D. McEvilly Phone: 618 656.7100 ext. 20710 Email: [email protected]
Syllabus: Contemporary Literature
Course Description This is not a traditional survey course. While each work of literature must be understood within its historical context, there is no firm chronology to which this course adheres. Instead, emphasis is placed on concepts and themes that consciously or unconsciously unite us. Looking through a contemporary lens, and using the novel as its focus, students explore issues of love, hate, identity, humanity, conformity, culture, and family. Venturing well beyond the basic elements (character, plot, setting, etc.) of fiction, this course introduces students to the deeper analysis of literature—the set of conventions and patterns, codes and rules we employ in reading and discussing a piece of writing. This course also requires a research paper.
Major Readings • Being There Jerzy Kosinski • Slaughterhouse-Five Kurt Vonnegut • The Bluest Eye Toni Morrison
Estimated Coursework • 130 points Homework and In-class Work • 45 points Three Literary Term Quizzes • 25 points Exam: Anatomy of a Novel (Class Notes) • 25 points Exam: Essay (Being There) • 25 points Exam: Multiple Choice (Slaughterhouse-Five) • 25 points Exam: Short Answer (The Bluest Eye) • 25 points Research: Thirty-minute Group Presentation and Individual Paper
300 points Total
• Final Exam = 1/7th of Overall Grade
Grading Scale • 100 – 90 A • 89 – 80 B • 79 – 70 C • 69 – 60 D • 59 – 0 F
Expectations Good students show up on time, keep their heads up, keep their phones put away, complete work on time, and advocate for themselves, so please make me aware of any necessary accommodations—academically, physically, financially, etc.
General Policies • No phones • Check the class website daily—especially when absent • Lost or misplaced assignments should be printed from the website • Quizzes and exams should be made up after school or during a study period • Plagiarism of any sort will result in a zero and loss of any extra credit opportunities • It is the student’s responsibility to meet all deadlines and complete all missed: late work may be given a zero o Further policies for absences, tardies, and make-up work can be found in the Student Handbook • Field trips, athletic events, suspensions, and prearranged absences are not excuses for late work o Work must be turned in immediately upon your return or before your absence (subject to teacher’s discretion) • Extra credit will be given only to those student with no late, missing, incomplete, or plagiarized work • When all else fails: use your common sense
Tentative Schedule: Contemporary Literature
Week 1 Course Introduction Website, Syllabus, Letter Home, Entrance Exam, and Other Materials
Week 2 Fiction: Anatomy of a Novel My Mix Tape
Week 3 Fiction: Anatomy of a Novel What Is a Chapter?
Week 4 Fiction: Anatomy of a Novel Exam: Short Answer
Week 5 Metaphor and Allegory: Being There Distilled Notes and Five for Ten
Week 6 Metaphor and Allegory: Being There Conversational Roundtable Quiz: Lit Terms Exam: Essay
Week 7 Writing Workshop: Writing about Writing
Week 8 Narrative, Irony, and Motif: Slaughterhouse-Five Distilled Notes
Week 9 Narrative, Irony, and Motif: Slaughterhouse-Five Five for Ten
End of Quarter
Week 10 Narrative, Irony, and Motif: Slaughterhouse-Five Quiz: Lit Terms Exam: Multiple Choice
Week 11 Voice, Place, and Style: The Bluest Eye Distilled Notes
Week 12 Voice, Place, and Style: The Bluest Eye Five for Ten and Conversational Roundtable
Week 13 Voice, Place, and Style: The Bluest Eye Quiz: Lit Terms Exam: Short Answer
Break
Week 14 Research: Individual Reading and Research Sources, Abstracts, and Notes
Week 15 Research: Individual and Group Preparation Outline and Five for Ten
Week 16 Research: Individual Paper and Group Presentation Final Paper and PowerPoint Lecture
Week 17 Research: Group Lecture Group Presentations
Final Exams
D. McEvilly, English