Dr. B. Ayne Cantrell
Last Taught Fall 2002

PREREQUISITES: English 2030 (The Experience of Literature) fulfills three of the twelve hours required for General Studies English. Prerequisites are six hours of composition (English 1010 & 1020 or comparable substitute credit). Also English 2030 is a prerequisite for English 2130, 2230, or 2330. Important Notice: You cannot be enrolled in English 1010, 1020, 2130, 2230, or 2330 while also taking English 2030.

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES: In English 2030 we will read a variety of world literature (American, English, Irish, Russian, Norwegian, Greek, etc.) and three different genres (fiction, poetry, and drama) dating from 400 BC to contemporary times. The primary objective of our course of study is the understanding and appreciation of literature gained from critical reading and writing. To accomplish this goal, the course is divided into three units of study. Unit One focuses on fiction and its distinguishing characteristics, Unit Two on poetry, and Unit Three on drama. Essentially, in each unit of study we will discover how literature works to convey feeling and embody meaning and how literature helps us analyze and understand human experience. More specifically, you will learn

REQUIRED TEXT: Michael Meyer’s The Bedford Introduction to Literature, (6th. ed.)

SUGGESTED SUPPLEMENTAL TEXTS: Harbrace Handbook (14^th ed.) & Random House College Dictionary

Reading—There will be daily reading assignments, including short stories, poems, and plays, from The Bedford. Since class discussion depends on your completion of reading assignments, it is imperative that assignments be read when assigned. In the rare instances when you have not read the assignment, you should tell me before class begins that you are not prepared to discuss the reading.

Writing—(1) Three essays, one for each unit of study--fiction, poetry, drama, (2) three examinations, one for each unit of study, which will combine multiple choice questions with short essay discussions, (3) twenty-one multiple choice, reading check quizzes over reading assignments from The Bedford, and (4) occasional in-class and WebCT assignments for class participation credit.

Speaking—You should always be prepared to discuss the literature assigned. Also occasionally you will participate in informal small group discussions about the literature for class participation credit.

An Overview of the Semester’s Work—

COURSE POLICIES:

Alternative Reading Assignments—The readings in this course are standard assignments in literature courses at this level of study. No alternate reading assignments will be given.

Accommodation for Students with Disabilities—If you have a disability that may require assistance or accommodation, or you have questions related to any accommodations for testing, note takers, readers, etc., please speak with me as soon as possible and present the appropriate documentation from the Office of Disable Students, KUC 120 (898-2783).

Attendance/Tardiness/Class Participation Credit— A student who misses a class because of a university sanctioned trip (debate team, band, athletic team, etc.) must arrange for completion of missed work prior to the absence. Otherwise, I expect you to attend all classes and always to arrive on time. Students who miss class often rarely do well on my examinations; plus, they miss the in-class assignments that could have earned them class participation credit. To earn class participation credit (15% of your course grade), you must complete three-fourths of the class participation activities (WebCT assignments and in-class writings and discussion groups). The more activities you participate in the more credit you earn (e.g. if you complete all activities, you earn 100 points, miss 1 = 90 points, miss 2 = 80).

Late Work—Quizzes and class participation activities cannot be made up. Otherwise, unexcused late work will be penalized one letter grade for each class period late. Usually I will not accept work more than one week late. If you wish me to consider excusing late work, you must put the request in writing and indicate why the late work should be excused.

Essay Grading—In order for the essays to receive a C or better, they must meet the following criteria:

1. A clear and appropriate thesis statement, usually in the introductory paragraph
2. An adequate development of the thesis by citing numerous examples and quotations from the literary text
3. An organized, logical, and coherent development of the essay’s thesis and the smooth integration of quotations into the fabric of the student’s own words and ideas
4. The effective construction of sentences and paragraphs and careful selection of words and phrases appropriate to the topic and tone of the essay
5. A freedom from multiple errors in grammar, usage, punctuation, spelling, and in the mechanics of citing quotations and documenting sources correctly (You are expected to edit your writing well and to avoid the following errors especially: misspellings, sentence fragments, comma splice and run-on sentences, disagreements of subjects and verbs and pronoun and antecedents, misuse of principal parts of verbs, and omission or misuse of the apostrophe.)

A serious weakness in any one of the five areas or a minor weakness in two of the areas will limit the essay to a grade no higher than a D. The grades of B and A will be given to work that not only meets the above criteria but also combines an insightful analysis/interpretation of literature with a writing style that is clear, concise, memorable.

Final Course Grade—Your course grade will be based on these averages:

45% Three examinations (15% each)

30% Three essays (10% each)

10% Reading check quizzes

15% Class participation

I will use the following scale to determine grades on assignments; however, course grades will be NOT be recorded as plus or minus grades.

A (4.0) 93-100
A- (3.7) 90-92
B+ (3.3) 87-89
B (3.0) 83-86
B- (2.7) 80-82
C+ (2.3) 77-79
C (2.0) 73-77
C- (1.7) 70-72
D+ (1.3) 67-69
D (1.0) 63-66
D- (0.7) 60-62
F (0-.6) 0-59

In addition to the quality of work, the following factors will affect your grade in the course: (1) All three examinations must be completed to earn course credit, (2) All three essays must be completed to earn course credit, and (3) Grammatical and mechanical errors (including typing errors) will lower grade up to 25% on all written work.

WEBCT ACCESS: By signing up for my English 2030, you are automatically enrolled in a web-enhanced course, which means that you will be able to access our course materials in WebCT twenty-four hours a day (especially handy if you lose your syllabus/schedule or other class materials and if you want to work ahead on assignments). This semester you will have four WebCT assignments to complete for class participation credit. I encourage you to take advantage of WebCT mail (an internal email component where you can email me and fellow students) and the Study Tools section (where I provide examination study guides and additional resources for our course content).

To access WebCT Experience of Literature, follow these steps:

1. If you have already activated your Student Computer Account (if you have used MTSU Webmail for email, you have already activated your account), skip to #3.
2. If you have not activated your Student Computer Account, do the following:

3. Log on to the MTSU homepage: http://www.mtsu.edu.
4. At top, click on "PipelineMT."
5. Type in your "User ID Name" (the user name you received when you activated your Student Computer Account, which is the first part of your MTSU email address).
6. Type in your PAC # (NOT your email password) for your Pipleline "Password." Your PAC number is the one you use to register for classes. It is a 4 digit number comprised of your birth month number plus birthday number (I was born on May 22, so my PAC number, if I had one, would be 0522).
7. Click "OK."
8. On the "My Pipeline Welcome" page, click "My Courses."
9. On your course listings page, click Experience of Literature (students in both sections of my 2030 are merged into one section for WebCT purposes).
10. To logout of the WebCT course, click "Return to Pipeline" top right of course page and then click "log out" button top left of Pipeline page. For security reasons, it is important to log out.

WEBCT MAIL—Communicate via email with me ONLY through WebCT Mail. All email communication is internal with WebCT, which means you have to be in WebCT to send or receive email messages for class purposes. Besides the email assignments noted on our syllabus schedule which follows, you may want to use WebCT Mail to notify me of your absence from class, ask for extended time to complete assignments, or to send assignments as attachments when you cannot be in class to submit the work. To send an email message to me, login to our course WebCT Experience of Literature (follow steps 3-9 above). On the homepage’s left menu under "Communication Tools," click "Mail" and then follow these easy steps:

1. Click "Compose Mail Message."
2. "Send to": Click "Browse," click my name, and then click "Done."
3. "Subject": You must type in a subject for the email. (e.g., WebCT Assignment #1).
4. Create a message.
5. ALWAYS sign off with your full name.
6. Click "Send."
7. Your sent message will automatically go into your Outbox Folder, so that you can verify completion.

FREE TUTORING SERVICE—The University Writing Center is located in Peck Hall 325 (phone 904-8237, e-mail uwcenter@mtsu.edu). There students receive valuable one-on-one instruction to improve their writing. If I find that you have writing problems that can be best addressed in tutoring sessions, I will recommend--and sometimes require--that you take advantage of this free service.