Section:                               HA: T  4:00 – 6:40 p.m.
                                               218 MOS

Professor:                           Dr. Kelli Lyon Johnson

Office Hours:                     M 8:30-11:30; TW 3:00-4:00

Course Web Site:             www.users.muohio.edu/johnso58

Course Description
In ENG/WMS 468, we will consider the ways that women remember the past—their own pasts and the pasts of others—and the ways that these memories coincide with and contradict official History. In particular, we will be reading and analyzing the ways these women writers use historical narratives as calls for human rights. We will ultimately ask ourselves the question that Julia Alvarez poses in her novel Saving the World: Does literature matter? Can stories make a difference?

ENG/WMS 468 is a reading- and writing-intensive course. All students enrolled in this course must have completed both ENG 111 and ENG 112 and at least one additional course in literature or women's studies. ENG/WMS 468 will assume a basic familiarity with literary and feminist criticism.

 This course is part of Miami Plan Thematic Sequence ENG 2: Women and Literature.
 
Course Goals

As part of the Miami Plan, this course requires that students continue to develop their abilities to think critically, understand contexts, engage with other learners, and reflect and act. In every written assignment and in your class participation, you will be expected to demonstrate your ability to think critically about the texts we read for class and the historical and cultural conditions in which those texts were created.

Women's writing about the past responds to particular historical events; thinking critically in ENG/WMS 468, then, also requires that students understand contexts. Our study of historical events will enrich our understanding of the course texts, and your Final Project requires that you extensively study a particular historical moment.

Your work in small groups will strengthen your abilities to engage with other learners. Large-group discussions will similarly allow you to raise topics, respond to other's comments and pose and respond to questions in every class session.

Finally, ENG 468 requires students both to reflect and act. Your written assignments, group work, and class participation will require you to demonstrate reflection on course materials, and you frequently have the opportunity to make connections among course materials and your own experiences and knowledges. Your Final Project also offers evidence of your ability to act--to take knowledge that you have collected, created, and synthesized and make out of it something empowering and meaningful.

 

Required Texts (available at the MUH Bookstore)
Julia Alvarez, In the Time of the Butterflies

Julia Alvarez, Saving the World

Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale

Edwidge Danticat, The Farming of Bones

Louise Erdrich, Tracks

Linda Hogan, The Woman Who Watches over the World

Joy Kogawa, Obasan

Demetria Martínez, Mother Tongue

Rigoberta Menchú, I, Rigoberta Menchú

Marjane Satrapi, Persepolis

 

Additional Course Texts (see Schedule)
Ana Castillo, Psst . . . I Have Something to Tell You, Mi Amor

Diane Glancy, Pushing the Bear (play)

Harriet Jacobs, excerpt from Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl

Azar Nafisi, excerpts from Reading Lolita in Tehran

Suzan-Lori Parks, The American Play

Course Grading

Analytical Papers (2 at 20% each)                         40%
Short Writings                                                          20%   
Participation                                                              10%
Final Project                                                                30%

 

Grading Scale

A+      98-100                       A         94-97                          A-       90-93
B+       88-89                         B         84-87                          B-        80-83
C+       78-79                          C         74-77                          C-        70-73
D+      68-69                         D         64-67                          D-       60-63
F         59 and below

 

Course Requirements

Class Participation. You will be graded on your active and positive participation. You may choose to participate by completing homework, engaging in group work, and volunteering during class discussion.

You should bring the assigned readings to every class meeting.

Participation in these areas will be graded on the following criteria:

A =      Regular active participation demonstrating superior understanding and analysis of assigned material; willingness to engage theories, perspectives, and group members

B =      Frequent participation that demonstrates accurate and thoughtful familiarity with the material; participation in group interaction

C =      Contributions are infrequent and/or demonstrate little familiarity with the material; or contributions are not relevant to material being discussed

D =      In attendance but does not participate in discussion

0 =      Not in attendance or sleeping in class

 
Group Work. At the beginning of the semester, I will assign students to a group with which they will work all semester. Groups will collaborate for in-class assignments and small-group discussion.

Papers. Students will write two analytical essays in this course. You will receive in class both written explanation and detailed descriptions of the assignments. All papers must conform to stated guidelines. Papers may not be submitted electronically because technology is not always reliable. Late papers will be penalized 10% each calendar day until the paper is turned in.

Final Project. Due at the appointed time of the final exam during finals week, your Final Project requires that you study extensively a historical or contemporary violation of human rights and collect, read, and assemble narratives on that subject. You will select the topic of your Final Project in conjunction with me, and I will provide a detailed assignment and research strategies in class.

Short Writings. Throughout the semester, students will write fourteen short papers, based on readings or lectures, to be word-processed in advance and brought to class. Short writings are formal papers and should be revised and formatted according to paper guidelines. Short writing prompts are available on the course web site (see front of syllabus). The short assignments will be collected at the end of each class.

The best ten scores on the fourteen assignments will count in the calculation of the final grade. No late papers will be accepted. Electronic submissions will not be accepted. Students must be in attendance for the entire class period in order to turn in a short writing.

Short writing assignments offer students the opportunity to focus their ideas and comments before coming to class. They provide a means for me to assess how students meet the objectives of the course, which are important to succeeding in college and career: comprehension, analysis, synthesis, critical thinking, engagement. These assignments take the place of a system of reading quizzes and exams.

Evaluation of short writing assignments will be based on the following guidelines (the criteria each week may be tailored slightly to the specifics of the individual assignment):

10 =    Demonstrates superior familiarity with the material as well as analytical and critical thinking; points are clearly articulated and easy to follow

 8 =      Demonstrates basic familiarity with the material; points are raised but not developed or supported; or provides a solid summary of material but little analysis or reflection

6 =      Demonstrates only passing familiarity with material; analysis is absent or simplistic; points are poorly articulated or hard to follow; or provides only crude summary of material

5 =      Turns in assignment, but demonstrates no significant familiarity with material or analysis of material

0 =      Does not complete assignment

 

Student Responsibilities

Paper Guidelines. All papers will be word processed and double-spaced in 12-point Times New Roman with standard 1”- or 1 ¼”-inch margins. Students may use either Word or WordPerfect, but papers may not be typed on a typewriter. Students are expected to use MLA citation style.

Attendance. Attendance will be taken at each class meeting. Regular attendance is expected and required. The University’s attendance policy requires that you attend every class. Beyond this policy, in ENG 468 HA, the following penalties apply to the final grade:

 

Absence(s)	Deduction from final course grade
One (1)	0%
Two (2)	5%
Three (3)	20%
Four (4)	40% (failure)

Individual exceptions may be negotiated on a case-by-case basis under extraordinary circumstances.

Tardiness. You are expected to arrive before the appointed class hour so that we may begin class on time. Because students who arrive late disrupt student learning, tardiness will be penalized. Because we all sometimes encounter unexpected delays--traffic, phone calls, late babysitters--everyone will be allowed one late arrival. After that initial late arrival, I will count two late arrivals as an absence. Students who are late more than four times will fail the course.

Technology. Please turn cell phones, Blackberries, PDAs, and pagers OFF (not to vibrate) when you enter the classroom. Students using cell phones or checking messages—voice or text—during class will be asked to leave and marked absent for the day. Any missed work cannot be made up.
 
Information for Students with Disabilities. If you have a disability or any other special circumstance that may have some impact on your work in this class, and for which you may require accommodations, please contact me early in the semester so that appropriate accommodations can be made in a timely manner. The Office of Disability Services at Hamilton, located in Rentschler Hall, is the designated office on campus to provide services and accommodations to students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Coordinator of Disability Services by telephone at 513-785-3211 (TTY/TDD accessible) or via email.

Academic Integrity. I expect my students to have respect for their own work and for the work of others. Academic honesty is expected and required. All cases of plagiarism will be referred for trial to the Department of English, and students found guilty of academic dishonesty will fail the course. Miami University’s policy on academic honesty can be found in the Student Handbook. Students found guilty of plagiarism also risk a notation of Academic Dishonesty on their permanent transcript.

 

Student Expectations

Students may expect me to hold appointed office hours; to make appointments to meet with students outside of class if they cannot attend office hours; to provide detailed assignments and feedback on completed assignments; to return student work within seven calendar days of the assigned due date; to encourage student participation in all aspects of their education; to advise students on study habits, time management, and writing practices; and to respect and encourage all positive student contributions to the course.

 

By remaining in this course, you are agreeing to the terms of this syllabus.