|
AML
4624: 51: African-American Women
Writers Dr. Donna Weir-Soley Library RM 250 M.W.
3:30-4:45 Weir-sole@fiu.edu Office
Hours: Wed. 11-1 and by
appointment. Required
Texts: Their Eyes Were Watching God:
Zora Neale Hurston Sula:
Toni Morrison Annie John
: Jamaica Kincaid Crick Crack, Monkey:
Merle Hodge It Begins with Tears
: Opal Palmer Adisa The Farming of Bones:
Edwidge Danticat Diana Hacker's Handbook on Writing, 4th edition In
its title and in its theoretical concerns, this course recognizes the broader
meaning of the term African-American Literature to be inclusive of works written
by Black authors who were born throughout the Americas. Although most of the
writers listed on this syllabus currently reside within the United States, that
is not the criterion that justifies my identification of their works as
'African-American.' Rather, I am interested in the diasporic connections between
all of these writers. The aim of
this class, therefore, is to foreground social, cultural, political and literary
concerns common to New World Black writers, even as it highlights
particularities and differences among them that derive from different cultural
upbringings, socializations, class affiliations, and personal and political
world-views. To introduce each
text, the professor will give a lecture covering various aspects of the work in
question. This will include the
place the text occupies with the African-American literary canon, its reception
history, its major theoretical concerns, and its literary structure.
After the groundwork for the discussion has been laid, students will be
expected to participate in the interpretation and analysis of the work.
Student participation, then, is a major component of this class. Acquiring
the knowledge of how to do research effectively is an integral part of the study
of literary analysis. Consequently,
students will be expected to attend mandatory library sessions to hone their
research skills. These skills will be applied to the research papers assigned
for this course, and to the oral reports students will be expected to deliver in
class. For each primary work
we study, students will be expected
to use the library catalogs and/or computer research databases to locate an
essay written directly on the text.
Students will read and critically analyze the merits of this critical
essay based on his/her own interpretation of the primary text.
Students will then give an oral report on the critical essay, identifying
the critic's thesis, and the major points she/he uses to advance his/her
argument. As a follow-up to the oral reports, students will type
one page responses. These will be
due in class the day students give their oral reports. Regular
attendance at the Writing Lab is also encouraged for students who need to
work on improving their writing skills. These
students should receive assistance
with all drafts and final papers at the lab before turning them in.
The Writing Lab is located in Room 150 AC1.
Their phone number is 305-919-5927; please call to find out whether you
can drop in or whether you need to make appointments.
Week 1
Aug
28
Welcome and Introduction.
Their Eyes Were Watching God. Sept 2
Labor Day/No Class Sept. 4
Their Eyes Were Watching God Week 3
Sept. 9
TEWWG Sept. 11
Student Research/Oral Report on TEWWG Week 4
Sept. 16
Student Research/Report cont. Sept. 18
Mandatory Library Session.
Week 5
Sept. 23
Sula.
Sept. 25
Sula Week 6
Sept. 30
Student Research/Report on Sula. Oct.
2
Reports on Sula Continued. Week
7 Oct. 7
Annie John.
Oct. 9
Annie John. Week 8
Oct. 14
Student Research Report on Annie
John Oct. 16
Reports Continued. Draft of Paper Due. Week 9
Oct. 21
Crick Crack Monkey
Oct. 23
Crick Crack Monkey. Paper Due. Week 10
Oct. 28
Student Research/Report on Crick… Oct. 30
Student Research Report on Crick…
Week 11
Nov 4
It Begins With Tears Nov 6
It Begins With Tears cont. Week 12
Nov 11
Veteran's Day. No Class. Nov 13
Student Research Report on Tears Week 13
Nov 18
Report on Tears Cont. Nov 20
The Farming of Bones. Week 14
Nov 25
Research/Farming of Bones Nov 27
Report on Farming Cont. Final Draft
Due.
Week 15
Dec 2
Student Research/Farming of Bones
Dec
4
In Class Writing Workshop. Week
16 Dec
6 Final
Paper Due in Rm 350 AC1 by 5 pm Course
Requirements: Do all readings by
assigned dates. Attendance is very
important. You are allowed only one
unexcused absence; use it wisely. Two significantly late appearances
(20 minutes) to class will count as one absence. You cannot expect to
participate fully if you miss important discussions and lectures.
Three or more absences will significantly lower your grade, regardless of
the reason you are out. When you
have an emergency situation that forces you to be late, please bring paper-work
to class if you want it counted as an excused absence.
Late Papers: Late papers
will not be accepted. However, if you
are experiencing personal or job-related issues, you may ask for an extension
ahead of time. Ahead of time means
a week in advance or, in extenuating circumstances, several days
before the paper is due. If
you ask me the day before the paper is due, the extension will not be granted.
Writing
Assignments: In addition to the one
page typed reports on each text, you are expected to turn in two research
papers. Content and presentation are equally important in this class.
Papers must be neat, well organized and well researched. Your names must
be on your papers and on your research articles. Please number your pages.
Follow the MLA format for research papers (outlined in the Diana Hacker
Book or the MLA Handbook on Writing).
Pay attention to source documentation and bibliography.
For thesis building and problems with structure and/or grammar, the Diana
Hacker book is an excellent resource. First
Paper: 7-8 page research paper on a topic derived from Their Eyes Were Watching God , Sula and/or
Annie John.
Write
on at least two of the three. You
will be given some basic guidelines and suggested paper topics, but you are
expected to come up with your own thesis based on class discussions and
lectures. Two secondary sources.
No More than 3 for a paper of this length. Drafts
are not optional.
Anyone who does not turn in a draft, but turns in a flawless paper, is
subject to having that paper scrutinized closely for plagiarism. Final
Paper: 10-12
page research paper on any two
or three texts on which you have not yet written.
At least four secondary sources.
Grading
Guidelines: First Paper
20% Participation/Attendance
20% Oral Reports
20% Final Paper
40%
If you do not turn in a
final paper you will fail the course. No
Incompletes. The College of
Arts and Sciences has very strict guidelines on incompletes.
The English Department strongly discourages incompletes.
My own experience has been that students do not turn in assignments in
the one month period that the College of Arts and Sciences recommends.
In addition, IN grades should only be given to students who complete
"the bulk of the work for the course" and such is often not the case
when students ask for this option. Plagiarism is defined as submitting any piece of work written in whole or in
part by someone else as your own. It
does not matter whether that someone else is a published writer, another
student, or a family member. It is
a serious offense and, if confirmed, will result in failure of the course.
All students are urged to read the section titled "Rights and
Responsibilities of Students" located in the FIU Student Handbook that
deals with academic misconduct in all forms and includes a complete definition
of plagiarism. This Professor reserves the right to make changes to this syllabus if such changes are deemed necessary.
|
|
|