LIT 2010 Course Requirements

Required Texts:
  • Packet of Readings (Available at Staples on Fowler)
  • Joyce, Michael. Afternoon, A Story.
  • LeGuin, Ursula K. The Left Hand of Darkness.
  • Morrison, Toni. Beloved.
  • Süskind, Patrick. Perfume.

Course Packet
In lieu of an expensive (and heavy) anthology, I have made available additional required readings in a Course Packet. You may purchase this packet at Staples on Fowler, or find the stories on your own. I recommend buying the packet, for it contains specific versions of the stories that I will refer to in class. The packet contains the following short stories:
  • Woody Allen “The Kugelmass Episode”
  • Margaret Atwood “Happy Endings”
  • J. G. Ballard “The Enormous Space,” “The Index,” and “Report on an Unidentified Space Station”
  • John Barth “Night Sea Journey”
  • Jorge Luis Borges “The Aleph”
  • Italo Calvino excerpts from If upon a winter’s night a traveler
  • John Cheever “The Swimmer”
  • Robert Coover “The Babysitter”
  • Julio Cortazar “Axolotl”
  • Harlan Ellison “I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream”
  • Gabriel Garcia-Marquez “The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World”
  • William Gibson “The Gernsback Continuum” and “Johnny Mnemonic”
  • Franz Kafka “Before the Law” and “In the Penal Colony”
  • Yukio Mishima “Patriotism”
  • Salman Rushdie “The Harmony of the Spheres,” excerpts from The Satanic Verses, and excerpts from Midnight’s Children
  • Olaf Stapledon “Universal History”
  • James Triptree, Jr. “The Girl Who Was Plugged In”
  • John Updike “A&P”
  • Alice Walker “The Abortion”

In addition, I have made links to on-line versions of many of the short stories and hypertexts that we will examine (see syllabus); feel free to use these etexts (when they are available) as well as, or in place of, the course packet.
Writing
LIT 2010 satisfies a Gordon Rule requirement; therefore, a minimum of 6000 words must be written. Several impromptu writing assignments, e.g., out-of-class and in-class responses, and “talking papers,” and interchange dialogues will be expected each week (at least). Occasionally, or if I suspect some are not completing the assigned reading, I will give short quizzes. Be prepared to write for or during every class meeting.
Exams
Two written examinations will be given at mid-term and at the end of the course. These exams will test your knowledge of the subject matter, your ability to synthesize this material, and your creativity in going beyond the discussion and lecture materials. Exams will include vocabulary, identification, and interpretation.
Class Participation
Regular class attendance and active participation in classroom discussion and the class listserv are required. Therefore, timely and careful reading will be required--have your reading done for class and be ready to discuss your ideas about it. Some assignments will occasionally count for participation, e.g., quizzes, in-class writing, electronic interchanges. Additional assistance can be obtained from the instructor during office hours or by appointment.

Listserv, MUDs, MOOs, and Daedalus
Various forms of electronic discourse will be utilized by the class. Participation in the class listserv, MUD and MOO meetings, and Daedelus interchanges will be required. Specific assignments dealing with each of these activities will be prompted by the instructor, usually in class. See Listserv for directions on subscribing.

Grading
    Class Participation20%
    Final Exam30%
    Writing50%

LIT 2010



 2 January 1999; 2.0