TC603A: Composition and Reading in World Literature
Fall, 2008
Unique# 43790
TTh 11-12:30, CRD 007B
Timothy Moore (Department of Classics), 113 Waggener, 232-4161, timmoore@mail.utexas.edu
Office hours TTh 9-10:45 and by appointment

Course description
One of the defining features of most literature is its sense of place. In this course we will examine works of literature in which place is especially important and consider questions such as: How does its setting help to determine the effect of a literary work? Why do authors so often seem to have an exceptional concern for where the events they describe occur? What does literature have to say about the effect of our environment on who we are?  In the fall semester we will concentrate on epic poems and drama, including the Iliad, which established Troy as a place of extraordinary evocative power; Vergil’s Aeneid, about the effort to locate a people in a new place; Aeschylus’ Oresteia, where a change of place brings an end to generations of bloodletting; and Japanese NÙ dramas, where ghosts arise from sacred places and bring both wisdom and terror.  In the spring we will consider the role of place in novels, short stories, and lyric poems.

Required texts
Homer, Iliad, translated by Stanley Lombardo
Vergil, Aeneid, translated by Stanley Lombardo
Epic of Gilgamesh, translated by Andrew George
Aeschylus, Oresteia, translated by Richmond Lattimore
Aristophanes, Lysistrata, translated by Douglass Parker
Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale
Bertolt Brecht, The Three-Penny Opera, translated by Ralph Manheim and John Willett
Additional texts will be provided on Blackboard

Requirements and grading
Weekly Journal (each entry 1 page or less; lowest grade dropped): 10%
Four short papers (5-7 pages each; the first two papers may be rewritten for credit): 70%
Class participation (includes attendance, class discussions, formal and informal oral presentations, and quizzes as deemed necessary): 20%

Schedule (subject to change)
August
28: Introduction to Course
September
2 Iliad 1-3; Journal due
4  Iliad 4-6
9 Iliad 7-9; Journal due
11 Iliad 10-12
16 Iliad 13-15; Journal due
18 Iliad 16-18
23 Iliad 19-21; Paper 1 due; Homer and History
25 Iliad 22-24
30: Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale; Journal due
October
October 1-4: Performance of The Winter’s Tale on campus and at Winedale: attendance at one performance required (for tickets information, see http://www.utexas.edu/cola/depts/english/shakespeare/site/aftls/fall-production/winterstale/tickets.html)
2: Shakespeare, The Winter’s Tale
7 Epic of Gilgamesh, tablets 1-6; Journal due
9 Epic of Gilgamesh, tablets 7-11
14 Vergil, Aeneid 1-2; Revision of paper 1 due
16 Vergil, Aeneid 3-4
21 Vergil, Aeneid 5-6
23 Vergil, Aeneid 7-8; Paper 2 due
28 Vergil, Aeneid 9-10
30 Vergil, Aeneid 11-12
November
4 Aeschylus, Agamemnon; Journal due
6 Aeschylus, Libation Bearers
11 Aeschylus, Eumenides; Revision of paper 2 due
13 Aristophanes, Lysistrata
18 Aristophanes, Lysistrata; Journal due
20 Ma Chih-y¸an, Autumn in Han Palace (on Blackboard)
25 Brecht, The Three-Penny Opera; Paper 3 due
27: Thanksgiving Holiday
December
2 Selected Japanese NÙ plays (on Blackboard); Film: Nō Izutsu (Audiovisual Library, VIDCASS 10129: Journal due
4 Selected Japanese KyÙgen plays (on Blackboard); Film: Busu (Audiovisual Library, VIDCASS 6270)

11 Paper 4 due

A word to the wise
It is essential that you attend class each day, and that you read each assignment before class. Please note the importance of class participation in your grade. This means that you will be richly rewarded for consistent attendance and preparation, but repeated absences and/or lack of preparation for class will cost you dearly.

Scholastic Dishonesty
Scholastic dishonesty on any graded assignment will result in a 0 on the assignment. Scholastic dishonesty includes any kind of cheating, including plagiarism; if you are unsure about the exact definition you should consult the General Information Catalogue, Appendix , Section 11-802 (http://www.utexas.edu/student/registrar/catalogs/gi01-02/app/appc11.html).  For more information, see the information on the web site of the Dean of Students (http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs/scholdis.php).

Academic disabilities
The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259 or 232-2937, or see the information online at http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/ssd/.

Religious holidays
You may make up any work you miss for a religious holiday if you notify me of the holiday fourteen days ahead of time.

Late work
Journal entries will not be accepted late unless written documentation is provided of illness, family emergency, or a religious holiday.  Papers will be accepted without penalty until 5:00 PM on the due date, or later if written documentation of illness, family emergency, or a religious holiday is provided.  Without such documentation the grade on the assignment will be lowered by 2 points for each day it is overdue.  Students who hand in the final paper late will receive a grade of incomplete (X), to be changed to a grade when the paper is handed in.

Cell phones
Please make absolutely certain that your cell phone, if you have one with you, is turned off during class.  

Laptops
Laptop computers are wonderful tools.  In a class such as this, however, where discussion is vital, they are a distraction.  Please do not use them during this class.

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last modified 22 September 2008 by timmoore@mail.utexas.edu