ENG 2850 Great Works of Literature II
3.0 Credits
Professor:
Manon Hakem-Lemaire, Ph.D. Student in Comparative Literature at The Graduate Center, CUNY
Email:
manon.hakem-lemaire@baruch.cuny.edu
Class format:
Synchronous blended. You will do readings and contribute to the Google Doc during the week. We will meet every Thursday at 7:50 am EST to discuss the readings.
Recurring Zoom link (meetings and office hours):
https://baruch.zoom.us/my/mhlemaire
Office Hours:
Thursdays 9:30 am EST (right after our meetings), or by appointment.
Textbook:
– Required: The Norton Anthology for World Lit. Vol. D,E,F,
Author: Puchner, Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co. Inc., Price: 70.00 USD from Baruch bookstore. May also be available on thrift websites.
– Recommended: Writing about Literature, by Judith Woolf (Routledge, 2005).
Course description
This course presents a global approach to literature by introducing a variety of narrative, lyric, and dramatic forms representative of different cultures and historical periods, from the seventeenth century to the present. Specific choices depend upon the preference of the instructor, but every class studies examples of fantasy and satire, Romantic poetry, modern plays, and a broad range of narratives. Discussions involve both close reading of selected texts and comparison of the values the texts promote. Students engage in a variety of communication-intensive activities designed to enhance their appreciation of literature and their awareness of the way it shapes and reflects a multicultural world.
Baruch requirements and equivalences:
Baruch Common Core (for students who entered Baruch prior to Fall 2013): This course satisfies the Tier II Literature requirement.
CUNY Pathways at Baruch (for students who entered Baruch Fall 2013 or later, or who “opt-in” to CUNY Pathways): This course is not part of the CUNY Pathways core, but it: satisfies the Literature requirement in the Weissman and Zicklin college options; is a choice for the SPA college option.
This course is equivalent to CMP (LTT) 2850. Students will receive credit for ENG 2850, CMP 2850, or LTT 2850. These courses may not substitute for each other in the F grade replacement policy. This course may not be taken with the Pass/Fail option.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150 or equivalent.
Learning Goals
Specific outcomes of this course are the following:
Interpret meaning in literary texts by paying close attention to authors’ choices of detail, vocabulary, and style;
Discuss the relationship between different genres of literary texts and the multicultural environments from which they spring;
Articulate a critical evaluation and appreciation of a literary work’s strengths and limitations;
Present their ideas orally;
Write critical essays employing
o A strong thesis statement,
o Appropriate textual citations,
o Contextual and intertextual evidence for their ideas.
Assessment
There are four components of your assessment in this course:
- Weekly participation: 15%
- Essay #1: 25% due Friday, Oct 15th
- Essay #2: 25% due Friday, Nov 19th
- Final Exam: 35% Live, on Thursday, Dec 16th, 7:50-9:30 am
You will find all the information you need about the assignments in the main menu, under Assessment.
Please note that the final exam will take place on Zoom during the exam period, that is, on Thursday, December 16th, between 7:50 am and 9:30 am, using the whole time alloted for this course.
Submitting your essay
Essays will be submitted through TurnitIn, on Blackboard (please see the main menu). This platform checks whether sources are sufficiently acknowledged so as not to cause plagiarism. It also helps me give you feedback in a reader-friendly way. Please do not send me your essays by email. If you have trouble using TurnitIn, please let me know as soon as possible.
I will ask that you submit your essays using the template below every time:
Late work and extensions
Extensions are not automatically granted. They should be requested at least 48 hours in advance of the due date.
I accept late assignments as long as you communicate with me to ask for an extension. I do not need to know why you need it, but please ask in advance of the due date.
Grading
I will use the entire range of points /100 as prescribed by the Baruch grading table below. You will get extensive individual feedback on both your short essays and some of your weekly participation. I will also give group feedback on each assignments during the meetings, and you will get group feedback for the final exam. You should feel free to reach out if you ever required more feedback.
More information on grading at Baruch can be found here.
As for your participation, I will keep track of your progress every week on a spreadsheet, using check marks. When you can’t participate in either a weekly meeting or the Google Doc, but you have told me so in advance, I will take note of that and take it into account when I grade your participation, should you be in-between two grades.
Here is how I will factor the 15% of your grade corresponding with participation, depending on your completion of the “lead post” (Google Doc) and the minimum of 10 comments required:
– “Lead post”: 10% + 10 comments: 5% (full participation grade of 15% comments)
8-9 comments: 4%
6-7 comments: 3%
4-5 comments: 2%
3 comments or less: 0-1%
Please communicate with me if you find yourself unable to complete more than half the modules. They are essential to your success in this course.
Mutual expectations
I expect you to participate as much as possible and always communicate with me when you have any impediments. Learning is a collaborative activity, and your participation is required to make class discussion as rich and diverse as possible. Please consider turning your camera on during the Zoom meetings. Of course, if you mostly have it on but need to momentarily turn it off during the meeting, or if you have technical issues, you are free to do so without having to say. However, please consider turning it back on so that we can have easier class interaction.
I want the class to be a safe space in which everyone feels comfortable contributing. I ask that we all be respectful of one another and the wonderfully diverse opinions, ethnic backgrounds, gender expressions and sexual orientations, social classes, religious beliefs, and ethnicities among us. In the same spirit, written work in this course should employ inclusive language, which shows that the writer honors the diversity of the human race by not using language that would universalize one element of humanity to the exclusion of others. For example, use “men and women” or “people” instead of the generic “man”; use “they” or alternate “he” and “she” instead of the generic “he” to represent “all people.”
I will treat you with respect and will spend a good deal of time this semester giving you feedback on your writing for your major projects, commensurate to the amount of time you spend on your writing. I will read your weekly posts and comments, and while I may not respond to each one of them, I will assign each of them a participation/completion grade and will give you feedback on your posts at midterm and at the end of the semester, just like I’ll ask for your feedback over the semester.
Academic Integrity
I’ll expect you to compose your projects ethically, meaning that if you use the work of others you cite that work, and that all work in this course is original, composed for the first time for this course, and is entirely your own, to the degree that anything we write is entirely our own. All students enrolled at Baruch are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic honesty, as defined in the Baruch Student Handbook.
Plagiarism is presenting another’s ideas, research, or writing as your own, such as:
- Copying another person’s actual words without the use of quotation marks and footnotes (a functional limit is four or more words taken from another’s work);
- Presenting another person’s ideas or theories in your own words without acknowledgement;
- Using information that is not considered common knowledge without acknowledging the source;
- Plagiarism may result in a failing grade on a particular assignment, at the least, and, depending on the circumstances, a failing grade in the course. It is a serious offense that, if done knowingly and depending on the severity and other factors, can result in a failing grade (or worse) and a mark on your permanent academic record.
If you ever have any questions or concerns about plagiarism, please ask me. You can also check out the online plagiarism tutorial prepared by members of the Newman Library faculty at http://newman.baruch.cuny.edu/help/plagiarism/default.htm and Baruch College’s academic integrity policy at http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/academic/academic_honesty.htm
Writing Support
As a writer you’ll want to seek feedback from many different readers. Writers at all levels of experience get feedback on their writing. Asking for and receiving feedback is not a sign of weakness and it does not equal weak writing; it’s actually a sign of wisdom and makes your writing much stronger. You’ll give feedback to and get feedback from your fellow writers in your writing groups in this class throughout the semester and at all stages of your projects. I also encourage you to get feedback on your writing from professional writing consultants (some of whom also teach first-year writing courses) at the Writing Center.
The Writing Center offers free, one-to-one (in-person and online) and small-group workshop writing support to all Baruch students. The Center’s consultants work collaboratively with you to deepen your writing and English language skills. At any step in the process, they’ll help you become a more confident and versatile writer. I encourage you to schedule your appointment well in advance of when your writing is due. You can schedule an appointment at: https://bc.mywconline.com/. Visit the Writing Center in NVC 8-185 or at the Newman Library Reference Desk, or log on to their website, writingcenter.baruch.cuny.edu, to learn more.
Accommodations
Baruch is committed to making individuals with disabilities full participants in the programs, services, and activities of the college community through compliance with Section 504 of the 8 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. It is the policy of Baruch that no otherwise qualified individual with a disability will be denied access to any program, service, or activity offered by the university. Individuals with disabilities have a right to request accommodations.
If you require any accommodation, please contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities at disabilityservices@baruch.cuny.edu, and let me know as soon as you can, ideally during the first two weeks of class. I encourage you to meet with me to co-design accommodations. For additional information check out the Student Disability Services webpage: https://studentaffairs.baruch.cuny.edu/student-disability-services/.
Withdrawing/Dropping the course
If you fall behind in the class for any reason, I encourage you to talk to me or consult an academic counselor. If you feel you must drop or withdraw from this course (and I hope you don’t find yourself in that situation), you must do so by the dates on the academic calendar: https://enrollmentmanagement.baruch.cuny.edu/registrar/academic-calendar/.
If you decide to withdraw/drop, please let me know. No questions asked. It just avoids me trying to get in touch with you and figuring out how to assess you, while in fact you may have left the course weeks earlier. As your instructor, it is my responsibility to care about your academic journey, so please just make sure I know about your decision and don’t wonder where you’ve been.
