Fall 2017 Course Syllabus

English 106:  Introduction to Short Fiction

MWF 9:00-9:50 a.m.

Center Hall 216

 

Professor: Dr. Matthew Lambert

Email:  lambertm@wabash.edu

Office Location:  Center Hall 312

Office Hours:  MWF 10:00-11:30am, TTr 2:30-4:00pm (or by appointment)

Office Phone:  765-361-6049

 

Course Description

Welcome to short fiction.  This is a reading-, writing-, and discussion-intensive course that focuses on short prose fiction from the 19^th century to the present.  Most of the stories we will read, discuss, and write about in the course are English and American in origin and come from a variety of different social, ethnic, regional, and religious backgrounds.  We will focus on and discuss both the content and structure of the short fiction we read, including how these two aspects of the form work together to create meaning.  To help facilitate understanding and discussion, we will learn reading strategies and literary terms associated with short fiction.  We will also learn how to write about the form in ways that effectively communicate our interpretations of the power and meanings behind particular stories.  By the end of the class, we will not only gain a greater appreciation and knowledge of the short fiction form, but (I think) become a little wiser in our encounters with the stories we read.

Required Books:

Literature: A Portable Anthology (Gardner, Lawn, et. al.)

Heart of Darkness (any edition is fine)

Course Goals

• Read a wide range of short fiction from different authors, cultures, and time periods.
• Examine how different authors express ideas about common themes across different time periods and cultures.
• Learn a literary vocabulary for reading and interpreting short fiction, including key terms associated with the form.
• Intepret both the content and structure of short fiction, including how these two aspects of the form work together to create meaning.
• Learn to quote and cite short fiction in order to support claims made about a story’s content and form.

Class Participation  

It’s imperative that you complete all assigned homework/reading and come prepared to participate in class.  You are expected to contribute to general class discussions, to contribute to small group discussions, to seek feedback from other class members on work in progress, and to provide thoughtful feedback to other class members on their work.  Being prepared for this class includes paying close attention to the assignments for each class, doing the homework, and bringing relevant materials with you to class.  Good class participation should include listening and taking notes in class lectures, discussions and group work.  You will be graded on class participation.    

Attendance and Lateness 

Since this is a small discussion class, attendance is mandatory.  You are allotted two absences in this class without penalty—once you miss your third class, your grade will begin to drop by half a letter grade for each additional absence.  Treat this attendance policy like a “personal” or “sick day” policy you might find in a workplace.  In other words, these absences usually occur because of minor illnesses or schedule conflicts (e.g., a delayed Monday morning flight after a weekend holiday).

Please arrive on time.  Lateness not only disrupts the class but also shows a good deal of disrespect for your peers and instructor.   If lateness becomes a problem, we will need to talk.  If you are more than 15 minutes late to class, you can be marked absent—talk to me after class if you think that you were over 15 minutes late for unavoidable reasons.  Sleeping or working on work for other classes can also result in being marked absent.

In the case of university-sanctioned activities (e.g., athletics or a course-specific trip that takes you out of town), you will need a Dean’s Excuse.  You will also need to let me know ahead of time so that we can discuss ways to make up the work for the missed class.

If you miss a class meeting, you are responsible to contact your peers for materials and information you have missed. Missing a class is no excuse for not completing the homework. Likewise, you should read the assigned readings and be ready to discuss them, even if you were absent the class before. All readings are immediately relevant to the course’s goals and assignments, so consider reading just as important as any written homework you have.

Academic Integrity

At Wabash College, we believe in the excellence of our students and in the integrity of our academic programs.  As stated in the Gentleman’s Rule,

“The student is expected to conduct himself at all times, both on and off campus, as a gentleman and a responsible citizen.”

Being “a gentleman and a responsible citizen” includes not taking credit for the work of others.  This means properly attributing/citing the ideas of others in your written assignments, not turning in somebody else’s work as your own, and not submitting an essay already submitted for a previous course.  Blatantly taking someone else’s words, ideas or concepts, and using them without citing your source is plagiarism.  So is using another student’s essay or homework, or part of his or her essay or homework, as your own.  In the world of writing (academic writing especially), this is a serious offense and is treated as such.  Anyone who uses non-documented material from another source, including work by other students as well as online sources, could receive a failing grade for the entire course and could be referred to the Dean’s office for further disciplinary action.

While some forms of collaboration and assistance in the course are permitted—including in-class collaboration such as group work, pair work, class discussion, and peer review as well as outside assistance provided by the Writing Center—collaborating on homework assignments is not acceptable because those types of assignments are designed to monitor how you are handling specific parts of the course materials.

Meeting Deadlines

All written assignments must be submitted on the due date, by the beginning of class. Late weekly papers are subject to half a letter grade off for every day they are late.  I generally do not accept late homework assignments or allow students to make up daily class assignments and quizzes.  If you believe you missed a class or homework assignment due to an extenuating circumstance (e.g. illness, emergency, etc.) you will need to contact me to explain the situation.

Writing Assignment Extensions 

Everyone has one extension pass good for the weekend.  The extension must be requested by email 48 hours before the essay is due.  If you request an extension and end up turning the final draft in on time, I will return the extension pass back to you.

Cell Phones, Laptops, and Other Related Technologies

By the time class starts, all cell phones should be turned off and put away unless you have received permission from me.  Cell phones are particularly distracting to members of the class.  I will allow you to use tablets/e-readers if you can use these devices to access the course textbooks and if you can demonstrate to me that you are able to mark up and make comments on readings using these devices.

Writing Center

The Wabash Writing Center is dedicated to coaching Wabash Men to become the best writers that they can be. When a Wabash Man comes into the Wabash Writing Center, he will meet one-on-one with a trained writing consultant, or the director. Writing Center sessions are scheduled to last 45 minutes, which is enough time to review 6-7 pages of writing.

Writing consultants can work with writers at any stage of their writing process. A writer can come to the Wabash Writing Center with a couple of notes on a napkin, and our consultants can help him turn it into the best paper the writer can produce. Writers have to do their own work, but our consultants will make suggestions and offer advice to make a paper better. Consultants are also well versed in grammar concerns, MLA, and APA, and they are happy to answer questions or make minor corrections. However, we leave the line editing and final revisions to the writer.

Located on the second floor of the Lilly Library, the Wabash Writing Center is open to all students, faculty and staff.

To make an appointment, go to http://www.wabash.edu/writingcenter (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., select the button labeled “Click HERE to make an appointment,” and register in the scheduling system.

If you have any questions, please email the director, Dr. Koppelmann, at koppelmz@wabash.edu. 

The Office of Student Enrichment

The Office of Student Enrichment (OSE) provides Wabash Men with one-on-one counseling regarding time management skills, study skills, reading skills, and Academic Honesty. The OSE also offers one-on-one support for English Language Learners. Contact Dr. Koppelmann at koppelmz@wabash.edu to arrange for a meeting if would like assistance regarding time management, study skills, reading skills, understanding Academic Honesty, or if would like support for learning American English.

Disability Statement

Students with disabilities (apparent or invisible) are invited to confidentially discuss their situation with the disability coordinator, Heather Thrush, Director of Student Engagement and Success. If a student wishes to receive an academic accommodation, it is required that his documentation of the disability be on file with Heather Thrush, who can, in confidence, provide information and guidance. Early notification helps us all work together in the most effective ways.  Heather Thrush can be reached at her office (Center Hall 112A), by phone (x6347), or by email (thrushh@wabash.edu).

Communicating Through Email 

Emailing about coursework is a type of formal communication.  Be sure to include a salutation (e.g. “Hello Prof./Dr. Lambert,”) and a signature (your first name is fine).  Use appropriate language and proofread your emails—mechanical errors can cause readers—in this case, me—to misunderstand your message or question your ethos/credibility. 

Other Assignments

Weekly Papers                                                60%

Portfolio                                                          10%

Daily Work

Journal Responses, Quizzes, etc.                20%

Class participation                                           10%  

Total:                                                              100% 

Point Ranges for Letter Grades:

A (93 – 100%), A- (90 – 92%), B+ (87 – 89%), B (83 – 86%), B- (80 – 82%), C+ (77 – 79%),          C (73 – 76%), C- (70 – 72%), D (60 – 69%), F (0 – 59%)

Rubric for minor assignments.

Canvas Postings (3 point assignments)
3: excellent	2: acceptable	1: poor
The assignment criteria have been met thoughtfully and with insight.  Assignment is well planned and articulated with convincing detail. There are no mechanical errors.	The assignment criteria have been met, and there is evidence of effort and thought in this assignment, however there may be a minor problem with completion of task.	The assignment criteria may have been met, but these assignments do not move beyond broad generalizations.  The work is hard to read or presented sloppily.

Tentative Schedule: 

I will make changes to the schedule as needed throughout the semester.

	IN CLASS	READING DUE	WRITING DUE
Week 9 Monday, Oct. 16	-Introductions -Go over syllabus -What is short fiction? Literary Terms:  Fiction, Elements of Fiction,	Rd. Course Syllabus – Rd. Kincaid, “Girl (pp. 355-56, also available in Canvas Files)
Wednesday, Oct. 18	-Good reading Literary Terms: Narrative, Interior Monologue, First Person Narrator, Setting, Feminist Criticism	– Rd. Gardner, pp. 1218-1232. -Rd. Gilman, “Yellow Wallpaper”
Friday, Oct. 20	-Different writing assignments Literary terms:Point Epiphany, Stream-of-Consciousness, Third Person Narrator	Rd. Gardner, pp. 1263-1275 Rd. Joyce, “Araby” (pp. 85-89).
Week 10 Monday, Oct. 23	-Writing about literature. Literary terms: Diction, Tone, Style, Persona, Symbol, Concrete Language	Rd. Gardner, pp. 1279-1282. Rd. Hemingway, “Big Two-Hearted River,” Parts 1 and II (on Canvas)
Wednesday, Oct. 25	-Revising, quoting. Literary Terms:  Setting, Symbolism, Conflict, Antihero, Point of View, Free Indirect Discourse	-Rd. Gardner, 1244-1249, 1252-58. -Rd. Hawthorne, “Young Goodman Brown” (pp.3-13).
Friday, Oct. 27	Literary terms:  Archetype, Literary Naturalism, Symbol, Dialogue	-Crane, “The Open Boat” (pp. 28-47).
Week 11 Monday, Oct. 30	Literary Terms:  Genre, Foil, Denouement.	Rd. Poe, “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” (Canvas)	Short Paper 1
Wednesday, Nov. 1	Literary Terms:  Foreshadowing, Plot	Rd. Jackson, “The Lottery” (pp. 216-223)
Friday, Nov. 3	Literary Terms:  Structure, Frame Tale, Novella,	Rd. Heart of Darkness, Pt. 1
Week 12 Monday, Nov. 6	Literary Terms: Conflict, Protagonist, Antagonist	Rd. Heart of Darkness, Pt. 2
Wednesday, Nov. 8	Literary Terms:  Postcolonial criticism	Rd. Heart of Darkness, Pt. 3
Friday, Nov. 10		Rd. Achebe, “Dead Men’s Path” (Canvas), Alexie, “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” (pp. 382-388)
Week 13 Monday, Nov. 13	Literary Terms:  Dialect, Vernacular	-Rd. Singer, “Body Count” (Canvas)
Wednesday, Nov. 15	Literary Terms:  Motifs, Magic Realism, Allegory	-Rd. Hurston, “Sweat,” (pp. 139-148).	Short Paper 2
Friday, Nov. 17		-Rd. O’Brian, “The Things They Carried” (322-337)
Week 14 Monday, Nov. 20		Thanksgiving Break
Wednesday, Nov. 22		–   Thanksgiving Break
Friday, Nov. 24		Thanksgiving Break
Week 15 Monday, Nov. 27		Rd. Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues” (pp. 223-249)
Wednesday, Nov. 29	Literary Terms:  Unreliable Narrator, Participant,	-Rd. Raymond Carver, “Cathedral,” (pp. 274-285).
Friday, Dec. 1	Literary Terms:  Motifs, Magic Realism, Allegory	Rd. Marquez, “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,” pp. 263-268.	Short Paper 3
Week 16 Monday, Dec. 4	Class Visit: Prof. Eric Freeze	Rd. Freeze selections (Canvas) TBA
Wednesday, Dec. 6		TBA
Friday, Dec.  8	Last Day of Class -Course wrap-up.	Rd. Atwood, “Happy Endings” (pp. 300-303)