ENG104: College Writing and Rhetoric
Spring2000
Missouri Western State College
Division of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Department of English, Foreign Languages, and Journalism
Instructor:Dr. Donaher
Office:SS/C 208O
OfficeHours: MWF 9:00-10:00; 2:00-3:00 and by appointment
Phone:816-271-5964
E-mail:donahepa@griffon.mwsc.edu
URL:http://www.mwsc.edu/~engdept/faculty/donahepa.html
CoursePhilosophy and Objectives

You will have to write andput away or burn a lot of material before you are comfortable in this medium.You might as well start now and get the necessary work done. For I believethat eventually quantity will make for quality. --  Ray Bradbury

A professional writer isan amateur who didn't quit. -- Richard Bach

There are a lot of ways togo about learning about writing; one approach is to do a lot of writingand to do a lot of "writing about writing," your own and other people's.This class utilizes this approach.

At the end of English 104,you will understand that:

  • Writing can be used for differentpurposes.
  • Multiple audiences exist.
  • Writing is a recursive process.
  • There are many productive waysto generate ideas and arguments.
  • Common patterns of organizationexist.
  • Formal distinctions exist amongdifferent prose genres.
  • Polished writing keeps the reader'sattention on the message.
  • Reading is interactive.
These goals are more clearlyarticulated in the GeneralStudies English Courses website.

As part of MWSC's GeneralStudies program, this course is also designed to help you develop the "skills,knowledge, and characteristics of an educated person," as defined in theCollege Catalog, page 43.

Required Materials

Textbook:

  • Schrodes, Caroline, Harry Finestone,and Michael Shugrue. The Conscious Reader. Boston: Allyn and Bacon,1998.
To order the textbook by mailfrom the MWSC Barnes and Noble Bookstore, call Lisa at 816-271-4458.

Bookstore Hours: Monday-Thursday8:00-5:00, Friday 8:00-4:30.

Other:

  • A Student E-mail Account atMWSC. Contact the Computer Center to learn how to activate your studentaccount at 816-271-4354.
  • To participate fully in thiscourse, you must have ready internet access and be able to complete theassignments in a timely manner. Assignments are due every Wednesday, atnoon CST, and no late work is accepted, except as outlined in the CoursePolicies.
  • For word processing, you mustuse Microsoft Word '97 or earlier, or another compatible program. Compatibilitymeans that files converted from some other program to MSWord '97 retaintheir original format and layout and conform to MLA manuscript guidelines.
  • To get started, read over theCourse Policies, Course Schedule, and Assignment pages. Then, on the CourseSchedule page, click on "Getting Started" for a message from your instructorand further instructions.