ô Class discussion on Herland
Week 4
Tue 9/15
Ô Author presentation on Leslie
Marmon Silko
Ô Discuss “Yellow Woman”
Ô Discuss Native American shamanism
and journey
Week 5
Tue 9/22
Ô Author presentation on Allende
Ô Begin discussing Eva Luna (1st third)
Ô Activity: write a story (parameters
TBD)
Thu 8/27
Ô Discussion of Iyer, travel, & lit.
Ô Intro to 20th c. fiction
Ô Sign up for presentations
Thu 9/3
Ô Discuss weekly postings
Ô Author presentation on Gilman
Ô Begin discussing Herland (1st third)
Thu 9/10
Ô Author presentation on M.E. Carr
Ô Discuss “The Sweet Perfume of
Goodbye”
Ô Discuss: sci-fi and journeying; death as
journey
Thu 9/17
Ô Mini-lecture and discussion on the
fantastic (what it means, how it differs from
sci-fi, how it relates to journey; define
“epistemology” and “ontology”)
Ô Author presentation on Italo Calvino
Ô Discuss “The Feathered Ogre”
Thu 9/24
Ô Continue discussing Eva Luna (2nd
third)
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Week 6
Tue 9/29
Ô Finish discussing Eva Luna
Ô Synthesis of unit
Ô Discuss short paper (due Feb 21)
Week 7
Tue 10/6
Ô Author presentations on F. Scott
Fitzgerald
Ô Discuss “One Trip Abroad” and
“Babylon Revisited”
Week 8
Tue 10/13
NO CLASS – OCTOBER BREAK
Thu 10/1
Begin unit on Expatriation and Colonialism
Ô Mini-lecture on expatriate literature
Ô Author presentations on Katherine
Anne Porter
Ô Discuss “That Tree” & “Flowering
Judas”
Thu 10/8
Ô Mini-lecture on colonialism
Ô Class discussion to create context
(postcolonialism, globalization)
Ô Author presentation on Muriel Spark
Ô Discuss “The Go-Away Bird”
Thu 10/15
Ô Author presentations on Henry Lawson
& Katherine Mansfield
Ô Discuss “The Bush Undertaker” &
“Woman at the Store”
*Short Paper Due (mid-term)
Week 9
Tue 10/20
Ô Author presentation on Joseph
Conrad
Ô Begin discussing Heart of Darkness
(1st half)
Week 10
Tue 10/27
Ô Finish HOD and discuss in relation to
Achebe’s critical response (4th
quarter; related essays)
Ô Synthesize unit
Week 11
Tue 11/3
Ô Author presentation on Talib Salih
Ô Discuss Season of Migration
Thu 10/22
Ô Continue discussing Heart of Darkness
(3rd quarter)
Thu 10/29
Begin unit on Refugeeism, Exile, and Immigration
Ô Mini-lecture on refugeeism, exile and
immigration
Ô Author presentation on Chinua Achebe
Ô Discuss “A Civil Peace”
Thu 11/5
Ô Continue discussing Season
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ENGL 2XX
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Week 12
Tue 11/10
Ô Author presentations on Jhumpa
Lahiri and Chitra Banerjee
Divakaruni
Ô Discuss “Third & Final Continent”
and “Mrs. Dutta Writes a Letter”
Week 13
Tue 11/17
Ô Author presentation on Julia Alvarez
Ô Begin discussing Garcia Girls
Week 14
Tue 11/24
Ô NO CLASS – LIBRARY DAY
Week 15
Tue 12/1
Ô Finish discussing Garcia Girls
Ô Synthesize unit
Ô Synthesize all three units
(*Bring draft of paper to next class for
peer reviews and revision)
Week 16
Tue 12/8
Ô Final review; how to write an essay
exam
*Critical Paper Final Draft Due
Thu 11/12
Ô Author presentation on Gish Jen
Ô Discuss “In the American Society”
Thu 11/19
Ô Continue discussing Garcia Girls
*Abstract due (critical paper)
Thu 11/26
Ô NO CLASS – THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY
Thu 12/3
Ô Peer reviews – critical paper
Ô Discuss revision
*Critical Paper Rough Draft Due
Thu 12/10
IN-CLASS FINAL EXAM