Spring, 2004
Winston
Office: East College 401 Office
Hours: MWF 1:30-2:30
Tel: (245-) 1363 E-mail: Winston@dickinson.edu
This course will examine a selection of American novels from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. We will undertake to analyze formally (do a close reading of) each of the novels as well as interpret them in the contexts (cultural, historical, biographical, economic, political), which shaped them. Ultimately, we will look at these works as examples of a literary tradition and tackle the question of what makes these novels distinctively American.
M 01-26 Organization; reading the syllabus
W 01-28 Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
F 01-30 Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
M 02-02 Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
W 02-04 Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
F 02-06 Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter
M 02-08 Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King ArthurŐs Court
W 02-10 Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King ArthurŐs Court
F 02-12 Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King ArthurŐs Court
M 02-16 Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King ArthurŐs Court
W 02-18 Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King ArthurŐs Court
F 02-20 Kate Chopin, The Awakening
M 02-23 Chopin, The Awakening
Essay #1 Due
W 02-25 Chopin, The Awakening
F 02-27 Chopin, The Awakening
M 03-01 Eudora Welty, Delta Wedding
W 03-03 Welty, Delta Wedding
F 03-05 Welty, Delta Wedding
M 03-08 Welty, Delta Wedding
W 03-10 Welty, Delta Wedding
F 03-12 Hard-Boiled Detective Fiction: An American Formula
SPRING VACATION
M 03-22 Dashiell Hammett, Red Harvest
W 03-24 Hammett, Red Harvest
F 03-26 Hammett, Red Harvest
M 03-29 Raymond Chandler, The Big Sleep
W 03-31 Chandler, The Big Sleep
F 04-02 Chandler, The Big Sleep
M 04-05 Chandler, The Big Sleep
W 04-07 Richard Wright, Native Son
F 04-09 Wright, Native Son
M 04-12 Wright, Native Son
Essay #2 Due
W 04-14 Wright, Native Son
F 04-16 Wright, Native Son
M 04-19 Thomas Pynchon, The Crying of
Lot 49
W 04-21 Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49
F 04-23 Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49
M 04-26 Ken Kesey, Sometimes a Great Notion
W 04-28 Kesey, Sometimes a Great Notion
F 04-30 Kesey, Sometimes a Great Notion
M 05-03 Kesey, Sometimes a Great Notion
W 05-05 Kesey, Sometimes a Great Notion
F 05-07 The American Novel in Perspective
FINAL EXAMINATION:
TUESDAY, MAY 11, AT 2:00 P.M.
Requirements: 1) Regular attendance and conscientious preparation [Preparation, attendance, and participation are crucial to this course and your success in it. Students who miss more than three classes during the course of the semester may expect to have their final grades lowered.]; 2) Two essays of six (6) pages in length (assuming one-inch margins, 12-point Times New Roman as the font); each of the essays is worth approximately one third of the final grade; 3) In-class final examination, worth approximately one third of the final grade.
Students must complete all requirements of the course in order to pass. This course follows College policies regarding all matters of academic dishonesty; it is the responsibility of each student to know the policies. Please see the current Dickinson College Student Handbook and other appropriate sources.
The instructor reserves the right to adjust the syllabus as necessary.