ENGLISH 314
Epic Poetry
Fall 2007
Pawling Hall 105
TR 12:45-2:00
Contents
I. Course Description
II. Course Requirements and Policies
III. Academic Integrity
IV. Grading Procedures
V. Accommodations for students with disabilities
VI. Course Schedule
Instructor: Dr. Barbaccia
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Office: Pawling Hall 116
Email: hbarbac0@georgetowncollege.edu
Phone: ext. 8126 |
Office Hours: TR 2:00-3:00 + by appointment
Grades Given: A, A/B, B, B/C, C, D, and F
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Required Texts:
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Anonymous. Beowulf. Trans. Seamus Heaney. New York: Norton, 2001.
Anonymous. The Epic of Gilgamesh. Trans. N.K. Sandars. New York: Penguin,
1972.
Chrétien de Troyes. Arthurian Romances. Trans. Carleton W. Carroll.
New York: Penguin, 1991.
Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Penguin, 1996.
Valmiki. The Ramayana. Trans. R.K. Narayan. New York: Penguin, 1972.
Walcott, Derek. Omeros. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1990. |
I. Course Description
From the Georgetown College Catalog, 2007-2008: “The world’s major epics, from classical to contemporary sources. Prerequisite: ENG 211 or 213.”
This upper-division English course offers a comparative approach to the major heroic epics of ancient and late-antique Indo- European culture, including The Epic of Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, The Ramayana, The Aeneid, and Beowulf. The course culminates in a study of epic’s reception and transformation within the medieval romance genre, and concludes with an extended close-reading of Derek Walcott’s postmodern epic poem, Omeros. Students will engage with these texts through active class discussions and a variety of writing assignments, including ten short response papers, a 5-7 pp literary analysis, and a final 4,000-word research paper.
II. Course Requirements and Policies:
1. Class attendance and participation: I expect that you will attend all classes. Because I understand that accidents and illnesses happen, I allow three absences. Each absence you incur over the three absence limit will constitute an unauthorized absence. Every unauthorized absence will reduce your final attendance/participation grade. Participation in discussions is a very important part of this class, and I try to structure the course in ways that encourage your participation. Examples of participation include asking questions about readings, offering comments about readings, reading aloud from your response papers, answering questions I pose in class, and contributing in small group work. Finally, I expect that you will help to create an environment conducive to learning and meaningful discussion. To this end, please do not bring food to class (drinks are permissible), and do not talk out of turn or behave disrespectfully toward other members of the class.
2. Assignments:
A) Readings: All readings are due by the date listed on the syllabus. Bear in mind that the readings represent a minimum, mandatory requirement for the class. Ambitious students will spend extra time conducting research into cultural history and literary criticism in preparation for the writing components of this course. However, please do not consult “non-scholarly” internet sources (e.g., Sparknotes). You may expect unannounced quizzes on readings.
B) Response Papers: You will write ten 1-page response papers. Response papers are less formal than essays: they do not need to support a single argument or provide a neat introduction and conclusion; however, they should not be opinion pieces, and they should not be without structure or evidence. In your responses, please provide specific textual support in the form of direct references and quotations substantiating your claims. Cite quoted material parenthetically by line or page number according to MLA Style.
There are a few basic rules governing responses:
1. Responses must be submitted at the beginning of class, and you may not submit more than one response paper per class period.
2. The first response must be submitted at the beginning of class on August 30.
3. The next 4 responses must be submitted no later than the last class before Fall Break (October 18).
4. You may not turn in response papers for readings we have already discussed in class – e.g., if we’ve moved on to The Odyssey, you can’t submit a response paper on Gilgamesh. This rule applies even if you feel there is more to say about a given topic than what we said in class. (If that’s the case, you can always take the topic up for Paper 1.)
5. You must write at least 2 response papers on Omeros.
When I evaluate your responses, I will reward papers that present textual evidence carefully, that take intellectual risks, and that show an attempt to provide material for class discussion. I will take away points from response papers that reproduce ideas from online study guides or similarly inappropriate sources, even if you have cited those sources correctly (see below for issues related to Academic Integrity, i.e., what happens when you do not cite a source correctly).
C) Paper 1
The shorter paper you write for this class will comprise 5-7 pages (1500-2000 words). Please submit your paper by email as a Word file (.doc or .rtf) attachment by 2 pm Oct. 19. The paper must support a central thesis, provide backing evidence in the form of direct quotations from the text, offer original and accurate analysis of those quotations, and conclude logically, having fully developed and “seen through” the thesis. You may wish to support your claims by invoking (and properly citing) appropriate reference sources (i.e., not Wikipedia or some other internet source), but outside research is not required for this paper. You will want to budget at least 3 weeks to plan, draft, and revise this paper. Plan to schedule a mandatory paper conference with me before October 2. You must bring a 1-paragraph description of your topic and a working thesis to this conference, and you may also bring any additional prewriting (notes, outlines, freewrites, a draft) you would like to receive feedback on. Successful papers will go well beyond our class discussions.
D) Paper 2: Your final research paper for the class will be completed in the following stages.
1. Paper Prospectus
Your paper prospectus will be a one-page single-spaced sketch of your plans for the paper. Before writing your prospectus, you should be certain that your plans for the paper are (you may do this by consulting with me during office hours). The prospectus counts 5 points towards your final paper grade and is due November 6.
2. Annotated Bibliography
The annotated bibliography assignment is meant to help you synthesize the early part of your paper research before you move on to the last stages of writing. The bibliography should include a 200-300-word cover statement that summarizes your findings to date. The bibliography should list about ten sources, each followed by a brief paragraph describing the author’s argument. Please use MLA format for the bibliography. Note that this is a preliminary bibliography for your paper and it may change before you complete the final version. Remember that all the sources you use in your paper must be appropriate for use in an upper-division English class. The annotated bibliography must be submitted by November 27.
3. Final Paper
In the final research paper, you will coordinate literary analysis, research in cultural history, and research in literary theory and criticism. The paper will comprise 4,000 words (about 15 pages), so you will need to budget about 6 weeks for research and writing. October 30 is the latest date by which you should begin planning your final paper. I recommend that you have a paper conference with me by that date. (You should also plan to make any Interlibrary Loan requests by the end of October.)
III. Academic Integrity
Academic Honesty is governed by the Georgetown College Honor Code. According to the Georgetown College Student Handbook, Honor Code Infractions include cheating, stealing, and lying related to academic matters. I will deal with any infractions using the Procedures outlined in the Handbook. Note that I request you use MLA Style in the papers you write for this class, but another citation method (e.g., APA or Chicago) may be acceptable if you consult with me first.
IV. Grading Procedures:
Grading Breakdown:
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Reading Responses
Paper 1
Paper 2
Attendance and Participation |
20%
20%
40%
20%
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Grade Scale:
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A
A/B
B
B/C
C
D
F
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93-100
88-92
83-87
78-82
70-77
60-69
0-59
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V. Accommodations for students with disabilities
I make every effort to offer appropriate academic accommodations for students with disabilities. Please make requests for academic accommodations during the first three weeks of the semester.
VI. Tentative Course Schedule
You are responsible for knowing about any updates or changes to this schedule.
August 28 ----- Course Introductions and Syllabus
August 30----- Anonymous, The Epic of Gilgamesh, 61-84; Response #1 due (mandatory)
September 4----- Gilgamesh, 85-119
September 6 ----- Homer, The Odyssey, Books 1-4
September 11 ----- Odyssey 5-9
September 13 ----- Odyssey 10-14
September 18 ----- Odyssey 15-19
September 20 ----- Odyssey 20-24
September 25 ----- Valmiki, The Ramayana 1-4
September 27 ----- Ramayana 5-9
October 2 ----- Ramayana 10-14; last date for Paper 1 conferences
October 4 ----- Virgil, The Aeneid 1
October 9 ----- Aeneid 2-3
October 11 ----- Aeneid 4
October 16 ----- Aeneid 5
October 18 ----- Aeneid 6; last date to turn in Response #5
October 19 ----- Paper 1 due by 2 pm (please send by email as .doc or .rtf file to hbarbac0@)
October 23 ----- No Class (Fall Break)
October 25 ----- Aeneid 7-12 and selections from Roman d’Eneas (handout)
October 30 ----- Beowulf TBA; last date to begin researching Paper 2; recommended date by
which to have had Paper 2 conference
November 1 ----- Beowulf TBA
November 6 ----- Beowulf TBA; Prospectus due for Final Paper
November 8 ----- Chrétien de Troyes, “Lancelot” and “Perceval”
November 13 ----- “Yvain” and “Erec” and “Enide”
November 15 ----- Walcott, Omeros Book 1
November 20 ----- Omeros Book 2
November 22 ----- No Class (Thanksgiving Holiday)
November 27 ----- Omeros Book 3; Annotated Bibliography due for Final Paper
November 29 ----- Omeros Book 4
December 4 ----- Omeros Book 5
December 6 ----- Omeros Book 6
December 11 ----- Last class; Omeros Book 7; last date to turn in Response #10
December 15 -----Final Research Paper due by email by 5 pm
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