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English 1127
Spring 2010
Budra
Office: 201b
Phone: (604)323-5694
E-mail:karbudra@langara.bc.ca
TEXTS
Introduction to Literature (courseware), Budra, Karen.
College Style Sheet, Furberg, John & Richard Hopkins.
The Bare Essentials, Form B, Norton, Sarah & Brian Green.
Canadian Content, 6th ed., Norton, Sarah & Nell Waldman.
AND
Dictionary of modern English, preferably Oxford English Dictionary.
ATTENDANCE
This course is cumulative; thus, regular attendance is necessary &
will be monitored each class with a sign-in sheet. Three consecutive
absences without official documentation may result in my asking
you to withdraw. In addition to being physically present, you must
also be intellectually present. Merely sitting in your chair will not
help you to become a better writer or literary critic; you must
complete readings BEFORE class and be prepared to engage in class
discussions.
DEADLINES
Most of the work in this course will be completed during class, with
the exception of the literary analysis essay and final exam. Barring
natural disasters & health problems, no extensions will be granted.
Late work will lose 5% for each overdue day and will be returned, at
my convenience, without commentary beyond a letter grade. Work
is due in class, not under my office door, over the internet, or in my
mailbox.
ASSIGNMENTS
Participation
15%
Diagnostic essay 1
5%
Diagnostic essay 2
5%
Group summary
10%
Process essay
15%
Literary analysis essay
20% (5% outline; 15% essay)
Final exam (comp/contr essay) 30%
**BONUS: completion of all reader-response assignments adds 2%
to final grade**
PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is the undocumented use of another person’s words or ideas and is a
serious academic crime. This undocumented use includes both “borrowing” someone
else’s words or ideas without acknowledging their sources and having someone write
your work. If you feel that you need help with your writing outside class, see me, a tutor
in the Writing Center, or a tutor recognized by the English Department. Plagiarized work
will receive an “F” and be reported to the Dean of Students, who will note it on your
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permanent record. More than one instance of plagiarism will result in your being asked
to withdraw from the course and possibly the College. You may not rewrite plagiarized
assignments. Pay particular attention to the sections on summarizing and citing in order
to avoid inadvertent plagiarism.
TUTORIALS
We will meet 4 hours a week until week 3, when I will begin spending
every Thursday during the 4th hour of class time giving 2 private 20-minute tutorials in
my office, A201b. Sign-up sheets will be circulated in week 2. Bring everything you’ve
written in the course to the tutorial for review. You may, of course, also consult me
during regular office hours, but your tutorial is reserved especially for you. Please let me
know in advance if you can’t make your scheduled time so I can give it to another
student.
GROUP SUMMARIES
You will join a group of 3, who will summarize one of the following
essays from your texts. These summaries will be accompanied by
a poster illustrating important points. You will present both the
summary & the poster in front of the rest of the class after having
provided me with a copy of your summary.
Essays to be Summarized
Bare Essentials
“Caution Signs on the Electric Highway,” White
Canadian Content
“With Pens Drawn,” Vargas Llosa
“The Pleasures of the Text,” McGrath
“The Case for Curling Up with a Book,” Shields
“Bling Bling,” Gillespie
“Yeah, but the Book is Better,” Rosenbaum
“Bonding Online: Websites as Substitute Communities,” Brooks
“Net Gain: A Polly-anna-ish View of Online Personals,” Nussbaum
LITERARY ANALYSIS ESSAYS
Length: 1,500 words
Due: Outline–end February; Essay-end March (dates announced week 3)
Format: MLA
Citations: 10%
Understanding the cultural context in which a story is placed can often help a reader
understand the themes an author wants to convey. To that end, you will use the
collection of sources found under your course name & number in the Library to explain
the theme of one of the following stories from our anthology:
“The Prophecy,” Appachana
“The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,” Alexie
“Las Vegas Charley,” Yamamoto
Discussing theme requires you to prove that you understand why the author wrote this
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particular story; what did s/he want you to understand after reading it? You must consult
all the available resources in the Library package & use at least 3 of them as the basis of
your argument. Both paraphrases and direct citations are required, but they shouldn’t
exceed 10% of your work. This is YOUR essay, based on YOUR interpretation of your
chosen story, substantiated by YOUR choice of relevant secondary material found in the
Library package.
READER RESPONSES (to be completed for all stories covered in class)
Close reading requires conscious effort; a first reading often yields only an incomplete,
impressionistic interpretation of a narrative.
STEP ONE: Re-read the story; while you re-read, pause periodically to make a note of
some of the following:
-details of plot/character that are emphasized
-foreshadowing & building of themes
-images that stick in your memory
-sequences that stick in your memory
-associations, connections, memories triggered by the text’s situations
-unresolved questions in the story’s plot/characterization
-what seems to carry forward or obstruct the flow of reading
-narrative voices–trustworthy?
-expectations upon reading this story & how these are fulfilled/thwarted
-your overall reactions to the story: aspects you found challenging/hard to accept;
aspects you enjoyed
Response notes can take various forms, from point form annotations and questions to
more elaborate comments on specific issues in the text. Make these notes while you reread, without editing/reformulating too much.
STEP TWO: Consider the following second-reading questions:
-how did the story change after your second reading?
-what “mysteries” or “gaps” in the narrative have you tried to settle & how successfully?
-what aspects of the story are still unresolved; which questions unanswered?
-have your expectations about the story changed?
-is the story more/less satisfying after second reading? Why?
STEP THREE: Finally, drawing on your notes & responses to steps one and two of this
exercise, formulate a 1-paragraph response to the story & your reading/re-reading of it.
STEP FOUR: Hand in your response.
NB: Completing this & subsequent “reader response” exercises will add 2% to your
overall mark in this course; they won’t be graded, but will be used as a springboard for
class discussion. No late responses accepted.
TENTATIVE OUTLINE (we will add necessary material as need arises)
Week 1 Student Information
**DIAGNOSTIC ESSAY 1**
Brief History of English Language
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BE: Unit 1, “Choosing the Right Words:” pp 8-9 & ex. 1.7
“Wordiness:” pp11-12 & ex. 1.8
“Slang” (bring your best!): ex. 1.9
“Pretentious Language & Jargon:” ex. 1.10
“Abusages:” ex. 1.11 & 1.12
Week 2
CC: “How to Read with Understanding”
“How to Write to be Understood”
Six Stages of writing: Think/Spill/Cull/Organize/Draft/Revise/Edit
BE: “The Outline:” ex. 25.1 & 25.2
BE: Paragraphs ex. 26.1, 26.2, 26.3, 26.4, 26.6, 26.8, 26.9
Summaries & Paraphrases
**Begin group summary work**
Week 3
**GROUP SUMMARIES**
Week 4 Components of the essay (cf p 279, CC)
BE: “Parallelism:” ex.10.1, 10.2, 10.5, 10.6 & 10.7
BE: “Writing a Thesis Statement:” ex. 24.1, 24.2, ,24.3, 24.4,
Process Analysis: overview
CC: “Process Analysis,” esp. “Metamorphosis” &
“The Magic of Moviegoing”
Week 5 **PROCESS ESSAYS**
Improving Flow
BE: “Active vs Passive Voice:” ex. 12.3, 12.4, 12.5, 12.6 & 12.7
by Combining:” ex. 11.1, 11.2
Handout: “Transitional Devices”
BE: “Comma Usage:” ex. 18.1, 18.2, 18.3, 18.4, 18.5, 18.7
Week 6 Process as Literary Device
IL: “A Primer for the Punctuation of Heart Disease”
Writing about Literature
**Library Lab**
CC: “How to Write a Documented Essay” AND see website
BE: “Quotation Marks:” ex. 21.1, 21.2, 21.3 and “Eat, Drink
and Be Guilty”
Week 7 People Reading (character analysis)
IL: “Miss Brill”
IL: “Gryphon”
**DIAGNOSTIC ESSAY 2**
OLYMPICS! BREAK TIME!!
Week 8 Forensic Reading (style & point of view)
IL: “Hills Like White Elephants”
IL: “The Tell Tale Heart”
24.5 & 24.7
BE: “Refining
Pairs: quotation exercises from stories
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Week 9 Contextual Reading (setting & genre)
IL: “Greasy Lake”
IL: “A Rose for Emily”
Week 10 CC: “Comparison and Contrast,” eg “He Said, She Said” and
“For Minorities, Timing is Everything”
Pairs: comparison/contrast outline for “GL” & “R for E”
Week 11 Quantitative Reading (symbol)
IL: “The Chrysanthemums”
IL: “The Things they Carried”
Week 12 Integrative Reading: (theme)
IL: “Dressing Down”
IL: “Cathedral”
Week 13
REVIEW
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