TC603B: Composition and Reading in World Literature (Unique #42770)

Spring, 2009, 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, or by appointment

This spring we will continue our adventures in literature and place.  We will begin with novels from France and Russia that reveal the response to various locations in periods of the Enlightenment, Romanticism, and Realism.  We will then see the contrast of Britain and Italy in an English novel and a Columbian author’s fantastic history a town.  Short stories with a strong sense of place from the United States follow.  Finally, we will turn to lyric verse, examining how poets from around the world have responded not only to place, but also to love, death, and what it means to be human.

Texts
Voltaire, Candide, The Ingenu
Pushkin, The Captain’s Daughter
Flaubert, Madame Bovary
Woody Allen, The Kugelmass Episode (on line)
Forster, A Room with a View
García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude
Proulx, Close Range
Lahiri, Unaccustomed Earth
World Poetry: An Anthology of Verse from Antiquity to Our Time, edd. K. Washburn and J.S. Major
Lipson, Cite Right (optional)

Requirements and grading
Weekly Journals (each entry 1 page or less; lowest grade dropped; your proposal, list of sources, and outline will each count as a journal grade): 10%
Two short papers (5-7 pages each): 30%
A longer research paper (10-15 pages; must be rewritten): 35%
Oral presentations: 10% (2 presentations, 5% each)
Class participation (includes attendance, preparation, contributions to class discussions, and quizzes if deemed necessary): 15%

Schedule (subject to change)
January
20: Introduction to Course
22: Voltaire, Candide, chapters 1-20

27:Voltaire, Candide, chapters 21-30; The Ingenu, chapters 1-8; Journal due
29: Voltaire, The Ingenu, chapters 9-20

February
3: Pushkin, The Captain’s Daughter, chapters 1-7; Have chosen your poem.  In one paragraph, name the poem and explain why you chose it.
5: Pushkin, The Captain’s Daughter, chapters 8-14

10 Flaubert, Madame Bovary, pp. 1-61; Paper I due
12: Flaubert, Madame Bovary, pp. 63-146

17: Flaubert, Madame Bovary, pp. 146-204; Journal due
19: Flaubert, Madame Bovary, pp. 205-311; Woody Allen, The Kugelmass Episode (on line at http://www.woodyallen.art.pl/eng/kugelmass_episode.php); Begin recitations and 5-minute discussions

24: Forster, A Room with a View, chapters 1-7; 1-paragraph proposal for term paper due
26: Forster, A Room with a View, chapters 8-13

March
3: Forster, A Room with a View, chapters 14-20; Journal due; Film: A Room with a View; Audiovisual Library VIDCASS 1237; also in Joynes Reading Room
5: García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude, pp. 1-78; Visit to Harry Ransom Center (Details TBA)

10 García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude, pp. 79-159; Paper II due
12 García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude, pp. 161-267

16-20: Spring Break

24:García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude, pp. 269-417; List of sources for term paper due
26: Proulx, The Half-Skinned Steer, Job History, The Blood Bay

31: Proulx, A Lonely Coast, Brokeback Mountain; Film: Brokeback Mountain; Audiovisual Library DVD 4901; also in Joynes Reading Room; Journal due
April
2: Lahiri, Unaccustomed Earth (the first story in our collection)

April
7: Lahiri, Hell-Heaven, Only Goodness; Outline of term paper due
9: Lahiri, Hema and Kaushik (the final three stories in our collection)

14: Poems, TBA; Journal due; Begin 15-minute presentations
16: Poems, TBA

21: Poems, TBA; Journal due
23: Poems, TBA

28: Poems, TBA; Term paper due
30: Poems, TBA

May
5: Poems, TBA; Journal due
7: Poems, TBA

Thursday, May 14th, 5:00 PM: Revision of term paper due

A word to the wise
It is imperative 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 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, 471-6441 TTY.  See also Services for Students with Disabilities: http://www.utexas.edu/diversity/ddce/ssd/index.php.

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.

The Pick a Poem Project
Part of your task this semester will be to become an expert on one poem from our anthology, World Poetry: An Anthology of Verse from Antiquity to Our Time.  Here is the plan.
1. Play with the anthology: browse through it and see which poems engage your imagination.
2. Choose one poem to make your own.  Notify me of your choice by February 3rd.  It's first-come-first-served if more than one student chooses the same poem.
3. Prepare a 5-minute discussion of the poem.  Students will recite and discuss their poems in February or early March.
4. Use the poem as a jumping off point for a research paper of 10-15 pages and a 15-minute oral presentation (to be given during the last five weeks of class).  You can write and speak on any element of the poem or its background, or any question raised by the poem that excites your interest.
last modified March 25th, 2009 by timmoore@mail.utexas.edu