ENGL 396.03American Prose, 1865-1914: looking in/at the 19th Century

Instructor: Jeff AllredClass Meetings: TF 2:10-3:25, HW 407Office Hours: F 12-2pm and by appointment in HW 1208Contact me: 212.772.5170 or jeff.allred@hunter.cuny.eduCourse Blog: http://jallred.net/wordpress/eng396

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the semester, students will gain: broad knowledge of US prose in the time period, including central writers, styles, and topics. more specialized knowledge about the visual culture of the period, including both the objects that

loomed largest in the period and the more subjective “ways of looking” embedded in the cultural technologies of the era.

writing skills and especially close reading/analytic skills in careful engagement with literary prose. experience engaging an audience of peers as well as a broader public orally and in writing, using

two platforms that are widely used both in the academy and beyond: the WordPress blogging platform and the Omeka digital exhibition platform.

Course Schedule (**besides the books listed at the end, all readings are available via the web: I’ll explain in class how to access them)

date readings Work due8/29 Introduction, requirements, assignments

Portrait of a Lady (1881): gender and the “realist gaze”9/2 James, Portrait, introduction, chs. 1-119/5 James, chs. 12-22

** meet in the library 6th floor at E609 for primer on WordPress etc.Blog post #1

9/9 James, chs. 23-289/12 James, chs. 29-40

** meet in the library 6th floor at E609 for primer on Omeka etc.9/16 James, chs. 41-50 Blog post #29/19 MISSED CLASS: NOTE NEW DATES BELOW Submission of one

item to Omeka exhibit on James due

9/23 James, finish

How the Other Half Lives (1890): photography, class, social control

9/30 Riis, How the Other Half Lives, intro + chs. 1-10 Blog post #3

10/7 Riis, chs. 11-19

10/10 Riis, finish

Maggie (1893): things and the “material unconscious”10/14 Crane, chs. 1-6 G1: project due10/17 Crane, chs. 7-12 Blog post #4

10/21 Crane, finishSister Carrie (1900): looking and commodity culture

10/24 Dreiser, chs. 1-10 G2: project due

10/28 Dreiser, chs. 11-20

10/31 Dreiser, chs. 21-30 Blog post #5

11/4 Dreiser, chs. 31-4011/7 Dreiser, finish G3: project due

The Souls of Black Folk (YEAR): looking and “double consciousness”11/11 DuBois, “the forethought” + chs. 1-4 Prospectus for

final project due (on blog)

11/14 DuBois, chs. 5-8“elevator pitch” for final project in class (1 min max)

Blog post #6 due

11/18 DuBois, chs. 9-12 Biblio for final project due

11/21 DuBois, finishShawn Smith. “‘Looking at One’s Self through the Eyes of Others’: W.E.B. Du Bois’s Photographs for the 1900 Paris Exposition.” African American Review 34.4 (2000): 581–599. JSTOR .

G4: project due

The House of Mirth (Year): looking, gender, and value/evaluation11/25 Wharton, Book 1, chs. 1-312/2 Wharton, Book 1, chs. 4-1212/5 Wharton, finish Book 1 + Book 2 chs. 1-4 Draft of final

project due12/9 Wharton, finish (do your best!)

12/12 Wharton, review Final project due

Responsibilities: Six blog posts of 400-800 words + informal commenting on others’ postsGroup project: creation of original exhibit on Omeka (details TBA)Final project/paper: another Omeka exhibit (solo or with partner/group) or traditional research paper of 10-12 pp. regular attendance and participation in all discussions

Grading: I will give detailed guidelines for the blog posts, exam, and encyclopedia entries separately.  Your grade will be calculated as follows: blogging (35%); group project (20%); final project (35%); participation (10%).

A FEW GENERAL POLICIES:

a) regarding plagiarismHunter College regards acts of academic dishonesty (e.g. plagiarism, cheating on examinations, obtaining unfair advantage, and falsification of records and official documents) as serious offenses against the values of intellectual honesty. The college is committed to enforcing the CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity and will pursue cases of academic dishonesty according to the Hunter College Integrity Procedures.

b) regarding students with disabilitiesIn compliance with the American Disability Act of 1990 (ADA) and with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Hunter College is committed to ensuring educational parity and accommodations for all students with documented disabilities and/or medical conditions. It is recommended that all students with documented disabilities (Emotional, Medical, Physical and/or Learning) consult the Office of Accessibility located in Room 1124 East to secure necessary academic accommodations. For further information and assistance please call (212-772-4857) /TTY (212-650-3230).

c) regarding attendance and participationI do take attendance and expect you in class each day. Failure to attend will significantly impact your grade; more than four unexcused absences will result in a failing grade. I’m a reasonable person, so always get in touch via email in advance if you need to miss class. I become less reasonable with excuses that come after the fact. Nor is being there enough: you have to come prepared to put away the phones and distractions and engage the texts rigorously. I will embarrass you if you are texting or otherwise engaging in distracted/distracting behavior.

d) regarding technologyWe will use web resources in this course: a course blog and perhaps the course Blackboard site. I plan to use Bb only for its gradebook function, if that; we will use the blog to share informal responses to texts and for any announcements from me about the course. We will also use email for communication. It is therefore a basic requirement for you to have a functioning email account and to check it frequently. I prefer that you use your Hunter email address for all course-related correspondence: getting email from your personal accounts, with handles like numbnutz34 or darealcontenda (both real examples), creates spam filter problems and is just plain embarrassing. But if you trust a personal address more than your Hunter account, I can arrange to use that instead.

Books:[available at Shakes and Co. (939 Lexington Avenue); all other texts are available via blog site]

Henry James, PORTRAIT OF A LADYSeries: Penguin ClassicsISBN-10: 0141441267

Jacob Riis, HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVESPublisher: Penguin Classics; Reprint edition (November 1, 1997)ISBN-10: 0140436790

Stephen Crane, MAGGIE: A GIRL OF THE STREETSSeries: Penguin ClassicsPaperback: 272 pagesISBN-10: 0140437975

W. E. B. DuBois, SOULS OF BLACK FOLKSeries: Penguin ClassicsISBN-10: 014018998X

Edith Wharton, HOUSE OF MIRTHPublisher: Penguin Classics; Reprint edition (May 1, 1993)ISBN-10: 0140187294

Theodore Dreiser, SISTER CARRIEPublisher: Penguin Classics; Reprint editionISBN-10: 0140188282

** you are welcome to shop around, but make sure to get the edition with the corresponding ISBN.