English 2020-24
Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Spring 2012
100-225 | PH 308
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Dr. David Lavery
Professor, English Department
Office: PH 372
Office Phone/Voice-Mail: 898-5648
Office Hours: T-Th 225-330; W 500-600
E-mail: david.lavery@mtsu.edu
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Dr. David Lavery is Professor of English at MTSU (1993- ). The
author of over one hundred twenty published essays, chapters,
and reviews, he is author / co-author / editor / co-editor of twenty+
published or forthcoming books on the space age, cult television,
television finales, crying, Joss Whedon, Owen Barfield, and
numerous television series (The Sopranos, Buffy the Vampire
Slayer, Supernatural, Twin Peaks, The X-Files, My So-Called
Life, Deadwood, LOST, Battlestar Galactica). The organizer of
international conferences on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Lost, and
The Sopranos, a founding co-editor of the journals Slayage: The
Online International Journal of Buffy Studies, Critical Studies in
Television, and Series/Season/Show, he has lectured around the
world on the subject of television (Australia, Turkey, the UK,
Portugal, New Zealand, Ireland, Germany) and has been a
guest/source for the BBC, NPR, the Australian Broadcasting
Corporation, The New York Times, A Folha de Sao Paulo (Brazil),
Publica (Portugal), Information (Netherlands), AP, The Toronto
Star, USA Today. From 2006-2008, he taught at Brunel University
in London.
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Click on a cover to go to the Amazon page for a book. Feel free
to buy from Phillips or any online bookseller.
Books
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Books
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Books
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Books
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Books
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Course Policies and Procedures
Class format: We will follow a lecture / discussion format during most class
meetings. Power Points will be used in almost all class meetings and will be
available for reviewing on the website. A substantial portion of class time will
be spent screening and discussing various films and television shows.
Manuscript form: All written assignments must be word-processed and
submitted as Microsoft Word or Rich Text e-mail attachments submitted via
the D2L drop boxes for each assignment. Please name the file with your
own last name (for example: lavery.doc). Reading assignments: You are
responsible for having read the entirety of each reading assignment.
Participation & involvement: Please come prepared for each day’s class. I
encourage you to become an active participant in class discussion and to ask
constructive and meaningful questions at all times. Attendance: Regular
attendance is essential to the ongoing progress of the course. Two absences
will be permitted. A third absence may result in the loss of a letter grade. A
fourth absence may result in failure of the course.
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Course Policies and Procedures
Inclement Weather Policy: Go here. Plagiarism / Cheating: The
unacknowledged use of the words / ideas / insights / original research of
another is, of course, prohibited. Should I catch you plagiarizing, or cheating
in any way, you will receive a grade of "0" on the assignment in question, the
violation may be reported to University authorities, and you may fail the
course. Students with Disabilities: Any student with a disability will be given
all the rights and privileges guaranteed under the Americans with Disabilities
Act if he/she is registered with Disabled Student Services (call/contact John
Harris, KUC 120/2783). University Writing Center: At The University Writing
Center (now located in the Walker Library), sponsored by the English
Department and staffed by full-time and adjunct faculty and graduate teaching
assistants, you can get constructive help with a variety of writing problems,
from pre-writing to organization to grammatical errors. (Please be aware,
however, that the UWC does not do proofreading.) Grading Scale: 90-99%=A
| 80-89%=B | 70-79%=C | 60-69%=D | 0-59%=F
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Course Requirements
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
A critical essay (not less than 1,000 words in length)
on course readings, paintings, photographs, or
viewings (25% of course grade). Things to be Aware
of When Writing Your Essays. Model Essay: Jackie
Gardner, A Grotesque Display of Testosterone: The
Man Show
Creation of a webpage on a major practitioner of the
grotesque—to be housed on my own website on the
grotesque [http://www.davidlavery.net/Grotesque/]. Go
here to see a list of potential subjects; go here to learn
more about the assignment; Model Website 1 Model
Website 2 (30% of course grade).
Course Requirements
An in-class cognitive-memory mid-term, consisting
of a variety of matching, identification, short answer
questions (on authors, artists, terms, directors, titles,
etc.). (10% of course grade)
A take-home essay final exam, in which you will
write two 750 word essays on your choice from ten
possible topics supplied by me (20% of course
grade).
An in-class cognitive-memory final exam, similar to
the mid-term but covering the entire course. (15% of
course grade).
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Online Syllabus
http://davidlavery.net/Courses/2020/index.htm
Agenda
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Defining the
Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
The People of Walmart
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
World English Dictionary
gross (ɡrəʊs)
— adj
1 repellently or excessively fat or bulky
2 Compare net with no deductions for expenses, tax, etc; total: gross sales
gross income
3 (of personal qualities, tastes, etc) conspicuously coarse or vulgar
4 obviously or exceptionally culpable or wrong; flagrant: gross inefficiency
5 lacking in perception, sensitivity, or discrimination: gross judgments
6 (esp of vegetation) dense; thick; luxuriant
7 obsolete coarse in texture or quality
8 rare rude; uneducated; ignorant
— interj
9. an exclamation indicating disgust
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Defining the
Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Defining the
Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque
Defining the
Grotesque
ENGL 2020 Themes in Literature and Culture:
The Grotesque