ENGL 5800 SYLLABUS 

FALL 2009

Instructor: Dr. Susan Copeland

CRN: 87801

Section: 1

Dates/Times/Location: M 6:30-9:15 p.m. in Clayton Hall T215

E-mail: susancopeland@clayton.edu

Home Page: http://a-s.clayton.edu/scopeland/index.htm

Office: A&S 210N

Phone: 678-466-4744

Office Hours:  MW 2-3 p.m., MW 4-6 p.m., or by appt.

COURSE DESCRIPTION 

A graduate-level seminar on special topics important to professional, postgraduate liberal studies. Typical areas
of emphasis will include significant literary movements within a particular era of American, British or post-
colonial cultures, major authors, and/or attention to a specific genre. Course content will include some
attention to historical context, research methods, and applied critical theory.

This particular course will study novels and films derived from these novels.
 

COURSE TEXTS

The texts for this course are Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper, and Emma by Jane Austen.

LEARNER OUTCOMES FOR ENGL 5800

To pass this course, students will:

• Examine the cultural and historical contexts of various novels and subsequent films based upon them.
• Synthesize characteristics of novels and films through the lens of critical theory.
• Demonstrate critical thinking skills in collating and synthesizing research materials.
• Demonstrate successful writing and speaking skills as part of the communication outcomes for the graduate education program.

REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING POLICY

Your final grade will be determined by the following, all of which must be completed in order to complete the course:

Discussion participation and Attendance = 30 %

Research presentations = 30 %

Research paper = 40 %

Research papers will be graded according to the CSU Writing Guidelines, which are linked here.  Presentations will be evaluated according to the CSU Speaking Criteria, which are linked here.

CSU Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend and participate in every class meeting. Instructors establish specific policies relating to absences in their courses and communicate these policies to the students through the course syllabi. Individual instructors, based upon the nature of the course, determine what effect excused and unexcused absences have in determining grades and upon students' ability to remain enrolled in their courses. The university reserves the right to determine that excessive absences, whether justified or not are sufficient cause for institutional withdrawals or failing grades.

ATTENDANCE, ROLL CALL, AND USE OF PERIPHERAL DEVICES

You are, of course, expected to attend all classes. Roll will be called during each class period.  Students who miss as many as two classes seriously jeopardize their grades through lack of attendance.  Late papers will not be accepted without a physician's, or equally serious, documentation. The same is true with regard to missed exams; they cannot be made up without an acceptable and documented reason for absence. While attending class, you are expected to disable any potentially disruptive devices such as cell phones and pagers. 

ACADEMIC HONESTY

Plagiarism involves copying another person’s words or ideas without citing the source with appropriate documentation.  Any student who plagiarizes fails the plagiarized assignment.  A plagiarized paper is considered an incomplete assignment.  Any student who cheats on an exam also fails the exam and the course.

ACCOMMODATIONS

To obtain this document and all other course materials in an alternative format, contact Disability Services by telephone at 678-466-5445 or by e-mail at disabilityservices@clayton.edu.

MIDTERM GRADE STATEMENT

Midterm grades will be posted before the deadline for withdrawal without academic penalty.  They will be calculated by the average of each student’s graded work at that time.

COMPUTER POLICY 

All students at Clayton State are required to have access to a laptop computer and to use that computer actively in all courses for e-mail access, electronic submission of papers, and other uses.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

Below you will find texts and movies listed on the day for which you will be responsible for them in class; I will provide the excerpt from Gone With the Wind.  Since I will be making formative assessments and possibly adjusting the schedule based on these as needed through the course of the semester, please check this schedule regularly for alterations.

AUGUST

17: Course Introduction; Excerpt from Gone with the Wind (I will provide this)

24: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg 

31: Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (the 1991 film) 

SEPTEMBER

7: NO CLASS: LABOR DAY

14: The Color Purple by Alice Walker

21: The Color Purple (the 1985 film)

28: Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor

OCTOBER

5:  NO CLASS -- RESEARCH PROJECT WORK

9: OCTOBER 13 (NOT A CLASS DAY:  LAST DAY TO WITHDRAW WITHOUT ACADEMIC PENALTY

12: Wise Blood (the 1979 film)

19: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

26: The Scarlet Letter (the 1995 film)

NOVEMBER

2: The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper

9: The Last of the Mohicans (the 1992 film); Research papers due

16: Emma by Jane Austen

23: Emma (the 1996 film)

25-29: THANKSGIVING HOLIDAYS 

30: Presentations

DECEMBER

4: Presentations