Writing II : Form, Translation, Transformation
ENG 2150 – GTRJ, Spring 2015
M W 8:15 – 9:55 AM
Room: B-Vert 9-180
Instructor: Sara D. Akant
Office: 7-290Q (3955)
Office Hours: by appointment
sdakant@gmail.com
As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams
he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic
insect. (or monstrous vermin, enormous bug)
– Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis
Course Description
What “forms” do we take – as citizens, writers, and individuals – and what “forms” do we
create? Is “form” something physical and stable, structured and meaningful, or is it more
personal, transient… able to be translated and transformed? How do we arrange language
and experience, art and information, fact and fiction, into structures through which we can
express our world? In this course, we will explore a range of textual forms – stories and
novellas, articles and essays, poems and podcasts – with attention to their “translatable” and
“transformational” elements.
The aim of this course is to form and transform your writing skills. Through an examination
of various takes on the first-person narrative, the prose poem, the sonnet, the essay, and the
novel, you will improve your strategies of analysis, hone your language, develop your
rhetorical strategies, and construct arguments that are both imaginative and convincing.
Readings will be assigned each week, as well as writing exercises both in and outside of class.
There will be three graded papers over the course of the semester, and at least four draft
workshops (one for each student). Each paper and workshop will include pre-draft and
draft assignments designed to take you through the important motions of thinking, writing,
and editing. Participation in this course is key. Be prepared to be open-minded as we dive
into our texts, respond thoughtfully to each other’s ideas, and work together to both form
and transform our writing.
Course Requirements
attendance (mandatory) + class participation (graded on a scale of 0-4)
weekly “in-class” writings (ungraded) + reading quizzes (graded pass/fail)
four (4) “draft workshops” + three (3) 1-page “draft critiques”
three (3) “pre-draft” writing assignments (1-3 pages each)
three (3) drafts (2-4 pages each)
three (3) full-length papers (3-9 pages each)
Required Texts
Assigned readings will available on our course blog, http://blogs.baruch.cuny.edu/form/
For grammar and formatting, visit the Purdue Owl at https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/
Gertrude Stein, from Tender Buttons (1914)
Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis, Part I (1915), trans Ian Johnston (2009)
Walter Benjamin, The Task of the Translator (1923), trans Harry Zohn (1968)
James Baldwin, Notes of a Native Son (1955)
Ted Berrigan, from The Sonnets (1964)
Italo Calvino, from Invisible Cities (1972), trans William Weaver (1974)
James Baldwin, Paris Review Interview with Jordan Elgrably (1984)
Lydia Davis, from Break it Down (1986)
Amy Tan, Mother Tongue (1990)
Anne Carson, from Fragments of Sappho (2002)
Italo Calvino, Paris Review Interview with William Weaver and Damien Pettigrew (1992)
Anne Carson, Paris Review Interview with Will Aitkin (2004)
This American Life: The Super (Ira Glass, 2005)
Charles Bernstein, Art and Practice of the Ordinary (2005)
James Tate, Paris Review Interview with Charles Simic (2006)
Cathy Park Hong, Dance Dance Revolution (2007)
James Tate, from The Ghost Soldiers (2008)
Kiese Laymon, Hey Mama (2011)
Grading
30% - Participation + Involvement – 300 points
reading quizzes – 100 points
draft critiques – 100 points
class participation – 100 points
20% - Personal Narrative (Paper 1) – 200 points
pre-draft assignments – 40 points
draft – 60 points
personal narrative paper – 100 points
20% - Close Reading (Paper 2) – 200 points
pre-draft assignments – 40 points
draft – 60 points
close reading paper – 100 points
30% - Final Research (Paper 3) – 300 points
pre-draft assignments – 60 points
draft 1 – 60 points
research paper – 180 points
Grading Scale
Based on a system of 1000 points.
A = 920-1000 | A- = 900-919 | B+ = 870-899 | B = 820-869 | B- = 800-819
C+ = 720-799 | C = 720-769 | C- = 700-719 | D = 600-699 | F = <600
Attendance Policy
The success of this course depends on your consistent attendance and active participation.
Your first two absences are excused: no questions asked. I will begin dropping your final
grade by a half-letter (e.g., from a B to a B-) for each absence. I will drop you from the
course if you miss more than two classes in the first three weeks of the semester, and in
accordance with Baruch Policy, you will fail if you are absent more than 4 times over the
course of the semester.
Late Policy
It is very important that you arrive to class on time and do not leave early. At the
start and end of each class, we go over important information, get organized into the
groups necessary for that class or the proceeding class, and exchange assignments. If
you are more than 5 minutes late, I will mark your lateness and deduct a point from
your participation grade for the day. If you are marked late more than 4 times over
the course of the semester, I will drop your final grade by a half-letter (e.g., from a B
to a B-). If you are more than 25 minutes late, you will not be allowed to enter
the classroom, and you will be marked as absent for the day.
If you miss a class or any information due to lateness or absence, you are responsible for
making up the work. You must first ask 3 fellow students what we did in class, and what
work is due, before emailing me (if you email me, I have the right to ask for proof you
already asked your peers). It’s my “3 before me” policy.
Participation
Participation will be judged based on your demonstrated efforts to make the class
stimulating and productive for both yourself and your peers. I will be grading you on a 0-4
scale: 0 for not coming to class, 1 for not speaking at all, 2 for paying noticeable attention
but making very few remarks, 3 for paying marked attention and participating productively, 4
for participating in a highly conscientious and engaging manner.
If you do not volunteer in class, I may call on you in order to involve you in the
conversation, get some of your ideas out in the open, and explore the subject matter.
Please see me after this class if you are worried about your ability to verbally participate.
I will drop your participation grade by 1pt for the following:
every 5 minutes you are late (more than 25 minutes late counts as absent)
every time you do not have a hard copy of the text in class
every time I catch you using your phone or computer in class
Reading Assignments
This course aims to develop your expository prose through the reading and analysis of ideas
presented in a variety of texts. These will range from essays and articles (some in “simple” or
straight-forward language, others in far more dense, theoretical language), to works of
literature (such as short fiction and poetry). You are expected to read all the assigned
material, and come to class ready to discuss and write about the questions and concerns
these texts present.
Quizzes
I will use short and simple in-class quizzes to determine whether you have done the
reading, which will be graded Pass/Fail.
Note on Printing and Bringing Text to Class:
While it is only my suggestion (and preference) that you print and read all the
assignments in hard-copy form (I may ask you to annotate specific texts) – it is
essential to that you print all the assigned readings out in hard-copy form and bring
them with you to class. If you do not have your own hard-copy of the text with
you in class more than 2 times I will ask you to leave and mark you as absent. If you
do not have your own hard-copy of the text with you in class more than 4 times I
will drop a full-letter from your final grade. This includes your peer’s drafts for
workshop, and your own if you are up. While I understand that printing can be
costly, you are not required to buy any textbooks for this class, and most of the
readings are 20 pages or less. You should consider it the only expense, and an
investment in your reading habits as well as your grade. Again, please see me after
this class if you anticipate having trouble printing the material for class.
Draft Workshops + Draft Critiques
On days marked DWS, we will spend the majority of the class time discussing a draft of an
essay by 3-5 students, with the goal of giving each member of the class an opportunity to
have his/her writing read, reviewed, and discussed. There are 5 slots for each workshop. I
expect you to note when yours is, and will email your essay to the class/group so that your
peers can read it carefully and make comments for discussion.
Instructions for Draft Critiques: These should be typed, printed, and ready to give
to both me and the student (or, “Draftee”) for whom the critique is prepared (to be
distributed and collected at the end of the DWS class). Apart from proving that you
have read the paper and supplying author with valuable commentary in hard-copy
form, these critiques give you an outline for your involvement in the workshop itself,
in which you will be asked to share your comments. Your draft critiques need be no
longer than a page, and may be in bullet-point form, but should prepare you to
present at least five points of constructive criticism on the paper in class, favoring
specific and original comments (we don’t want to repeat the same point over and
over) and avoiding line-edits (i.e., edits a computer could make).
Each draft critique is worth 30 points (+10 points for logistics, see below)
Critiques will be graded as follows:
comments on Cover Letter – 5 pts
five points “constructive critique” (we will go over what this means) – 5 pts
Logistics:
I will not accept any late draft critiques.
If you do not turn it in to me in class, you forfeit the points.
If you do not bring a copy of the draftee’s paper to class, you will lose 5 points
If you do not bring your own draft to your workshop, you will lose 5 points
Papers, Drafts, + Pre-draft Assignments
Writing is a process that takes time and dedication: brainstorming, outlining, drafting, and
revising. Since the writing curriculum at CUNY Baruch is planned as a sequence, you must
write all the essays to pass this course, and you must write them within the course’s schedule.
For these and many other reasons, all deadlines in this class are firm. In support of your own
development as a student and out of fairness to the rest of the class, I do not grant
individual extensions.
I will reduce your grade by 10% of the assignment’s total points for:
Not turning in a hard copy on time, when requested
Not emailing an electronic copy on time, when requested
Turning in any assignment after the day or time it is due
Writing Resources
The Writing Center offers free, one-to-one and small-group workshop writing support to all
Baruch students. I encourage you to make use of this excellent, free service, and to schedule
your appointment well in advance of when your writing is due.
You can schedule an appointment at: https://bc.mywconline.com/. Visit the Writing Center
in NVC 8-185 or at the Newman Library Reference Desk, or log on to their website,
writingcenter.baruch.cuny.edu, to learn more.
Accessibility
Baruch College is committed to making individuals with disabilities full participants in the
programs, services, and activities of the college community. If you require any special
assistance or accommodation, please contact the Office of Services for Students with
Disabilities at (646) 312-4590, and let me know as soon as you can.
For additional information see:
http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/facultyhandbook/DisabilitiesInformation.htm
Cheating + Plagiarism
Cheating and plagiarism are serious offenses that can result in a failing grade (or worse) and
a mark on your permanent academic record. The following definitions are based on the
College’s Academic Honesty website:
Cheating is the attempted or unauthorized use of materials, information, notes,
study aids, devices, or communication during an academic exercise.
Plagiarism is the act of presenting another person's ideas, research or writing as
your own. It includes: copying another person's words without the use of quotation
marks and footnotes (a functional limit is four or more words taken from the work
of another), presenting another person's ideas or theories in your own words without
acknowledging them, using information that is not considered common knowledge
without acknowledging the source, and failure to acknowledge collaborators on
homework or laboratory assignments.
I will give you a failing grade on any assignment that has been plagiarized or an assignment
(quiz, etc.) on which you cheated. On your second offense, you will fail the course. I am also
required to submit a report of suspected academic dishonesty to the Office of the Dean of
Students, and this report becomes part of your permanent file.
Basic Classroom Rules:
DO bring to class:
DO NOT bring to class:
A hard-copy of the text(s) assigned
A hard-copy (typed + printed) of every assignment.
Food, take out, etc.
Your “technology.” Please keep computers, phones, iPads,
Kindles, etc. (or as my Dad calls them, “all your videos and iPods”) in your bag and away
from your desk.