WSTU 310 FEMINIST LITERARY CRITICISM (3)

PREREQUISITE: English 121 COURSE DESCRIPTION: The history, theory, and practice of feminist literary criticism, studied in cultural context. COURSE OBJECTIVES: 1. To give the student an understanding of the history of feminist literary

criticism, focusing on three major phases: a. construction of the feminine in literary texts; b) literary traditions out of which women write and the unique ways in which they use language c) feminist criticism grounded in post-structuralist theories of language and human development

2. To give the student an understanding of the major theoretical approaches at work in feminist literary criticism: cultural feminist, liberal feminist, and materialist feminist approaches to literature. 3. To give the student an understanding of the major issues of feminist literary

criticism: e.g. the imbrication of gender with race, sexual orientation, and class in feminist analysis; the cultural construction of subjectivity; the dilemma of speaking from the position of Other.

TOPICAL OUTLINE January 10 Orientation: What is Feminist Literary Criticism? January 17 Read: “Feminist Criticism in the Wilderness” Showalter (352) A Room of One’s Own (Woolf) January 24 Read: “Introduction: On the Politics of Literature”*(Fetterly) “Rip Van Winkle”* (Irving) “The Short, Happy Life of Francis McComber* (Hemingway) January 31 Read: "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema" *(Mulvey) The Women (Clare Boothe) Video: The Women (Clare Boothe) February 7 Read: Reading Houses: Writing Lives: The French Connection” (Mairs 405) The Country of the Pointed Firs (Jewett) February 14 Read: Writing the Body: Toward an Understanding of L'ecriture feminine"* (Jones)

"The Laugh of the Medusa" (Cixous 391) We Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House with the Master’s Tools”* (Lorde) Poems by Anne Sexton*

February 21 Read: from "Sorties"* (Cixous) “Susan Glaspell’s The Verge: L’ecriture feminine at the

Provinctown”* (Noe) The Verge (Glaspell) The Outside (Glaspell)

February 28 Read: "The Madwoman and Her Languages: Why I Don't Do Feminist

Theory" *(Baym) To the Lighthouse (Woolf)

March 7 Read: “Who Was That Masked Woman” (Gallagher 584) The Lucky Chance (Aphra Behn 433) March 21 Read: “Writing Doubly: Emily Dickinson and Female Experience"*

(Juhasz) “Selfish Desires: Dickinson’s Poetic Ego and the Rites of Subjectivity”

(Diehl 1073) “I’m Nobody: Women’s Poetry, 1650-1960* (Ostriker) Poems by Dickinson (966) plus handout poems Researchable questions due

March 28 Read: “What Has Never Been: An Overview of Lesbian Feminist Criticism”* (Zimmerman)

“The Lesbian Other” (Benstock 598) “When Virginia Looked at Vita, What Did She See* (Meese) from Ladies Almanack (Barnes 519) Orlando (Woolf) Thesis statements due

April 4 Read: Talking Back” (Hooks 73) “Speaking in Tongues: A Letter to Third World Women Writers”

(Anzaldua 315) “Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic as Power” (Lorde 536)

“My Man Bovanne” (Bambara (553) Outline for research papers due

April 11 Read: “The Highs and Lows of Black Feminist Criticism” (Christian 346) "Toward a Black Feminist Criticism" *(Smith) "In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens" (Walker 323) “Everyday Use” * (Walker) Research papers due April 18 Graded research papers returned/ brief presentations April 25 All revisions due no later than 4:30 p.m. today at Dr. Noe's office (338E

Holt) Your revision must be accompanied by your graded first draft and your grading sheet (if provided) to be considered for a higher grade. No work of any kind will be accepted after 4:30 p.m. today.

This syllabus is subject to change on short notice. Additional and/or substitute assignments will be announced in class.

OVERVIEW This course will look at both feminist theory (ideas about how women's writing works and how male authors have dealt with female characters and themes) and feminist criticism (the

application of those ideas to texts). We will also focus on the three major literary genres as we discover how feminist methodologies can illumine familiar texts in new ways. Some of the critical/theoretical essays have been chosen because they exemplify seminal feminist methodologies and critical approaches; we are reading other essays because they stake out key positions in the ongoing debate about the questions below. These questions will serve as lines of inquiry as we explore feminist theory and criticism; you can also use them heuristically to generate ideas and approaches for papers and projects. How and why is literature political? How are patriarchal values, attitudes, and traditions inscribed in literary texts? How have literary texts represented female characters? How do literary texts reflect female roles and social functions? Why does the canon of classic literature exclude so many female authors? What works constitute the female canon and what do they have in common? What are the literary traditions out of which women write? Is there a female way of writing that expresses a distinct female consciousness? Is a lesbian aesthetic different from a female aesthetic? How can woman speak from the place of the Other? How valid a source of authority is experience? How is female identity/subjectivity derived? Is it culturally constructed or something essential that precedes culture?

TEXTS Bigsby, C.W. E., ed. Plays by Susan Glaspell. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Boothe, Clare. The Women.1937. DeShazer, Mary K., ed. The Longman Anthology of Women’s Literature. New York: Longman, 2001 Jewett, Sarah Orne. The Country of the Pointed Firs. 1896. Dover Thrift Edition. Woolf, Virginia. To the Lighthouse. 1927. Woolf, Virginia. Orlando. Handouts of all other readings will be provided.

EQUIPMENT Blue or black pen Folder with pockets and paper-fastener spine (keep course handouts in the pockets and journal entries in the spine) Loose-leaf paper or computer paper A diskette for your papers and project (and for computer-generated journal entries)

EVALUATION You will accumulate points toward a maximum of 100 points for the semester according to the following distribution: Journal entries 60 points 90-100= A Journal presentations10 points 80-89= B Journal responses 10points 70-79= C Research paper 20 points 60-69= D

59 and below= F Journals Write a five-page handwritten (minimum) journal entry for each class meeting based on the reading(s) to be covered in class that week. Each journal entry will be worth a maximum of 5 points . If you type, your journal entry should comprise no fewer than two double-spaced pages with margins no larger than 1 and 1/4 inches all around in type no larger than 12 pt. 1. You should respond to the assigned readings each week with at least five pages (handwritten)

for two pages (typewritten)of notes in your journal. Occasionally, specific directions will be given your weekly journal entry. If so, try to follow them, but if they make responding more

difficult for you, simply write a minimum of four pages in response to the assigned readings in any way that is easiest for you. Journal entries of less than four pages will not receive full credit. 2. Either type your journal entries or use a blue or black pen. 3. Put your name, the date and the name of the assigned reading (s) across the top of the first page of your journal entry each week. 4. Get a folder for your journal entries; never turn in loose sheets of paper. Journals will be collected without prior notice. No late journals will be accepted. If you're absent, and journals are collected, you will get a zero for daily work that day. Do not leave your journal in the English Department office or outside my office if you are not going to be in class; your journal will be returned to you ungraded. Do not send your journal to class with a friend if you are not going to be in class; your journal will be returned ungraded. You must be in class, and your journal must be in class to receive journal credit for the week. After I grade journals, I will put them in the Feminist Literary Criticism bin outside my office so that you may pick up your journals before the next class meeting. If you fall behind, concentrate on being up to date in your journal rather than on making up journal entries. I will drop one or two of your lowest journal grades when figuring your final grade to allow for unavoidable absences or lack of preparation, and I will count your 10 best journal grades toward your final grade. Your journal entry must be complete and ready to hand in at the beginning of the class period. Journal entries written during the class period will not be accepted. 5. A good general procedure (unless you are given other directions) would be to first summarize the chapter or essay, then write down any questions about anything that is confusing or needs clarification or exemplification. Finally, articulate any challenges you wish to make to any of the author's ideas, or insights that you have derived from the essay. If a primary text is assigned, use the ideas/methodolgy exemplified in one of the assigned chapters or essays to analyze the primary text. 6. Occasionally, written work done in class may be given a grade based on a 5-point scale that

will count toward your journal grade. Journal presentations (5 points each) You will duplicate and present to the class for discussion one journal entry before middate and one journal entry after middate In addition to your response to the assigned reading(s), you should articulate two or three questions that the class can discuss. These can be questions that you are puzzling over, or questions constructed to bring forth significant textual problems, themes, techniques, issues, etc. with respect to the assigned reading(s). Students who fail to provide copies for their classmates will have 5 points deducted from their journal point total. Response to journal entries (5 points each) Write a response of at least two full typewritten double-spaced pages to two of the journal entries duplicated and read throughout the semester. Submit one response before mid-date and the other after mid-date. Hand in each response the week after the original journal entry is read; duplicate, distribute and read your response to the class during that class. You may also write a response to a someone else’s response instead of a response to a journal entry. Students who fail to prvoice copies for their classmates will have 5 points deducted from their journal point total. Research Paper process steps (5 points each) You may add 5 points to your journal point total if you have a legitimate researchable question, thesis statement, and outline articulated in writing at the beginning of the designated class period (see course outline). I will be happy to review and advise about process steps handed in late, but you will not receive the five points if the process step is not submitted on the date indicated on the course outline. Research Paper (20 points total)

1. Your research paper should be a reflection of the thinking you have done during the semester about one of the major lines of inquiry we have pursued with respect to one or two of the assigned course texts, developing out of journal entries, class discussions, lecture material, student presentations, and work with primary and secondary sources. The paper is designed to be the culminating intellectual experience of the course in which you explore a critical/scholarly/interpretative problem through a sustained analysis of one or two course texts.

2. Your paper must assert, develop, and support a thesis about the text(s) in question with respect to one of the lines of inquiry described in the Overview section of your syllabus.

3. You may combine your own analysis, interpretation, evaluation, or personal response with material you have discovered through your research in secondary sources. You must make some use of such sources, although the extent to which you use them is up to you. At least one of your sources must have been published during the last fifteen years.

4. Be careful to distinguish your own ideas from content derived from your research by citing the later according to standard MLA documentation style, as outlined in the most recent MLA Handbook. If you use material from secondary sources without citing those sources, you will be guilty of plagiarism and your case will be handled according to the plagiarism section of the course syllabus.

5. Your paper should be 10-20 double-spaced pages. Use 12 point Times or Times New Roman typeface. Double-space throughout, including inset quotations, notes, and work cited. Use margins no larger than 1 and 1/2 inches on all sides. Papers must be typewritten or computer-generated. No handwritten papers will be accepted.

6. Proofread your paper carefully before you turn it in to eliminate major sentence errors such as fragments and comma splices, punctuation and usage errors, infelicitous word choice and the like

7. Keep a copy of your paper on a diskette so that if it goes missing, you can supply a replacement.

8. Put a cover page on your paper that includes your name and your home and work phone numbers and the e-mail address that you check regularly. Put your paper in some kind of folder. Do not encase each individual sheet in plastic or put the paper in a plastic report cover with a detachable spine.

9. Turn in your paper on Tuesday, April 11. Your paper will be graded and returned to you with suggestions for revision. You may then choose to revise it to try to achieve a higher grade. If you choose to do so, you must submit your revised paper, together with the graded first draft, no later than 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 25.

10. I am happy to meet with you in the office to discuss your paper as often as you would like, but I will not accept electronic drafts or revisions Bonus Points In addition, the house, from time to time, will offer 5 bonus points to the first correct respondent to a literary trivia question about the author or work under discussion during that class period. The first respondent to submit a correct answer, in writing, by 4:30 p.m. will earn 5 points to be applied to the journal category. MAKE-UP POLICY No make-up work will be accepted. Late papers will be penalized 1 point for each calendar day they are late. No work of any kind will be accepted after the last day of class.

OFFICE HOURS My office is Holt 338E and my office hours will be from 4:30-5:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. I can also meet with students after class or at other times by appointment. Call me at 266-9316 (home) or 425-4692 to make an appointment or ask about a question or a problem. Don't hesitate to call me at home, particularly if you need to talk to me in the morning or on a Thursday or a Friday. You can also e-mail me at marcia-noe@utc.edu I don't have e-mail at home, so call if you need help quickly.

PLAGIARISM Students involved in plagiarism on any assignment can expect to fail the course, regardless of whether they were giving or receiving help.

ATTENDANCE Students who miss more than two classes can expect their final grade to be lowered one letter grade. Student who miss more than three classes can expect their final grade to be lowered two letter grades. Students who miss more than four classes can expect to fail the course, regardless of any point total they may have accumulated toward their final grade. Students who arrive late or leave early will earn one-half an absence. If you are absent, please contact your professor for handouts, changes in the assignment schedule, or other information you may have missed. INCLEMENT WEATHER Regardless of weather conditions, this class will meet unless it is officially canceled by the University. Unless the University officially cancels classes, class will be held, attendance will be taken, reports will be due, and journal assignments will be due. If class is officially canceled, whatever was assigned for the canceled class will be due at the very next class meeting, in addition to whatever was assigned for that next class.

INCOMPLETES Incompletes must be requested in writing no later than the last class meeting, and the reason(s) for the request must be stated clearly. Incompletes will not be granted automatically; they will not be granted to students who are failing the course or who have not attended class or turned in journal entries regularly.

ADA STATEMENT Attention: If you are a student with a disability (e.g., physical, learning, psychiatric, etc) and think that you might need assistance or an academic accommodation in this class or any other class, contact the Office for Students with Disabilities at 425-4006 or come by the office-102 Frist Hall.

CELL PHONES AND ELECTRONIC DEVICES Please turn off your cell phone before you come to class. If you must keep it on for a work-related reason, please leave the room before you answer it. Also, please do not engage in activities on laptops, IPODS, Blackberries, or other electronic devices during class. Turn them off and leave them off before you enter the classroom.

E-MAILS AND FAXES I am always happy to respond to questions and comments via e-mail and try to be prompt about doing so. However, I do not accept work that is submitted electronically. Work submitted via e-mail and/or fax will not be read. I will be happy to schedule a conference with you and review work in progress or graded work with you, or you may drop in for that purpose during my office hours. I will establish an e-mail address book for the class so that I can communicate with all of you easily and quickly regarding changes in assignments, class cancellations, or other matters about which you need to know. If you do not provide your private e-mail address, I will use your UTC e-mail address (firstname-lastname@utc.edu); you are responsible for checking your e-mail regularly in order to be fully informed about the class

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Syllabus

WSTU 455/ THSP 499/ENGL 499

Third Wave Feminist Rhetoric Spring 2006 Section 1 Description: This course focuses on the rhetoric of Third Wave Feminists. This course will be heavily theory based and is research intensive. Objectives: By the end of the term students should:

1. Be familiar with the rhetoric of third wave feminism 2. Be able to think rhetorically 3. Be familiar with the guidelines for conducting

rhetorical research 4. Understand the main tenets of rhetorical criticism

Student Responsibilities: Students will be expected to attend and participate in class, ready the assigned materials before the class period, give a research presentation, complete their own research paper, pass two tests, and complete additional assignments as indicated. Texts: Dicker, R. , & Piepmeier, A.(2003). (Ed.) Catching a wave: Reclaiming feminism for the 21st

century. Boston, MA: Northeastern University Press. Optional text: APA pocket guide Grading Distribution: Your Score Research Presentation 100 ________ Discussion board 75 ________ Midterm 150 ________ Final 150 ________ Lit. Review 100 ________ Rough Draft 50 ________ Research Paper 250 ________ Assignments 25 ________ Participation 100 ________

Jillian Klean Zwilling 239 Grote Hall 423-425-5537

Jillian-Zwilling@utc.edu

Office hours: Tue: 2-5 Weds: 2-5

Thurs: 1:30- 3:00

Grading Scale 90-100% A 80-89% B 70-79% C 60-69% D 59% ↓ F

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Total 1000 ________ Plagiarism: According to the UTC Honor Code (2005), plagiarism is a serious offense and has serious consequences that can lead to dismissal from the University. Please note that any use of another person’s thoughts or words or the giving or receiving of ANY unauthorized help on any text or assignment constitutes plagiarism. Please refer to the honor code or the instructor for any questions about plagiarism. Statement regarding disabilities: If you have a documented disability and wish to discuss academic accommodations, please contact the office for students with disabilities at 425-4006. Please Note:

1. ALL unexcused absences must have accompanying official documentation to be excused; if you know that you will miss a class it is the student’s responsibility to notify the instructor before class begins.

2. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the instructor to make up work.

3. Any work from an unexcused absence cannot be made up. 4. Late work will not be accepted. 5. Please keep all graded materials from the semester. 6. Being tardy to class on a significant basis will

result in a lowered participation grade. 7. All assignments should be typed in 12 pt. Times New,

in correct APA format, unless otherwise notified. 8. Discussion postings are due at MIDNIGHT on Weds. Late

posts will not be accepted. 9. It is the student’s responsibility to keep up with the

assigned readings and note any changes. 10. Please turn off all electronic items before class

begins. Tests: A midterm and final will be given throughout the semester. Tests will include questions that require content mastery as well as content application. Readings: There will be a good amount of reading across the semester. Most of the class period will be spent discussing the readings, so you will be expected to have completed all the

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assigned readings before the class. Readings will come from the text, along with some supplementary readings on reserve at the library. Research presentation: At the beginning of the semester, students will be assigned one research article to teach to the class. This will include reading the article and synthesizing the information contained into a 10-minute presentation with a professional looking handout. More information will be available about this assignment in class. Discussion board: You will be required to participate in the class’s online discussion on blackboard. I will post questions or thoughts about the readings once a week and you will respond, using your knowledge of the readings and personal ideas, thoughts and opinions. Discussion posts will be graded based on knowledge of the readings and thoughtful responses to postings. Attendance and Participation: Class attendance is expected. This is primarily a discussion based class, so I will expect you to come to class having already read the assigned materials, and actively participate in discussion with your classmates. As communicators each person has something unique to add to class. Participation points will be based on preparedness for class, appropriate class questions, active participation in class activities, respect for others and regular attendance. Please note that missing classes will have an adverse effect on your grade, this also includes being late to class on a significant basis. Lit.Review: During the semester students will research and prepare a lit review of a salient topic. More information will be available about this assignment later in the semester. Students will then present the findings of their research to the class. Research paper: This assignment is the capstone experience of the class. Students will conduct their own rhetorical analysis of a chosen text. More information will be available about this assignment later in the semester.

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Additional assignments: Additional assignments to be completed as indicated by the instructor throughout the semester. More information will be given when assignments are given. Statement concerning Blackboard: Throughout the semester announcements, scheduling issues, and assignments will be posted to Blackboard. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure access to Blackboard. If you are having trouble accessing blackboard or are unsure how to access Blackboard, I would strongly suggest you contact the student help desk at 425-4000. As a general rule, I would suggest checking blackboard several times a week and to get into the habit of logging in regularly (i.e. set up a time to do postings as a matter of routine). Unexpected Occurrences: Occasionally something will happen during the semester, such as a death in the family, sickness or other unexpected event. If this type of event should occur during the semester, it is your responsibility to contact me and make arrangements personally. Even if you notify student services, you still need to contact me by e-mail, phone, etc. and make arrangements.

WSTU 455/THSP 499 Tentative Schedule Please note this schedule is subject to

change. Date Class Subject Readings 1/ 12 Introductions/

What is Third Wave?

Introduction; Freedman

1/19 What is rhetoric?

Campbell and Foss, Foss & Trapp

1/26 Feminist Rhetoric

hooks

2/2 Needing Feminism

LIT REVEW DUE; Chapter One

2/9 Third Wave Springer, Maatita,

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Diversity Schilt, Hines 2/16 Doing Research/

APA Keyton; Style guide

2/23 Coming to Feminism

MIDTERM; Chapter two

3/2 Relations between 2nd and

3rd wave

Henry, Gilmore, Beechey

3/9 Thirdwave changes

ROUGH DRAFT DUE; Baumgardner & Richards; Payette

3/16 Recognizing feminism

Chapter three

3/23 “Historical”Feminismm

Baumgardner & Richards

3/30 Redefining feminism

Chapter four

4/6 Tactics of the Third Wave

RESEARCH PAPERS DUE; Reger & Story; Duncan; Mack-Canty

4/13 Doing Feminism Chapter 5 4/20 Future

implications of the Third Wave

Naples; Garrison

The final for this class will be April 27 at 5:30 p.m.