|
|
JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY
COURSE CODE: "EN 285"
COURSE NAME: "Creative Writing and Literature: How to Read Like a Writer"
SEMESTER & YEAR:
Summer Session I 2013
|
SYLLABUS
INSTRUCTOR:
Geoghegan Elizabeth
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS:
MTWTH 11:00-13:00
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS:
45
CREDITS:
3
PREREQUISITES:
Prerequisite: EN 110 with a grade of C or above
OFFICE HOURS:
|
|
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
To supplement their traditional university study of composition and literary analysis, this course provides students with the opportunity to develop skills at reading literature as a source of help in improving their own writing. Designed primary for students interested in creative writing, this course focuses on the reading of literature from the point of view of the practice, or craft, of fiction writing.
|
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
Students will study Francine Prose’s Reading Like a Writer to develop their skills as readers of literary fiction with an eye to emulating the skills of accomplished writers. This course is based on the assumption that writers, out of necessity, read literature differently from critics. While critics, scholars, and students of literature typically read to understand or interpret a text, writers read with an eye to emulation of craft. Writers, to learn from their successful predecessors, read meticulously--letter by letter, word by word, sentence by sentence, paragraph by paragraph, line of dialogue by line of dialogue, page by page.
Promotional text that accompanied Francine Prose’s 2007 book Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them, the primary text for this course, summarized Prose’s aim in writing the book:
Long before there were creative-writing workshops and degrees, how did aspiring writers learn to write? By reading the work of their predecessors and contemporaries, says Francine Prose. In Reading Like a Writer, Prose invites you to sit by her side and take a guided tour of the tools and the tricks of the masters. She reads the work of the very best writers—Dostoyevsky, Flaubert, Kafka, Austen, Dickens, Woolf, Chekhov—and discovers why their work has endured. She takes pleasure in the long and magnificent sentences of Philip Roth and the breathtaking paragraphs of Isaac Babel; she is deeply moved by the brilliant characterization in George Eliot's Middlemarch. She looks to John Le Carré for a lesson in how to advance plot through dialogue, to Flannery O'Connor for the cunning use of the telling detail, and to James Joyce and Katherine Mansfield for clever examples of how to employ gesture to create character. She cautions readers to slow down and pay attention to words, the raw material out of which literature is crafted.
|
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Through the study of Francine Prose’s technique of slow, meticulous reading, students completing this course will have developed the reading skills necessary to learn how to improve their own creative writing by the analysis of literary fiction and be able to describe the unique stylistic and craft characteristics of the fiction they read.
|
TEXTBOOK:
| Book Title | Author | Publisher | ISBN number | Library Call Number | Comments | Format | Local Bookstore | Online Purchase |
| The Complete Stories | Flannery O'Connor | Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Reissue edition (January 1, 1971) | ISBN-10: 0374515360 | | Almost corner bookstore | | | |
| Reading Like A Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them | Francine Prose | Harper Perennial | 978-0-06-077705-5 | | Amost corner bookstore | | | |
|
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
|
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
| Assignment | Guidelines | Weight |
| Presentations | Students are required to make presentations to the class during the term | 25% |
| | | |
| Midterm Paper | Students are required to write a midterm paper for the course | 25% |
| Final Term Paper | Students are required to write a final paper for the course. | 25% |
| Literary Events | In lieu of a final examination for the course, students are required to attend at least two (2) events held by the Institute for Creative Writing and Literary Translation during the term and to write a brief review/response to the chosen event. | 15% |
| Participation | Students are required to participate in daily discussions of the selected works and to participate inin all classroom activities, as well as complete all in-class exercises and assignments | 10% |
-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Students are required to attend all scheduled class meetings. Students are allowed two absences during the summer term. Each additional absence beyond the two allowed, with the exception of absences excused by the Dean's office, will result in the reduction in the final grade for the course by 5%. Students arriving to class after attendance has been taken will be counted as late. Two late arrivals will count as an absence. Please refer to the JCU catalog for the attendance and absence policies.
|
|
|
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic
dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred.
In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment,
may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of
academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student
who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from
the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation
to the President, who will make the final decision.
|
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap.
Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning
of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
|
|
|
SCHEDULE
|
|
|
Below you will find a provisional schedule for the class. Specific due dates and more additional reading assignments & reading materials will be made available the first day of the course. “Text” refers to Reading Like A Writer by Francine Prose
Week 1: Syllabus distribution & Course Intro to Close Reading & Words
May 20-23 Reading: Text Ch. 1 “Close Reading,” and Ch. 2 “Words”
Week 2: Sentences and Paragraphs
May 27-30 Reading: Text Ch. 3 “Sentences” and Ch. 4 “Paragraphs”
Assignment 1 due (Midterm Paper)
Week 3: Narration and Character
June 3-6 Reading: Text Ch. 5 “Narration” and ch. 6“Character”
Student Presentations
Week 4: Dialogue and Details
June 10-13 Reading: Text Ch. 6, “Dialogue” and Ch. 7 “Details”
Student Presentations
Week 5: Close Reading in Practice
June 17-20; Readings TBD
Assignment 2 due (Final Paper)
|
|
|