Effective Date of this Description/Syllabus: Fall 2018
Prepared by: Dr. Rhonda Wilcox
Office: Honors House 104
Phone: (678) 359-5296
email: rhonda_w@gordonstate.edu
Office hours: MW 11:00-1:30; TR 1:30-3:00
COURSE
DESCRIPTION/SYLLABUS
Course Designation: English 2111
Course Title: World Literature I
Class hours per week: 3
Credit hours: 3
Division offering course: Humanities
Prerequisite for the course: A grade of C or better in
English 1101.
Course description for college
bulletin:
A survey of important works of world literature from ancient times to the
seventeenth century.
Teacher’s Course objectives:
To
acquaint students with seminal works of world literature and the cultural
milieux in which they were produced;
To
give students a background for appreciating the values and concerns of modern
literature by studying the traditions which preceded it;
To
awaken in students an interest in literatures and cultures different from their
own and an awareness of literary/cultural richness and diversity; in short—
To
have fun.
Humanities Department Literature Course Objectives
Course Objectives: Upon completion of ENGL 2111, World
Literature I, the student will have:
gained
awareness of major writers and literary periods in the canon of world literature;
demonstrated
competence in literary analysis;
demonstrated
an understanding of fundamental literary and critical terminology;
developed an awareness of aesthetic experiences as a dimension of
life by demonstrating competence in literary studies.
ADA and 504
If you have a documented disability as described by the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973,
Section 504, you may be eligible to receive accommodations to assist in
programmatic and/or physical accessibility. The Counseling and
Accessibility Services office located in the Student Center, Room 212 can
assist you in formulating a reasonable accommodation plan and in providing
support in developing appropriate accommodations to ensure equal access to all
GSC programs and facilities. Course requirements will
not be waived, but accommodations may assist you in meeting the
requirements. For documentation requirements and for additional
information, contact Counseling and Accessibility Services at
678-359-5585.
Title IX
Gordon State College is committed to providing an environment
free of all forms of discrimination and sexual harassment, including sexual
assault, domestic violence, dating violence and stalking. If you (or
someone you know) has experienced or experiences any of these incidents, know
that you are not alone. All faculty members at Gordon State College are
mandated reporters. Any student reporting any type of sexual harassment,
sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence or stalking must be made aware that any report made to a faculty member
under the provisions of Title IX will be reported to the Title IX Coordinator
or a Title IX Deputy Coordinator. If you wish to speak with someone
confidentially, you must contact the Counseling and Accessibility Services
office, Room 212, Student Life Center. The licensed counselors in the
Counseling Office are able to provide confidential support.
Gordon State College does not discriminate against any student on the basis of pregnancy, parenting or related conditions.
Students seeking accommodations on the basis of pregnancy, parenting or related
conditions should contact Counseling and Accessibility Services regarding the
process of documenting pregnancy related issues and being approved for
accommodations, including pregnancy related absences as defined under Title IX.
Religious
Holidays: Gordon State College
acknowledges that the academic calendar can sometimes conflict with major
holidays from among our diverse religious traditions. If a student must miss class due to the
observance of a religious holiday, that absence may be
excused. To be
excused, the student must inform his/her instructors before the absence
and make alternate arrangements for any work due at the time of the
absence. An excused absence for the
observance of a religious holiday does not excuse a student from responsibility
for required course work. If you are going to be absent for a religious
holiday, tell me by the end of week 2.
Course Content:
The course plan is to focus on the
following works/authors; others may also be assigned:
Gilgamesh; the
Hebrew Bible; Homer; Sappho of
Lesbos; Sophocles; Confucius; the Bhaghavad
Gita; Virgil; Ovid; the Qur’an;
Marie de France; Lady Murasaki; Dante; The
Thousand and One Nights; Cervantes; Shakespeare; and others. We will be
reading literally world-famous stories, poems, and plays. People have enjoyed
them for centuries. However, if you do not budget enough time for your reading,
you may start to view them as a burden rather than a pleasure. Instead, expect
to take a great deal of time—then relax and enjoy yourself. The best pleasures
cannot be hurried.
Required Text: The Norton Anthology
of World Literature, Shorter Third Edition. Vol. 1. Ed. Martin Puchner, et al. Norton, 2012. Print. ISBN 0-393-91960-9
Grading: Class
participation/storyteller assignment/pop quizzes: 15%
First
Paper: 10%
Second
Paper: 20%
Midterm
Exam: 25%
Final
Exam: 30%
Standards: A=90-100, B=80-89,
C=70-79, D=60-69;(B+=88; B=85; B-=82, etc.)
Your failure to do the first or
second paper or midterm or final exam will result in your failing the course.
If you believe you have a good reason for being excused from a pop quiz or
other in-class work, discuss it with me promptly; I will decide on a case-by-case
basis whether or not to keep the zero, excuse the quiz/test,
or give a make-up with or without grade penalty.
For
the Storyteller assignment, see the separate handout and sign-up sheet.
Your first paper does not have to have outside sources: it should
represent your own response to the reading, supported by copious specific evidence from the reading, including multiple
quotations from the primary source. The subject should be one of the pieces of
literature from our text; the more specific subject choice
must be approved by me beforehand. A planning conference is required.
Your second paper will be a
researched assignment--a traditional term paper. Again, the specific subject must be approved. Again, you will express your opinions
about a piece of literature, but for this assignment
you will also include the views of scholars
on the subject. The paper must be a minimum of 1500 words long (excluding
apparatus such as bibliography and notes) EXCEPT that if you choose to write on
a work of literature not assigned to the class and you tell the class about
this work of literature (in a format specified by me), you may write a minimum
of 1000 words instead. MLA form for quotation, bibliography, etc., should be used for both these assignments. I will give further
details when the assignments approach.
Your exams will include some
“objective” questions (such as identifying quotations); they will also include
some discussion questions. Each will cover approximately half the course work.
Attendance policy:
Without class discussions and lectures, you might as well read this literature
on your own. You will find that experiencing a group’s reaction to a piece of
writing is something that cannot be recreated through
merely reading class notes. This is not just a lecture class. Furthermore, you
can contribute to the class: thoughtful questions can be just as valuable as
insightful comments (though they should be the questions of a person who has
read the material). Missing classes will reduce your ability to contribute and
will therefore lower your class
participation grade. (Significant tardiness or failure to turn in homework will
do the same.) Furthermore, specific in-class activities will be used to help
establish your participation grade, and in most cases
these activities must be carried out during a particular class period. People
that miss more than three weeks of classes normally cannot keep up and fail the
course as a result. If you must miss a class, let me know beforehand if you can
(or leave a phone or email message as soon as possible); ask me or a classmate
about assignments so you can prepare in case there is a pop quiz when you
return to class. My home landline number is (404) 373-5328. If you cannot
contact me or a classmate, then read the next assignment on the syllabus.
Student Evaluation of Instruction: Near the end of this course, you will be
asked to evaluate the instruction of the course. Your honest responses
will help make this a better course. Also, please feel free to make suggestions
during the course. Remember, I want
to hear from you.
Plagiarism,
Cheating:
The English faculty of Gordon
College views any form of cheating as a serious violation of commonly accepted
standards of honesty. All student work must be solely that of the person
submitting the work. Any giving or receiving of unauthorized
help from others or from notes or other materials during the course of taking a
quiz, test, or exam or in writing a paper will result in an F on the work; any
use of forbidden materials such as rough drafts during the course of in-class
writing will also result in an F for the assignment. Note that an F on
the work involved in cheating is the minimum punishment; a zero on the work is
another possible consequence; if justified by aggravating circumstances, the
matter may be referred to the Dean of Students. See
the Academic Dishonesty Policy in the Academic Catalog.
Moreover, when
source materials are used in the writing of papers, the student must document
such use of sources both by clearly indicating material being used as quotation
and by giving proper recognition when ideas or information has been paraphrased
or summarized; the following principles enunciated in the section on avoiding
plagiarism in James D. Lester's Writing
Research Papers: A Complete Guide, 8th edition, should be scrupulously
observed. Note, by the way, that (per MLA rules) the indention indicates
that the material is a long section being quoted:
1. Acknowledge borrowed material by
introducing the quotation or paraphrase with the name of the authority. This
practice serves to indicate where borrowed materials begin.
2. Enclose within quotation marks all
quoted materials.
3. Make certain that paraphrased material has been rewritten into your own style and language. The
simple rearrangement of sentence patterns is unacceptable. [To illustrate: It is unacceptable to simply rearrange sentence
patterns.]
4. Provide specific in-text documentation
for each borrowed item. For example, MLA [Modern Language Association] style
requires name and page for all in-text references. Requirements differ for
other fields . . . .
5. Provide a bibliographic entry on the
Works Cited page for every source cited in the paper.
6. Omit [from the bibliography] sources
consulted but not cited in the text. This point is important. You do not want
your instructor leafing back through the paper trying to find your use of a
source that, in truth, was not cited. (140-41)
Furthermore,
you must avoid collusion. Here is a definition from the Humanities Chair: Collusion is defined as receiving
excessive help to the point that a work can no longer be considered the product
of a single author and therefore cannot be accurately assessed an individual
grade. If I suspect a submitted work to be the result of collusion, I reserve
the right to refuse credit for that work if the claimed author is unable to
demonstrate sole authorship. A good way to avoid this problem is to get help
from the Student Success Center rather than from family or friends.
I
may decide to have you submit some of your work to Turnitin.com. Terms and
Conditions of Use may be found at http://www.turnitin.com/static/usage.html.
In general, if you have a question, feel
free to ask it. My goal is for you to learn and to enjoy learning.
TENTATIVE
SCHEDULE
Read
the material before the class period in which it is listed
below; it will be discussed during the class period in which it is listed. If
you miss class, keep up with the reading listed below. When a specific section is not listed, then read all the material in the book under a given
title; e.g., read all of Sappho’s lyrics that are included in our book.
Week
One (8/8) Introduction; The Epic of Gilgamesh
Week
Two (8/13) Gilgamesh,
continued; Hebrew Bible, Genesis 1-4, 6-9, 25 (pages 94-103, 106-110); (8/15)
Homer: The Odyssey, Books 1-4
Week
Three (8/20) The Odyssey, Books 5-8; (8/22) Books 9-12
Week
Four (8/27) The Odyssey, Books 13-16; (8/29) Books
17-20
Week
Five (9/3) Labor Day Holiday; (9/5) The Odyssey, Books 21-24
Week
Six (9/10) Sophocles: Oedipus Rex ; (9/12) Sappho
of Lesbos: Lyrics; Virgil: The Aeneid,
Books 1-2
Week
Seven (9/17) The Aeneid, Book 4;
(9/19) China’s Classic of Poetry;
Confucius: Analects [Sayings]; PAPER ONE
DUE
Week
Eight (9/24) Ovid: Metamorphoses
(pages 652-70); (9/26) MIDTERM EXAM
Monday
October 1: Last day to drop classes without WF
Week
Nine (10/1) Laozi, Daodeching (sometimes
called the Tao); India’s Bhagavad Gita; (10/3) The Qur’an (pages 861-69); The Thousand and One Nights (pages
1176-87)
Week
Ten (10/8) FALL BREAK; (10/10) The Thousand and One Nights (pages
1187-97)
Week
Eleven (10/15) Tang Poetry (by Li Bo and Du Fu); (10/17) Murasaki Shikibu: The Tale of Genji, Ch. 1-2
Week
Twelve (10/22) The Tale of Genji, Ch.
5; The New Testament, Matthew: “The Sermon on the Mount” (pages 821-24);
(10/24) Dante: The Inferno, Cantos
1-8
Week
Thirteen (10/29) The Inferno, Cantos 9-18; (10/31) The Inferno, Cantos 19-28
Week
Fourteen (11/5)) The
Inferno, Cantos 29-34; Marie de France: Lanval
(11/7) Cervantes: Don Quixote
(pages 1676-1703)
Week
Fifteen (11/12) Don Quixote (1703-49);
(11/14) Shakespeare: Hamlet, Acts 1-2
Week
Sixteen (11/19) Hamlet, Acts 3-4;
(11/21) THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY
Week
Seventeen (11/26) Hamlet, Act 5;
(11/28) PAPER TWO DUE
FINAL
EXAM: WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 5: 12:30—2:30
PM
Additional work may be assigned. Any variation in syllabus policy is at the
instructor’s discretion.