Course Description:

ENG 4 is an introduction to critical reading and writing practices as well as an introduction to literature and its analysis. The motivation and methodology of this class is two-fold: 1) to explore and examine a variety of literary genres, and 2) to acquire the critical and analytical skills needed to approach and articulate your interactions with the texts at a university-proficient level.

This is a writing-intensive course, and our focus will be on learning to construct a critical argument: a solid thesis statement and its supporting material. We will practice close reading and critical analysis as we enjoy exploring a variety of literary works all united by their engagement with the theme and topic of “war.”

This theme provides an umbrella for approaching different genres across centuries of Western literature and numerous wars. The readings for the course are loosely divided into the following categories: The Rhetoric of War, Witnessing War, Remembering War, Representing War, and Memorials and Memorial Culture.

Reading List  

Ernest Hemingway, The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway
Art Spiegelman , In the Shadow of No Towers
Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
Cynthia Ozick, The Shawl
Course Packet

Course Requirements:

Since this class focuses on the representation of information, we will be a central tool of information transmission and distribution for our communication and assignments.

•  2 short essays (2-3 pages). Typed, standard 12-point font with double-spacing is required.

•  Final Essay and its Web Presentation (15%): You will write an essay (5-6 pages) on one of the works and present it in an online format. You will receive instructions in HTML and image uploading and will be graded on the strength of your essay and its representation online.

•  Three in-class quizzes: These unannounced quizzes will prompt short explications on passages from the readings. They will keep us on track with our reading and provide opportunities to practice textual explication.

4. Homework and Participation: The success of this class and of your personal development depends on your active participation. This means that you will need to: ( 1 ) attend all class meetings; ( 2 ) participate in class discussions; ( 3 ) complete all required reading thoughtfully and thoroughly and be prepared to discuss the entire work on the first day that it is assigned. ; ( 5 ) bring the necessary material with you to class.

Grading

Essay #1 ...................................................... 10%
Essay #2 ...................................................... 15%
Essay (30%)/ Web (15%)-Project ................ ....45%
Quiz #1 ........................................................... 5%
Quiz #2 ........................................................... 5%
Quiz #2 ........................................................... 5%
Participation………… ………………………........ 10 %

Important Reminders

•  Late papers will drop your grade by 1/3 of a letter grade for every day that it is late (including weekends). For example, a B+ paper would become a B after one late day. In-class quizzes cannot be made up.
•  Plagiarism , the use of someone else's words or ideas without proper acknowledgement, is a serious offense at UCLA. I am required to report any instances of plagiarism to the Dean of Students, which can result in suspension and/or expulsion. Make sure that you understand how to properly cite your sources . I am, of course, available for consultation on this subject.

Note

This is your class. I am here to help and encourage you to use my office hours and expertise to your benefit. I hope you will utilize the advantages of this small class, often rare at this large university, to develop your own thoughts and modes of thinking.

FINAL WEB-ESSAY ASSIGNMENT

  Due Date: June 7, online by 4pm.

Since this course is about the representation of war in literature, your final essay project will provide an analysis of a literary work that is consciously crafted to be presented on our culture's central technology for communication and representation: the Internet.

You will build individual webpages that present your reading of a work read during the quarter. These individual websites will be networked to a larger group website (compiled of 4 students each), which explores one of the organizing themes of the course : Rhetoric of War, Aesthetics of War (Graphics, Imagery, and Propaganda), Silence and Censorship, Activism, Memorials and Memorial Culture . You will sign up for topics and groups in week 2 (April 12).

  You will work in groups of 4 to produce a collaborative website; the website will share a homepage and connect all 4 individual essays.

• Each essay will analyze a work from the quarter as it relates to the topic of the site
• Each essay will visualize the argument with at least 3 design elements (i.e. images, sound, hyperlinks, etc.) and connect to at least one other essay in the group with a hyperlink.
• You will collaborate and communicate with your group through the ecampus site.
• On the last day of class, each group will have 20 minutes (5 minutes each) to present their site and essay's argument .

  Grade Breakdown (45% of final grade)

Out of 100 points: Individual essay (70 points), Individual website (20 points), Group website (10 points)

For both the individual and group website, you will be evaluated on: a) the content (the essay's argument, analysis, and coherence), b) the presentation of your content in a design that supports and enables its content, 3) the cohesion of the site as a whole (the connection between the individual essays and webpages).

While presentation is a central component of web communication, your design and format must support your content. You will not receive extra points for embellishments (complicated programming, flashy graphics, etc.) if they do not add to your site.

You will receive training on how to plan, design, and program your site. But you are responsible for remembering the following:

Plan in advance: programming, like analytical writing, takes time! Be sure to factor in time for testing, uploading, and problem-solving.

Reading Schedule  

Week 1: The Rhetoric of War
April 3: Introduction
April 5: Lord Alfred Tennyson, “Ulysses,” Matthew Arnold, “ Dover Beach,” Wilfred Owen, “Dolce et Decorum Est”

  Week 2: The Rhetoric of War
April 10: F.T. Marinetti, “The Futurist Manifesto,” Isaac Rosenberg “Break of Day in the Trenches,” Wilfred Owens “Exposure” and “Strange Meeting”
April 12: Edward Thomas, “As the Team's Head Brass,” Robert Frost, “The Wood-Pile”

  *Group Selection for Final Projects

Week 3: Witnessing War
April 17: Ernest Hemingway, “A Soldier's Home,” “In Another Country,” “Now I Lay Me,”  
April 19: Ernest Hemingway, “Big Hearted River, Part I and II”; Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried (p. 1-26, “The Things They Carried”)

  *First Paper due

  Week 4: Remembering War
April 24: Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
April 26: ITC Instruction: Introduction to HTML and Images

Week 5: Representing War: Graphics and New Media
May 1: Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
May 3: Art Spiegelman , In the Shadow of No Towers

  Week 6: Representing War: Graphics and New Media
May 8: Art Spiegelman , In the Shadow of No Towers
May 10: Stuart Moulthrop, Victory Garden (CD-Rom)

  *Paper 2 due

  Week 7: Memorials and Memorial Culture
May 15: Stuart Moulthrop, Victory Garden (CD-Rom), Robert Lowell, “For the Union Dead”
  May 17: Cynthia Ozick, The Shawl

  *Thesis Statements and Design Plan due for Final Project

Week 8: Memorials and Memorial Culture
May 22: Cynthia Ozick, The Shawl, Yusef Komunyakaa, “The Wall”
May 24: Lab Session: Programming

Week 9: War and Activism
May 29: Memorial Day, no class
May 31: e.e. cummings, “next to of course god america I,” Brian Taylor, “Here Bullet”

  Week 10: Conclusions and Presentations
June 5: Dos Passos, “Unknown Soldier”
June 7: Presentation of Projects