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What distinguishes a political novel from just a novel? The answers to that question are
varied and complicated because our personal feelings toward novel and political are varied
and complicated. For some, novels are boring obligations for school. For others, novels are
portals to new worlds, new perspectives. Similarly, some spend their time avoiding politics,
whether on TV or at the dinner table; others find entertainment in following the latest
legislation and national debates. My goal for this course is that each student can develop or
change his/her attitude towards what literature offers us as readers, particularly when it comes
to the politics of public and self.
The two novels well study, Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell and Meridian by
Alice Walker, intersect and diverge in their interpretations of explicitly political themes war,
human rights, democracy, nationalism and implicit political themes race, gender, violence.
Thus, Mitchell and Walker offer us, no matter your interests or ideologies, a profound
foundation for studying literature as a political tool.
Contacting Me
My email is staley@marshall.edu or cat.staley@marshall.edu (both go to the same account). I
answer e-mails during my electronic office hours (see above), and I regularly check it MondayFriday between 8am-5pm. After 5pm M-F and on the weekends, I dont check my e-mail often
and will only respond if its an emergency. I will only correspond with you via your issued MU
address (ending with @marshall.edu/@live.marshall.edu).
A standard b&w composition notebook for journal entries. This should be brought to
class every day.
2. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. Ed: May 2011. ISBN: 9781451635621
3. Meridian by Alice Walker. ISBN: 9780156028349
4. Reading and Writing About Literature by Janet Gardner, 3rd ed. ISBN: 9781457606496
Outcomes Chart:
Course Student Learning
Outcome
How Student
Achievement of Each
Outcome Will Be
Assessed in this Course
Develop an understanding of
implicit and explicit political
themes in literature
a formal rubric
Writing-Intensive Outcomes
Students will enhance their
writing skills and strategies.
Reading Journals (10%) : in a composition journal each week, students will respond to the
assigned reading of either GWTW or M. Thus, typically, students will complete 3 entries per week
one per class session. Entries should be labeled with the date and assigned readings. Students
should use these journals to thoughtfully reflect on noticeable or surprising moments in the text,
connections to other course discussions/materials or current events, or general responses to the
text that can be used in class discussion. Personal connections are acceptable but should be kept
to a minimum. Ideally, these journals will allow students to explore ideas for the larger
assignments and class discussions. Journals will be collected every other Friday and graded
according to completion and thoughtfulness on a 5pt. scale with 5=100%, etc. You can find more
information about keeping a reading journal on pg. 12 of RWL.
2. Free Writes (10%) : most days, students will respond to a writing prompt concerning the
reading assigned for that class. Free writes are graded according to completion and
thoughtfulness. If you write nothing, very little, or are absence, youll receive 0 credit.
Medium Stakes:
1.
2. Book Cover/Movie Clip analysis (2 total worth 10% each 1 for each book): For each
novel, students will complete a brief 2-3 page analysis of a visual component associated with the
novel. Students will compare/contrast how the visual component interprets a specific political
theme (i.e. gender) to the original texts interpretation. An assignment sheet with detailed
instructions and grading criteria will be distributed.
a. GWTW analysis: Wednesday, March 26 by class time
b. Meridian analysis: TBA (leaving flexibility for reading schedule changes)
3. Reflection final (5%): in a 2-3 page essay, students will defend the novel as a vessel for
political themes by reflecting on what literature offers that other genres cannot, such as film,
poetry, or non-fiction memoirs. An assignment sheet with detailed instructions and grading
criteria will be distributed.
a. Due: Friday, May 2 by class time
High Stakes:
1.
Research Paper (25%) : students will choose a political theme from each novel and
compare/contrast each authors representation of and conclusions about that theme. The essay
should be driven by a thesis statement that specifically outlines the writers argument in 4-5
pages. Students should find a minimum of 2 scholarly sources to support their argument. Well
complete drafts leading up to the final. An assignment sheet with detailed instructions and
grading criteria will be distributed.
a. Due: Friday, May 9 by 10am (our official exam time)
b. Because this course is designated WI, youre required to upload your assignment to
GEAR for assessment purposes. Failure to do so will result in a 0 grade for this paper.
Detailed instructions for completing this requirement will be on the assignment sheet.
Grading: all assignments and the final course grade will adhere to the following scale:
100%-90% : A
89%-80%: B
79%-70%: C
69%- 60%: D
59% - 0% : F
Policies:
1. Submitting Work: unless otherwise specified, all assignments should be submitted
electronically to MuOnline. There will be a submission button under Course Content. Do
not copy and paste your assignment into the submission form. You should write the
assignment in a Word document and attach that to the submission form. Failure to do so
will result in a late penalty on the assignment.
2. Formatting Work: Except for journal entries, all assignments should be formatted
according to MLA guidelines.
3. Late Work: the only work that cannot be submitted late are free writes. If you have an
excused absence, Ill award you the points for the day you missed without makeup work.
Other assignments can be turned in late for a 5pt./day penalty beginning immediately
after class starts. If you have an excused absence, you can turn in major assignments late
(on the first day you return to class) for no penalty. Ill collect journals every other Friday
to grade the previous 2 weeks entries, so entries cannot be submitted late. If you have an
excused absence, Ill award you the entry points for that day without makeup work.
4. Missing Class: I have no formal attendance policy but missing too many classes will
result in loss of journal points and important instruction time. It is your
responsibility to find out what you missed in class not mine.
5. Academic Dishonesty:
a. All of your work is expected to be your own and written specifically for this class.
Plagiarism is a complicated issue, and as such a few specific rules should be
defined:
i. Quotes, paraphrases, and summaries of sources should be clearly marked
and cited according to MLA guidelines. Even if its an honest mistake,
failure to do so is technically plagiarism. It is your responsibilitynot
mineto make sure that the final draft of a paper contains proper
citations. If you dont, youll receive an assignment grade of 0 or a grade
deduction based on the severity of the plagiarism.
ii. Although it may not technically be plagiarism, copying and pasting large
amounts of text (more than a fifth of the length of your paper) from a
source with proper quotation cannot be considered original work, and will
therefore result in an assignment grade of 0.
iii. If you blatantly cheati.e., copy and paste large amounts of text from a
source without clear introduction/quotation, submit work that was not
originally written for this class, or submit work that was not written by
you, the studentyou will automatically fail the course and be reported to
The Writing Center: The Writing Center is a free resource provided by the English
department to assist you in any phase of the writing process brainstorming ideas/clarifying
assignments/making outlines/beginning a draft/revising a draft, etc. The friendly tutors there
will be happy to listen to your concerns about a paper and then create a game plan with you for
success. You should take all assignment materials to each session so the tutor has a clear idea of
your professors expectations. I highly recommend you use this resource, but you are not
required to do so. To make an appointment with The Writing Center, go to:
www.rich16.com/mu and sign-up using your MU e-mail address.