syllabus mbcc brit lit i fall, 2011

8/4/2019 Syllabus Mbcc Brit Lit i Fall, 2011

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Syllabus

MASSBAYCOMMUNITYCOLLEGEProfessorLouisM.Rosenberg,PhD

Fall,2011

LI205 BRITISHLITERATUREI 3CREDITS

Myths,legends,themes,languageandrepresentativefiguresoftheEnglishliterarytraditionfromitsoriginsto

1798,includingBeowulf,Arthur,Chaucer,Hamlet,andMilton.

Lecture:3hoursperweek.Prerequisites:EN101(CompletionofEN102alsorecommended)

REQUIREDCOURSEMATERIALSTextbooks

TheLongmanAnthologyofBritishLiterature

4thEdition,vols.1A1C

Eds.DavidDamrosch,etal

Longman

Macbeth

WilliamShakespeare

(AnygoodMacbeth)

KingLear

WilliamShakespeare

(AnygoodKingLear)

Technology

DailyaccesstotheInternetandemail AbilitytoperformbasicInternetoperationsnecessarytolifeinthe21stcentury

OTHERLEARNINGRESOURCES

ONLINEYouwillbesubmittingassignments,downloadinginformation,andinteractingwithmeandother

classmembersonline. SeeTechnologysectionformoreinformation.

TO

SUCCEED

Withoutexception,thetwomostcommontraitsamongstsuccessfulstudentsisthattheyare

intellectuallycuriouswhich,inturn,naturallyclearsawayanyresistancesinwhichalesserstudent

wouldindulge. Suchresistancescomeinavarietyofforms: notenoughtime,pastfailures,lackof

purpose,etc. Successintheworkplacedoesnothappentolazy,unaffectedpeople;therefore,itis,

withoutdoubt,thatthemanyskillslearnedincollegedictateonesfuturesuccesses.

Successfulstudentsrelentlesslyseekoutanyandallresourcesthatwilladdstrengthtothatwhichtheyarecurrentlyendeavoring.

Successfulstudentsarenotonlywillingbuteagertolearnnewskills,suchashowtooperate


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MASSBAYCOMMUNITYCOLLEGE

British Literature I

Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,20112o

SUBJECTTOCHANGE

alibraryscomputersystem,howtogetthemostoutoftheirwordprocessor,etc.

Successfulstudentsrealizethatanythingthatappearsontheirtranscriptcountssuchthattheyneverputtheircoursesintoahierarchyofimportance

1.

Successfulstudentspossessaninnate,healthycompetitiveness. Successfulstudentsgetthejobdone. Period.

o Theyalwaysmeettheirdeadlines.o Ifnecessary,theyrearrangetheirschedulesinordertodevotemoretimetotheir

currentproject.

o Theystrivetoreachthehighestlevelofobjectivitysothattheycanseecompetingpointsofview.

o Theyalwayssurroundthemselveswithandlistentotheadviceofthosewhohaveproventrackrecordsinthefield(i.e.tutors,professors,etc.).

Pastfailuresdoesnotdictatefuturefailures. Infact,manysuccessfulpeopletodaywereonly

mediocrehighschoolstudents. Andtherearethosewhobecamewildlysuccessfulafterthey

droppedoutofcollege. However,nevermistaketheexceptionsastheruledoingsoiscatastrophic.

Thegreatestmindsthroughouthistoryrealizethatsuccessisonlyabyproduct:

ACADEMICRESOURCE

CENTER

AsIhavementioned,itvitaltoyoursuccessthatyouengagethefullresourcesoftheuniversitys

AcademicResourceCenter,particularlytheWritingCenter. However,youarenotlimitedtothese

resources. Youruniversityslibraryholdsworkshopsthroughoutthesemestercoveringtopicssuchas

researchmethodology,computer andInternetbasedoperations,etc.,andyouarestronglyurgedto

participateinthoseworkshopswhichaddressaskill(s)yourelacking. Althoughitisyetanothertime

commitment(usually,anhourorso),participationintheseworkshopswillsaveyoucountlesshours

oftrialanderrorduringthecompletionofassignments. Checkyouruniversityswebsite,ourcourse

website,andyourStudentHandbookformoreinformationabouttheacademicservicesprovidedtoyou.

CONTACTINGME

Iamavailabletoyouboth(quickly)afterclass,viaemailandonlinemeetings,andbyappointment.

Tocontactmeviaemail,navigatetothewebsite(lourosenberg.com/edu)andchooseLOU>

CONTACTLOU. Andtobookanappointmentwithme,navigatetothewebsiteandchooseLOU>

1Puttingcoursesintoahierarchyofimportanceisperhapsthegreatestcauseforfailure

SU

CCESS

Creativity

Healthycontroloftheego

Healthyrelationships

with

others

Insatiablecuriosity


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Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,2011

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SUBJECTTOCHANGE

BOOKANAPPOINTMENT.

LEARNINGOUTCOMES

1. DevelopfamiliaritywithfoundingtextswrittenintheEnglishlanguage.2. DevelopafamiliaritywiththethefolkwaysandmoresofearlyBritishsocietiesthroughboththeir

literatureaswellaslater,referentialtexts.

3. DevelopanunderstandingofhowtheseseminaltextshaveshapedtodaysAmericanculture.4. Compareandcontrastsignificantcultural/temporalvariationsinBritishLiterature.5. Engagequestionsofjustice,value,spiritualityandmeaningraisedbytheliterarytexts.

TEACHINGPROCEDURES&METHODOLOGY

LECTURES

a) Itisduringthelectureswhenstudentsareexpectedtoaskanyquestionsconcerninganyaspectofthecourseand/orassignments. It

is,byfar,morebeneficialforstudentstoaskquestionsofgeneral

academicconcernshere,duringthelectures,ratherthantoseeme

afterclass.

b) Itcannotbestressedenoughhowimportantitisforstudentstoattendthelectures.

PEEREDITING

a) Throughoutthesemester,Imayhavestudentsformgroupsforpeerediting. Traditionally,peereditingisbetweentwoorthreestudents

whoreviewandcommentoneachothersassignmentsbyusinga

preformattedrubric.

b) Peereditingmaybehandledcompletelyonline.STUDENTDEBATES

a) Imayassemblestudentsintotwoteamsfordebatingaparticularsubject/issue.

b) Studentswhodonotfeelcomfortablespeakinginfrontoftheclass(onateam)willhavetheopportunitytoinsteadsubmitresearchessays.

USEOFTHE

COLLEGES

ACADEMIC

RESOURCEFACILITY

TheimportanceofutilizingthecollegesWritingCentercannotbeoverstated. Studentsshouldplantowriteatleastthreedraftsofeach

essay,andthisprocessshouldbeundertakenwithatutorasitis

impossibleforonetobehisowneditorandproduceanythingoftrue

quality.


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Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,20114o

SUBJECTTOCHANGE

GRADEDISTRIBUTION

EVALUATIONOFSTUDENTPROGRESSIngradingstudentessays,Iusuallyemployarubricwhereeachdomain(grammar,logic/reason,etc.)isgivena

qualitativevalue. BecauseIdonotbelieveinmarginalia(writingendlesslyinthemargins),therubricservesas

thegradingexplanation. However,includedinmyevaluativeprocessistheexpectationthatstudentswillmake

anappointmentwithme,orseemeafterclass,shouldtheyrequirefurther,moredetailedanalysisoftheirwork.

Itisthestudentsresponsibilitytodeterminewhen(andif)anappointmentwithmeisnecessary. Andstudents

shouldneverwaittohandleanyacademicissue.

Lifehappens! Whileeverystudentisgradedequallyandobjectively,Iamcertainlywillingtoallowconcessions(suchasanextensiononaparticularassignment)shouldastudentdemonstratesjust

cause. Havingsaidthis,allstudentsareexpectedtooperateatthecollegelevelatalltimes. Nothing

lessisacceptable.

TERMEXAMS

Severaltimesthroughoutthesemester,studentswillsitforaTermExam. Normally,

theseexamsarecomposedoffiveshortanswerquestions. InevaluatingtheTerm

Exam,Iammostinterestedinthecontentofthestudentsanswerratherthan

grammar/syntaxissuesthatsaid,chronicissuesofsuchwillbereflectedinthe

grade.

TermExamsmaynotbemadeup;however,thelowestscoreis dropped.

Essays

35%

TermExams

25%

Participation

(Incl.Student

Instructives)

30%

FinalExam

10%


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Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,2011

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SUBJECTTOCHANGE

RESPONSE

PAPERS

Atthebeginningofnearlyeveryclass,youwillreceiveaResponsePaper,aformon

whichyouwillwriteoneortwoparagraphsconcerningtheparticulardays

assignment(reading,film,etc.)and/oramajortopicofpriorlectures. Thus,the

ResponsePaperisatrueevaluationnotonlyofyourperformanceinthecourse,itself,butalsoyourabilitytoquicklysynthesizeinformationtoofferacredible,

intelligentresponsetoaquestionaboutwhichyouhavenopriorknowledge. This,

theskillofthinkingquicklyonyourfeet,isanenormouslyimportantonebecauseit

demonstratesyourcompetitiveabilityofalwaysbeingatthetopofyourgame.

ResponsePapersmaynotbemadeup;however,thelowesttwoscoresaredropped.

STUDENT

INSTRUCTIVES

Aroundthesecondweekofthecourse,studentswillbeinformedoftheir

InstructiveGroups. StudentInstructivesconsistofagroupofstudentswhoengage

intheresearchandpresentationofanassignedtopic. Aseparatehandoutis

availableonthewebsite(andisdisseminatedduringthefirstclassmeetingofthe

semester)concerningStudentInstructive;however,thefollowingtwopointsare

worthyofnotehere.

AllTeammembersreceivethesamegradefortheparticularInstructive.Notethatthereisaprocedureinplacefortheteamtodealwithslackers.

AttendanceismandatorybyallstudentsinthecourseduringallscheduledStudentInstructives.

o OnepointisdeductedfromthestudentsfinalcoursegradeforeachabsenceofascheduledStudentInstructive.

FINAL

EXAMINATION

StudentswillsitforaFinalExam,whichisopennotebook,andIoftenallowstudents

toworkinsmallgroups(ofnomorethantwoorthree). Pleaseunderstandthatthe

FinalExammaynotbemadeupunderanycircumstances,whatsoeverandthatitwill

coverthefullarchofthecourse.

FURTHER

INFORMATION

Unlessotherwiseinstructed,studentsmayusetheircoursenotesonallexams

(Term,Midterm,andFinal),andIusuallyallowtheexamstobewrittenin

small,quietgroups. However,studentsmaynotuseanyelectronicdevices,

(includingcomputers,PDAs,electronicdictionaries,etc.)duringanyexambecause

allowingtheseamenitieswouldputthosewithoutthematadisadvantage.

Therefore,ifyoutakenotesonacomputer,simplyprintthemoutandbringthemto

theexam.

AttentionESLStudents: Whileyouarecertainlywelcometouseancillarymaterials(dictionary,computer,etc.)duringthelectures,youmaynotuse

themduringanytheexams. Asaforementioned,onlynotebooksare

allowed.

CONFERENCING

WITHME

Youmustbookatleastthreeappointmentswithmethroughoutthesemester.

Creditforeachmeetingisgivenonlyoncepermonth. Oneofthemeetingsis

scheduledtotakeplaceduringclassanditwillcountasoneofthethreerequired

meetings. SeetheAssignmentssectionofthissyllabusforthatschedule.


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Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,2011

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SUBJECTTOCHANGE

ATTENDANCEItisimportantthatyouarepresentforallofthelectures. Historydictatesthatgradesarealmostalways

reflectedinparitywithabsences;therefore,moreabsencesorlatearrivalswill,indeed,compromiseyourgrade.

Youareresponsibleforeverythingthatoccursinyourcourse,whetherornotyouarepresentduringaparticular

lecture,eitherinclassorvirtual(Internet). Ifyoufindthatyoumustmissaclass,itisyourresponsibilitytosee

afellowstudenttoobtainthelecturenotesaswellasanyannouncementsthatweremade. RememberthatI

mayalteranassignmentsduedateand/orlanguage,announcingsuchchangesduringclass. Ofcourse,these

changeswillalsobereflectedonthewebsite,butsuchupdatesmaynotbeimmediate.

Itisimportanttonotethatthefollowingassignmenttypesarenoteligibleformakeup.Therefore,latearrivalsandabsenteeswillmissthesegradingopportunities:

InClassAssignments(ResponsePapers,debates,etc.) TermExams MidtermandFinalExams

ASSIGNMENTPOLICIESWithoutexception,allsubmittedassignmentsmustbetyped.

ESSAYS

areoftendrafted/correctedinpeergroups. riddledwithgrammar,logic,syntax,nonsequitirissueswillnotpass.

Studentsareexpectedtohandinonlyessaysoffinalquality. Thisis

achievedbyworkingwithtutors,showingmedraftsofworkin

progress,etc.

mustconformtotheMLAstandard. ThisincludesaWorksCitedpageeveniftheonlysourceusedfortheparticularessayisoneoftheclass

texts. Inotherwords,ifyouuseit,citeit!

SUBMITTINGLATE

ESSAYS

Because30pointsareautomaticallydeducted,thehighestgradeonecan

achieveonanessaysubmittedlateisa70. So,besuretomeetyourdeadlines!

PLAGIARISM

Plagiarismistheuseofsomeoneelsework/intellectualpropertywithoutgiving

credit. IfIsuspectplagiarism,Iwillrequireyoutoengagewithmeinanoral

defenseoftheessay. IfaftertheoraldefenseIbelievethatyoudid,infact,

plagiarize,youwillfailthecourse. Generally,Ihandleplagiarismissues

internally,withoutinvolvingtheadministration.

LATEASSIGNMENTSYoumustmeetallofyourdeadlines! SeeSubmittingLateEssays,above.With

theexceptionoflateessays,lateassignmentsareneveraccepted.

BACKUPCOPIESAND

THEARCHIVINGOF

ALLSUBMITTED

ASSIGNMENTS

Youarerequiredtobackupthroughoutthecourse(or,inthecaseofwritten

assignments,keepcopiesof)alloftheassignmentsthatyousubmitandthatare

returnedtoyou. Further,youmusthavereadyaccesstothesebackupsshould

Irequestthem. Suchbackups,however,donotinanyway(includingthe

gradingorregardingofanassignment)supersedemyauthorityasfinalarbiter

forthecourse.


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Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,2011

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SUBJECTTOCHANGE

TECHNOLOGYYourclasswebsitefunctionsasthecentralhubforthecourse. Itiswhereassignments,discussions,scheduling

ofappointments,courseannouncements,communications,bookingappointmentswithme, etc.coalesce.

Therefore,youmusthaveaccesstothesiteonadailybasisasyouareresponsibleforitsofficialcontenti.e.

announcements,changestoassignments,classcancellations,etc.

GeneralTechnologyRequirements:

Technologicalissuesofanykindarenotvalidexcusesformissingdeadlines,announcements,etc.2 Thosewhodonotownacomputerwillhavetomakedailyvisitstotheiruniversityscomputerlab,their

locallibrary,etc.

Timemanagementisoftheutmostimportanceyoushouldneverworkuptotheeleventhhour. Thisisespeciallyimportantconcerningthecompositionandtimelysubmissionofassignmentsas

technologicalissuesdooccur. Youwillalwayshaveathreedaywindowduringwhichtosubmityour

onlineassignments.

Again,Technologicalissuesofanykindarenotvalidexcusesformissingdeadlines,announcements,etc.

ThosewhoaretechnologicallychallengedareencouragedtovisittheiruniversityscomputerlabimmediatelyandworkwithalabtechnicianonthebasicfunctionsoftheInternetandword

processing. TherearealsofreecommunitycoursesonthebasicoperationsoftheInternet,the

computeranditsuniversalsoftware(wordprocessing,browsingtheweb,etc.). Oursisa

technologicalworld,andtobetheleastbitcompetitiveonemusthavemasteryoversuch

fundamentalsasreading/replying/writingemails,uploadingfiles,usingawordprocessor,using

asearchengine(suchasGoogle),aswellastheabilitytointeractwithaparticularwebsites

technology(suchassubmittingforms,etc.).

2Technologicalissuesinclude,butarenotlimitedto: Internetconnectivityissues(wherethestudentcannotaccesstheInternetduetoadisruptionof

service,whetherornotitisthefaultofthestudentortheserviceorcomputerorsoftwarethathe/sheisusing);lossofdataduetoanunforeseen

malfunctionofcomputerhardwareorsoftwareortransmission(Internet)errors;useofsoftware/hardwarethatisnotcompatiblewithProfessor

Rosenbergsservers;compatibilityissueswherethestudentsassignmentcannotbeaccessedbyProfessorRosenberg;emaildelaysofanykind;emailsnot

receivedduetospamcontrolsoftwareonthestudentscomputer/emailservice;Internetpageerrorsofanykind;filesizeissueswhereastudentsfileis

rejectedbecauseitexceedsthemaximumuploadsize;theuseofimpropersoftware(asoutlinedherein);etc.


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SyllabusFall,2011

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SUBJECTTOCHANGE

FILMSBelow,youwillfindthefilmrosterforyourcourse. Onceagain,itisimportanttonotethatyouareresponsible

forscreeningthefilmsyourselfwewillnotwatchthefilmsinclass. Seeyourcourseswebsiteforlinkstoview

them;thecostforarentalisabout$2.99each. Alternately,youmayalsopurchasethem.

SirGawainandtheGreenKnight SeeWebsite

IronMan http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0209144/

XMen http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120903/

BrokebackMountain http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0388795/

DonnieDarko http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0246578/

Avatar http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499549/


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Dr.LouRosenberg

SyllabusFall,2011

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SUBJECTTOCHANGE

ASSIGNMENTSBelowisageneralscheduleofassignments. Thisschedulewillalmostcertainlychangeasweprogressthrough

thesemester,sobesuretocheckyourcourseswebsiteforuptothemomentinformation.

Nottoworry! Youwillalwayshaveplentyofadvancednoticeconcerninganytypeofchangetothesyllabus.

Unlessotherwiseindicated(below),studentsarenotresponsibleforanyoftheassignmentsinthetext(s). Allassignmentsmustbecompletedbytheirduedates. Thisincludesallreadingsandfilmscreeningsyoumusthavereadthe

assignedpagesand/orscreenedtheassignedfilmsbeforeitisscheduled.

Allessayassignmentlanguageisfoundonyourcourseswebsite. EssaysarealwaysdueonFridays,asassigned. TermExamsareadministeredonMondays,asassigned.

WEEK

OF TOPIC ASSIGNMENTS

9/4 Introductiontothecourse,etc. FILMS ESSAYS STUDENTINSTRUCTURE TERMEXAMS9/11

pp.330 Beowulf

9/18 SirGawainandtheGreenKnight SirGawainandtheGreenKnightIronMan

9/25 TheCanterburyTales10/2 TheSecondPlayoftheShepherds

TheYorkPlayoftheCrucifixion Saw

10/9

10/16 pp.627649 SirThomasWyatt BrokebackMountain

10/23 Utopia TheFaerieQueene Avatar

10/30 ElizabethI TheTragicalHistoryofDr.Faustus

11/6 WilliamShakespeare KingLear XMen

11/13 WilliamShakespeare Macbeth

11/20 JohnDonne ParadiseLost DonnieDarko

11/27 pp.19811998 MacFlecknoe

12/4 JonathanSwift 26132644

12/11 CourseWrapUpPartingComments,etc. FinalExamination

syllabus mbcc brit lit i fall, 2011

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