The question "What is Literature?" is notoriously vexing. Any serious attempt to answer it will inevitably result in some kind of formal, cultural, or historical contradiction. Rather than force-feed students a programmatic definition of a fraught and perpetually evolving term, this course will introduce students to the concept of literature by exploring the contested boundary between literary and non-literary discourses.
In the first half of the semester we will try to locate and interrogate this boundary. Students will analyze various confrontations between literary works and ostensibly non-literary domains such as history, science, and popular culture. In the second half of the semester we will trace this boundary through a brief case study. Students will examine how theories of literariness and non-literariness have been deployed in the consolidation of an African American literary tradition since WWII.
This course does not pretend to be comprehensive. A full account of "literature" and literary history cannot be compressed into a single class, a single semester, or even a single language. Instead of a spurious attempt at totality, this course focuses on a very particular literary formation—post-1945 American literature—in order to develop general tools for literary inquiry, and to help students grasp the present significance of literature in American culture and the American university.
Required Texts:
Final grades will be calculated from a composite of seven items throughout the semester:
This course will be conducted in a seminar format, and a high participation grade will reflect regular, attentive, and thoughtful contributions to our discussion. Be prepared to ask questions, to make claims about the assigned reading, and to respond to other students' questions and claims.
Discussion, like any other skill, requires time, patience, and practice to develop. Everyone is coming to this course with different levels of exposure to the course's concepts and with various ranges of experience in analyzing texts. My only expectation is that everyone will try to keep discussions generative and inclusive.
Students are allowed three absences (the equivalent of one week of class). Additional absences will result in an immediate reduction of the participation grade.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
Throughout the semester students will write eight responses to the assigned readings and share them as "discussion posts" on Canvas. You may choose which readings you will respond to. The first three discussion posts must be completed by Week 5, the next three must be completed by Week 9, and the final three must be completed by Week 13. Please note that this adds up to nine total responses; I will only be grading eight discussion posts, so feel free to skip one as you see fit.
Each discussion post should be submitted by 9am prior to the class for the assigned reading or film (i.e. 4.5 hours before class meets). After 9am the discussion board will lock, and you will no longer be able to add a discussion post. When writing your discussion post, you may choose either to begin a brand new thread or to respond to a thread already started by a classmate.
CONTENT GUIDELINES
Discussion posts should include any of the following: reflections, questions, close readings; you can discuss how a particular text relates to the course as a whole, you can draw comparisons and contrasts with prior readings, and you can comment upon your classmates' responses. In order to keep the conversation open to your classmates, please refrain from discussing media not assigned in this course.
Each response should include substantive analytical engagement with the assigned reading. If you ask a question, you should tell us why you are asking this question—why, in other words, is it important for us to seek an answer to this question? If, alternatively, you want to reflect on an interesting passage, do not simply inform us of your opinion; tell us why the text interests you, how it contributes to the themes previously explored throughout the course, etc. If, alternatively, you respond to a classmates' discussion post, be careful not to simply agree or disagree with them; you must find a way to build upon what they have already contributed.
Discussion posts may be brief (~250 words), but be prepared to comment upon them at greater length. It is possible that your responses will be referenced and discussed during class.
| Failed Quizzes |
Quiz Grade |
|---|---|
| 0 | A |
| 1 | A |
| 2 | B |
| 3 | C |
| 4 | D |
| 5 | F |
Reading quizzes will be administered at random through the semester. Each quiz will be graded on a pass/fail basis. You only need to score 50% or higher to pass.
Everyone will begin the semester with a quiz grade of "A." After a first quiz failure, this grade will remain unchanged. After a second quiz failure, this grade will be reduced to a "B," and then, after a third failure, to a "C," and so on.
I do not generally enjoy giving reading quizzes because they take up classroom time and (potentially) establish an adversarial relationship between students and instructors. However, studies show that reading quizzes vastly improve student engagement in the classroom. Thus while I will try to keep quizzes scarce, I reserve the right to institute regular quizzes if flagging participation indicates that students are not keeping up with the readings.
A 5-page argument-driven, close-reading essay will be assigned during Week 5 and will be due via Canvas by 11:59pm on October 12, 2020.
A 3-page summary and response to a peer-reviewed scholarly article about one of the readings for our course—selected from a pre-approved list of articles—will be assigned during Week 12 and will be due on Canvas by 11:59pm on December 4, 2020.
A 7-page analytical essay will be assigned during week 13 and will be due on Canvas by 11:59pm on December 15, 2020.
Students must submit the midterm and final essays in order to pass the course. Late midterm and final essays will receive a grade no higher than "D."
If you have questions or concerns regarding these assignments or grading systems, I will gladly discuss them with you.
Please bring the following items to each class:
I expect myself and everyone else to maintain a safe classroom environment. Discrimination or harassment of any form—and particularly on the basis of race, color, disability status, nationality, sexual and gender identity, or religion—will not be tolerated.
If you require any acommodations in order to participate in this course, please let me and/or Penn State's Student Disability Resources office know as soon as possible. It is your right to have these accommodations met.
The Pennsylvania State University is committed to the policy that all persons shall have equal access to programs, facilities, admission, and employment without regard to personal characteristics not related to ability, performance, or qualifications as determined by University policy or by state of federal authorities. The Pennsylvania State University does not discriminate against any person because of age, ancestry, color, disability or handicap, national origin, race, religious creed, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.
Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University’s educational programs. Every Penn State campus has an office for students with disabilities. The Student Disability Resources Web site provides contact information for every Penn State campus: http://equity.psu.edu/sdr/disability-coordinator. For further information, please visit the Student Disability Resources Web site: http://equity.psu.edu/sdr.
In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability services office at the campus where you are officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide documentation: http://equity.psu.edu/sdr/applying-for-services. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus’s disability services office will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations.
Teaching under the constraints of an ongoing global pandemic is new to me, just as learning under these constraints is new to all of you. I will not pretend that I can predict every obstacle that COVID-19 will throw at us this semester, so I will try to tackle each individual obstacle on a case-by-case basis. It is possible that we will have to quickly abandon face-to-face classes for Zoom, and it is also possible that, if Zoom proves inhospitable, we will have to abandon live discussions for asynchronous projects. I ask you to show me some patience and understanding under these frankly experimental conditions, and I intend to show each of you patience and understanding in return. Right now the syllabus conforms as closely as possible to "normal" conditions, but I will offer the following notes to clarify my expectations this semester:
The best way to resolve a problem or concern is to let me know so we can discuss it. Everything on this syllabus is open to emendation, but I cannot assist you if I am not aware that you need assistance.
Except for the "required texts" listed above, all readings are available on Canvas, including PDF copies of articles from the web. Readings should be completed prior to, not after, the date listed. Due dates are marked in red.
Week One (8/24)
Week Two (8/31)
Week Three (9/7)
Week Four (9/14)
Week Five (9/21)
Week Six (9/28)
Week Seven (10/5)
Week Eight (10/12)
Week Nine (10/19)
Week Ten (10/26)
Week Eleven (11/2)
Week Twelve (11/9)
Week Thirteen (11/16)
Week Fourteen (11/23)
Week Fifteen (11/30)
Week Sixteen (12/7)
Finals Week (12/14)
header image: from Illiac IV, a brochure published by the Burroughs Corporation