English 383/583-1
The Beauty of Violence?
University of Wisconsin, SP, Fall 2009
Professor: G. Christopher Williams
Office Hours: 2:00-3:30PM MW or by appointment
Office: CCC 423
Office Phone: 346-2769
E-mail: cwilliam@uwsp.edu
Class Time: 1-1:50 PM MWF
Classroom: CCC 226
Catalogue Description: 3 cr. Works of several writers demonstrating a theme or related themes. Subtitle designates
area. May repeat for credit with different subtitles. GDR:HU2 by subtitle.
The Problem of Violent Art: In A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916), Stephen Daedalus walks with
his friend Lynch, discussing his sense of what beauty is and how to properly “apprehend” it. In this discussion
of apprehension, Stephen particularly fixates on how an individual reacts emotionally to arts like tragedy or
drama:
[T]he tragic emotion is static. Or rather the dramatic emotion is. The feelings excited by
improper art are kinetic, desire or loathing. Desire urges us to possess, to go to something;
loathing urges us to abandon, to go from something. These are kinetic emotions. The arts
which excite them, pornographical or didactic, are therefore improper arts. The esthetic emotion
(I use the general term) is therefore static. The mind is arrested and raised above desire and
loathing. (205)
This very classical description of art that Stephen describes dates back to the ideas generated in Aristotle’s
poetics and have largely defined aesthetic theories in Western literature for hundreds of years. Thus, our
traditions of art suggest that highly violent or “shock art” would seemingly be an inappropriate and even
pornographic art, since it excites both “desire” for some people and “loathing” in others.
Yet, many artists have focused on violent acts and behaviors in their art. Are the novels of Flannery O’Connor,
Alain Robbe-Grillet or films by Quentin Tarantino “not beautiful” because of their focus on violence, or as
some of these artists have suggested is violence sometimes an appropriate method and vehicle in the arts?
Course Goals and Objectives:
The primary goal of this course is to answer the question in the above paragraph. Can violent art be beautiful
or is it merely pornographic? Can we distinguish between the two concepts? What effects do violent arts have
on a culture or what do they reflect about a culture that appreciates and is reflected in them?
A secondary goal of the course is to practice writing well researched literary analysis with an emphasis on
answering questions concerning literary aesthetics and/or literature’s effects on culture. This goal will be
pursued through practice through in class responses and presentation of those responses until students are ready
to write a final well researched analysis of one of our texts/films.
Texts:
Trimmer & Jennings. Fictions. Harcourt Brace, 1985. (rental)
O’Connor. 3 by Flannery O’Connor. Signet, 1983. (rental)
Delillo. White Noise. Penguin, 1986. (rental)
McCarthy. Blood Meridian. Vintage, 1992. (purchase)
Palahniuk. Choke. Anchor, 2001. (purchase)
Palahniuk. Invisible Monsters. Norton, 1999. (purchase)
Morrison. Beloved. (rental)
Online Guides:
I have a number of online guides linked directly from my faculty home page
(http://www.uwsp.edu/english/cwilliams.htm). For this course, the links labeled Citation, Turnitin.com, and Writing
Literary Analysis will be especially useful. Please refer to those resources when you have questions on writing
and citation issues. I am happy to answer any questions or concerns you have, but many of your questions may
be answered there quickly and conveniently.
Grading Formula:
Exams
Proposal
Analytical Paper (“rough”)
Research Paper
In class and out of class writing
Attendance & Participation
Grading Scale:
93-100% = A
87-89% = B+
77-79% = C+
67-69% = D+
59% and below = F
90-92%=A83-86% = B
73-76% = C
63-66% = D
100(x3) pts. Each
20 pts.
50 pts.
200 pts.
80-100 pts.
50 pts.
80-82% = B70-72% = C60-62% = D-
Classroom Regulations:
1. Make-up work. Daily work and exams cannot be made up. If you choose to not attend and miss a daily
writing, you will receive no points for that assignment. Writings be accepted neither early, nor late. They are
intended for use as an aid in class the day that they are due. If you know that you will be missing a day or two in
advance, there is no need to make them up early or late. If you are aware that you will have an extremely lengthy set
of absences (more than a week’s worth), check with me regarding these assignments. Missing one or two of these
writings will probably have no significant effect on your final grade but missing many of them will. Regular
attendance is encouraged. Likewise, your presence is expected on exam days and exams may not be made up. (Note
to commuters: exceptions may be made for severe or inclement weather conditions that create unsafe driving
conditions)
2. Plagiarism. Students in this course are responsible for reading and understanding the English Department’s
Statement on Plagiarism. While inadvertent plagiarism can be easily corrected, intentional plagiarism is a serious
academic offense with potentially grave consequences. With the rise of internet usage, incidents of plagiarism have
risen. At the same time, internet tools have made plagiarism easier to identify. Don’t take chances. Do your own
work.
3. Schedule. The following schedule is subject to change at my discretion. If you have been absent, please make
sure to always check with me or with your fellow students regarding possible schedule changes for the next day that
you will be attending. While you may have been absent, you are still responsible for being prepared for class when
you return.
4. Attendance. Attendance is taken at each class. You are allowed three absences without penalty. Save
these for days when you need them. Any absence following the first three absences may result in loss of up to
10 attendance points per absence and lost points for daily work. In addition to attendance, these 50 points are
also considered participation points. As long as you attend and contribute to discussion regularly, these points
are yours. Plan on coming prepared to discuss and debate the readings. You are responsible for your own
schedule. If you will have regular conflicts with the times that the course meets such as work, extracurricular
activities, or activities related to your major, take the course at a more convenient time.
Description of Assignments:
(NOTE: All papers will have an element of revision necessary to complete the assignment. These portions of
the assignment will be announced. Final papers should be turned in with all earlier drafts of the paper. Final
drafts alone will not be accepted, nor will 2 identical papers turned in as a “rough” and “final” draft.)
All papers will be written in MLA style. We will discuss some particulars of MLA in class but ask questions
early and often if you are confused about citation issues. Also see my above online guides for help (many of
your questions are likely answered there).
All essays will be turned in both in electronic and hard copy form. We will be using Turnitin.com for
electronic submissions. See the guide listed above for more details. Papers received only electronically or only
as hard copy will not be accepted. I will only grade the paper when I have both forms.
1. Proposal. You will develop a proposal for both the analytical paper that will be the basis for your final
research paper in the course, in which you will explain the purpose of the argument you will make, what basis
you make that argument on, and develop a working thesis that clearly states the argument that you will make for
that paper. No Analytical or Research Essay will be accepted until this proposal is accepted.
2. Analytical Essay. You will write a short (3-5 pages) paper that proves your thesis by analyzing a short story.
No research should be included in this paper. Quotation of and discussion of the text in order to develop your
claims and ultimately your overall thesis should make up the bulk of the papers body.
3. Research essay. This is the most important assignment in the course, and must be written in the assigned
sequence. You cannot receive a grade on a later stage until you have submitted all of the work previously
assigned.
To write this paper you need to do the following:
A. Read and take notes in the library (on your own).
B. Research using both the library and the internet to obtain at least one additional source from each of the
following:
one book or chapter of a book
one journal or magazine article
one internet source
C. Revise and expand the earlier analytical paper to 8-10 pages based on feedback from me. Your research
should be used to help ground your argument (discussing in the introduction how your claims and ultimately
thesis fit into prior discussions of this text—this is the most common use of research in literary arguments) and
be used to flesh out claims made in the body. Critical apparatus and structures may also be used to enhance the
argument—talk to me early on (proposal stage) to clarify how you plan to do so.
D. Develop a Works Cited page reflecting all sources cited and paraphrased in your research paper. If you
are not sure how to do this appropriately, please let me know as early as possible so I can guide you.
E. Turn in a final draft (8-10 pages) with a works cited page (not included in page count).
4. Exams. Essay exams will be given in class and will be open book. You will be expected to quote texts as
evidence in your exam essays. Bring your books to the exam. Blue books will be provided on the date of the exam.
As noted, exams may not be made up. Plan to attend.
5. Students With Special Needs. If there is anything I can do to help you to make the best of your opportunities
in higher education, please let me know. If any special equipment, interpreters, or books on tape that would aid
you in pursuing your interests in the course, I will do my best to help make those things available to you.
Monday
Wednesday
Friday
Kafka, “In the Penal
Colony” (Trimmer 75775)
Poe, “The Cask of
Amontillado” (Trimmer
1011-16)
Blood Meridian VII-XII
1- Week of
Aug. 30
2 - Week of
Sept. 6
Outlaw Josie Wales
Outlaw Josie Wales
3 - Week of
Sept. 13
Poe, “The Cask of
Amontillado” (Trimmer 101116)
Blood Meridian XIII-XV
Blood Meridian I-VI
A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange
Blood Meridian XIXXXII
A Clockwork Orange
Exam 1
Wise Blood 1-4
Wise Blood5-9
7 - Week of
Oct. 11
8 - Week of
Oct. 18
Wise Blood 10-13
Film TBA
9 - Week of
Oct. 25
4 - Week of
Sept. 20
5 - Week of
Sept. 27
6 - Week of
Oct. 4
Blood Meridian XVI-XVIII
Film TBA
Choke 1-15
Choke 16-30
Greene, “The Destructors”
(Trimmer 607-18)
Choke 31-49
10 - Week
of Nov. 1
Thesis/Paper discussion
Film TBA
Film TBA
11 - Week
of Nov. 8
Thesis Proposal due
Film TBA
12 - Week
of Nov. 15
13 - Week
of Nov. 22
14 –
Week
of
Nov.
29
15 - Week
of Dec. 6
TBA
Invisible Monsters 1-8
Invisible Monsters 9-19
Invisible Monsters 20-32
Analytical Paper Due
Thanksgiving Break
In Bruges
In Bruges
In Bruges
White Noise 1-20
White Noise 21-27
White Noise 28-40
Film TBA
Thesis/Paper discussion
TBA
Week of Dec. 14th—Final Exam Time & Date TBA—Final Drafts due