Missouri Western State College
Department of English, Foreign Languages, and Journalism
ENG 210 Approaches to Literature: Origin and Direction
Section 02 10:00-10:50am, M W F, SS/C 219
Section 03 11:00-11:50am, M W F, SS/C 219
Spring 2000
Instructor: Dennis Chepurnov
Office: SS/C 213
Office Hours: M, W & F 12:00-1:00pm; T 1:30-3:30pm and by appointment
Phone: 271-5812 (during office hours)
e-mail: chepurno@griffon.mwsc.edu
Text: The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 5th ed.
Boston:Bedford/St. Martin's, 1999.
Course Objectives
(see also the ENG 210 departmental web page:
http://www.missouriwestern.edu/EFLJ/eng210.asp)
In this course you will:
study fiction, poetry, and drama
learn conventions of literary terminology and theory
learn different approaches to literary criticism
learn to analyze works of literature
employ formal conventions of writing literary research/analysis papers
Attendance Policy
Attendance is expected (be sure to sign the roster daily). Every four absences
(unless excused and made-up) will decrease your final grade by a letter.
Students with Disabilities Policy
Any student in this course who has a disability that requires any special
consideration should make an appointment to meet with me as soon as possible
to discuss class requirements.
Assignments and Grading Policy
Three papers (Fiction, Poetry, Drama) x100 pts each == 300 pts
Reading journal (follow the attached guidelines) & Exercises == 100 pts
Midterm Exam and Final Exam x100 pts each == 200 pts
600 pts total: A (600-540);B (539-480);C (479-420);D (419-360);F (359-0)
Academic Honesty Policy
You are expected to do your own work in this course. Any case of
cheating/plagiarism will result in no credit (0) for that assignment and may
result in a disciplinary action by the College.
Tentative Calendar
W 1/19 Course, Texts, Literature
F 1/21 Introduction (1-6), Ch 1 (9-13), Ch 37 (2021-5)
M 1/24 Ch 3 (60-8), Dubus (81-94)
W 1/26 Formalism (2025-7), Faulkner (480-94), Ferguson (500-1)
F 1/28 Ch 4 (97-102), Hawthorne (306-19)
M 1/31 Biographical Criticism (2027-9), Melville (112-37), Hawthorne (138)
W 2/2 Ch 2 (40-43), Ch 38 (2063-81)
F 2/4 Ch 5 (143- 52), Dib, Camus (Handout)
M 2/7 Ch 6 (174-9), Chekhov (185-96), Oates (199-212)
W 2/9 Ngugi, Kanafani (Handout)
F 2/11 Psychological Criticism (2029-31), Wilson (497-99), Jen (642-53)
M 2/14 Historical (Literary History, Marxist) Criticism (2031-33), DeMott (495-7), London (H)
W 2/16 New Historicism & Cultural Criticism (2033-35), Joyce (507-522)
F 2/18 Ch 7 (215-7), O'Connor (369-73, 381-92)
M 2/21 No Class – President's Day
W 2/23 Mythological Criticism (2037-9), O'Connor (407-426)
F 2/25 Ch 8 (243-9), Mishima (593-609)
M 2/28 Gender Criticism (2035-7), Yoko (Handout)
W 3/1 Ch 9 (268-72), O'Brien (555-64)
F 3/3 Reader Response & Deconstruction (2039-43), Munro (442-54, 474-5(Ross), 477-8)
M 3/6 Ch 14 (671-91), Salter (703-5)
W 3/8 Ch 16 (717-27, 746-8), Ch 17 (752-9), Auden (1076-7), Neruda (1141-2)
F 3/10 Midterm Examination
M 3/13 - F 3/17 No Class – Spring Break
M 3/20 Ch 18 (775-84), Ch 19 (797-806), Ch 15 (710-6)
W 3/22 Ch 20 (826-38), Ch 21 (856-63)
F 3/24 Ch 22 (876-901)
M 3/27 Ch 23 (902-24)
W 3/29 Ch 28 (1169-95)
F 3/31 Ch 31 – Shakespeare (1316-26), Hamlet (Act I: 1382-1406)
M 4/3 Shakespeare (Acts II&III: 1407-46)
W 4/5 Shakespeare (Acts IV&V: 1447-80)
F 4/7 Ch 32 (1559-63), A Doll House (Acts I, II: 1563-98)
M 4/10 A Doll House (1598-1612), Ch 33 (1627-36)
W 4/12 Ch 29, Ch 33 (1636-43)
F 4/14 Williams (Scenes I-V: 1864-86)
M 4/17 Williams (1886-1910)
W 4/19 Ch 35 – Hwang (1672-96)
F 4/21 Hwang (1696-1728)
M 4/24 Ch 28 (1196-1209), Ch 1(18-23)
W4/26, F4/28, M 5/1 Film as Text, Drama, Literature
Reading Journals
We will be reading several types of texts in this class – literature, literary
theory, and literary criticism, and your journal should be your response to the
assigned reading. Every journal entry should have your name and the title of
the work/chapter on it. Journals will be collected at the beginning of class
every day. No late journals will be accepted.
A journal entry may be any one of the following:
– your exploration of the emotional effects created by the work
– a connection between the work and personal experiences
– your response to the moral/thematic issues raised in/by the work
– your evaluation of/response to the literary theory introduced in the chapter
or critical theory applied to the work
– a correlation with relevant works from music, art, science or other disciplines
– a comparison, using any of the above as guidelines, to any other work(s) we read.
Sometimes you also may be asked to respond along the lines of a specific
question or through an exercise. I encourage you to try out various ways of
responding throughout this semester. In any case, your journal entry must not
be simply a summary of the work.
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