Freedom Education Project Puget Sound
Introduction to Literature and Creative Writing
Fall 2012
Wednesdays from 9:30-11:45am
Professor: Priti Joshi
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Why study literature? In this course, we will read literary works – poems, short stories, a play closely and critically in order to learn and get the most from a wide range of literature
(Shakespeare, as well as Edgar Allen Poe, for example). As we read and analyze these works, we
will also try our hand at writing our own poems and stories, experimenting with various modes
of writing and asking the age-old question: why do people write imaginatively (some say it is to
express ourselves, others to enter new worlds)?
Class Expectations & Policies
You are expected to attend every class and stay for the duration of the session. Village policy is
that a student who misses two classes will be withdrawn from the class.
Beyond attendance, I would like you to bring your minds and energy to our shared time. I run
all my classes as a collaborative venture with students. This means that I am your guide as we
collectively delve into the texts. To ensure that our time together is maximally productive and
meaningful for everyone, each of you should be willing and prepared to:
participate in our discussions…but don’t monopolize the conversation
actively listen to others when they are talking
please don’t interrupt anyone and raise your hand if you’d like to participate
engage with what others say
read out loud, if asked to volunteer
…and write silently sometimes
share your work with the class or a peer, if asked to
be generous in the feedback you provide peers
…and be open to the feedback you receive from others
Please come to each class prepared; in other words, plan to do considerable work on this class
outside class time.
A Word About Assigned Readings:
Most of the assigned readings are not long and the number of readings are not extensive. Each of
the texts selected is complex and unintuitive – it can bear multiple readings. Allow yourself
time to read and re-read and even re-read the poems and stories. You will likely find yourself
seeing things that you absolutely missed the first (or second time) round, perhaps even changing
your notion of what the text was “about.” Indeed, I strongly suggest that you keep a journal in
Freedom Education Project Puget Sound
which you record your reactions to the texts as you read and re-read them each time.
A Word about Writing Assignments
Not ALL writing assignments I will ask you to complete are listed on the schedule below;
please listen attentively in class to any additional writing tasks or alterations to the tasks listed.
 You will be asked to write both analytic essays and creative pieces. Each requires slightly
different skills, but both require discipline. And revision. Don’t be frustrated or disheartened if
you don’t “get it right” the first time; nobody does and all the best writers practice the mantra:
revise, revise, revise. In short, the writing analogue to “read, re-read, re-re-read” is “revise, revise,
revise.”
Schedule
This schedule is a living document and may be revised based on your needs;
please pay attention in class for changes
Sept 19
Introduction to course: expectations, agreements, syllabus
In-class
1. Class expectations and Policies
2. What is “literature”? What purpose(s) does it serve? Who does it serve?
3. Discussion of Philip Larkin’s “This Be The Verse”
4. Introduction to “Poetic Form”: rhyme and meter/rhythm
Sept 26
Before class, please read:
 Richard Wilbur, “The Museum Piece”
 Robert Graves, “The Naked and the Nude”
 Sharon Olds, “Sex Without Love”
 John Keats, “Ode on a Grecian Urn”
 Pablo Neruda, “Ode to My Socks” and “Ode to Salt”
Before class, please write:
 A 12-20 line poem that responds to or engages with one of the poems above; try to
write your poem using a consistent rhyme scheme (aabb aabb or aba aba or abcd
abcd, etc.)
Oct 3
Before class, please read:
 Robert Browning, “Porphyria’s Lover,” “My Last Duchess,”
 Robert Hayden, “Night, Death, Mississippi”
In preparation for class, please write:
 One paragraph about what makes these three poems different from the ones
we read last week and a 20-line poem in the voice of or from the perspective of
another character (try to make sure that the lines follow a consistent rhythm)
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Oct 10
Before class, please read:
 Oral Version of “The Story of Grandmother”
 Grimm Brothers, “Little Red Cap”
 Angela Carter, “The Company of Wolves”
 Tanith Lee, “Wolfland”
In preparation for class, please write:
 A short story (4-5 pages) that offers yet another take on the Little Red Riding
Hood Story; please include one section of dialogue in your story.
Oct 17
Before class, please read:
 Joyce Carol Oates, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”
 Ursula Le Guin, “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”
 Edgar Allan Poe, “Cask of Amontillado”
 Edward P. Jones, “Bad Neighbors”
In preparation for class, please write:
 A story in either third-person limited or first-person voice
Oct 24
Before class, please read:
 Othello, Act 1
In preparation for class, please write:
 A one or two paragraph plot summary of the act; also pick a set of lines you
might want to read aloud/perform in class
Oct 31
Before class, please read:
 Othello, Act 2
In preparation for class, please write:
 A one or two paragraph plot summary of the act and a brief account in which
you describe a particular scene from the perspective of one of the “minor” characters in the
scene.
Nov 7
Before class, please read:
 Othello, Act 3
In preparation for class, please write:
 A one or two paragraph plot summary of the act and a short story that
imagines an alternative past or future (a “prequel” or “sequel”) for Desdemona or
Emelia.
Nov 14
Before class, please read:
 Othello, Act 4
In preparation for class, please write:
 A one or two paragraph plot summary of the act and two-three paragraph
analysis of why Iago is so successful in manipulating Othello.
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Nov 21
Thanksgiving – no class
Nov 28
Before class, please read:
 Othello, Act 5
In preparation for class, please write:
 A one or two paragraph plot summary of the act; please pretend that you are
an attorney “trying” the murderer. Are there mitigating factors? Is he fully
responsible? How would you mount his defense?
Dec 5
Wrap up & Performances
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