University of Waterloo
Department of English Language & Literature
Introduction to Literary Studies
Winter 2020
Mon/Wed 11:30-12:50, ML 354
Instructor and T.A. Information
Instructor: John Savarese
Office: HH 143
Office Phone: 519-888-4567 x33019
Office Hours: Tues. 1-2, Wed. 1-2, and by appointment
Email: john.savarese@uwaterloo.ca
Teaching Assistant: Jerika Sanderson
Email: j9sanderson@uwaterloo.ca
Course Description
This course offers an introduction to the study of literature, with attention to the elements of poetry, drama, and prose fiction. This is not a survey class, but a skills workshop focused on understanding, appreciating, and doing things with literary texts. For each class you will read a work (or set of shorter works); work them over thoroughly using a set of techniques we will practice; and identify some aspect of the work worth taking about in class. We will begin with a unit on the elements of poetry and poetic language; move to a unit on the elements of narrative (focusing on the short story and stage drama); and conclude with a unit on intertextuality and adaptation, by following the legacy of the Faust story in three genres from three periods: 16thcentury tragedy, the 19th-century gothic novel, and 21st-century science fiction.
Course Objectives
In this course, we will:
- Learn how various literary forms work, and examine their key features and devices
- Acquire a critical vocabulary
- Practice speaking and writing about literature, both informally and formally
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
- Approach literary works with confidence and have something to say about them
- Appreciate, describe, analyze, and interpret a work’s distinctive features
- Make a claim about a work, and persuade an audience of that claim by attending to evidence
Required Texts
- Christopher Marlowe, Dr. Faustus (any edition using the “A” text)
- Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (any edition)
- Cixin Liu, The Three Body Problem, trans. Ken Liu (any edition; if you would prefer to read the original Chinese text, feel free to do so—but in that case please provide translations for any quotations you use in your writing for the course.)
Readings Available Online
- LEARN Coursepack containing poems and short fictions listed on the reading schedule, and an “Appendix” of literary terms to learn throughout the course
- Links: Google Poetics; #foundpoetry; A Humument; #microfiction; Frankenstein (1910)
Course Requirements and Assessment
In this course you will be assessed on a steady stream of lower-weighted work and regular participation in class. All assignments are required, but at the end of term your lowest mark from category 2 (worksheets and imitations) will be dropped. Technically, this means that your final grade in that category will reflect the 6 highest-scoring assignments, at 5.833 pts each. The bigger assignments will consist of two in-class exams and three short essays.
We will discuss citation and plagiarism avoidance at length. the basics are: all work should represent your own thinking, in your own words, except where you directly quote and cite a primary text or a secondary source (including, for example, “lecture, 1/7” or “class discussion, 1/7”). Use a consistent style guide; I recommend MLA Style.
| Assessment | Date of Evaluation | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Category 1: Participation | Ongoing | 12% |
| Category 2: Short Exercises | ||
| Worksheets (5 @ 5 points each) | 1/13, 1/20, 2/10, 3/11, 3/23 | 25% |
| Imitation 1: Poetry | 2/12 | 5% |
| Imitation 2: Microfiction | 2/12 | 5% |
| Category 3: Essays and Exams | ||
| Essay 1: Description | 1/27 | 8% |
| Short Exam 1: Poetry | 1/29 | 10% |
| Essay 2: Close Reading | 2/26 | 10% |
| Short Exam 2: Narrative, Drama | 3/2 | 10% |
| Essay 3: Working with Criticism | 4/15 | 15% |
| Total | 100% |
Participation
1 point per week; modes of participation: contribute to class discussion, participate actively during “warm-up” activities (which may include small-group discussion, reading quizzes, or ‘low-stakes’ writing exercise), or use the LEARN discussion boards. Please see me for alternate ways to earn these points where necessary.
Worksheets and Imitations
- Five worksheets (@ 5 points each) available at least 1 week in advance, and designed to direct your readings. Topics will be 1. Elements of poetry, 2. Finding evidence in a poem, 3. elements of narrative, 4, Finding evidence in a novel, 5. Researching and prewriting for an essay. Each will have five relatively straightforward questions to answer.
- Imitation 1: Poetry Imitation is a classic tool for learning how a literary form works, and to get a sense of why an author would work in that form and what goes into the text’s production. For Imitation 1, try your hand at two types of poetry: the sonnet and the “found poem.” Sonnets should aim for (or at least gesture toward/play on or against) the sonnet’s main attributes (see glossary): at a minimum 14 lines, division into units, and rhyme and metre to the extent you can. You might also consider the major sonnet themes we dsicuss in class. For the ‘found poem’ (see glossary), you might submit the text only, divide it into lines, or submit a photograph (e..g of text found in the wild, or a page of “Humument”-style deletion poetry). NOTE: upload both to the dropbox, but also upload at least one to the relevant LEARN discussion board for your classmates to peruse.
- Imitation 2: Flash Fiction For the second imitation, you should also write two short narratives (let’s call them flash fictions between 50 and 300 words) in the two major varieties: compressed realism and antirealism. For the first, imagine your are Hemingway or Davis and that the goal is to get down to the absolute essentials, the minimal narrative unit (whether the effect is a focus on detail, a heightening of focalization, implication/suggestion, or understatement/bathos). For the second, pretend you are Edson or Forché, and that the goal is to challenge or subvert the basic elements of narrative (whether the effect is fragmentation, antirealism, antinarrative, incoherence). Again, upload both to the dropbox, but also upload at least one to the relevant LEARN discussion board for your classmates to peruse.
Short Exams 1 & 2
Fairly short (approx. 30-minute) exams will ask you to put your knowledge into practice. Both exams will show you a new, short text; ask a few pointed questions about it (including use of terms from our critical terms list); and prompt a brief, paragraph-long essay. The goal is to exercise your critical vocabulary, identify some of the text’s features, make a claim about the text, and point to evidence.
Essay 1: From Annotation to Description
The first essay is an exercise in description—which while generally not enough for a critical argument, is a crucial first step. 1. Choose a song released recently, preferably within the last 24 months, and type out the lyrics. 2. For prewriting, mark up the text in any way you see fit, to produce a heavily annotated text. Songs are full of literary devices. 3. Translate that annotation into a 1- page prose essay that simply describes the song’s features in as much detail as you can, explains which features are particularly significant, and explains any implication for your understanding of the song’s meaning. Upload the essay-style description to the LEARN dropbox. (You do not need to upload any of your prewriting/annotation.)
Essay 2: Close Reading
Your second essay should move from description to “close reading”: you’ll still be focused on the detail work of describing a text, but this time you should use that detail work as evidence to support a claim about the text. Essay 1 might have pointed to all the instances of enjambment across poetic lines; essay 2 might, instead, end by pointing to a particular enjambment that creates an emphasis, ambiguity, or double-meaning—why that emphasis, and what does it mean for our understanding of the work as a whole? Choose a poem or story from weeks 1-7 and write 2 pages describing, analyzing, and interpreting it.
Essay 3: Working with Criticism
Pose a question about the Marlowe, Shelley, or Liu texts (or some aspect of their intertextual relationship); find a critic or two who have addressed that issue; and write a 5-page essay that takes the torch from them and carries it further: you might replicate the author’s results by turning up additional evidence from different parts of the text; find an aspect of the text that contradicts the argument and turns up a different result; and so on. Like essay 2, this essay should bring together description, analysis, and interpretation, with careful use of primary evidence and ample explanation of everything you quote. Additionally, though, the goal will be to engage with the wider conversation already taking place, and to be meticulous about citing your sources whether whether they come from journal articles, books, blogs, tweets, or classroom lectures and discussions.
Course Outline and Schedule of Meetings:
Readings should be prepared in advance of the class listed, and you should come to class with a) the relevant work completed and/or b) a passage to point to, a question, a topic of interest, etc.
| Week | Date | Topic | Readings Due | Work Due |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | M 1/6 | Introductions | ||
| W 1/8 | Metre, Line, Stanza | Marianne Moore, “Poetry;” Wallace Stevens, “Of Modern Poetry” | ||
| 2 | M 1/13 | Diction, Tone, Image | William Blake, “London;” “The Garden of Love;” “The Sick Rose” | Worksheet 1 |
| W 1/15 | Speaker/Voice | Wordsworth, “Strange fits of passion;” “A slumber did my spirit seal;” Dickinson, “There is a certain slant of light;” “I heard a fly buzz when I died;” Browning, “My Last Duchess” | ||
| 3 | M 1/20 | Closed Forms: The Sonnet | William Shakespeare, Sonnets 18, 130; John Keats, “Bright Star;” Christina Rossetti, “In an Artist’s Studio;” Gwendolyn Brooks, “The Rites for Cousin Vit” | Worksheet 2 |
| W 1/22 | Abstract, Concrete, and “Found” | William Carlos Williams, “So much depends;” Barbara Guest, “An Emphasis Falls on Reality;” Browse: Google Poetics; Twitter #foundpoetry; Tom Phillips, A Humument. | ||
| 4 | M 1/27 | Poetry review day | Essay 1 | |
| W 1/29 | Mini-Exam 1: Poetry | In-class exam | Exam 1 (in class) | |
| 5 | M 2/3 | Plot/Story | Select microfictions in anthology; Browse Twitter hashtags #microfiction or #nanofiction W 2/5 Focalization Zora Neal Hurston, “Sweat” | Worksheet 3 |
| 6 | M 2/10 | Stream of Consciousness | Virginia Woolf, “A Haunted House;” “Monday or Tuesday;” “The Mark on the Wall” | |
| W 2/12 | Character on Stage | Marlowe, Dr Faustus acts 1-2 | Imitations 1 & 2 due | |
| 2/17-19 | Reading Week | No classes | ||
| 7 | M 2/24 | Stage Plotting | Dr Faustus acts 3-5 | |
| W 2/26 | Review Day | Essay 2 | ||
| 8 | M 3/2 | Exam 2: Narrative/Drama | In-class exam | |
| W 3/4 | Faust→Frankenstein | Frankenstein vol. 1 | ||
| 9 | M 3/9 | Embedded Narrative | Frankenstein vol. 2 | |
| W 3/11 | Narrative Closure, Open Letters | Frankenstein vol. 3; watch Frankenstein (1910) online. | Worksheet 4 | |
| 10 | M 3/16 | Worldbuilding | 3 Body Problem, ch 1-7 (-p. 109) | |
| W 3/18 | [class cancellation] | [keep reading 3 Body Problem] | ||
| 11 | M 3/23 | Embedded Media | 3 Body Problem, -ch 16 (-p. 205) | Worksheet 5 |
| W 3/25 | Acceleration | 3 Body Problem, -ch 27 (-p.312) | ||
| 12 | M 3/30 | Closure/Cliffhanger | 3 Body problem, ch 35 (-p.390) | |
| W 4/1 | Final class meeting | Final paper workshop; end-of-term review session; course evaluations | Bring at least 2 pages in draft | |
| W 4/15 | [two weeks after final class meeting] | Final Paper due by 11:59 pm |
Course Policies
Late Work
I will accept late work for up to one week after the deadline, at a modest penalty of a half-lettergrade (2.5%) per day. This penalty does not apply in cases of accessibility accommodations.
Electronic Device Policy
Feel free to use electronic devices productively, with due care not to distract yourself or others.
Attendance Policy
Attendance is required and tied to the participation grade; please see me if there are circumstances that require alternate modes of participation.
University-Wide Policies
Accommodation for Students with Disabilities
Note for students with disabilities: AccessAbility Services, located in Needles Hall, Room 1401, collaborates with all academic departments to arrange appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities without compromising the academic integrity of the curriculum. If you require academic accommodations to lessen the impact of your disability, please register with AccessAbility Services at the beginning of each academic term.
**Note from the instructor: Please be aware that “disability” here is a broad category and includes things students sometimes don’t realize can be accommodated, from the cold and flu to a range of mental health experiences. And if you’re having trouble, know that you can definitely come and talk to me.
Cross-listed course
Please note that a cross-listed course will count in all respective averages no matter under which rubric it has been taken. For example, a PHIL/PSCI cross-list will count in a Philosophy major average, even if the course was taken under the Political Science rubric.
Academic Integrity
In order to maintain a culture of academic integrity, members of the University of Waterloo are expected to promote honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility. See the Office of Academic Integrity webpage for more information.
Discipline
A student is expected to know what constitutes academic integrity to avoid committing an academic offence, and to take responsibility for his/her actions. [Check the Office of Academic Integrity for more information.] A student who is unsure whether an action constitutes an offence, or who needs help in learning how to avoid offences (e.g., plagiarism, cheating) or about “rules” for group work/collaboration should seek guidance from the course instructor, academic advisor, or the undergraduate associate dean. For information on categories of offences and types of penalties, students should refer to Policy 71 – Student Discipline. For typical penalties check Guidelines for the Assessment of Penalties.
Grievance
A student who believes that a decision affecting some aspect of his/her university life has been unfair or unreasonable may have grounds for initiating a grievance. Read Policy 70 - Student Petitions and Grievances, Section 4. When in doubt, please be certain to contact the department’s administrative assistant who will provide further assistance.
Appeals
A decision made or penalty imposed under Policy 70, Student Petitions and Grievances (other than a petition) or Policy 71, Student Discipline may be appealed if there is a ground. A student who believes he/she has a ground for an appeal should refer to Policy 72 - Student Appeals.
Other Information and Sources of Support
Mental Health Support
All of us need a support system. The faculty and staff in Arts encourage students to seek out mental health supports if they are needed.
On Campus
- Counselling Services: counselling.services@uwaterloo.ca / 519-888-4567 ext 32655
- MATES: one-to-one peer support program offered by Federation of Students (FEDS) and Counselling Services
- Health Services Emergency service: located across the creek form Student Life Centre
Off campus, 24/7
- Good2Talk: Free confidential help line for post-secondary students. Phone: 1-866-925- 5454
- Grand River Hospital: Emergency care for mental health crisis. Phone: 519-749-433 ext. 6880
- Here 24/7: Mental Health and Crisis Service Team. Phone: 1-844-437-3247
- OK2BME: set of support services for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning teens in Waterloo. Phone: 519-884-0000 extension 213
- Full details can be found online at the Faculty of ARTS website
- Download UWaterloo and regional mental health resources (PDF)
- Download the WatSafe app to your phone to quickly access mental health support information
Territorial Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we are living and working on the traditional territory of the Attawandaron (also known as Neutral), Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples. The University of Waterloo is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land promised to the Six Nations that includes 10 kilometres on each side of the Grand River. For more information about the purpose of territorial acknowledgements, please see the CAUT Guide to Acknowledging Traditional Territory (PDF).