Kaskaskia College Course Syllabus
LITO 204
IAI
H3 914
I.
COURSE LOCATION
X ON
CAMPUS CCC
II. COURSE IDENTIFICATION
PREFIX: LITO NUMBER: 204 NAME: American
Literature I
3 LECTURE HOURS LIBA 04900 CURRICULUM
& NO.
0 LABORATORY HOURS 1.1/230701 PCS-CIPS NUMBER
3 CREDIT HOURS N VARIABLE (Y/N)
0 CLINICAL
HOURS N REPEATABLE
(Y/N)
0 SOE
HOURS 0 TIMES
III. DIVISION TO WHICH COURSE IS ASSIGNED
X BACCALAUREATE/TRANSFER
CAREER EDUCATION
CONTINUING
COMMUNITY EDUCATION
ABE/ASE
HEALTH
OCCUPATIONS
OTHER
IV. CATALOG DESCRIPTION OF COURSE
A survey of representative works
illustrating the development of American literature from its beginnings to the
Civil War, with an emphasis on major literary movements understood in relation
to their intellectual, social, and political contexts. Written work includes a
midterm and final exam and at least two substantial papers (totaling 9-12 typed
pages) in addition to any reading journals, class notes, or other informal
responses. All written work must meet the usual standards for college-level
writing, be clearly and coherently presented and substantially free of surface
errors. Prerequisite: Completion of the first General Education writing course
(ENG 101).
.
V.
PREREQUISITES FOR THE COURSE
ENGL
101 English Composition
VI. METHODS OF INSTRUCTION
X DISCUSSION‑LECTURE SEMINAR
LABORATORY TELE‑LECTURE
(FILM‑TV)
CORRESPONDENCE LABORATORY‑DISCUSSION
TELEVISION
(TELECOURSE) LECTURE
RADIO LECTURE‑LABORATORY
INDEPENDENT
STUDY OTHER (IDENTIFY):
CO‑OP
VII. OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE (USE
ADDITIONAL PAGES AS NECESSARY)
A. To introduce the student to the
principal works of major American writers.
B. To consider trends in American
thought from the Colonial Period through the Romantic Period.
C. To correlate American literature
and American history.
D. To introduce the students to many
of the minority writers that have been excluded from
the canon.
VIII. A.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOK(S)
TITLE The
American Tradition in Literature, Vol. 1
AUTHOR(S): Perkins
COPYRIGHT DATE: 2007 EDITION: 11th
PUBLISHING COMPANY: McGraw-Hill
B.
REQUIRED WORKBOOK(S)
TITLE:
AUTHOR(S):
COPYRIGHT DATE: EDITION:
PUBLISHING COMPANY:
IX. SUPPLEMENTARY INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
IDENTIFY GENERAL SOURCES:
Paperback novels
IF EXTENSIVE COLLATERAL READINGS ARE REQUIRED
FROM SPECIFIC
BOOKS, PROVIDE
INFORMATION.
X.
METHODS OF EVALUATION OF STUDENTS ENROLLED IN THE COURSE
3
Regularly scheduled tests.
Final
comprehensive exam
Three,
4-5 page, typed (Times New Roman, 12pt. Font) analytical papers. These formal essays must develop a focused
thesis. Such essays should explicate a
literary work through analysis of theme, point of view, character, conflict,
irony, satire, imagery, and/or figurative language.
XI. COURSE OUTLINE
I.
Literature to 1620
A.
Stories of the beginning of the world
B.
Native American Trickster tales
C.
Spanish tales of incorporation, resistance, and reconquest
D.
Anglo-American New World voices
II. Early American Literature – 1620-1820
A.
Separatists and Dissenters/Bradford and Winthrop
B.
The changing world view/typology to the age of science
C.
Social, economic and religious changes
III. American Literature – 1820-1865
A.
European influences
B.
The rise of the middle class
C.
Political writings:
The Revolutionary War
D.
Newspapers and pamphlets
E.
From New England to the
Middle Colonies
F.
The Great Awakening
IV. The Romantics
A.
Myths, Tales, and legends
B.
The American self and Frontier Hero
C.
The American Renaissance
D.
Issues in pre-Civil War America
E.
The Transcendentalists
F.
The emergence of American Poetic Voices
G.
The impact of Civil War on American literary voices and
American consciousness: A nation in
change
NOTE:
ü As part of the Kaskaskia College comprehensive Assessment Program
for Humanities, all instructors are asked to complete an assessment form that
lists some of the assessment techniques utilized at both the summative and
formative levels; the form also allows for the use of the data to make changes
to the course the next time that it is taught.
The grading standards/ rubric for all compositions and the assessment
form are attached.
PREPARED BY:
REVIEW/REVISION DATE:
REVIEWED BY:
Learning
Outcomes
LITO
204: American Literature I
Learning
Outcome I:
Students
should be able to read, understand, interpret, and evaluate literary work.
More
specifically, they should be able to do the following:
1. Recognize, recall, and summarize material
read.
2. Predict and question the text during and
after reading.
3. Understand the various purposes for reading.
4. Be cognizant of the
difficulties of the text and aware of their own abilities and deficiencies.
5. Appreciate the importance of motivation.
6. Draw inferences thus enhancing enjoyment of
the text.
7. Synthesize information previously read with
the current text.
8. Evaluate the worth and value of the text.
9. Judge the accuracy and reliability of the
text.
Learning
Outcome II:
Students
should be able to express and develop their ideas of the literary text by
writing grammatical, organized, and coherent essays.
More
specifically, the students should be able to do the following:
1. Generate ideas
by using various strategies to analyze the text and to perceive the various
conflicts and themes.
2. Write for a
specific college audience and purpose, thus using appropriate language and
style.
3. Develop an
essay with a clear thesis.
4. Support that
thesis with textual information.
5. Organize the
essay coherently and logically using appropriate rhetorical strategies.
6. Write in
standard, written English.
7. Revise and
proofread.
8. Use writing as
a means of developing thought and clarifying ideas.
Learning
Outcome III:
Students
should appreciate the diversity of American literature. They should know the major writers of the
various literary movements and also some of the minor writers often ignored in
the established canon; the students should understand the cultural backgrounds
of these writers, the different eras, and the opposing ideas.
More
specifically, the student should be able to do the following:
1. Recognize the
various strategies for examining a literary text and be conscious of the
distinction between writer and persona.
2. Distinguish
among poetry, drama, and fiction.
3. Understand the
elements of various literary genres.
4. Comprehend
figurative language.
5. Discover
literary themes and their traditions.
6. Grasp and
appreciate the implications of symbolism, allegory, and myth, and techniques
such as satire and irony.
7. Be cognizant of the early traditions in American literature,
i.e. the New England, Southern, Middle
Colonies, and the British.
8. Understand the
socio-economic changes that occurred in the 1600's and which ushered out the
Puritan era and ushered in the Age of Reason.
9. Distinguish
early traditions with the myths surrounding them.
10. Discern the relationship between the political
climate of the1700's and the resultant literature.
11. Perceive the Romantic movement
as a rebellion against the Age of Reason.
12. Apprehend the idealism, individualism, and mysticism
inherent in the Romantic movement.
13. Ascertain the political and social forces operating
in the first half of the 1800's.
14. Appreciate the emergence of the great symbolist
writers--Poe, Hawthorne, and Melville--and the beginning of the American
Renaissance.
15. Comprehend the emerging Realists of the latter half
of the1800's and the subsequent rejection of Romantic tenets.
16. Be mindful of the socio-economic
forces paralleling the Realist movement and helping to usher in the modern era.
17. Understand
the major writers of the different literary periods.
18. Understand these writers' major contributions and
works.
19. Appreciate minor writers and their contributions to the diversity
of American thought.
English
Department
COMPOSITION GRADING
STANDARDS
While appreciating the individualism inherent in the essay
grading process, the department adheres to the holistic method of evaluating
essays and expects consideration of content, structure, and mechanics. The
following standards in grading are designed to establish uniformity among all
teachers of Composition:
EXCELLENT ESSAY --A
Content-- The content of the A essay exhibits a
mature level of thought with a clearly stated thesis and abundant support in
the forms of concrete examples, details, and reasoning. The essay addresses the
specified audience and the assigned rhetorical mode.
Structure—It
is structured with a complete introduction, graceful transitions through
supporting paragraphs, and a fitting conclusion.
Mechanics—Mechanically,
the paper employs a variety of sentence structures, precise word choice, and
figures of speech to create a clear tone; it is void of repetition, wordiness,
and colloquialisms.
GOOD ESSAY-- B
Content-- The B essay
has a clearly stated thesis; the supporting paragraphs exhibit adequate
examples and details with clear reasoning. The essay addresses the specified
audience and the assigned rhetorical mode.
Structure-- The structure
displays an introduction, clear transitions, and an acceptable conclusion. If
not highly impactful, it has few structural weaknesses.
Mechanics-- The paper's
mechanics consist of a variety of sentence structures and accurate word choices;
it has few errors in Standard English. However, a mere absence of errors should
not be rewarded with a grade of 6-.
AVERAGE ESSAY--C
Content-- The average essay has a clearly stated
thesis; however, it is often trite or general. It attempts to display examples
and details, but fails to provoke thought. The essay fails to address the
specified audience, but it does reflect the assigned rhetorical mode.
Structure-- The structure
presents a beginning, middle, and end, but lacks transitions. It has few
structural weaknesses, but oftentimes structure is its 9nly strength.
Mechanics--Sentence structures
are not varied and are often repetitive; unique word choices are not apparent.
Errors in Standard English are commonplace; however, the essay does not have
major sentence errors, such as comma splices, fragments, and run-ons.
POOR ESSAY--D
Content—The poor essay
lacks a clearly stated thesis. It fails
to display examples and details, but instead the paragraphs are filled with
repeated generalities. The essay fails
to address the specified audience, and oftentimes it does not even reflect the
assigned rhetorical mode.
Structure—The structure
presents a beginning, middle, and end, but lacks transitions. The body paragraphs show little unity, order,
or coherence.
Mechanics—Sentence structures are mostly simple
and most sentences restate the previous thought; simple word choices ("their"and"its") are incorrect and confused.
The most flagrant errors in Standard English are prevalent. Most seriously, a few comma splices,
fragments, and run-ons remain uncorrected.
FAILING ESSAY—F
Content—This essay
lacks a clearly stated thesis. It fails
to display examples and details, but instead the paragraphs are filled with
repeated generalities. The essay fails
to address the specified audience, and oftentimes it does not even reflect the
assigned rhetorical mode.
Structure—The structure
fails to present a beginning, middle, and end.
The body paragraphs do not show unity, order, or coherence.
Mechanics—Sentence structures are mostly simple
and most sentences restate the previous thought; simple word choices ("their"and"its") are incorrect and confused.
The most flagrant errors in Standard English are prevalent. Most seriously, many comma splices,
fragments, and run-ons remain uncorrected.
Failure to
eliminate comma splices, fragments, and run-ons from any essay should
constitute a failing grade for the assignment.
Each embedded writing
assignment will be evaluated based upon a variety of criteria that together
form the basis of the Humanities component of the General Education
curriculum. Please assign a number from
1 to 5 for each criterion. 1 =
Unacceptable, 2
= Poor, 3 = Average, 4 = Good, 5 = Very Good, N/A = Not applicable
Criteria:
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Student #
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Comprehension of the individual work
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Aesthetic and cultural appreciation
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Understanding of the work in its historical context
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Analysis of Form
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5.
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6.
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Totals
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