Download the complete Fall 2013 Brochure

ENGLISH COURSES:

English 110 (W) Introduction to Literature
See course listings below for individual times and descriptions. Note that students declaring the English major or minor are governed by the requirements of the English major and may not count EN 110 toward the major or minor. Note, however, that non-majors who have taken EN 110 as part of a first-year LC may take EN 110(W) to fulfill their second writing-intensive (W) literature requirement.

English 110 (W) Introduction to Literature, Prof. Cameron
Literature and the Meaning of Life
MW 9:40-11:10 MW 11:20-12:50
This course provides the study of techniques and conventions of various literary genres such as poetry, novels, short stories, biographies, journals, and essays.  The course explores the relationship between form and meaning, specifically how genre shapes our understanding of literature, the human condition, and life experience.

English 110 (W) Introduction to Literature, Dr. Florescu
About Catharsis Today–Contemporary American Drama
MW 9:40-11:10 MW 11:20-12:50
Drama, an integral part of literature, is an aesthetic and intellectual encounter with a new world. Since this is an introductory course, we start by asking some general questions. What is performance? Does this act have social values? Is there any connection between performance, learning, and the dynamics of a classroom? Students will gain practice in how to read plays, how to discuss plays in groups and individually, how to read and evaluate reviews (as published in media by literary critics), and finally, how to write about plays. This course also proposes intersections between textual and visual media. There are scheduled short screenings of some of the plays discussed. But the primary focus is the understanding of drama through close readings.

English 110 (W) Introduction to Literature, Prof. Shore
Driving Through Fiction
TTH 11:20-12:50 TTH 1-2:30
Build, Drive and Meaning in American Literature: This course is devoted to analyzing the elements that make up a fully formed piece of fiction. By examining the build, drive and meaning within both short stories and novels, students will gain a higher understanding of why a piece of fiction is fulfilled. Students will develop their writing and analytic skills by exploring the language, style, characters and themes of each work.

FOUNDATION COURSES:

All three foundation courses (EN 111, 211 and 212) are open to non-majors. Majors should take these courses by the end of sophomore year.

EN111 (W)(I) World Literature, Dr. Johnson
Home and Exile
TTH 1-2:30
In reading 20th and 21st-century texts written by African, Caribbean, Asian, and European authors, we see how global relations are structured by the legacies of nationalism, colonialism, and resulting diasporas.  One of the most prominent themes to emerge from this literature is that of exile, from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s realism to Albert Camus’ philosophical allegory to Jamaica Kincaid’s tale of migration and displacement.  We will examine our authors’ shared interrogation of home and belonging, and the linked theme of exile, from political, historical, existential, and cultural approaches.

EN111(W)(I) World Literature, Dr. Hurley
Introduction to Culture for the World Traveler
TTh 9:40-11:10
This course is designed for the student who intends to wander the world, either informally through the desire for exploration or formally as a start to a career in business, government, education, or international service.  Literature, as an important cultural asset, can be an essential traveling companion.  Accordingly, we will circumnavigate the globe through reading novels, poems, short stories, and essays from the Middle East, to the Far East, to Africa, South America, the Caribbean and just about everywhere except Antarctica (unless penguin lit is suddenly discovered). Expect to be engaged and challenged!

EN111(W)(H)(I) ILC World Literature, Dr. Hurley
Introduction to Culture for the World Traveler
MW 1:00-2:30
This course is designed for the student who intends to wander the world, either informally through the desire for exploration or formally as a start to a career in business, government, education, or international service.  Literature, as an important cultural asset, can be an essential traveling companion.  Accordingly, we will circumnavigate the globe through reading novels, poems, short stories, essays from the Middle East, to the Far East, to Africa, South America, the Caribbean and just about everywhere except Antarctica (unless penguin lit is suddenly discovered). Expect to be engaged and challenged! As an honors section, this course will emphasize advanced writing skills and interactive presentations within the ILC. (This course is part of an ILC linking world lit. with international business.)

EN 212(W) Introduction to Literary Analysis and Theory, Dr. Bernardo
MW 2:40-4:10
In this course we will explore various approaches to literary texts including: Psychoanalytic, Marxist, Structuralist, Environmental/Ecocritical, Feminist, and Gender and Queer Studies. As you read literature through a variety of lenses you will learn how to analyze texts and create persuasive arguments for interpretations of those texts.  We will also focus on the skills necessary for literary critical writing and research. Some of the authors whose works we will read in the course are: Italo Calvino, Nikolai Gogol, Christina Rossetti, Salman Rushdie and Shakespeare.

CORE COURSES:

Core courses are also open to non-majors/minors. Majors should complete the core courses by early in the junior year. Please note that core courses a major takes beyond fulfilling the three categories listed below (one from each category) may count toward electives.

Pre-1800 British or European Literature

EN 305(W) Crime and Violence in 18^th Century Literature, Dr. Bernardo
MW 1-2:30
In this course we will focus on the popularity of crime, confession and violence in 18^th century English literature.  We will encounter prostitution, theft, bigamy, and highway robbery in our readings of texts such as Defoe’s Moll Flanders, Fielding’s Jonathan Wild and newspaper accounts of criminals, such as Jack Sheppard.  There will be critical reading as well to assist us in our exploration of social deviation and the recreation of the hero as outlaw.

British Literature Post-1800

EN 206 (W)(GS) Romantic Poetry, Revolution,  the Slave Trade and Women’s Rights, Dr. Bernardo
TTH 1-2:30
From Wordsworth’s poetry, to the Byronic hero, to slave narratives and pleas for women’s rights, the writers of the Romantic period created new ways of seeing the world and the individual. Major events and movements such as the French Revolution, the struggle to shift views of women, and the growing chorus of voices speaking out in opposition to slavery at the end of the 18^th century and the start of the 19^th century shattered the status quo and helped to spark new ideas. As we read poetry, prose and fiction we will discover how writers of the period perceived the issues of their times and worked to redefine poetry and other genres of literature, the status of writers and their place in society.

American Literature

EN 318 (W) American Literature: From Romanticism to Realism, Dr. Thomas
MW 11:20-12:50
This course examines the classics of American literature from the mid-nineteenth century to the early twentieth century. We will think about the changes in literary style and in American society as writers experimented with narrative form and subject matter, including regional dialects and realistic depictions of important social issues. Selections from classic works will be read, which may include those by Mark Twain, W.E.B. Du Bois, and Edith Wharton.

EN 348 (W)(H)(GS)(D) Southern Women Writers, Dr. Sharpe
TTH 9:40-11:10
This course explores the work of important American writers from the South, including Eudora Welty, Flannery O’Connor, Katherine Anne Porter, Carson McCullers and Alice Walker. Their regional perspectives–on love and loyalty, independence and work, race and family–underpin a unique sense of place and a rootedness in tradition that permeate their work.

ELECTIVES:

Please note that English literature electives have a prerequisite of EN 212 or permission of instructor unless the course is part of an ILC or an exception is noted.

EN 203 (H) Spiritual Quest in Literature, Dr. Kaelber
(crosslisted with RE 203)
W 6-9
Students will read major pieces of fiction in which the “hero” searches for meaning and purpose in his/her life. In most cases, this search is not directly related to institutionalized religions but is a far more personal quest. Novels read might include The Razor’s Edge, Journey to Ixtlan, Demian. Major movies with an appropriate theme might also be included.

EN 346 (W) Contemporary Poetry, Dr. Sharpe
MW 2:40-4:10
British, Irish and American poetry, including Dylan Thomas, Robert Lowell, Elizabeth Bishop, W.H. Auden, Sylvia Plath, Ted Hughes, Seamus Heaney, others. Attention to metaphor, imagery, symbolism, rhythm, meter, verse forms, diction and tone.

REQUIRED UPPER LEVEL COURSE:

Please note that majors should take EN 330 in the junior year.

EN330(W) Shakespeare Survey, Dr. Hurley
M/W 4:20-5:50
A survey of the plays, sonnets and at least one long narrative poem, with attention to both performance and textual aspects of drama. We will also be giving a significant amount of attention to film versions of the plays and to the contrast these provide to text and stage. (Prerequisite of EN212 or permission of the instructor.)

JOURNALISM COURSES:

JR011 Wagnerian, Prof. Regan
TBA
Intensive participation on the student newspaper staff. Students can concentrate in reporting, photography, page design or copyediting. Or they can explore all four during the semester. Requirements include a contribution to each of six issues of the Wagnerian published during the semester. This course is highly recommended for staff members of student publications and journalism minors. May be repeated.

JR 261(W) Introduction to Journalism, Prof. Regan
MW 6:30-8:00
A survey of the competitive and evolving field of journalism. Students learn how to define news, write leads, conduct an interview and follow Associated Press style. They write obituaries, spot news stories and features. Newspaper production, ethics and libel, photojournalism, online journalism and First Amendment rights are also explored. By the end of the semester, students understand how a newsroom works and know what skills are needed to be a successful journalist.

JR 372 (W) Journalism and Pubic Relations, Prof. Regan
TH 6-9
An exploration of the co-dependent relationship between these two fields.  Students will learn how news people rely on PR people for story ideas and information, and how PR people rely on  news people to bring credibility and success to their concepts. They will learn how to market an idea creatively, prepare press releases from press kits, and deal with reporters and editors from the PR angle. They will also learn how to identify and develop a story idea from a press release, and become proficient in handling “rewrites.”  Prerequisite: JR 261 or permission of the instructor.

JR 366 (W) Feature Writing, Dr. Sharpe
MW 6-7:30
The object of the class is to prepare you for success as a free lance journalist.  This includes coming up with worthwhile story ideas, researching and interviewing, writing letters of inquiry to prospective publications, dealing with editors, revising and self-editing.  We will attempt to publish features in local or national newspapers and/or magazines, as well as contribute pieces to the Wagnerian.  You must write for the Wagnerian in order to receive a grade for this course. (Prerequisite: JR 261 or permission of the instructor.)

JR 397 (1 unit) & 497 (2units) Internship in Journalism
Part-time on-the-job experience at a New York area newspaper, magazine, television network, or public relations outlet. May be taken for one or two units.

Note that journalism minors using an internship in journalism or publishing to fulfill the experiential component of the Senior RFT in English (EN 400) may count that course as one of their two units of required internship. Prerequisites: JR 261, minimum 2.5 GPA in the major, and approval of the advisor to the Journalism minor.