Professional Documents
Culture Documents
[Section 04]
[Section 05]
T/Th 9:25-10:40am
T/Th 10:50am-12:05pm
Dr. James Arnett
Office: Holt 338-E
Email: james-arnett@utc.edu
Office Phone: 423.425.4602
Office Hours: Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday, 1-3pm
Course Description from Catalog:
Readings from poetry, fiction, and drama to demonstrate how the
writer selects from ideas, experience, and language and combines
these elements to speak of and to the human condition. On demand.
Better Course Description
In this class, well be looking at a wide range of texts that fall
under the category of literature, a variety of genres from Greek
comedy to Shakespearean tragedy, from a sly little novella to Kendrick
Lamar. As we read each text, well be honing in on, closer and closer,
the notion of politics in its various forms. This means well be running
alongside the 24-hour news cycle covering the US presidential election
of 2016. Accordingly, well read the news alongside our texts as we
explore a tremendous range of ideas about what politics are good for,
and how literature may seek to represent, critique, refract, or
challenge politics as a social force.
Required Texts
Childrens Lit
Clothes
Comedy/Drama
Tragedy/Drama
Novel
Novella
Prose Poetry
Song/Lyrics
Novel
Poetry
Birth
Participation in this class may sometimes feel tricky, since what were
discussing is politics one of those things youre not supposed to
discuss in polite company. But we must be polite! It is imperative. We
are bound to disagree about politics because, to a great extent, they
represent models for how we live our lives. That said, we must respect
others beliefs.
Election Cycle Coverage Presentation (10%)
Each class period, someone will be responsible for finding an
interesting article covering the current presidential election,
summarize it for the class, explaining the authors possible bias, the
tone of the article, the information contained therein, and explain what
you think might be happening underneath the event. Ill perform two or
three of these before youll begin doing them. After that, a student will
be responsible for one per class period. These presentations are 6-8
minutes in length, allowing for a 5-minute discussion afterward. Be
prepared in your presentation to ask questions of the class.
Close Readings (6 x 10% = 60%)
These are low-stakes writing assignments in other words, no
big deal! For each of these, you will be given a prompt with four
passages (ranging from one sentence to one paragraph) from the
specified text. You will need to 1) print out the assignment sheet, put
your name on it, and indicate which passage youve chosen; and 2)
compose a [full] 1.5-page, thesis-driven explanation of the passage
youve chosen. You need to have an argument (thesis), which in this
case will communicate what you think the passage means and how
the author accomplishes that meaning. Other than that, its not really a
paper that is to say, youre only dealing, ever, with that one
passage. I will provide, in advance of the due date of the first one, an
example for the class.
Extra Credit (magic)
--the one extra credit opportunity you have this semester. The
themes, the presentation, the attendance and participation, as well as
the final exam, are all given roughly equal weight. Accordingly, if you
do a seventh theme, you can replace the lowest grade earned
elsewhere.
Final Exam Presentation (10%)
The final exam will be discussed toward the end of class.
Class Schedule
[date]
[reading]
[writing / projects]
Week One
Jan 12 // Tues Introductions, Syllabus,
Expectations
Jan 14 // Thurs Burton & Andersen, The
Emperor Has New Clothes
Week Two
Jan 19 // Tues Aristophanes, Lysistrata
Jan 21 // Thurs Aristophanes, Lysistrata
Week Three
Jan 26 // Tues Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Jan 28 // Thurs Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Week Four
Feb 2 // Tues Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Feb 4 // Thurs Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
Week Five
Feb 9 // Tues Achebe, A Man of the People
Feb 11 //
Thurs
Week Six
Feb 16 // Tues
Feb 18 //
Thurs
Week Seven
Feb 23 // Tues
Shakespeare Close
Reading Due
MIDTERM EXAM +
Achebe Close Reading
Rankine Close
Reading Due
Saramago, Seeing
Saramago, Seeing
Saramago, Seeing
Saramago, Seeing
Saramago, Seeing
Warsan Shire, Teaching My
Mother How To Give Birth
Week
Fourteen
Apr 20 // Tues Warsan Shire, Teaching My
Mother How to Give Birth
Apr 22 // Warsan Shire, Teaching My
Thurs Mother How To Give Birth
FINALS
PERIOD
Final Exam Presentation
SECTION 04: 9:25am:
SECTION 05: 10:40am:
Saramago Close
Reading Due
FINAL EXAM
PRESENTATION
Thursday, April 28th;
8-10am
Tuesday, May 3,
10:30-12:30pm