ENGLISH III (American Literature)
Teacher: Alex R. Brilliandt (Portable B17)
E-mail/Phone: abrilliandt@greermiddlecollege.org / 469-7571
Website: http://greermiddlecollege.org/faculty-staff/english/alex-brilliandt/
Academic Year: 2013-14
Common Core Curriculum
Office Hours: Wed. 7:30-7:55a
Thurs. 3:05-3:45p
Course Description:
Welcome to GMC’s English III (American Literature) course. Buckle up for a class that tours each American Literary
movement through a variety of short stories, poems, plays, novels, as well as non-fiction pieces by American writers.
We will explore essential questions (EX: How is the concept of the ‘American Dream’ shaped by our literature and
culture? / What makes America different from other countries?). Students will master concepts central to the study of
literature such as plot, theme, symbolism, author’s style, tone, genre, and historical context. This will be exemplified
through a number of increasingly sophisticated pieces of writing related to the works we read, asking students to
interpret, analyze, and evaluate the work of these American authors and poets. Students will be well practiced in
articulating arguments through writing and speaking. Remember that this is a class designed to prepare students for
ENG 101 at the college; plan to work hard to earn your grade and endorsement to proceed to the college campus.
Learning Methods and Course Objectives:
1.
Students will participate in reading, analyzing, and writing about short stories, poetry, novels, and plays under the umbrella
of American literature.
2. Students will participate in reading, analyzing, and writing about various informational texts and varied media sources.
3. Students will develop their ability to write argumentative, comparative, informative, and narrative works with a strong
understanding of the process, structure, and content of each.
4. Students will engage in class discussions and express themselves individually, using appropriate sources and media when
needed.
5. Students will learn what proper research looks like, and use it to synthesize ideas and persuade an audience.
6. Students will demonstrate an ability to identify, analyze, and employ rhetorical devices.
7. Students will evaluate the styles and techniques used by writers to achieve a purpose, critiquing the effectiveness of those
styles and techniques.
8. Students will demonstrate understanding of how American texts connect to particular social, political, and economic factors
in American history.
9. Students will master grammar conventions and demonstrate confident use of sophisticated vocabulary.
10. Students will grow in confidence as speakers, readers, and writers.
Required Texts and Materials:
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[TEXTBOOK] Elements of Literature: Fifth Course. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston. Austin. 2010.
Selected supplemental novels and plays (must be purchased by student before the text is covered in class)
3 ring binder with dividers
Notecards
Blue or black pens and/or pencils
Plenty of paper!
Policies:
 Homework and reading assignments are due at the beginning of the period. Computer issues are not valid
excuses for late work. Asking to print an assignment at the beginning of class in NOT permitted.
o Students with excused absences must hand assignments in within two English class days of their return for full
credit. (NOTE: Athletics, extracurricular activities (field trips), and planned absences require submission of
assignments prior to a planned absence.)
o PENALTIES: Late minor assessments will NOT be accepted; major assignments have a 30% deduction and
are due 7 days from original due date.
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Ex. Student did not turn in project 1st grade is 0  0 x 0.3 = 0 total points earned
Student turns in project and receives a 92%  92 x 0.7 = 64.4 total points earned
Cell Phone Policy: All students should abide by the GMC’s cell phone policies outlined on page 9 of the student
handbook. There will be RARE OCCASIONS of authorized cell phone use for listening to music, taking pictures for
projects, etc. Students may never use their cell phones in class without Mr. Brilliandt’s explicit permission.
Unauthorized use of cell phones will result in confiscation of the phone and implementation of the school’s cell
phone consequence guidelines.
Attendance Policy: South Carolina law states that a student must attend at least 85 days of a 90 day one unit
course (GMC year-long A/B block schedule), therefore only five (5) total unexcused absences are permitted in
this class. ATTENDANCE IS AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF SUCCESS. When a student is absent, he/she misses
valuable instruction and the opportunity to work examples in class. Adequate time is given in class to complete
most assignments. If a student is absent, my expectation is that the work is completed at home or in Academic
Support outside of regular class time.
Cheating / Plagiarism Policy: Plagiarism is the act of claiming someone else’s writing as your own, whether this
means from a web source or a peer. Collusion, or working on an assignment together when not told to do so, is
another form of plagiarism. You will receive a zero on the assignment and disciplinary action will be taken (in
accordance with the student handbook). At no point in time is it ok to plagiarize, so when in doubt don’t! If I
miss you plagiarizing on one assignment it does not excuse you from the repercussions when I do find evidence
of plagiarism.
Classroom Expectations:
 Come with a respectful, confident and open mind. Kindness shows more strength than cruelty.
 You are late if not seated and ready to start the “bell ringer” at the bell. After four tardies, you’ll receive a
referral. (Refer to handbook policy.)
 All final drafts of essays are to be typed and must adhere to MLA format.
 All students will remain seated until the bell rings. (This is to prevent gathering at the door.)
 Cheating and plagiarism on schoolwork will result in a zero on the assignment and could result in suspension.
 Bring all required materials each day—this includes paper!
 One copy of all handouts will be given to each student. If it is misplaced, it can be found on my web page.
Academic Support /Office Hours:
Students are encouraged to come to my office hours for extra help, review, questions, and re-teaching of material.
Students should be proactive in their learning by visiting me during my office hours when necessary. Students who fall
below mastery on a major assignment or in their cumulative grades are expected to visit me during my one of my
office hours times for assistance. Students can expect a phone call or email home when mastery is not achieved. Also,
if a situation arises where a student is in need of extra help, the student will be notified to come during my office hours.
My office hours are: Wednesday 7:30-7:55am and Thursday, 3:05-3:45pm. Please notify me in advance to attend or to
reschedule if you are unable to attend during the scheduled time. Retesting will be available for those students that
have sought out extra help during office hours.
Grading Policies/Scale:
A= 93-100 B=85-92 C=77-84 D=70-76 F= 69 or below
Minor Assignments (Quizzes, Write-ups, Notes, etc.) = 40%
Major Assignments (Tests, Essays) = 60%
Final Grade:
Q1/Q2/Q3/Q4----------------------20% Each (80%)
Midterm/Final ----------------------10% Each (20%)
100%
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------***English 101: After English III, some students will be ready to take English 101/102 instead of English IV. To be
recommended for English 101, students must do the following:
 Read all assignments and complete work on time and with solid effort
 Arrive on time consistently
 Act maturely and respectfully in class
 Complete all “Above and Beyond” sections on assessments
Course/Text Outline (Note: This outline is a guide and is subject to change):
I.
II.
III.
Quarter 1 (A New World: Early American to 1800) – Holt Units 1 & 2
a. Texts
i. MAIN TEXT: The Crucible*
ii. Native American
1. “The Earth on Turtle’s Back,” Onondaga tribe
2. “When Grizzlies Walked Upright,” Modoc tribe
iii. Puritan Texts
1. Anne Bradstreet’s: “To My Dear and Loving Husband” and “Here Follows Some Verses
Upon the Burning of our House”
2. Edward Taylor: “Huswifery”
3. Jonathan Edwards: “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
iv. Enlightenment Texts
1. From The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin; from Poor Richard’s Almanac
2. Thomas Jefferson: Selected letters and The Declaration of Independence
3. Patrick Henry: from “Speech to the Virginia Convention”
4. Thomas Paine: from “The Crisis, No. 1”
5. Phillis Wheatley: “On Imagination” and “On Being Brought from Africa to America”
b. Major Assessments
i. Vocab Test Units 1-4 (http://www.vocabtest.com/high_school/junior.php)
ii. Content Test
iii. Essay Presentation Project
Quarter 2 (Romanticism vs. Realism: 1800 to 1920) – Holt Units 3 & 4
a. Texts
i. Romanticism
1. Harriet Ann Jacobs: from Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
2. Edgar Alan Poe: “The Raven” and “Fall of the House of Usher”
3. Emily Dickinson: “The Soul Selects her Own Society”
4. Walt Whitman: from “Song of Myself”
5. Henry David Thoreau: from “Civil Disobedience” and Walden
6. Emerson: TBA
ii. Realism
1. From Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
2. From Seneca Falls Women’s Convention, “Declaration of Sentiments”
3. Kate Chopin: “The Story of an Hour”
4. Abraham Lincoln: “The Gettysburg Address”
5. Chief Joseph: “I Will Fight No More Forever”
6. Stephen Crane: “A Man Said to the Universe”
b. Major Assessments
i. Vocab Test Units 5-8 (http://www.vocabtest.com/high_school/junior.php)
ii. Content Test
iii. Essay Project
c. Midterm
Quarter 3 (Modernism: 1920 to 1945) – Holt Unit 5
a. Texts
i. MAIN TEXT: The Great Gatsby (NOTE: Students are responsible for purchasing this book.)
ii. Modernism
1. e.e. cummings: “somewhere i have never traveled, gladly beyond”
2. T.S. Eliot: “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”
3. William Faulkner: “A Rose for Emily”
4. Robert Frost: “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” or “Birches” and “Acquainted
with the Night”
5. Ernest Hemingway: “Soldier’s Home”
6. Edwin Arlington Robinson: “Richard Cory”
7. John Steinbeck: except from Grapes of Wrath
8. Eudora Welty: “A Worn Path”
9. William Carlos Williams: “The Red Wheelbarrow” and “This is Just to Say”
iii. Harlem Renaissance Additions
1. Langston Hughes: “Harlem” and “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”
2. Paul Lawrence Dunbar: “We Wear the Mask”
3. Countee Cullen: “Tableau”
b. Major Assessments
i. Vocab Test Units 9-12 (http://www.vocabtest.com/high_school/junior.php)
ii. Content Test
iii. Essay Presentation Project
IV.
Quarter 4 (Contemporary: 1950-) – Holt Unit 6
a. Texts:
i. Main Text: YOU CHOOSE! (Details to come as the term approaches)
ii. Short Stories
1. John Hersey: from Hiroshima (“A Noiseless Flash”)
2. Mitsuye Yamada: “Desert Run”
3. John Updike: “Son”
4. Amy Tan: from The Joy Luck Club (“Rules of the Game”)
5. Tim O’Brien: “Speaking of Courage”
6. Raymond Carver: “Everything Stuck to Him”
7. Anne Tyler: “Teenage Wasteland”
iii. Non-fiction
1. Martin Luther King Jr.: “Letter from Birmingham Jail”
2. John F. Kennedy: “Inaugural Speech”
3. Maxine Hong Kingston: from The Woman Warrior
iv. Poetry
1. Sylvia Plath: “Mirrors” and “Mushrooms”
2. Anne Sexton: “The Bells”
3. Nikki Giovanni: “The Beep Beep Poem”
4. Billy Collins: “Man Listening to Disc”
v. Other
1. (Graphic Novel) Art Spiegelman: from Maus
b. Major Assessments
i. Vocab Test Units 13-15 (http://www.vocabtest.com/high_school/junior.php)
ii. Content Test
iii. Essay
c. Final Exam
* The Crucible by Arthur Miller, having been published in 1953, actually lies within the Modernist movement; however,
but its content better fits within the Colonial Literature unit.
Note: The focus of this class is depth rather than breadth. While every effort will be made to address all aspects of the
syllabus, time constraints, student absences, and unforeseen circumstances may require revisions to the syllabus as
the school year unfolds. Please check the Class Schedule on my web page for the most current curriculum guide.