SYLLABUS HON 394: Symbols, Archetypes, and Visual Literacy SLN ????? FALL, 2014
Course Instructors: Alleen and Don Nilsen Classroom: ????? Time: ?????
Nilsen Office: 147 South Sage Hours: ????? and by appointment
Also before class (starting at 11 AM) we will be eating in the Honors College cafeteria and will be happy to visit with students
[email protected] [email protected] Phones: Office 480-727-6908 Home: 480 968-1709
Required Class Textbook: Symbols, Archetypes, and Visual Literacy Course Packet There is a daily reading assignment, and except for the first day, you should read the assignment before, rather than after, the class.
Grading: Grades will be figured by giving equal credit to these four activities:
1. A notebook (we are providing the basic cover) for keeping miscellaneous handouts, class assignments, and your reactions and notes on specified class activities. 2. An original research project based on observation and collection. A separate sheet will give more specific information about the project and about how you will illustrate and prepare it for sharing both in-class and beyond. 3. Midterm exam: ????? in regular class. 4. Final exam: ????? in our same room.
Attendance: Your attendance is important because, as you will see, we hope to become a community of learners. If you must miss a class, you can make it up by attending an on-campus presentation and writing a one-paragraph statement describing the event and analyzing how and why humor was, or was not, used as part of the communication strategies. Send it on-line to [email protected] within 10 days from the date you missed. Note: Excessive absences will affect your grade.
Academic Dishonesty: Please note this statement that we were asked to include: In the “Student Academic Integrity Policy” manual, ASU defines “’Plagiarism” [as] using another's words, ideas, materials or work without properly acknowledging and documenting the source. Students are responsible for knowing the rules governing the use of another's work or materials and for acknowledging and documenting the source appropriately.” You can find this definition at: http://www.asu.edu/studentaffairs/studentlife/judicial/academic_integrity.htm#definitions Academic dishonesty, including inappropriate collaboration, will not be tolerated. There are severe sanctions for cheating, plagiarizing and any other form of dishonesty.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
August M 27: Introduction to the class, to each other, and to the history of the International Society for Humor Studies. Read Text: “Comic Zeitgeists” (pp. 95-97), and Legal Humor and Legal Issues (pp.186-193). PowerPoint # 1: ISHS History apn Don and Alleen Nilsen: HON394: Symbols, Archetypes, and Visual Literacy
W. 29: Humor Theories: The Features, Functions, and Subjects of Humor. Read Text: “Academic Study of Humor” (pp. 1-6), “Incongruity and Surprise” (pp. 163-164), and “Superiority and Hostility” (pp. 292-294). PowerPoint # 2: Humor Theories
September M, 3 LABOR DAY—NO CLASS
W. 5 Humor, Laughter, and Psychology: States, Traits, and Behaviors. Read Text: “Laughter and Smiles” (pp. 184-186), “Regional Humor” (250-253), and “Urban Legends” pp. 302-303. PowerPoint # 3: Humor Psychology
M. 10: Humor in Politics: Arizona and U.S. Read Text: “Anti-authority Humor” (pp. 36-39), “Political Correctness” (pp. 228-230) and “Politics and Humor” (pp. 230-234). PowerPoint # 4: Political Humor
W. 12: Linguistic Humor, Language Play and Translation of Humor from Language to Language. Read Text: “Ambiguity” (pp. 25-26), “Hoaxes and Practical Jokes” (pp. 149-152), “Joke Patterns” (pp. 174-177), “Language Play” (pp. 178-181). PowerPoint #5 Humor Linguistics
M. 17: Humor and Gender Issues. Read Text: “Erotic Humor” (pp. 112-115), “Gay and Lesbian Humor (pp. 130-134) and “Gender and Humor” (pp. 134-138). PowerPoint # 6: Gender Issues
W. 19: Humor, Anthropology, and Ethnic Issues. Read Text: “Ethnic Humor” (pp. 115-118), “Hispanic Humor” (pp. 145-148), “International Wordplay” (pp. 164-165),” and “Puns” (238- 239). PowerPoint # 7: Humor Anthropology (NO AFTER-CLASS OFFICE HOUR—WE ARE GUEST SPEAKING AT THE MESA SENIOR CITIZEN CENTER.)
M. 24: Markedness: Jewish, Hispanic, Black, Irish, and Indian Humor. Read Text: “African American Humor” (pp. 14-19), “American Indian Humor” (pp. 26-31), and “Blackface Comedy” (pp. 49- 53). PowerPoint # 8: African American Humor
W. 26: Humor and Religion. Read Text: “Drama” (pp. 106-111), “Jewish Humor” pp. 170-174 and “Religious Humor” (pp. 253-256). PowerPoint # 9: Humor Philosophy and Religion
October
M. 1: Irony and Paradox. Read Text: “Fiction” (pp. 120-125), “Frontier Humor” (pp. 125-129), “Irony” (pp. 168-169), “Paradoxes” (pp. 219-220), and “Stage Names” (pp. 286-287 ). PowerPoint # 10: Irony
W. 3: Humor and Literature ; Read Text: “Allusion (pp. 23-25”), “Censorship” (pp. 64-67), “Gothic Humor” (138-141), “Metaphors” (199-200) and “Poetry” (pp. 224-228). PowerPoint # 11: Humor Literature
M. 8: Parody and Satire; Read Text: “Black Humor” (pp. 46-49), “Comedian Authors” (pp. 79-82), “Humorous Essayists” (pp. 152-157), and “Parody” (pp. 220-224). PowerPoint # 12: Parody
W. 10: MIDTERM EXAM
2 Don and Alleen Nilsen: HON394: Symbols, Archetypes, and Visual Literacy
NOTE: After fall break, we will start student presentations of the blog you have created. Your presentation does not have to be “perfect” by the time you present it. A SIGN-UP SHEET WILL BE CIRCULATED SO THAT YOU CAN SELECT THE DAY OF YOUR PRESENTATION.
M. 15: FALL BREAK—NO CLASS
W. 17: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) Humor, Popular Culture, and Social Issues. Read Text: “Movies” (pp. 202-207), “Puppets and Puppeteers” (pp. 239-243), 245-250: “Radio Humor,” 274- 278: “Silent Films,” 287-291: and “Vaudeville and Burlesque” (pp. 304-310). PowerPoint # 13: Humor Sociology
M. 22: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor and Young Adult Literature (J. K. Rowling, Lemony Snicket, Neil Gaiman and others). Read Text “Children’s Literature” (pp. 67- 72), “Children’s Television” (pp. 72-76), “Riddles” (pp. 256-257) and “Scatology and Obscenity” (pp. 261-263). PowerPoint # 14: Names Rowling
W. 24: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor in the Digital Age. Read Text: “Animation” (32-36), “Comedy Teams” (pp. 82-86 ), “Computer Humor” (97-100), “Internet Influences” (pp. 165-168), and “Sitcoms” (278-283). PowerPoint # 15 Humor Computers
M. 29: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Accidental Humor; Read Text: “Accidental Humor” (pp. 6-9), “Screwball Comedies” (pp. 266-270 ), and “Television” (pp. 295-300). PowerPoint # 16: Television
W. 31: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor and Social Issues; Read Text: “Postmodernism” (pp. 235-238) and “Stand-Up Comedy” (pp. 287-291). PowerPoint # 17 Stand Up Comedy
November M. 5: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humorous Words Entering the English Language: What they tell us about American Culture; Read Text: “Dialect Humor” (pp. 101- 104), “Late-Night Talk Shows” (pp. 181-184), and “Slang” (pp. 283-284:). PowerPoint # 18: American Pop Language
W. 7: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor, Rhetoric, and Rhetorical Devices; Read Text: “Anachronism” (pp. : 31-32), “Exaggeration” (pp. 118-119), “Implication” (162), “Put-Downs and Rejoinders” (pp. 243-244), “Scriptwriters” (pp. 270-273) , and “Self Disparagement” (273-274). PowerPoint # 19: Humor Rhetoric
M. 12: VETERANS DAY—NO CLASS
W. 14: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor and Business; Read Text “Adaptation” (11-13, “Business Humor”(pp. 56-59), “Magazines” (pp. 194-199), “Stereotyping” (291-292), and “Understatement. P. 301)” PowerPoint # 20: Humor Business
M. 19: Guest Lecturer Professor Gene Valentine will show and talk about his collection of pop up books. Read Text: Pop-Up Books” (pp. 234-235) and “Satire” (pp. 258-261). Alleen and Don will be at the NCTE Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, but we will be answering our e-mails. “Pop-Up Books” (pp. 234-235). You will probably meet in the library in Special Collections, which holds many of Professor Valentine’s books.
3 Don and Alleen Nilsen: HON394: Symbols, Archetypes, and Visual Literacy
W. 21: NO FORMAL CLASS because the Nilsens will still be gone, but Read Text: “Disabilities and Humor” (pp. 104-106), and “Health, Healing and Humor” (pp. 142-145). Come back from Thanksgiving ready to report on one humorous event that you observed.
M. 26: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Clowns and Body Humor: Human and Animal Play; Read Text: “Body Humor” (pp. 53-56), “Clowns” (76-79), “Impersonation” (160-162), and “Mimes” (pp. 200-201). PowerPoints # 21 and 22 combined into Clowns and Health.
W. 28: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’: Humor and Education; Read Text: “Acquisition of a Sense of Humor” (pp. 9-11), “School Humor” ( pp. 263-266) and “Sports Language” (pp. 284-286). PowerPoint # 23: Humor Education
December M. 3: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor and Music; Read Text: “Humorous Icons” (pp. 157-159), “Music and Humor” (211-214), and “Musical Comedians” (pp. 214-218). PowerPoint # 24: Music
W. 5: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Visual Humor: Art, Cartoons, and Comix; Read Text: “Architecture” (pp. 39-41), “Art” (pp. 41-45), “Cartoons” (pp. 60-64), “Comic Books” (86-90), “Comic Strips” (pp. 90-95) and Museums” (pp. 207-210). PowerPoint # 25: Art
M. 10: STUDENT PRESENTATION(S) + Nilsens’ Humor and Aging; Read Text: “Aging and Humor” (pp. 19-23), and “Wit (pp. 309-310). PowerPoint # 26: Gerontology
W. 12: READING DAY—NO CLASS
M. 17: FINAL EXAM 9:50 TO 11:40 in our same classroom
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