English 2010-010 Professor Mary Klages
Introduction to Literary Theory Hellems 121
M,W 10-10:50 am Office Hours: M, W 12-1:30
Hellems 252 and by appointment 303 492 7891
REQUIRED TEXTS
Negri, ed. Great American Short Stories
Klages, Literary Theory: A Guide for the Perplexed
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Attendance at all lectures and recitation sections is required. Though we will not take attendance in the lectures, be aware that experiencing the lectures is essential to your performance in the course. Attendance will be taken in recitation sections; more than two unexcused absences from recitation will have a negative effect on your final grade for the course.
Reserve
Completion of all reading assignments and written assignments is required; assigned reading should be finished BEFORE the class for which the reading is scheduled. Be advised that much of this material may require a second or even third reading.
Worksheets: There will be five worksheets assigned during the semester, as marked on the syllabus. These worksheets will consist of a question or set of questions which you will answer in essay form. Each worksheet must be typed, double-spaced, with reasonable (1”) margins and a reasonable font size. EACH WORKSHEET MUST BE A MINIMUM OF TWO FULL TYPED PAGES LONG. Worksheets will be evaluated for understanding of course material, clarity of expression, and use of the readings, lectures, and discussions. The graders will be looking for evidence of your serious engagement with the concepts and principles of the various theories we examine. This does not mean that you have to come up with original critiques or syntheses of these ideas; nor do you have to write a formal essay with a thesis statement and argument. Rather, these worksheets are places where you will wrestle with your understanding of the theories, trying to put the ideas in your own words and to come up with your own applications of those ideas. Each worksheet will be worth a maximum of 20 points toward your final grade. Worksheets will be due in class as marked on the syllabus, and should be turned in to your TA. LATE WORKSHEETS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
Exams: There will be a take-home midterm and a final
exam, as marked on the syllabus. Each will be worth a maximum of 100 points
toward your final grade. The midterm will cover material from the beginning of
the course to the exam date; the final
will cover material from the midterm to the end of the course. The final exam
for this course is scheduled for Monday, May 5 from
Final Grade: Your final grade for the course will be determined by the sum of your total points for the worksheets and exams and performance in the recitation sections. One-third of a letter grade will be deducted from your final grade for every unexcused absence from recitation beyond the two allowed. We will use a standard ten-point scale (A+ = 97-100, A= 94-96, A- = 90-93; B+=87-89, B=84-86, B- = 80-83; C+=77-79, C=74-76, C- =70-73, etc.) to determine letter grades.
OTHER MATTERS
Teaching Assistants: This is (obviously!) a large lecture course;
there are three Teaching Assistants (TAs) who will run the recitation sections
and assist the professor with lectures and exams. These TAs will be grading
most of your work; they will hold regular office hours each week. Get to know
your TA, who will be your best source of information and clarification. Feel
free to direct any questions you have to your TA as well as to the professor.
Each TA will be available during stated office hours and via email.
Missed Classes: If you miss class for whatever reason, it is your responsibility to find out what went on from the other students, the TAs, or from the professor. Copies of all course material, including handouts, worksheets, and exams, will be available on the course website. Should you miss a class when an assignment is due, talk to your TA about when and where to turn it in. If you know in advance that you will miss certain dates, please inform your TA as soon as possible so that we can make arrangements to make up for missed work. We will make every effort to accommodate students who must miss class for any religious observances; please let me and/or your TA know at least a week in advance when you are planning to be absent.
Web Site: There is a website for this course, under construction. All course material, including the syllabus, worksheets, and exams will be posted on this site as they are created. I will also place my lecture notes on the website, as soon as possible after the live lecture has been given. The notes are there for you to refer to as you study, not to replace attendance at the live lecture. Be aware that we will spend a lot of time in class asking questions and going over concepts in ways that will NOT be reflected in the lecture notes. Don’t miss out on the dynamics of the classroom interaction!
Complaints or Problems: Whenever you feel something isn’t working as well as you’d like—whether it’s the class structure, the discussions, the assignments, grades, or your own efforts—PLEASE TELL SOMEONE ABOUT IT!! Talk to me, or your TA, about it; scribble a note (anonymous if you like), send an email, leave a voicemail message, stop by office hours, set up an appointment outside of office hours—however you choose to do it, LET SOMEONE KNOW if something isn’t working for you. A large class, even with recitations, can be intimidating, and the only way we can fix problems is if we know what’s wrong. We’d much rather hear about problems during the semester, when we can do something to make things better for you, than on the FCQs when it’s too late.
Disabilities: Students with any forms of disabilities, including non-visible ones such as chronic illness, learning disabilities, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders, or psychiatric disabilities are encouraged to discuss with me appropriate accommodations for that disability. Arrangements for such accommodations must be made during the first two weeks of class.
Honor Code: All students are expected to know what is required of them by the University Honor Code. Specifically, all students are expected to know what constitutes appropriate classroom behavior and what constitutes plagiarism. Disrespect and plagiarism will not be tolerated in any form. Plagiarism on any assignment will earn the student a zero for that. For more information on the Honor Code, please see http://www.colorado.edu/academics/honorcode/index.htm
SYLLABUS
Monday January 14: Introduction. What the heck is this class about anyway?
Wednesday January 16: Humanist Literary Theory.
UNIT ONE: STRUCTURALISM
Wednesday January 23: Structuralism and Saussure. Read
Ferdinand de Saussure, “Course on General Linguistics,” in
Lecture notes: Ferdinand de Saussure
Monday January 28: Saussure. Read also Klages, pp. 34-41.
Wednesday January 30: Read Claude Levi-Strauss, “The Structural Study of Myth,” in A&S pp. 809-822. Lecture notes: "The Structural Study of Myth" and Other Structuralist Ideas
Monday February 4: Levi-Strauss. Read also Klages, pp. 41-46.
UNIT TWO: DECONSTRUCTION
Wednesday February 6: Structuralism/Poststructuralism.
Begin reading Jacques Derrida,
"“Structure,
Sign, and Play in the Discourse of the Human Sciences",” in A&S
pp. 83-94.
Monday February 11: Derrida. Read also Klages, pp. 53-62.
UNIT THREE: PSYCHOANALYSIS
Wednesday February 13: Psychoanalysis and Sigmund Freud
Monday February 18:
Sigmund Freud. Read “Some Psychological Consequences of the Anatomical
Distinction Between the Sexes” and “Beyond the Pleasure Principle,” both on
e-reserve.
Wednesday February 20: Freud and Lacan . Read also Klages, pp. 63-73. Begin reading Jacques Lacan, "The Mirror Stage," in A&S pp. 734-738.
Monday February 25: Lacan. Read also Klages, pp. 73-86.
Wednesday February 27: Lacan. WORKSHEET
#3 DUE!
UNIT FOUR: FEMINIST THEORY
Monday March 3: Theorizing Gender. Read Sandra Gilbert, “Literary Paternity,” in A&S pp. 486-496 and Klages pp. 91
Wednesday March 5: Read Helene Cixous, “The Laugh of the Medusa,” in A&S pp. 309-320.
Monday, March 10: Cixous. MIDTERM EXAM DUE!
Wednesday March 12: Cixous. Read also Klages, pp. 95-106.
UNIT FIVE: DISCOURSE AND IDEOLOGY
Monday March 17: Marxism and Ideology. Read Louis Althusser, "“Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses"” in A&S pp. 239-250.
Wednesday March 19: Althusser. Read also Klages, pp. 126-135.
Monday March 31: Read Mikhail Bakhtin, “Discourse in the Novel,” in A&S pp. 665-678.
Wednesday April 2: Bakhtin. Read also Klages, pp. 135-142. WORKSHEET #4 DUE.!
Monday April 7: Read Michel
Foucault , from Discipline and Punish, on e-reserve
Wednesday April 9: Foucault. Read also Klages, pp. 142-145.
UNIT SIX: RACE AND POSTCOLONIALISM
Monday April 14: Read Henry Louis Gates, Jr. “The Signifying Monkey,” on e-reserve, and Klages pp. 149-152.
Wednesday April 16: Read Edward Said, “Orientalism,” on e-reserve and Klages, pp. 152-156. WORKSHEET #5 DUE!
Monday April 21: Read Gloria Anzaldua, “Borderlands/La
Frontera,” on e-reserve, and Klages, pp. 162-163.
UNIT SEVEN: POSTMODERNISM
Wednesday April 23: Postmodernism? Read Klages, pp. 164-177.
Monday, April 28: Read Deleuze and Guattari, “A Thousand Plateaus,” on e-reserve.
More on Postmodernism and D&G
Wednesday April 30: Deleuze and Guattari.
Course Final Exam scheduled for Monday May 5,
Take-Home Final Exam due by 7 p.m. Monday May 5