English 376-The Colloquium in English

This is the syllabus page for Prof. Misty Anderson's Fall 1998 section of the colloquium. It will be updated throughout the fall semester, so please check for new information.

Course Materials

A Critical and Cultural Theory Reader, eds. Easthope and McGowan (Toronto) - C
The Tempest,William Shakespeare (Washington Square)
Gulliverís Travels, Jonathan Swift (Bedford/St. Martins) - G
M. Butterfly, David Hwang
Mama Day,Gloria Naylor (Vintage)
Reserve Room Packet, Hodges Library - R

Class Web Page http://web.utk.edu/~misty/Anderson376fall98home.html

August

27 Introduction, Keats, "Ode on a Grecian Urn," Brooks, "Kitchenette Building." (H) Go to First Day Survey.

September

1 Richter, "Introduction" and "Why We Read,"Vendler, "What We Have Loved..." (all three in Falling) Brooks, "Keats' Storied Urn," (R), handout on close reading, or take a look at tips on scanning a poem.
3 McLaughlin, "Figurative Language," (R) Poetry packet, workshop time on the papers,
4 Short Paper (3-4 pages) Due Friday 9:00 AM . Don't stress, have a cheesy poof.

8 Graff, "Disliking Books at an Early Age" and Eagleton, "The Rise of English" (Falling).
10ÝPratt, "Humanities for the Future" (Falling) Writing Poems ch. 1,Workshop on the papers.

15 Writing Poems, ch. 4
17 Writing Poems, ch. 7
18 Optional Rewrite Due Friday, 9:00 AM

22Ý de Saussure, from Course in General Linguistics,Barthes, from Mythologies,(C) "The World of Wrestling," "The Face of Garbo," (R)

PM Screenings of Ways of Seeing 24 "Ideology" introduction, Ways of Seeing.

29Ý Althusser, Marx from "Preface" and Marx and Engels,Ý from The German Ideology (C).ÝMore thoughts on ideology?Click here.

October

1 The Tempest,through Act III (PM Screenings).ÝTake a look at some great discussion questions on-line. You can also look at the on-line text for a point of comparison. Get to TheTempest film assignment. 6 The Tempestcompleted, Said, from Orientalism.(C). For some more information on the film Prospero's Books, click here.
8 The Tempest,Greenblatt and Will (Falling).

13 EXAM 1, in class.

 FALL BREAK

Ý

20 Introduction to "Difference" (C). If you would like to have some extra reading tips, take a look at the following notes, prepared by John Lye, on deconstruction.
22 Derrida, from "Différance" (C). Go to detailed reading notes for "Différance." 27 "What is Psychoanalytic Criticism?" (G), Spivak, "Displacement..."(C). More on psychoanalytic criticism after Lacan,click here.
29 Lacan, from The Mirror Stage, Foucault, from Discipline and Punish(C). Getting a little overloaded? Take a look at this shot of your favorite philosopher. Now doesn't he look more stressed than you do?

November

3 Foucault, from The History of Sexuality(C).
5 Sedgwick, from Between Men, Rubin, "The Traffic in Women," (R).

10 Hwang, "M. Butterfly".
12 Hwang, Orientalism revisited, Mulvey, from "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema"(C).

Take a look at Miss Saigon, another version of Madama Butterfly. Is this version critical of the original story?

17 Jameson, from, Postmodernism, Baudrillard, from Simulations(C).
19 Smith, "Toward a Black Feminist Criticism" (Falling),Naylor, Mama Day.

24 Mama Day,Gates, "Canon-Formation, Literary History, and the Afro-American Tradition" (Falling).

THANKSGIVING

December

2 Mama Day,Traub, "Rainbows of Darkness," (R)
4 Catch up, paper planning session.

9 Poetry Packet Reprise
10 PAPER 2 DUE
11 Review for Exam

Final Exam

If you still want to take a look at Gulliver's Travels on your own, here is the missing selection of the syllabus:
  • Gulliver, Book I, advertisement, letter from publisher (G). Take a peek at this AWESOME GULLIVER SITE!Ý Pictures! Text! History! What more could you want?
  • Gulliver, Books II & III, "What is Feminist Criticism?" Nussbaum (G).
  • Gulliver, Book IV, "What is Deconstruction?" Castle, "Why the Houyhnhmns Don't Write" (G).
 About this Course:

The colloquium is designed to give English majors and other interested students a firm grounding in the process and theory of reading texts. We will begin by honing your skills as a "close reader," which entails your ability to explain the structure of a passage or poem and to put forth an interpretation of the same in a single coherent argument. Once we work through those skills, we will examine some of the various methods of reading and the assumptions of these different schools. It will be important to keep in mind that not all theories or methods work equally well for all texts. Through an understanding of the differences of literary criticisms, I hope that you will see the various values, assumptions, and limitations that shape many different methods of reading, including your own. This better understanding of how to "do" English should have practical benefits for you as an English major; it may also have more resonant, perhaps even troubling implications for you as this course asks you to think about how we see and what we privilege.
Ý

Requirements for the course:

ïClass participation--10% - This is the area of your grade over which you have the most control. By coming to class, being prepared, and participating in the discussion, you can give yourself a wonderful class participation grade and a better grasp of the material, which will be reflected in your tests and papers. If you miss more than three classes, we will need to have a conference to assess your progress in the course.

ïLeading a Class--10% - Think of this as the "other half" of your class participation grade. Pick a text (or a day) that sounds good to you for a class discussion. You will need to meet with me a full week before your discussion day so we can go over the text on which you will focus in your facilitator role. This schedule means that you will also need to read ahead for that week. Some good approaches include discussion questions for the class, a structured debate for the whole class, or possibly a contemporary point of connection with the older text. Try to find something that illustrates the issues of the text at hand; show instead of tell. Let your creativity roam free. Your main job is to interest your classmates in the dayís reading. PLEASE do not give a short biography or lecture about the writer (unless he or she had a particularly colorful past). We might fall asleep.

ïExams--20% each - We will go over the format of both the midterm and the final before each test. The final will be cumulative.

ïPapers--20% each - The first paper, which comes due very early in this course, is a close reading of a poem from the poetry packet. We will discuss close reading at length in class; please feel free to seek me out for additional help outside of class. It is your option to rewrite the first paper, an option I heartily encourage you to exercise. You are welcome to write on a topic of your choosing for the second paper as long as you clear it with me no later than a week before the paper is due.

Useful Hot Links

The following is a short list of some very useful hot links to other theory and literature sites on the web. I encourage you to use them when preparing for class, putting together your class discussion day, or writing a paper. Enjoy! There's some great information out there.
Jack Lynch, perhaps the most wired man in literary studies today, maintains this directory page. It is very comprehensive.
This page is maintained by Dr. Felluga, who put together a lovely introduction to reading methods with input from her students.
These links will take you to some of the most up-to-date sites in cultural theory. You can check out everything from monster theories (yes, theories about monsters and their significance) to ancient philosophies. It also starts with a picture of Foucault.
This is a lovely resource with short essays on subjects and texts put together by D. Arnason. I highly recommend his notes in the first section.
This site has good links as well as a few good essays.