Texts
The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces, 7th edition, Volume II, Sarah Lawall and Maynard Mack, eds. (New York, London: W. W. Norton, 1999).
Shannon, Edward A., The Prentice Hall Guide to Writing about Literature (Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2002).

Course Description
In this course we will explore the Western literary tradition through reading, discussing, and writing about some of the major works of European and South American literature from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries. We will also pay attention to the political and cultural contexts of these works.

Learning Goals
By the end of the course you should be able to:
• explain the characteristics of the major literary periods of Western Culture from the Enlightenment to Modernism
• describe how a literary text reflects its historical context
• identify the literary and rhetorical devices employed in a text, such as genre, point of view, irony, satire, imagery, etc., and relate them to the content of the text
• discuss, orally and in writing, selected literary texts of Western Culture from the 18th century to the first half of the 20th century and their continuing aesthetic validity or challenge
• write a coherent essay on given topics about these texts and their contexts, supporting arguments with evidence (quotations) from the literary texts.

Course Requirements and Evaluation
Attendance                   Impact on grade is defined below in “Class Attendance Policy”
Class Work                  15% Whole class and group discussion, see below for details
Writing Assignments    15% See below for details
Paper 1                        10% See below for details
Paper 2                        20% See below for details
Midterm Exam              20% Exam on material from first half of semester
Final Exam                   20% Exam on material from second half of semester

Evaluation of Class Work
For your participation in class, your grade will be determined using the following criteria:
A = you are well prepared and participate actively; you are attentive, respond when called upon and volunteer often with pertinent questions and comments.
B = you are usually prepared and always respond when called on; you volunteer on occasion.
C= you show evidence of being unprepared; you have some trouble when called on and do not volunteer often.
D = you are unprepared and/or inattentive; you never volunteer; you come to class late and/or leave early.
F= you exhibit a lack of concern for the class; you sleep in class; your behaviour may have a negative effect on the class.

Group Work
There will be a lot of group activities. The above evaluation criteria also apply to group work. Be a good team member in partner work or small group activities. Turn your chair to create an easy setting for interaction with your partner(s). Volunteer information, keep the work moving along, but don’t dominate. Help your partners, if they are having a more difficult time (helping others is an excellent way to learn for yourself!). In order to be a good team player you need to be well prepared for class. Each member of a group should take notes about the ideas generated in the group and be prepared to give a report to the class.

Writing Assignments
You will receive a number of smaller writing assignments throughout the semester in order to give you practice and prepare you for writing the two longer papers. They should be typed in 12 pt. font, double-spaced, with 1” margins on all sides and with page numbers. You do not need to consult critical literature on the author or the text, but should instead engage yourself more closely with the text, or an aspect of it, and formulate your thoughts about it in a cohesive fashion. At times, we will use a peer review process to help you improve your writing. During the peer review, give constructive feedback to your fellow students. We will work with Edward A. Shannon’s book to support your writing about literature.

Papers
The first paper will be 2-3 pages, the second 4-5 pages. As for the shorter writing assignments, the format will be 1” margins on all sides, 12 pt. font, double-spaced, with page numbers. I am most interested in your own original ideas, not someone else’s, nor in a paraphrase of my comments from class, our class-discussions, or the readings themselves. Pay attention to good organization and logical transitions between paragraphs. Base your arguments on close readings; give concrete examples (quotations) from the texts to support your arguments; and avoid vague impressions and over-generalization. Do not use excessively long quotations to fill up the pages, unless you are doing a close analysis of a passage and absolutely need all of the long quote. When referring to the Norton Anthology, simply follow the following format (Flaubert, Madame Bovary, p. 928; for poems: Blake, “The Lamb,” p. 543). If you use ideas or quotations from critical literature (books, articles, internet, etc.), you need to document your sources and give proper credit to someone else’s ideas (whether you quote directly or rephrase their ideas)—otherwise you violate academic honesty and commit plagiarism (see below for policy). Do not make someone else’s ideas the major focus of your paper. For the format of footnotes and bibliography, if you have them, refer to the MLA Style Manual (available in bookstore or library). Paper topics will be given out later in the semester. Edward A. Shannon’s book addresses many issues about the process as well as the mechanics of writing a high quality paper for a university literature course; refer to it often!

Exams
The focus of the exams is somewhat different from that of the writing assignments, but both support each other. What I’m looking for in the exams is concrete, exact, and well-presented knowledge. Both exams will consist of:
Identifications of characters: identify the author, work, and original language; explain the character’s function in the text.
Identifications of passages: identify the author, work, and original language; briefly discuss the relevance of the passage for the work in question.
Brief explanations of literary terms, of periods, etc., with examples from the literary texts.
Mini-Essay on a larger topic, e.g. comparing how a certain topic is treated in several of the texts we read.
The best way to prepare for these exams is regular preparation, active participation in group and whole class discussions, effective (extensive!) note-taking, and completing the writing assignments. The exams will be based on what has been covered in class; you will receive an expectation sheet for each exam.

Class Attendance Policy
Regular attendance is a university requirement. For every unexcused absence in excess of 2 (two) classes, your semester grade could be reduced by 1 point. If you have to miss a class, please inform me about it beforehand or as soon as possible after the absence. You will still be expected to be prepared for the next class; contact me or a class mate for information on the missed material and any assignments. For information about what qualifies as an excused absence, please consult: http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/academic_regulations/attend/reg.htm

Students with Disabilities
Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. You need to register with Disability Services for Students at 1900 Student Health Center, Campus Box 7509, 515-7653. For more information consult http://www.ncsu.edu/provost/offices/affirm_action/dss/.

Academic Integrity Policy
Human interaction and effective communication function on the basis of trust. An atmosphere of trust, honesty and respect for each other fosters educational progress and success. Please do not give me any reason to be suspicious of your honesty. You are to do your own work on all class assigments, papers, and exams, unless it is a designated pair or group assigment. For papers that also means not incorporating others’ ideas and selling them as your own—this is called plagiarism. Whether you take ideas (verbatim or just as an idea) from books, the internet, or other sources does not matter: you need to acknowledge their source if they are not your own. You will find more details in Shannon, pp. 148-150. Also, the NC State Library has a Plagiarism Tutorial at: http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scc/tutorial/plagiarism/index.html
Please ask me about anything that remains unclear. Violations of academic integrity (plagiarism, cheating, etc.) will be prosecuted according to NC State’s policy on academic integrity, posted at: http://www2.ncsu.edu/ncsu/provost/info/hat/current/appendix/appen_l.html

Semester Schedule
Page numbers refer to the Norton Anthology (unless specified as page numbers in Shannon’s book). We will follow this outline, but it will be flexible: if we need more time on a certain text, we may spend more time, and will then shorten or cut something else, as necessary.

Class and Date, Topic and Reading Assignment, Speaking and Writing Assignment (due dates for Writing Assignments)

Links on the Topics are Lecture Outlines, Notes, Terms, or related websites. It will be useful to print the outlines/notes/terms and bring them to class.
For Speaking and Writing Assignments see the links at the end of the calendar.

Literature / Translation / Interpretation
1 – Wed, May 22 Introduction to the Course; Chronology of Western Literature; start Calvino,
        “Serpents and Skulls," S1: Group Work on Calvino

The Enlightenment
2 – Th, May 23 finish Calvino; Introduction, 1-7; Voltaire, Candide, 316-352,  S2: Group
        Work on Voltaire
3 – Fri, May 24 Candide, 353-379; Shannon chapter 1, W1: Essay on Calvino

Romanticism
4 – Mo, May 27 Introduction, 417-426; Rousseau, Confessions, 427-437, Shannon chap. 2,
        S3: Group Work on Rousseau
5 – Tue, May 28 Goethe, Faust, 438-480, W2: Notes on “Night”
6 – Wed, May 29 Goethe, Faust, 480-516, Shannon chap. 3, S4: Group Work on Goethe
7 – Th, May 30 Goethe, Faust, 517-540
8 – Fri, May 31 Blake, 540-549; Shannon chap. 4, W3: Goethe Outline, S5: Group Work on
        Blake
9 – Mo, June 3 Heine, 619-620

Realism
10 – Tue, June 4 Introduction, 835-840, 845; Flaubert, Bovary, 846-890; W4: Paper 1
        Outline
11 – Wed, June 5 Flaubert, Bovary, 891-1018, S6: Group Work on Flaubert
12 – Th, June 6 Flaubert, Bovary, 1018-1063
13 – Fri, June 7 Flaubert, Bovary; Shannon chap. 5, pp. 100 – 132, W5: Paper 1 Draft
         Peer Review of Draft of First Paper

The New Poetry
14 – Mo, June 10 Midterm Exam
15 – Tue, June 11 Introduction, 840-844; Rilke, 1564-1570, Shannon chapter 5,
        pp. 132 – 163

Modernism
16 – Wed, June 12 Introduction, 1337-1348; Mann, "Death in Venice," 1510-1548,
        S7: Group Work on Mann
17 – Th, June 13 Mann, "Death in Venice,
1548-1564, Paper 1 Final Version
18 – Fri, June 14 Joyce, "The Dead," 1582-1615, S8: Group Work on Joyce
19 – Mo, June 17 Joyce cont.; Woolf, A Room of One’s Own, 1615-1638,
        W6: Essay on Setting

20 – Tue, June 18 Woolf cont.
21 – Wed, June 19 Kafka, "The Metamorphosis," 1638-1672, S9: Group Work on Kafka
22 – Th, June 20 Peer Review of Draft of Second Paper, Draft of Paper 2
23 – Fri, June 21 Brecht, The Good Woman of Setzuan, 1799-1836
24 – Mo, June 24 Brecht, cont., 1836-1858
25 – Tue, June 25 Conclusion and Review, Final Version of Paper 2

Fri, June 28  8 – 11 a.m. Final Exam in HA 238
 

Links for Class Materials (please print and bring to class):

Writing Assignments

Speaking Assignments

Test Expectations Sheets (Midterm and Final Exam)