English Department NEWSLETTER 2016

SJSUenglish department NEWSLETTER 2016

Table of Contents CCCC Is Coming to SJSU CCCC Is Coming to SJSU Olivia Lee & Chris Aronson Olivia Lee & Chris Aronson

English Majors: Success After Graduation The English Department of San José State are deeply involved in the world we live, Donnie Woolsey & Jerry Li University is hosting the Conference of work, and study in,” Dr. Skinnell says. “The College Composition and Communication fact that they have chosen SJSU as a site CLA: Celebrating 30 Years of Connections (CCCC) in the summer of 2017. It will take for the regional conference is a great Kevin Eung & Casandra Michel place on campus and is open to teachers honor.” and scholars interested in the field of Started in 1949, CCCC has held annu- rhetoric and composition. al conferences every year since. The Incorporating Culture into the Classroom The theme of the summer regional conferences include workshops, panel Deanna Boutte & Martin Gonzalez conference is “Making Spaces for Diverse sessions, keynote speeches, committee Writing Practice.” The conference will cre- retreats, and more. Although CCCC’s main Upper-Division English Courses Going to ate spaces where people from different focus has been college composition, Four Units disciplines, professional backgrounds, it has widened to include a variety of Benjamin Saubolle-Camacho and perspectives can collaborate. “We topics. Panels range from teaching basic & Arturo Camacho want this to be an accessible event where writing to the history of rhetoric to French people feel welcome no matter what theoretical insights into the nature of Advice from Alumni Authors stage of their careers they’re in,” says writing ontologies to the unique and vital Ashley Lopez and Miranda Squires co-chair of the summer conference and position of historically black colleges and Assistant Professor, Dr. Ryan Skinnell. universities in American education. “In “This would be a great first conference for other words, it’s an incredibly diverse set Technical Writing Website: Coming Soon someone to attend.” of interests and concerns, which is part Caroline Ohene-Nyako & Michael To For those who are unfamiliar with the of what makes it such a rich experience,” CCCC, it is the largest and oldest organi- says Dr. Skinnell. The Protégé: Francisco Jiménez Honored zation for writing and rhetoric teachers In addition to these annual conferences, with John Steinbeck Award in the nation. CCCC is involved in interna- 2017 marks the first year CCCC will add Tracey Mach & Mikayla Valdez tional and local politics to shape writing summer regional conferences. For Dr. and literacy education in America and is Skinnell and other faculty, this makes dedicated to creating spaces for scholars SJSU “both part of a long tradition and at Dr. Shillinglaw Visits Steinbeck in Russia and teachers to discuss how to serve stu- the cutting edge of innovations for writ- Grant Gundersen & Kori Beaulieu dents enrolled in composition classes. ing teachers and teaching of writing.” The “Although CCCC may not be a household conference at SJSU will replicate some name, the organization and its members of the activities that take place in their “The fact that they have chosen SJSU English Majors: as a site for the Success After Graduation regional conference Donnie Woolsey & Jerry Li is a great honor.” “Are you going to be a teacher?” Every En- things to say about the program. Despite checks, rather than the company being glish major has heard these words before, how effective the program is, it has room unable to pay its employees. and thankfully for many of them, “yes” for improvement. All three of them com- — Dr. Ryan Skinnell is the answer. For the rest of us, it gets mented that the Visual Rhetoric and Doc- Mariah, on the other hand, works for one exhausting to hear that question and the ument Design class should be mandatory. of Blue Coat’s competitors. Her project follow up, “Well what are you going to do It offered skills that they did not get in experience is similar to Alia and Maria, then?”, or another favorite, “Why didn’t any other class but have all used in their but lately, she has been more focused on you pick something practical?” (Because jobs. Mariah added that learning a wider web-product than anything else. Her cur- there is absolutely nothing practical variety of programs would be beneficial, rent project is a user guide for new users. about being able to communicate effec- specifically programs such as MadCap Engineers have provided her with instruc- tively.) Mariah Faris, Alia Mohammed, and Flare and FrameMaker. tions, and she has to translate “engineer” Maria Puentes are recent San José State to understandable English. That may not As the program is so thorough, transition- University graduates with degrees in En- seem like a massive project, but one set ing from San José State University into the glish. None of them are living in squalor. of instructions has over two-hundred workforce was a fairly painless process. Instead, all three graduates are working steps. While that sounds mind-numbing- Having graduated in 2015, Alia has had as writers. ly tedious to most sane people, Mariah the most experience. She spent a year at enjoys it. She has completed one other Both Mariah and Maria entered the Blue Coat, who partners with Symantec, user guide already and is waiting for the English program with the intention of as a Technical Publications Intern. Maria okay from her manager to publish it on teaching. English was what they liked, is there now in the same position. Most of the company website. and they didn’t know what else to do. the work done there is document writing Working as professional writers has given

photo by:photo Miranda Squires Consequently, like so many before them, and updating. Maria comments, “We were they defaulted to education. Alia, on the given an older document, and we had to these three English alumni independence other hand, entered without a concen- update it. It was awful. It had, like, neon they have never had before. Indepen- tration. However, by the time they all got pink and green fonts. I don’t know what dence obtained with a Liberal Arts to their third year, they became aware of people were thinking.” Maria was able to degree. It was not an easy journey, and annual conferences. There will be full-day And according to Dr. Cindy Baer, co-chair you’re trying to do, people who are facing the Technical and Professional Writing handle this job with relative ease, due they’ll have a lifetime of people asking, writing retreats, concurrent panels, and of the conference and assistant professor, the same challenges. At the very least, Program and switched. For Alia and Maria, in large part to the Visual Rhetoric and “So you work at Starbucks?” when people a series of half-day workshops. While the the summer conference will help stu- you commiserate, but frequently you get taking Modern English sparked their Document Design class. find out they majored in English. regional retreat will have fewer partic- dents get a sense of national academic new ideas to improve your teaching and interest in sentence-level English. Mariah ipants compared to the annual confer- discourse within the field of writing. She establish relationships with other instruc- After Blue Coat, Alia spent some time at Each writer offers advice for the current always had an interest in document writ- ence, the goal is “to generate a lot of the encourages students who are interested tors that continue after you come home.” a small startup company. The small busi- students. Mariah wants us to know that ing, but didn’t know that it was an option same intellectual energy and interper- in graduate coursework to attend this For him, a value of the CCCC is that it ness had some perks; it was very much we aren’t done learning yet. In fact, we for her degree. sonal engagement.” because “it is rare to hear regional and brings together an academic community a “work hard, party hard” kind of place. better love to learn, because as technical When asked about the program, all three It was not abnormal for people to have writers we are going to keep doing it. The Undergraduate and graduate students national conversations [about writing] on for interactions that “can’t be replaced by raved. They acted as if they were getting mini-fridges with alcohol at their desks. more she learns, the more she learns she can benefit greatly from participating ei- this campus.” reading journal articles.” commission for anyone they referred Somehow, that didn’t seem to damage doesn’t know. While Alia’s advice may ther as volunteers or attendees. Through Dr. Mark Thompson, Assistant Professor But as mentioned before, CCCC is not to it. While they enjoyed the program, the work/home balance like one might be a little cliché, it still rings true: “Grab the CCCC conference, students can gain and Director of Professional and Techni- an organization only for veterans of the the biggest source of their praise was expect. Instead, Alia had more freedom the bull by the horns and don’t give up.” “opportunities to engage with top-notch cal Writing, has also attended and orga- field. The SJSU regional conference will how it prepared them for the jobs they in a job than ever before. Coming into Maria, perhaps, has the best advice: “Do researchers, demonstrate their skills and nized panels in CCCC’s yearly conference. give students the opportunity “to see an have now. Alia comments that one of the the office was encouraged, but working your best on all the projects you do, not talents, add useful experience to their Dr. Thompson reports positive experienc- aspect of academic work that they rarely most important things she learned in the from home was also perfectly acceptable. for your GPA, but because they can be CVs/resumes, work closely with their es. He gave a presentation about teaching get to see,” says Dr. Skinnell, “and we program was how to ask questions. Maria Need a week off? Go for it, as long as the used in a portfolio, and that portfolio will professors in non-classroom activities, writing in the Middle East and ways of hope people who haven’t had the chance emphasizes the variety of writings that projects are done on time. In a way, it felt give you a leg up in the job hunt.” and connect more meaningfully to SJSU bridging cultural differences between to attend CCCC in the past will find a the instructors assign: “It may seem frus- like school. Get X done by Y date. Go to in general.” American and Arabic education. Since the reason to attend now that it’s in our very trating now, but you leave the program class for participation points, or in this CCCC conferences bring in many special- own backyard.” For Dr. Skinnell, attending the CCCC prepared. I rarely have to ask for clarifica- case, go to work for team building. The ized people, his audience was comprised conferences as an MA student helped Anyone who is interested or just wants tion when I’m told to do a write-up.” biggest downside of working for a small of other instructors from around the him become aware of the possibilities of to know more about the CCCC Summer startup was the inconsistent pay sched- world who share similar experiences. The companies they work for have hired teaching writing and rhetoric. CCCC mem- Conference can contact Dr. Skinnell (Ryan. our graduates before. Alia worked at the ule. Alia was always paid for her work, bers have supported him in many ways as “We heard a lot of our experiences and [email protected]) or Dr. Baer (Cindy. company that Maria is at now, and she re- but not always on schedule. Luckily, this a teacher and researcher. He has since conclusions reinforced by other scholars, [email protected]). membered her supervisor having positive delay was due more to the vice president become a more active member of CCCC but we also were given new perspectives being swamped and forgetting to sign the and now considers the organization as and approaches we hadn’t thought of,” “one of [his] most important professional says Dr. Thompson. “With CCCCs, you have homes.” hundreds of people doing the same thing 2 3 Center for Literary Arts: “Is there only one kind of human Celebrating 30 Years of being? Is there only one kind of Connections race? The answer is no. No. No!” Kevin Eung & Casandra Michel — Luis Valdez

This year marks the 30th Anniversary of Born in Delano, California, Valdez learned the Center for Literary Arts. The CLA is from an early age of the injustice farm a program affiliated with the College of laborers experience. This inspired him Humanities and Arts at San Jose State to form his own theatre troupe, El Teatro University. For the past 30 years, the Cen- Campesino in 1965. His organization ter has hosted local events featuring both allowed farm workers to express the accomplished and emerging writers. struggles of their community through Since its inception in 1986, the CLA has acting and comedy. Valdez attended San brought to San Jose winning authors of Jose State, initially majoring in physics and mathematics. However, as a result A class of 80 students from Mt. Pleasant students a chance to make profession- the National Book Award, Nobel Prize and High School were also in attendance that al connections with not only leaders in Pulitzer Prize. It is the Center’s mission to of his love for playwriting, he changed his major and eventually graduated in night at the invitation of the CLA. They their field of interest, but also with other create opportunities for South Bay writers displayed the greatest enthusiasm as local writers. One of the most important to share discussions with highly accom- 1964 as a distinguished English alumnus. He continued his writing with the play they cheered for their local hero. but often neglected steps to achieving plished figures in the literary community. success in any profession is to engage Zoot Suit in 1977 which remains to be the Valdez entered center stage, completely This is accomplished by hosting various with the active community. Befriending longest running, locally produced show at ease with his surroundings. He ad- talks, readings, and panels around San and exchanging contact information with at the Los Angeles Theater to date. And in dressed the audience with sincerity as he Jose State University. fellow writers often leads to career possi- 1987, Luis wrote and directed the critically spoke about his origins as a writer. Valdez bilities in the future. The Center for Literary Arts succeeds praised film,La Bamba. In September of posed a question he had once pondered, in creating moments of connection. On this year, he received the National Medal “Is there only one kind of human be- The center also conducts outreach at Mt. October 19th, the CLA hosted their 30th of Arts from President Obama. ing? Is there only one kind of race? The Pleasant High School. They invite authors Anniversary Gala at the San Jose Hammer The Anniversary Gala began with a short answer is no. No. No!” He lectured a great to meet and speak with students, inspir- Theatre. It was an event free to the pub- deal on racial discrimination, and comedy ing them to develop their talents while lic, with the option to purchase reserved video showcasing past featured authors. Director Cathleen Miller made an ap- were essential to overcome ethnic divi- pursuing their education. Past readers seating and tickets to a VIP reception. The sion. Appropriately in the Q&A following include acclaimed authors James D. Hous- event’s featured speaker was acclaimed pearance and thanked the audience for choosing to attend the event over watch- his presentation, Valdez was asked about ton, Bich Minh Nguyen, and 2015 Santa author, playwright, and director, Luis his solution to racism in America. To this Clara County Poet Laureate David Perez. Valdez. ing the final presidential debate before introducing Luis Valdez. The audience he answered simply, “intermarriage.” In early 2017, San Jose State students will greeted Valdez with a roar of applause. Following the lecture, attendees who have the opportunity to participate in had purchased tickets to the VIP recep- conversations with renown authors Bryan tion were invited to join Luis Valdez on Stevenson and Susan Orlean. Their partic- the balcony above the Hammer Theater. ipation is made possible through grants Guests were surrounded by the steady and donations from patrons, including sounds of conversation, live jazz, and SJSU. Director Miller of the CLA urges the occasional popping of champagne. students to take advantage of what the Though a small crowd constantly accom- program has to offer, “If SJSU decides at panied the guest of honor, the majority of some point that the attendance does not attendees spent their time enjoying the merit all of this money, it can go away.” company of fellow fans and writers. It was The Center for Literary Arts will contin- a space where one would be naturally ue to celebrate its 30th anniversary by drawn to converse with others, swapping hosting events for writers and literary en- stories and sharing laughter. For the thusiasts. Upcoming events include read- space of an hour on that night people ings and discussions with the Steinbeck behaved as people, uninhibited by any Fellows of SJSU, a travel writing confer- social borders or economic hierarchies. ence and the 150th Anniversary Publica- It was just as Luis had said during his tion Party of Reed Magazine. Prospective lecture, “The walls are coming down in attendees can follow and reserve seating photo by: Caroline Ohene-Nyako by:photo Caroline our time.” for these events at www.litart.com. Admission to all CLA events is free for students of San Jose State. In doing so, the Center has created a platform for young writers to gather. This gives 4 5 photo by: Caroline Ohene-Nyako by:photo Caroline

In a recent interview with Dr. Johnson, “I feel uncomfortable with supporting do not see themselves reflected in the she says, “I have been uncompromising this false dichotomy between formal and mirror.” Students, as with people in gen- Incorporating Culture into the Classroom in making sure that our students can informal education… often times, we priv- eral, want to relate to something. Hip-hop use their love of hip-hop in classrooms.” ilege one at the expense of the other” Dr. is a response to neglect, inequality, and to establish the Hip-Hop Debate Institute were using hip-hop artists like Dead Prez Deanna Boutte & Martin Gonzalez She continues, “By bringing hip-hop and Johnson pauses, “That being said, there other social issues that young people in to support the myriad ways our youth as evidence along with peer-reviewed teaching artists into classroom spaces, is so much that we can do with formal this generation have faced. It’s no wonder make meaning of the world, and of them- academic journals and students’ own Jen Johnson, Ph.D., aka, Dr. J, is one of San by doing public hip-hop debates, and by education… there are resources there— so many of today’s youth turn to hip-hop. selves, and thus inform their personal personal narratives and spoken word José State University’s newest educators. bringing various organizations together, but the problem is access.” Dr. Johnson From written text, to spoken word, reading and academic development through the that stressed the importance of speaking Dr. Johnson is an Assistant Professor in we are creating invaluable school-univer- says that it is important to remember to explicating, young people are motivat- creation, investigation and articulation of from one’s own social location in debate.” the Department of English and Compara- sity-community-partnerships.” the abundance of knowledge in our ed to learn when the information at hand hip-hop texts.” Once her students heard about the Mal- tive Literature. She received her Ph.D. in communities, in our families, and in our is familiar. colm X Debate Project at the University English Education from Teachers College Dr. Johnson is clearly working towards neighborhoods, but at the same time we In “Hip-Hop Debate,” Dr. Johnson en- of Louisville, Johnson’s students were all at Columbia University in New York City bridging the gap. She explains that one need to recognize that we are “privileged “If we are thinking about 21st-century courages young scholars and leaders for it. It is a way for them to incorporate where she was a research fellow with the has to be careful not to “burn the candle to be in an academic space.” Dr. Johnson literacy and all the technology available to incorporate culture into English and their culture and linguistic wealth to the Institute for Urban and Minority Educa- at both ends.” She teaches English classes to us, we had young people who were debate. She began the first Hip-Hop pursuit of higher education. tion (IUME) and the founding director by day and finds time to go to hip-hop combining all of those things… before Debate Institute in Seattle, Washington, of the Teachers College Debate Institute shows to support and network within the it was even a thing. That is just genius!” in the summer of 2006 at the Universi- There seems to be a common misconcep- (TCDI) at IUME, a fully subsidized Hip-Hop community by night. “I don’t see hip-hop exclaims Dr. Johnson. “To say that hip-hop ty of Washington. Dr. J recalls how that tion that hip-hop is “low culture, ” and debate apprenticeship serving Black and and literacy as separate,” she says. is low culture is ignorant.” February of 2006 was a catalyst. “I took does not fit in places of higher education. Latin@ youth in New York City public high twenty-two black and brown public high Many college students feel the need to schools. Her quintessential contribu- “Hip-hop documents reality,” says Dr. While she acclimates to San José, Dr. Jen- school debaters to UC Berkeley for one of “check their culture at the door when tions to the hip-hop community, through Johnson, “hip-hop can reflect problems of nifer Johnson is finding ways to make her- the largest national competitive academ- they enter the classroom,” says Dr. John- academic and critical literacies, provide a our culture.” The question we should be self most useful. She plans to “learn the ic high school debate tournaments in the son, “Often times, people feel that when unique perspective on the incorporation asking is why we do not look more closely landscape” and find available resources. country,” she says. “The students partic- they are formally educated, they have to of hip-hop in higher education. into hip-hop music. “People around the While she works toward specific goals in ipated in eight 90-minute debates over lose the brilliance they already brought globe, like the people in the favelas in the coming year, she hopes to collaborate the course of a couple of days.” One of into that formal space, as opposed to fus- In an article called, “Hip-Hop Debate Brazil, or [the people] transforming bus with like-minded people, on campus and st her students dropped out of the debate ing them together.” Learners are subcon- Institute—Remixing Literacies For The 21 stops in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, are off campus, and implement new ideas because he felt as if he didn’t belong. sciously made to believe that if they want Century Classrooms” on Huffington Post, using hip-hop in order to build com- along the way. San José is diverse in its When Dr. Johnson and her students high paying jobs or respected positions Dr. Johnson writes, “Youth of color are us- munity, teach young people about HIV/ explains that we need to use our resourc- people, its music, and its culture. Dr. Jen returned to Seattle, she wanted partici- in the work force, that they should keep ing hip-hop to demand that they see their Aids, and to develop skills to better the es effectively to ensure that our artists Johnson will certainly find herself working pants’ feedback on how the experience their playlists on mute. “I notice there is culture and issues reflected in competi- community.” With the power to influence receive compensation, students learn, seamlessly within the threads of hip-hop was and how to improve it. Given how a lot of reticence amongst some students tive academic policy debate, in education and move such a huge population of and academics thrive. and academics. her students had mixed feelings, she with the flexibility and form of being able and in the larger society around them.” empowered people, why do we ignore the shared with them how “there is a thing to be themselves,” she continues. “If our Dr. Johnson is addressing an important massive influence of hip-hop? Why not Dr. Johnson says, “Often times, our dis- going on at the University of Louisville, young people are hip-hop, then why are issue on the power of hip-hop music with use music as a tool? course in the academy… can function to where they are incorporating hip-hop we telling them to deny themselves, or young people in academics today. lock out the participation of people who She writes, “This movement inspired me in their speeches.” She explains, “they that they are ‘low culture’?” 6 7 Advice from Upper-Division English Courses Alumni Authors Going to Four Units Ashley Lopez & Miranda Squires Benjamin Saubolle-Camacho & Arturo Camacho Cultivating working professionals is And immediately following her under- It’s (almost) official. Upper-division En- assignment—doesn’t always translate to work will be geared toward the cumula- nothing new to San José State University. graduate degree, she went on to get her glish courses are moving from three units the job market. But a publicly accessible tive project. “Best of all,” says Dr. Miller, With over 30,000 students, each having master’s degree with her focus being to four. And as the English Department compilation of essays that contextualize a “it will be available to the public through a unique set of skills, graduates become in romantic creative writing and screen prepares to transition classes to four Shakespearean play better illustrates our the campus library.” By making the work successful engineers, artists, biologists, plays. units, Department Chair Shannon Miller students’ advanced writing and public, students get a chance to publish journalists, and more. She says a class she took which examined shares her vision for the next few years: critical-thinking skills. Four-unit courses work that will build their résumés with a Our English department is no differ- many genres was “by far the most useful “Communications, Economics, History, Po- will provide adequate time for students meaningful portfolio. ent. Graduates Marina Adair and Daniel class I have ever taken in my career.” It litical Science—all of these departments to prepare for these types of projects. Throughout the transition, the English Marovich are not only accomplished allowed her to pick apart eight of the have successfully made the transition In making students more competitive, Dr. Department will be coordinating an writers, but published authors sharing top selling romance novels and look for here at San José State. We want to be the Miller is calling for a more tech-based outreach effort to advise current English their personal experiences of growth in commonalities and differences. What next department to do so.” workload. Although English majors are majors in the new program. “We want to the industry to provide advice to rising she found were guidelines she needed to Dr. Miller has been spearheading the renowned for shoving their noses in make sure our current students won’t get authors. follow, as well as what she could change in order to speak her own voice. transition campaign. This switch will old, dusty tomes, several proposals for lost in the transition,” says Dr. Miller. Fol- Marina Adair is a romance novelist who allow students to spend more time on “one-unit enhancements” would require lowing the lead of the other transitioned bases her novels on women’s issues and She felt confident starting graduate course material and further develop their students to navigate digital technologies. departments, current students will be finding and accepting healthy love. She school knowing exactly what she want- professional portfolios. The additional “Dickens in the Digital Age,” for example, given adapted course plans based on the has written numerous romance novel ed to write. She explained how most unit, says Dr. Miller, is the key to prepar- is a four-unit course that focuses on classes they have already completed. series such as Sweet Plains, Texas; St. students wanted to write the next great ing students for professional work. “We cultural criticism, digital publications, “The transition provides interesting Helena Vineyard; Sugar, Georgia; Destiny American novel, but she went in wanting want students, when they graduate, to be and classmate collaboration. In the possibilities for faculty and students, and Bay; Magnolia Falls; and others. She has to be a romance writer, unafraid of what prepared for the world. And we can use final collaborative project, students will more innovation in the department. The published more than fifteen romance her peers might think. the extra unit to make them competitive.” produce a digitally accessible edition work we’ll produce will have a life that novels since she began writing in 2008. She says although romance is looked For example, an essay on Shakespearean of Hard Times. Explicating, annotating, will extend beyond the classroom.” Marina talks about how being adaptable down upon in the literary world, half of drama—or any other stereotypical English scanning, digitizing—all of the student and flexible are traits of a strong writ- all books sold a year are romance. “All photo by: Caroline Ohene-Nyako er.“I actually have only been a writer for through grad school, I workshopped what maybe eight years, but I think I’ve been a I wanted to write,” she says, “and two storyteller my whole life,” she says. of the first books I wrote in grad school actually went on to be the first two books As a child, Marina Adair was frequently I sold to publishers.” sick, so she would sit on her couch think- “The work we’ll ing of elaborate stories instead of playing On October 8, 2016, Marina saw her work outside like other kids. Sometimes she on the television screen when Hallmark produce will have would even act them out with her Barbie aired a movie titled Autumn in the Vine- dolls and her brother’s Han Solo action yard, based on her novel. She says, “When figure. This is when her love for creating I decided to go into novels…the only con I a life that will ex- stories began. couldn’t get over was giving up the dream of seeing my work on screen, and yet it With her parents and grandparents living happened anyway.” tend beyond the under the same roof, Marina had a unique upbringing. She watched black and white Since Marina didn’t grow up with strong movies and classic television shows examples of love, she had to figure it out classroom.” which she believes aided her creative in her twenties and thirties. So, she bases thinking. her books on many personal experiences and challenges. Marina says, “I think ro- —Shannon Miller Marina wasn’t able to finish her under- mance is about women’s issues…women graduate degree at Santa Clara University learning how to balance careers, children, after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid family, and love.” Thus, the women in her Arthritis in her twenties. But a few years novels overcome obstacles in life while later she took a screenwriting class, and learning what real love means and how to decided that was what she really wanted trust it. to do. So, she went back to school, and got her Bachelors of Arts in Film in 2010. And while she develops a topic or heroine for her next novel, she says, “I used to One of her professors encouraged her to wait for creativity to come but now…I explain a room without describing how it make creativity keep up with me.” The looks, but by purely using sensation. This best advice Marina ever received was experience motivated her to write her from a professor in the Film Department. first novel based off of a blind heroine. 8 9 Technical Writing Website: Coming Soon Caroline Ohene-Nyako & Michael To

For three decades, San Jose State Univer- nication from Carnegie Mellon University, get the information you need to com- sity has had a long-standing Professional is no stranger to the work expected of a plete your work. This work is not for the and Technical Writing (PTW) program. Now technical writer. His experience at Micro- timid.” To strengthen the communication it finally has its own website. Scheduled soft and other tech companies enables skills of students with no experience to go live by the end of spring 2017, the him to present students with projects talking to other employees, he dedicates new student-run PTW website will provide that demonstrate real-world situations classtime specifically for simulating a platform for students and alumni to they may face in the workplace. “I’ve real-world office intercommunication. publish their work and maintain an online been working with various tech compa- “SJSU is the perfect place for students to portfolio. nies to provide students with tech writing learn about workplace interactions. It’s For students, portfolios are essential for tools that have not been previously incredibly diverse, not only in the sense highlighting their abilities to employers, utilized within the program,” he says. of race, but in age and economic back- and the website will offer a gallery of Among those tools he plans to imple- ground as well.” He values group work their accomplishments. PTW classes pro- ment are Adobe FrameMaker and Madcap and frequently shuffles teams so that vide students with opportunities to write Flare, documentation software that is each student can experience working grant proposals, profile features, article heavily used by tech writers. with different classmates. reviews, and infographics; these projects Dr. Thompson places importance on Since its inception, San Jose State Uni- are meant to provide students with broad providing all the tools necessary for his versity has made great strides to equip writing experiences. The classes also re- students to succeed. His efforts have also students with sound education that they flect the fast-paced, computer-influenced paid off in other ways. His classes are can use in the real world. Its Profession- culture of Silicon Valley. Now the rest of increasingly gaining access to technology al and Technical Writing program is no the world can see their work. such as newer laptops, cameras, record- exception. PTW students Izamar Flores, Sean Marina Adair Dan Maravich Staffiery, and Mariah Faris worked with Assistant Professor and Director of PTW Mark Thompson to create the PTW website. Izamar says the site will be used to “keep the lines of communication open for students, alumni, and potential employers.” The goal of the website is Paraphrasing, she says, “The only dif- hear someone say that, I’m like well ‘Why percent of people who actually fight in to provide a place where students are ference between you and professional don’t you do something? Why does some- combat. “No one else knows what it’s like able to showcase their work, and Izamar writers is that they write every day…so sit one else have to go do it?’” to be in war, the sacrifices we make, the hopes the site will “increase the PTW your butt in a chair and write everyday.” With the financial support of the edu- relationships we are in that change,” he program’s visibility and help put SJSU Alumnus Dan Marovich is a veteran cation programs the military provided says. War is an awful thing, and he wants on the map. It’s a place where we can currently focusing on writing a memoir for him after he served, Dan proceeded to remind people through his writing expose students to more opportunities, about his service in the military. He is a to attend school. Before Dan was due to that war should never be thought of in a and show why we’re the best.” From 33-year-old graduate student at San José graduate, he was convinced by a collec- positive light. reviews to podcasts to videos, students State University. He is currently working tion of professors that he should at least Dan has participated in writing groups will breathe life into the site. Prospec- towards getting his teaching creden- minor in creative writing. He says they and coalitions around campus that deal tive students can also find samples of tials in English while getting his creative told him, “You’re doing yourself a disser- specifically with veterans. He says, “When past projects and information about the To by:photo Michael work recognized. Dan had a collection of vice if you don’t do this.” we share our experiences with each other, course load needed to finish the 18-unit poetry published in West Valley’s Poetry program. Through his writing, Dan wants to remind it helps us, it helps fight that stigma that ers, and visual equipment that are used Collection in 2013, which has really mo- people that war is not okay. “We’ve gone you’re not supposed to talk about it.” The rewarding field of professional and in the industry. San Jose State University tivated him to keep writing. Recently, he through this phase as a country where The military affected Dan’s form of technical writing is in high demand in Sili- is currently one of four Bay Area univer- had his short story, “Perdition,” published we normalize war, and we’ve been at war expression: “All the horrible things we con Valley, which calls for skilled writers sities that offers degrees in Professional in , a magazine that covers global Autre for so long now that it’s just no longer an endured and were a part of, it’s really with experience in editing, proofreading, and Technical Writing, but ours is best art, culture, and sex. exciting or astonishing headline.” unhealthy for you if you don’t talk about and prizes those with keen attention known for student placement, affordabil- Soon after the crisis of 9/11, Dan joined to detail. “The job of a Tech Writer is ity, and the diversity of students who “[War] is a fact of life now, to me, that’s it, you feel a lot better if you get it out. the U.S. military and served from 2001 un- to provide the glue needed to connect graduate from the program. really scary. A lot of people don’t under- If I had never joined the military, I don’t til 2009. This act of terrorism upset him. engineers to other departments within an stand what war is anymore, it has become think I’d be writing.” Dr. Thompson also emphasizes the He says, “One thing that I hate hearing is organization, while translating technical so commonplace and casual,” he says. importance of his students learning soft the phrase ‘Someone should do some- language into written language that the Dan explains how most people never skills to succeed as writers. “It’s one thing.’” This motivated him to provide general public can understand,” says Dr. actually see war; no one experiences it thing to be a good writer,” he says, “but support for his fellow Americans. He says, Thompson. Dr. Thompson, who earned his besides maybe the one tenth of the one Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Technical Commu- the nature of the job sometimes involves “It just bothers me because whenever I having to chase down people in order to 10 11 tive presented throughout the series, Jiménez’s style is the true mirror of The Protégé: Francisco John Steinbeck’s pieces. A style that is simple linguistically, yet so influential in “It’s important for us to rhetoric. Jiménez Honored with The official name of the award, The John appreciate and to value Steinbeck Award: “In the Souls of the People,”is inspired by the final quote of John Steinbeck Award The Grapes of Wrath. The quote sym- all the different cultures bolizes the parallel between Judgment Tracey Mach & Mikayla Valdez Day, deliverance, and the wrath that the migrants endured while neglecting the that make up our society” need to work together when facing ad- Local Mexican American author Francis- motivated to write of his own experi- versity. The Martha Heasley Cox Center co Jiménez was invited to San José State ences. According to Jiménez, it was the —Francisco Jiménez for Steinbeck Studies is dedicated to University on September 28, 2016, where first time he could relate to something presenting the award to someone who he was presented with The John Stein- in school. The Joad tale depicts common embodies Steinbeck’s legacy of expos- beck Award: “In the Souls of the People.” human experiences—that of people ing the hardships that social outcasts Jiménez wrote best-selling novel The struggling to support a family, find a face and supporting equality among all Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant home, and be accepted by society. Upon Americans, something that Jiménez ac- Child and its sequels, Breaking Through this revelation, Jiménez decided he complished through his written works. and Reaching Out. After receiving the would also write to honor his parents; Since 1996, sixteen individuals have had award, Jiménez participated in a live their hard work and continuing sacri- the privilege of accepting the award, interview with political cartoonist Lalo fices gave him the opportunity to have including Bruce Springsteen and Khaled Alcaraz. Both men emitted calm and a better future. After graduating from Hosseini. This year’s award also holds light-hearted personas while Jiménez Santa Clara University with a Bachelor’s special weight with the recent passings gave the audience some insight as to why in Spanish, Jiménez proudly earned of the Center’s founder Dr. Martha Cox he decided to become a writer. his Ph.D. in Latin American Literature, and Steinbeck’s son Thomas (Thom). specializing in Mexican Literature and Jiménez’s desire to document not only his Alcaraz and Jiménez also related to Culture, from Columbia University. family’s history, but that of others who their audience by partaking in friendly came from similar backgrounds, is one His first novel,The Circuit, is actual- banter regarding politics and activism. of the main reasons he began writing. ly semi-autobiographical; the main Accordingly, the event was featured as The struggles and hardships of work- character’s experiences directly reflect part of Hispanic Heritage Month and ing-class people are part of the American Jiménez’s life as an immigrant child proceeds benefit San José State Univer- experience. Francisco Jiménez lived a life in America. The story arc continues in sity’s Cesar E. Chavez Community Action that many can relate to in California. He the second book, Breaking Through; Center. This program encourages all stu- illegally immigrated here from San Pedro, Jiménez is a hard-working farm hand, dents to be civic activists by engaging Tlaquepaque, Mexico at a young age. making money and supporting his family them in community outreach oppor- His childhood consisted of toiling in the members, but wants to pursue a college tunities. The statue Victory Salute, the fields along with his parents and older degree. This leads readers into his third university’s tribute to former students brother, picking cotton and strawberries. work, Reaching Out, where Jiménez faces Tommie Smith and John Carlos, is one The Jiménez family continually moved pressures that most young adults never of many projects that the center has from town to town in California seeking bear. successfully completed. Legacy Week, work; this prevented him from attending Threatened with situations that could October 10th through 13th, is a direct school regularly and having a permanent have undermined any hope of a prom- result of Smith and Carlos’ impactful residence. ising education for a young college 1968 Olympics Civil Rights statement Jiménez, however, valued the education student, Francisco Jiménez, experienced and the appreciation of students who he did receive and went on to further his separation from his family, financial stand against intolerance. Jiménez is learning experiences. After reading Stein- instability, and uncertainty about the currently inspiring students at Santa beck’s The Grapes of Wrath, he became future. Besides the gripping narra- Clara University, where he hopes young Latino students will discover the rich history of Mexican American presence in the San José community. “I don’t think about these stories as only our [Jiménez family’s] stories. They’re the stories of many families… It’s important for us to appreciate and to value all the different cultures that make up our society,” Francisco Jiménez concludes. There is no better way to qualify for the John Steinbeck Award than to maintain Steinbeck’s legacy by believing in such an ideal and instilling it in the generations growing up today.

12 13 COURSE DESCRIPTIONS2017 english department

ENGL 20: The Graphic Novel ENGL 56A: English Literature to the Late ENGL 71: Creative Writing Sams, Edwin B, MW 12:00-13:15 18th Century Harrison, Kelly, M 16:30-19:15 The Graphic Novel surveys the develop- Eastwood, Adrienne, MW 10:30-11:45 In this course, we will read and write ment of this new genre from its begin- This course is a survey of British Literature poetry, creative non-fiction, and short nings as chapbook excerpts of the literary from its earliest works through the eigh- fiction. The course will be taught using a novel to newspaper comic strips to teenth century. The goals of the course combination of discussions and writing comic books to underground comix to the are to help students to gain an overview workshops. In the discussion, we will photo by: Michael To graphic novel itself. We shall see how the of the major literary periods, genres, closely read and analyze works of creative graphic novel has influenced the devel- authors, and works of English literature. writing. In the writing workshops, we will opment of the literary novel and popular We will discuss these texts from a variety analyze and critique the creative work of Dr. Shillinglaw Visits Steinbeck film. There will be a 3000-word writing of perspectives, including the dynamic fellow class members. We will produce requirement divided into individual essays relationship between heroes and villains an ebook (.epub format) using your work. along with weekly quizzes on reading. throughout early English history, consid- Past books: http://www.sjsu.edu/people/ in Russia Join the fun in taking seriously America’s ering what these representations reveal kelly.harrison/anthologies/ Grant Gundersen & Kori Beaulieu greatest guilty pleasure! about the various societies that produced them. ENGL 71: Creative Writing On November 16th, Professor Susan Steinbeck’s 1961 novel, The Winter of Our the present. The National Steinbeck Cen- ENGL 21: Mystery and Detective Fiction James, Robert F, TR 15:00-16:15 Shillinglaw spoke to an enthusiastic au- Discontent, which was also his last. ter would be more involved in commu- Williams, Mary, TR 9:00-10:15 ENGL 56B: English Literature Late 18th Kirby, Sheree, W 9:00-11:45 dience in King Library about John Stein- nity events and Shillinglaw would “bring Written in 1960, The Winter of Our Discon- Discover “who dunit”! This class will ex- Century to Present Logan, Jill, TR 13:30-14:45 beck’s three trips to the Soviet Union and renewed interest to the center.” tent “is a dark morality tale about the fall the influence these travels had on him amine mystery and detective fiction from Wilson, William, MW 16:30:00-17:45:00 Lappin, Linda, TR 12:00-13:15 of a blue-blooded American hero, Ethan The University Scholar Series lectures both personally and as a writer. Part of its inception to today, noting its evolution Major literary movements, figures, and Maio, Samuel J, MW 16:30-17:45 Allen Hawley, who succumbs to the temp- showcase research and scholarly activ- the University Scholar Series, Dr. over time and in different cultures. Match genres from the Romantic age to the Mouton, Tommy, MW 12:00-13:15 tations of wealth, power, and prestige.” ities of San José State University faculty Shillinglaw’s talk came as a preview of wits with these brilliant minds, from the present. Writers may include Austen, the Examinations of works of poetry, creative Steinbeck pulled inspiration for this novel members. The lecture series is sponsored her upcoming book about Steinbeck’s from numerous literary masters. The book by the Office of the Provost, the Universi- armchair amateur to the professional Romantics, Tennyson, Browning, Arnold, nonfiction and short fiction as expression travels to the U.S.S.R., where he doc- was written with his late father in mind. ty Library, the Office of Research, Faculty detective. Challenge your ability to solve Dickens, the Brontes, George Eliot, Hardy, of human intellect and imagination, to umented post-WWII life for everyday Father and son dynamics signal both Affairs, and the Spartan Bookstore. To see the mystery while living vicariously in the Yeats, Joyce, Lawrence, Forster, Woolf, T. comprehend the historic and cultural Russians. teaching and learning, the establishment more upcoming events, visit sjsu.edu/ exciting and variable worlds of detective S. Eliot, Auden, Beckett. contexts, and recognize issues related to Dr. Shillinglaw is a leading Steinbeck of integrity. “Their integrity and their provost/events/uss for details. fiction! writing by men and women of diverse scholar and Director of the National lapses, signal some kind of patriarchal, ENGL 68A: American Literature to 1865 cultural traditions. Students will also write Steinbeck Center in Salinas, California. cultural collapse,” says Shillinglaw. 2: Fantasy and Science Fiction Chow, Balance T P, MW 9:00-10:15 poetry, creative nonfiction, and a short Her publications include Carol and John Shillinglaw’s talk was based on her forth- Lore, Craig M, TR 13:30-14:45 A survey of major and significant texts, fiction. Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage and On coming work, a study of Steinbeck’s trav- English 22 covers historical works of fan- movements, and writers exemplifying the Reading The Grapes of Wrath. els to Russia. Steinbeck went to Russia tasy from the Norse, Celtic, and Chinese literature of the United States of America, ENGL 100A: Writing Competency Through Professor Shillinglaw first read Steinbeck three different times in as many decades. traditions: Sigurd the Dragon-Slayer, King from colonial days to the period of the Genres in junior high, but she was not an imme- In 1947, Steinbeck traveled with Robert Arthur, and King Monkey. We will also Civil War. Required: Student presenta- Sonntag, Owen Henry, MW 16:30-17:45; diate fan because of the continual trag- Capa, a famous Hungarian war photog- edies that befell his characters. It wasn’t rapher. They began in Moscow and made consider seminal works of science fiction: tions, short papers, and exams. TR 16:30-17:45 until her 1987 appointment as director their way to Stalingrad, documenting the The Time Machine, Rossum’s Universal St. Dennis, Allison R, TR 7:30-8:45 of the Steinbeck Research Center at ruin left by the 1942-1943 Battle of Stal- Robots, Do Androids Dream of Electric ENGL 68B: American Literature 1865 to Satisfies the WST requirement if passed SJSU that his work grabbed Shillinglaw’s ingrad. The 1947 trip resulted in his travel Sheep? Shorter works will cover early Present with a C or better (C- or lower will not interest. narrative, A Russian Journal (1948), about Dracula and cyberpunk. Maio, Samuel J, MW 12:00-13:15 satisfy the WST). Prepares students for Though Dr. Shillinglaw celebrates the both the destruction throughout the Sovi- A survey of major and significant texts, 100W through drafting, feedback, and famous novels of Steinbeck, she also et Union during World War II as well as movements, and writers exemplifying the revision to demonstrate writing compe- appreciates works that are not as well the resilience of the Russian people. literature of the United States of Ameri- tency. Develops ability to analyze written known. One piece of Steinbeck’s writ- When Shillinglaw took over the role of ca, covering the period from the end of genres used in the students’ chosen ing that she feels is deserving of more directing the National Steinbeck Center, the Civil War to the present. Required: disciplines as well as write analytical and attention is Cannery Row because of the The Monterey Herald declared that a new Student presentations, short papers, and reflective essays. Prerequisite: Must have holistic qualities Steinbeck instilled in his chapter had begun. After eighteen years exams. failed the WST at least twice. Note: A CR/ creations. directing the Center for Steinbeck Studies NC option may not be used to satisfy the here at San José State University, she Dr. Shillinglaw also wrote the introduc- WST requirement. tion to the Penguin Classics reprint of would be able to tie Steinbeck’s work into

14 15 ENGL 100W: Writing Workshop ENGL 101: Introduction to Literary ENGL 110: Visual Rhetoric & Document ENGL 113: Gothic Novel ENGL 123D: Literature for Global ENGL 129: Introduction to Career Writing Stork, Nancy P, TR 10:30-11:45; TR 15:00- Criticism Design and Horror Fiction Understanding: Asia & Digital Publishing 16:15 Harris, Katherine D, TR 9:00-10:15 Thompson, Mark A, TR 10:30-11:45 Harris, Katherine D, TR 15:00-16:15 Chow, Balance, MW 15:00-16:15 Thompson, Mark A, TR 13:30-14:45 Advanced workshops in Reading and Com- Do you see hidden meanings in literary Combines visual rhetorical theory with From Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein to English 123D examines the literary pro- In this course, students write to get position, Creative Arts, English Studies, texts? Movies? Games? There are many design techniques to teach writers about American Psycho, we’ve become so jaded duction and cultural heritage of Asia. In published in the places that they read, and Technical Writing. A Writing Work- possible readings of all literary and visual the visual aspects of written and digital by horror films and television shows this semester we will focus on modern drafting and revising about whatever shop is also available for foreign students. texts. Even your own identity governs communication. In this hands-on course, that we are amused by them instead of works of fiction representing India, China, they’re into: food, video games, fashion, your interpretation of the material. For students will design documents, including genuinely terrified and awe-struck. These Japan, Korea, and other Asian countries, high-tech, science—whatever. Students ENGL 100W: Writing Workshop this course, we will discover and apply a poster, a book chapter, and promotional movies were inspired by horror fiction, paying particular attention to social, eco- also write and produce English Depart- English, Karen A, TR 13:30-14:45 critical models to various literary, visu- materials for local nonprofits. including Stephen King’s The Shining and nomic, and political forces (esp. globaliza- ment magazines, an in-class podcast se- Writing Workshop satisfies the English al, and digital texts. Critical models will multiple incarnations of Frankenstein and tion) transforming the region. Students ries, the ProfTech website, and their own major requirement for learning how to include foundational twentieth-century ENGL 112A: Children’s Literature Dracula. But, where do we place Season 7 interested in any aspect of Asia will be blog. Expand your portfolio, learn some write critical analyses of a variety of works theory as well as contemporary approach- Browne, Clare J, MW 16:30-17:45 of The Walking Dead with the horrific acts able to study appropriate works of their new skills, and march boldly forth with a of literature. This section focuses on the es to literature (Feminist, Queer, Marxist, Step into a world of imagination! From of malice people commit on other human choice. Knowledge of Asian and/or other publishable work in hand. Required class topic of Literature & Medicine. Texts in- Post-Colonial, and Digital Humanities the- fairytales to works of fantasy, historical beings? The zombies are the least of their modern languages will be most welcome. for the Professional and Technical Writing clude Lying Awake by Mark Salzman, W;t, ories). Though we will apply these critical and realistic fiction, we will delve into that problems. How did we get to this ultra-vi- Presentations, short papers, research concentration. A Play by Margaret Edson, Can’t We Talk models to texts across several historical special world of children’s literature. We olent post-apocalyptic rendering of the project, and exams. about Something More Pleasant? by Roz periods and literary genres, Joseph Con- take a close look at plot development, world? In this course, we’ll establish the ENGL 130: Writing Fiction Chast, and The Best of the Best Ameri- rad’s Heart of Darkness will be our ur-text. characters, settings, themes, and authors’ definition of “gothic” by reading Horace ENGL 125: European Literature: Homer to Maio, Samuel J, MW 13:30-14:45 can Poetry, 25th Anniversary Edition, ed. Co-requisite: ENGL 100W styles. You have the opportunity to create Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto. Moving Dante English 130 is a fiction workshop class Robert Pinsky. your own book for children, and you’ll through the nineteenth century, we’ll Mitchell, Linda C, MW 12:00-13:15 in which each student will write short ENGL 103: Modern English leave this class enriched with ideas. explore monsters, landscapes, and female This course offers an introduction to some stories. Each of these short stories will be ENGL 100WB: Written Communication: Mitchell, Linda C, MW 10:30-11:45; MW victims. In the twentieth century, we’ll of the major literary works of the first workshopped in class, after which each Business 15:00-16:15 Vora, Roohi, TR 9:00-10:15 discover that “gothic” becomes synony- 2,000 years of Western Culture—works of story will be rewritten. Both drafts—pre- Hessler, John G, M 18:00-20:45; T 18:00- This course provides a survey of Modern Study of literature for elementary and in- mous with “horror” and transforms into great genius and superb craft. They are as and post-workshop—will be included in 20:45; W 18:00-20:45; R 18:00-20:45 English phonology, morphology, syntax, termediate grades, representing a variety zombies and sparkly vampires in the early much a part of our heritage as that which each student’s end-of-semester Portfolio. Kirby, Sheree, M 9:00-11:45 semantics, transformational grammar, and of cultures. Evaluation and selection of twenty-first century. This course relies we receive from our parents. Our goal In addition to writing short stories and re- Landau, Linda B, W 9:00-11:45 the universality of linguistic structures. texts. on pairings of classic and contemporary this semester is to take possession of that vising them, each student will be respon- Lindelof, Leanne E, T 16:30-19:15 Material in the course will also focus on novels and short stories along with collab- heritage—like heirs who have come of sible for helping to workshop all stories Lo, Laimin, R 18:00-20:45, F 9:30-12:15 some recurring problems of usage and/or ENGL 112B: Literature for Young orative group projects to fulfill our desire age—by understanding how these works written by classmates. And each student Mujal, Carlos, W18:00-20:45 correctness, regional and social varieties Adults for both print and visual representations are connected to each other and to us via will be responsible for reading a number This hands-on course is designed to of English, the role of pragmatics in using Hervey, Shannon K, F 9:30-12:15 of Gothic and Horror. a series of parallel and contrasting pat- of assigned, published short stories that simulate actual business communication language to communicate, and the histor- Study of selected literary material, rep- terns of ideas and experiences that form a will serve as models for writing successful scenarios (oral and written) that are ical development of English, especially as resenting a variety of cultures, chosen to ENGL 116: Myth in Literature path of human continuity across time and short fiction. encountered by business professionals it affects the language today. The course motivate secondary school readers. Stork, Nancy P, TR 9:00-10:15 place. Students will engage and explore during the course of their careers. As- also includes ReedKellogg Diagrams. Relations between archetypes, artistic the texts from a variety of contexts and ENGL 130: Writing Fiction signments will enable students to practice style and cultural context in masterworks, viewpoints: textual, literary, political, Taylor, Nick, TR 12:00-13:15 and immediately apply both practical ENGL 106: Editing for Writers ancient through modern. social, and cultural; become familiar with Prerequisite: English 71. This workshop and theoretical aspects of organizational Thompson, Mark A, MW 12:00-13:15 a range of critical approaches to the texts; focuses on the craft of fiction writing. We communication directly in real-life work In this class, we cover all the fundamen- ENGL 123B: Literature for Global Under- and demonstrate a working knowledge of will begin the semester by reading works situations. Communication mechanics and tals that writers need to know about standing: Africa the texts’ influences within the Western of contemporary short fiction. You will style (practical), and the appropriateness editing and working as a professional Chow, Balance, MW 10:30-11:45 literary tradition. learn to read as writers, not critics (there of messages and methods based on spe- editor. This includes proofreading and Course promotes global understanding by is a difference!). Each student is required cific organizational situations (theoretical) copyediting, as well as sentence-level and examining the cultures and literary arts of to submit two original short stories for re- will be emphasized. document-level editing. The Basics? Fix a selected region of the world, Africa, and view by the class. Lively participation and gnarly sentences. Make ugly paragraphs covers representative texts and authors written commentary is required. In lieu of pretty. Learn how to work with other from North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. a final exam, you will turn in a substantial writers. Learn how to get editing jobs. revision of one story. Gain the confidence to explain your edits and defend them against the howling mobs! Required class for Professional and Technical Writing concentration.

16 17 ENGL 131: Writing Poetry ENGL 144: Shakespeare I ENGL 149: The Romantic Period ENGL 165: Topics in Ethnic American Lit- ENGL 180: Individual Studies ENGL 193: Capstone Seminar Maio, Samuel J, MW 10:30-11:45 Eastwood, Adrienne, MW 13:30-14:45 Douglass, Paul, TR 13:30-14:45 erature: Muslim, Arab, Outsider: Litera- Arranged with Instructor Douglass, Paul, TR 9:00-10:15 This course focuses on the work of the This course will introduce you to some of Literary romanticism was born in revolu- ture of MiddleEastAmerica Culminating course for English majors poet and the work of the poem. The the major plays of William Shakespeare. tion. Many British writers of the Romantic Karim, Persis, TR 15:00-16:15 ENGL 181: Special Topics—Dickens in the to reflect on their experiences and their poet’s task is to envision, write, and revise Each play will be considered both within era were imaginatively engaged with This course focuses on literature by Digital Age progress toward meeting the department using all the poetic tools necessary. What the context of the cultural and political other countries, including France, Ger- writers from a lesser known group that is Harris, Katherine D, TR 12:00-13:15 learning goals. Texts to be discussed are they? Why choose one over the oth- atmosphere in early modern England many, Italy, Ireland, Switzerland, Greece, loosely identified as “Muslim Americans.” Charles Dickens (1812-1870) became include those self-selected by students, er? What are contemporary poets using and through the critical lenses provided Albania, and those in the Middle East. We will read and analyze novels, poetry, one of the most prolific novelists of the a play by Lillian Hellman, works of fiction today? The work of the poem is to be- by postmodern theories of literature. This course will focus on works of the and films by Arab and Muslim Americans, nineteenth-century by marketing his by Italo Calvino, George Saunders, Brian come more than the sum of its parts, not Students will gain a basic knowledge of period that reflect this fascination with as well as other Middle Eastern diaspora writing through new forms of print. His Selznick, and the authentic text of The merely well-chosen words, but art. Great Shakespeare’s thematic questions and a the foreign and alien, or “other,” while writers. Includes literature written after serialized fiction appealed to the popular Arabian Nights, translated in 1990 by expectations all the way around, but we’ll solid understanding of the language he surveying significant works of Romantic 9/11 and in the context of “Islamophobia” masses from England to America, a pop- Husain Haddawy. Involves reading groups, get to work writing, reading, and discuss- used to explore these themes. For ex- literature and probing their major themes, by Randa Jarrar, Mohsin Hamid, and Nao- ularity that was strengthened by Dickens’ workshops, seminar sessions, activities, ing poetry, poetic device, your work and ample, we will discuss the construction including the turn toward psychological mi Shihab Nye, among others, that posits willingness to perform to live audiences. and writing assignments, including a final discoveries. of the family as a mini-commonwealth realism and Kantian psychology, the cel- “outsiderness” against a desire to repre- Along with his serials, magazine essays, portfolio. and the political impact that added to ebration of the individual with its conse- sent and articulate an American identity. editorial duties, political essays, Dickens ENGL 133: Reed Magazine Shakespeare’s dramatic productions. quent political liberalism, the divinity of also appealed for international copyright – ENGL 193: Capstone Seminar Miller, Cathy A, T 15:00-17:45 Similarly, we will consider the relation- Nature, the importance of childhood, and ENGL 168: The American Novel surely inspired by the piracy of his novels Miller, Shannon, TR 12:00-13:15 Reed Magazine will be producing its ship between patriarchal and monar- the reinvention of literary forms in light Douglass Jr., Paul, TR 10:30-11:45 but also in recognition that authorship Culminating course for English majors 150th-anniversary issue in spring 2017. chical authority, and the ways in which of the speechlessness produced by the This course follows the development was a commercial endeavor and a form to reflect on their experiences and their This semester we’ll focus on the produc- related ideologies circulated among writers’ confrontation with the “sublime.” of the American novel from romance of intellectual property. In this course, we progress toward meeting the department tion aspects of publication: copyedit and Elizabethans. Writers to be discussed include Dacre, through realism and naturalism to will explore Charles Dickens’ writings in learning goals. proofread the submissions chosen in the Lamb, Byron, Keats, Shelley, Wordsworth, modernism and post-modernism, help- the context of nineteenth-century print fall, then design, layout and print the ENGL 145: Shakespeare & Performance Blake, Coleridge, Inchbald, Hemans, and ing you develop your understanding of culture, a rising industrialized nation, and ENGL 199: Professional/Technical Writing journal. We’ll also look at ways to market Eastwood, Adrienne, MW 9:00-10:15 De Quincey. what the genre is, or might be—and to that nation’s imperialist ethos. In addition Internship Reed through advertising, our website, In this course, we will examine in-depth whom. Writers to be discussed included to reading physical facsimiles of a few of Thompson, Mark (Arranged) and tabling at events. And last but not several of Shakespeare’s plays, specifi- ENGL 151: Twentieth Century Poetry Sherwood Anderson, Junot Diaz, William Dickens’ serialized novels, participants will This independent study requires that stu- least, we’ll host a launch party to cele- cally addressing issues of performance Soldofsky, Alan D, TR 12:00-13:15 Faulkner, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Harriet research Dickens’ enduring impact on the dents secure a writing internship with a brate the debut of our new issue! and interpretation. Placing each play in ENGLISH 151: TWENTIETH CENTURY Beecher Stowe, Ernest Hemingway, Alice nineteenth-century and beyond; partici- local business (while the department can’t You must receive instructor permission the context of its original performance POETRY Walked, Vladimir Nabokov, and Edith pants will also engage in lively discussions guarantee an internship, we can put stu- by contacting Prof. Miller to enroll in this during Shakespeare’s time, and its life on In this course students will study selected Wharton. with Dickens experts from the UC Santa dents in touch with companies that have course. stage and screen in the ensuing centu- works by a diverse group of Modern and Cruz Dickens Universe and our own local expressed an interest in SJSU interns). The ries, encourages an engagement with Postmodern (mostly American) poets. Giv- ENGL 169: Ethnicity in American Dickens scholars. Our concluding project class requires that 120 hours workplace ENGL 139: Visiting Authors the ways in which re-imagining Shake- en the great number of Twentieth Century Literature will involve creating a digital scholarly edi- experience are combined with academic Miller, Cathy A, R 16:30-19:15 speare’s works helps them retain their poets whose work is of significance and Chow, Balance, MW 13:30-14:45 tion of the original Hard Times serials cur- readings in professional writing. In a final Students will read the works of contem- vitality and cultural relevance. Paying worth knowing we will examine several Study of race and ethnicity in the literary rently held in the SJSU Special Collections. essay, students compare their workplace porary writers visiting the Center for particular attention to modern produc- poets in depth rather as well as consider arts of North America. Selected works With the help of the Special Collections experience to the academic literature on Literary Arts during the current semester. tions, we will analyze the ways in which broader historical trends in poetry. We of authors from such groups as African Director, and with the support of the Dean workplace writing. Includes meetings with visiting authors production elements such as setting, will read poets whose work has influ- Americans, European Americans, Asian of King Library, the resulting project will and attending their various presenta- casting, staging, costumes, editing, and enced all that has been produced since, or Americans, Chicanos, Latinos and Ameri- become a part of public scholarship about tions. See www.litart.org for a calendar of individual performances shape and whose work is so innovative that it intro- can Indians. this internationally-renowned author. events. Required for the Creative Writing create meaning (or fail to do so) for the duced something new into the canon of Concentration. audiences of today. Placing these plays modern poetry. Included on the reading within this context of performance will list are: W.B. Yeats, Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot, ENGL 140B: Beowulf raise larger issues about the complex William Carlos Williams, Wallace Stevens, Get Course Credit in Ireland! Stork, Nancy P, TR 13:30-14:45 relationships between the Shakespear- Robinson Jeffers, Hart Crane, Marianne English 117B Global Film, Literature, and Culture (3 units, satisfies GE area V requirement) This class is the second class in a year-long ean canon and its ever changing audi- Moore, Elizabeth Bishop, Robert Lowell, Dates in Ireland: July 9th - July 20th, plus two weeks of classes before we go. sequence of Old English. Students will be ences. Students will respond to each Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Lucille Clifton, There are many reasons to study and visit Ireland. For this Faculty-Led Program, the focus will be exploring the great history of myth-making and Beowulf storytelling that has given this small country a mighty impact on the world. You will come away from the journey with a fresh understanding of how translating all 3,182 lines of and Shakespearean play text through both W. S. Merwin, Li-Young Lee, Robert Pinsky, this ancient and complex culture has evolved over the ages and what its best artists, writers, and filmmakers can show us about what it means to be a investigating its linguistic, historical and writing and oral interpretation, integrat- and Juan Felipe Herrera (current U.S. Poet human being. You will have the opportunity to do the following: cultural context as the first epic poem ing speech and dramatic performance Laureate). The course will take students recorded in the English language. with an understanding of the com- on a guided tour of some the most signif- • Attend Galway’s International Film Festival • Visit Dublin Castle plexities of plot, characterization, and icant poetry written in the twentieth and • Go on a Literary Pub Tour dramatic form. Required for the English twenty-first century. There are two papers • Feast at the Brazen Head, the oldest pub in Ireland Single-Subject Credential. required during the semester, as well as • Enjoy live music, storytelling, and good craic (fun) regular quizzes, blog posts, and poetry exercises. We tailor each trip to student interest, so come along and chart your own Irish adventure! Deadline to sign up is February 1. Find more details here: http://www.sjsu.edu/gei/flp/application/index.html 18 19 things from all sides, to understand what the heroine in A Message from the Chair thinking, and also the boy in the gas station who watch- es her go by.” Over the last few weeks since the 2016 Presidential Election, at He continues: “Writing begins with the ability to look at least half of the voting elector- one’s self, and the most important thing I learned from [a ate—and a much higher number major author] was how to see myself, as a man in Amer- here in California—has been con- ica, white and now educated, from the kind of town that cerned about the results of the people around me knew very little about.” election. Many are likely asking: How many of our friends, family, These accounts show us exactly what art can do—draw students, and colleagues might people together though understanding, as both con- be subjected to less toleration, sumers and producers of narrative. And as these writers more bigotry, less openness to other world visions, ex- craft these words, they describe the America we are, the periences, and ways of understanding the world? All of America we are becoming, and the America that we at us condemn the recent actions on campus, which have San Jose State University stand for: included a physical attack on a female Muslim student, a verbal attack of a student of south-east Asian back- “America is entering a thrilling era of unprecedented cur- ground, and recent sexual assaults on female students. rency for previously marginalized voices: Minorities, im- This is not who we are as a community, and we will stand migrants, all who see at an angle. I want to deploy my strongly against such actions. We will stand together. history, and the writing I’ve extracted from it, in the service of this groundswell and the next generation of Amer- I’ve spoken before in this space about what literature ica’s storytellers, witnesses, and loyal dissenters.” and the arts can bring—most specifically that it can prompt empathy in readers. Empathy seems the per- Art is not a solution, but it is the beginning of an answer, fect, perhaps the only, solvent for the poisonous po- one that will allow us to see others, but most importantly litical situation we have all lived through this last year. to see them in different ways than we would have with- Many of us fear the direct and indirect fallout of such out the perspectives these writers describe. We are not politics. But amongst the anxieties about the future that just in the College of the Humanities and the Arts; we so many of us share, I have been reading statements of are practitioners who knows that it is our humanity that such hope about who we can be together and how we get is supported by and expanded by the arts. I’m so thank- there. I have had the privilege over the last few weeks to ful to these writers for highlighting these paths for us at read applications for an open faculty position in our de- a difficult crossroads for us all as members of San Jose partment for a fiction writer. Amongst all the talent, and State University and the nation. there is so much, a powerful theme recurs: that writing as a medium is not just the impetus to empathy and— one hopes—its byproduct, tolerance in readers, but that empathy, toleration, and a sense of belonging are produced by the act of writing. English Department Newsletter Staff

Since these are professional writers, I will let their words Copy Editors: Deanna Boutte, Benjamin Camacho, Jerry Li, speak for themselves. Arturo Camacho

On his growth as a writer, one author says that exposure Graphics: Michael To, Caroline Ohene-Nyako, Kori to significant writers opened up not just new worlds to Beaulieu, Ashley Lopez him, but a sense of belonging:

“Never before had I known what to do with my strange Layout and Design: Miranda Squires, Maddie Daily, Martin upbringing along the border between cultures. Never be- Gonzalez, Casandra Michel fore had I felt less alone...I want to help young writers solve problems of language and plot and character, yes, Proofreaders: Mikayla Valdez, Olivia Lee, Tracey Mach, but I also want to help them access the deep rivers of Chris Aronson love and loss within themselves so that they’re able to tell the most compassionate, raucous, and meaningful Course Descriptions: Donnie Woolsey stories they can.” Fact Checkers: Grant Gundersen, Donnie Woolsey, Another speaks in a similar vein about how his own Kevin Eung self-understanding flourished through the act of writing: Managing Editor: Mark Thompson “I grew up in small towns in the west. The youngest of five, and the first to attend college out of high school, my father was a carpenter and my mother a waitress. The class anxiety I carry from childhood, both shame and pride, informs my writing and teaching. A desire to see 20