Professor Tina Hall
Office Hours: 10-11 Monday and Wednesday and by appointment
Office: Root 306 x4462
Email: thall@hamilton.edu
"Oh brave monster! Lead the way." --The Tempest
Monsters and the Monstrous:
This course will focus on monsters and the monstrous in literature. We will
explore examples of monsters in poetry, drama, short fiction, a novel, nonfiction
and film. Throughout the semester we will question what makes something monstrous
and what functions monsters serve in literature and culture. To help us with
this critical project, we will read works by Mary Douglas, Sigmund Freud, Donna
Haraway and others. Students will be responsible for several full-length essays
as well as shorter writing assignments, a group project and a final project.
Required Texts:
William Shakespeare The Tempest
Mary Shelley Frankenstein
Edgar Allen Poe Complete Tales and Poems
Angela Carter The Bloody Chamber
Truman Capote In Cold Blood
poetry packet
critical sources packet
The Terminator movies
Course Requirements: Paper #1 (10%)
Paper #2 (15%)
Paper #3 (15%)
Paper #4 (15%)
Final Project (15%)
Group Presentation (10%)
Writing Exercises (15%)
Response to a Local Reading, Lecture or Presentation (5%)
Attendance and Participation: Because much of the work we do in English 150 revolves around class discussion, attendance is mandatory. Upon your fourth absence, for any reason, your final grade will be lowered one letter. Upon your sixth absence you will be dropped from the course. Participation and preparation for class are essential. For this reason, if you do not speak in class, you will be counted as absent. Minimal participation will also affect your grade. Each time you are late counts as half an absence.
Late Work: No late work will be accepted. Absence does not excuse late work; if you must be absent, make alternate arrangements with me in advance.
Papers (55%): Over the course of the semester you will write four full-length essays on the works we are reading. For each of these essays, you will turn in a rough draft and do revision activities (conference with me, trip to Writing Center, peer review) before turning in a final draft. Failure to turn in a rough draft or to participate in the revision activities will result in 20% (for each) being deducted from your final grade. Essays should be typed, double-spaced on white paper using a readable font. Please consult The Style Sheet and proofread before turning anything in. If you choose, you may revise one of your essays at the end of the semester. The revised grade will be averaged with the initial grade for a final score.
Final Project (15%): The final project for the class consists of building your own monster. This monster may take the form of a story, poem, essay, painting, film, website, computer program, science project, quilt, play, dance piece, sculptureBbe creative! You will present your project to the class in the final week of the semester and you will be responsible for a written analysis of the project placing it in the context of the works and issues we discussed over the semester. Your project may be collaborative, but each member must write an analysis. For the project and the analysis, I expect you to draw upon the critical sources for the class and to do independent research and compile an annotated bibliography.
Group Presentation (10%): For each of our major works/authors, one group will be responsible for presenting background and contextual information on the first day of discussion. These presentations should be between 20-30 minutes and include a handout for the class and a writing exercise for the class.
Writing Exercises (15%): A number of in-class writings and short take-home responses will be assigned. To successfully complete these and to participate in the discussions they inspire it is essential for you to keep up with the reading.
Response to a Local Reading, Lecture, or Presentation (5%): We are fortunate to have an extremely rich intellectual life at Hamilton and a wide array of opportunities to see scholars at work. You will go to at least one such event over the semester and write a short (250 word) response/reaction to it. These will be due on or before May 13th.
Special Accommodations: If you have special circumstances which require classroom accommodations, please notify me immediately.
Plagiarism: As in all classes, students are expected to adhere
to Hamilton's Honor Code. Students who submit plagiarized work will be reported
to the Dean. If you submit a collaborative work, please credit the other participants.
Syllabus English 150B1 Spring 2003
Week One: Class Overview
1/20, 1/22 Read Mary Douglas and selection from Homer=s Odyssey
Week Two: Read selections from Beowulf and poetry packet
1/27, 1/29 Discussion of poetry terms
Week Three: Paper #1 rough
draft due
2/3, 2/5 Revision conferences
Read Acts I and II of The Tempest
Group presentation on Shakespeare (Wednesday 2/5)
Week Four: Read Acts III-IV
of The Tempest (Monday)
2/10, 2/12 Read excerpt from Cesaire's A Tempest pp. 246-254 (Wednesday)
Read Freud's "The Uncanny" (Wednesday)
Paper #1 due (Wednesday 2/12)
Week Five: Read Frankenstein
(to p. 121 Monday, p. 189 Wednesday)
2/17, 2/19 Group Presentation on Mary Shelley (Monday 2/17)
Thesis for paper #2 due Wednesday
Week Six: Discuss Frankenstein
2/24, 2/26 Paper #2 rough draft due (Monday 2/20)
Schedule conference at Writing Center
Week Seven: Read from Poe
(readings to be announced)
3/3, 3/5 Paper #2 due (Monday 3/3)
Group Presentation on Poe (Monday 3/3)
Week Eight: Read from Carter
(readings to be announced)
3/10, 3/12 Thesis for paper #3 due Wednesday
Group Presentation on Carter (Monday 3/10)
Weeks Nine Spring Break
and Ten:
Week Eleven: Paper #3 rough draft due (Monday 3/31)
3/31, 4/2 Peer review of paper #3
Read In Cold Blood (to p. 155 Wednesday)
Group Presentation on Capote (Wednesday 4/2)
Week Twelve: Read In Cold
Blood (to p. 248 Monday, p. 343 Wednesday)
4/7, 4/9 Paper #3 due (Monday 4/7)
Final Project Proposal Due (Wednesday 4/9)
Watch Terminator films (time and place to be announced)
Week Thirteen: Discuss
Terminator films
4/14, 4/16 Read Haraway (Wednesday)
Thesis for paper #4 due Monday
Week Fourteen: Discuss
Terminator
4/21, 4/23 Paper #4 rough draft due (Monday 4/21)
peer review or writing center appointment
Annotated Bibliography for Final Project Due (Wednesday 4/23)
Week Fifteen: Work on final
projects
4/28, 4/30 Paper #4 due (Monday 4/28)
Week Sixteen: Present final
projects
5/5, 5/7
Analysis of Final Project and revisions due by 5PM Tuesday May 13th