American Literature He most honors my style who learns under it to destroy the teacher.~Walt Whitman INSTRUCTOR: Mr. Finn School Phone: 688-1050 Mr. Finn’s ext. 5112 Email:
[email protected] Available for Individual Attention: Periods __ & __ COURSE DESCRIPTION: American Literature emphasizes the analysis and interpretation of literature. Students will read challenging works, write literary compositions, and participate in group and individual speech activities. Students will study the development of American literature by examining the following periods: Colonial America through the Civil War, the late 19th Century through World War II, and Post World War II to present. American Literature students will seek relevance as they examine a variety of authors, genres, and themes. The course will also require students to write journals and analytical papers, study vocabulary, present oral reports, and analyze film adaptations of classic works. COURSE OBJECTIVES: • You will build reading/literary analysis skills, writing skills, speaking skills, and viewing skills. • You will develop critical thinking skills as you analyze, evaluate, and formulate connections between your life, American society, and the texts you encounter. • You will become a better citizen and a more rational individual by analyzing various authors of American rhetoric that helped to shape our nation and many of our own beliefs. TEXTS & MATERIALS NEEDED: Elements of Literature Textbook, 5-subject notebook, pens/pencils GRADING SCALE: 99-100 A+ 93-98 A 90-92 A88-89 83-87 80-82 B+ B B78-79 73-77 70-72 C+ C C68-69 63-67 60-62 D+ D D59 and below F *grades will be tabulated on a total point scale *extra credit will be give for work I deem “above and beyond” the requirements. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much life. Aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something. ~Henry David Thoreau CLASSROOM POLICIES: 1. Make-up work. You are allowed as many days as you miss plus one more day. Medical and other extenuating circumstances will be considered, especially with advance notice and appropriate notes. If you miss class I will NOT respond to requests for assignment during class (it is unfair to the other students to stop class for you). Instead, follow these steps in this EXACT order until you have your answer: 1) Check the chalk board for assignments, 2) Confirm with the smart kid (& give them food), 3) Email me at
[email protected] being sure to include your name and the days you were gone, 4) Set up a meeting time before/after school or during a mutual prep period. 2. Late work. Assignments not completed when called for in class (usually at the beginning) will be late. Late assignments will receive ½ of the credit earned by your performance (e.g .an assignment on which you would earn 80%, if late, would only receive 40%). Late assignments must be clearly labeled with your full name & class period and placed in the tray labeled “LATE”. 3. Attendance. As Woody Allen said, “80% of success is showing up.” Show up. 4. Tardy Sauce. Be on time to class. For me, that means inside the room and sitting at your assigned chair. You have three tardies before the first notice is given and after the fifth tardy, there are significant consequences. Remember, you will be considered tardy if you do not have a pass at the moment that you arrive late. Entrance after five minutes past the bell is an absence. 5. Preparation. As Benjamin Franklin said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” I will expect you to complete all assignments to the best of your ability. Always bring a notebook, pen/pencil, and the appropriate materials each day. 6. Honesty Policy: I want your experience to be as enjoyable and educational as possible, but I am terrible at reading minds. Please let me know if you are having problems with any aspect of the class before or after school, during my prep periods, or in an email/letter. You will never be penalized in my class for speaking your mind in a respectful manner. 7. Awesomeness: Be the type of person you would want to be. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. ~Mark Twain COURSE CONTENT: This course will cover, but is not limited to, the following: Trimester 1: Colonial-Civil War o Historical overview of America o Colonialism: Puritan Poetry, Colonial House, “A Narrative of Her Captivity”, “Sinners in the Hands”, “Young Goodman Brown”, “The Truth about the 1st Thanksgiving”, The Crucible o The Revolutionary Period: The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, The Crisis No. 1, “The Declaration of Independence”, “The Speech of Virginia Convention” o American Romanticism: “Thanatopsis”, “Rip Van Winkle”, The Scarlet Letter (Excerpt) o Short Story Unit: “Hopfrog” Poe, “The Birthmark”, “The Minister’s Black Veil”, “Rappaccini’s Daughter” o American Poetry: Whitman/Dickinson * Students are also required to read an American novel independently. The novel will be presented in the form of a ‘book report’ toward the conclusion of the trimester. Trimester 2: Civil War-World War II o Transcendentalism: “Nature”, “Self-Reliance” (194), Walden, “Resistance to Civil Government”, The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, Into the Wild o Realism: Civil War: “The Outcasts of Poker Flat”, Ken Burn’s Civil War, “The Gettysburg Address”, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” Western Literature: Call of the Wild Mark Twain: Non-Fiction: Twain Biography Video, “Day at Niagara”, “Roughing It”, “Our Fellow Savages…”Fiction: “War Prayer” (or “Letters from Earth”), Pudd’n Head Wilson, Huck Finn o The Moderns “The Yellow Wallpaper”, “A Rose for Emily”, “Cora Unashamed”, “The Revolt of Mother” The Great Gatsby, The Grapes of Wrath o Symbolism Poetry: Ezra Pound, Carl Sandberg, William Carlos Williams, T.S. Elliot Trimester 3: 1945-Present : 30 Days: “Minimum Wage”, “The Lesson”, Harlem Renaissance Poetry, “What’s American About America” Postville, “The Magic Barrel”, “The Life You Save Could Be You Own”, “Cathedral”, Doubt, Catcher in the Rye, The Breakfast Club or Dead Poets Society, “DebbieLand”, “The Key”, Shawshank Redemption Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do. ~Benjamin Franklin