jeanne.hamming
english.dept.
centenary.college
jhamming@centenary.edu
313.JAC
318.869.5082
v.card

english.201: contemporary fiction
201C|20300|MWF|8-8:50am
201B|20299|MWF|1-1:50pm
office.hours: mwf 9-10:50
(and by appointment)

schedule (click here to view)

course.description

With its focus on (mostly) American novels and short fiction written after 1960 (Thomas Pychon, Don DeLillo, Joanna Russ, Charles Johnson, Kathy Acker, Douglas Coupland), the reading list for this course has a decidedly urban and postmodern flavor. The course is divided into two parts. During the first half of the semester we will concentrate on fiction generally categorized as "postmodern." In the second half of the semester we will shift our attention in the direction of postmodern cyberpunk and SF, the first a sub-category of the second. This reading intensive course is designed to allow students to explore contemporary American culture through the diverse themes and motifs presented in these representative texts.

course.goals

to develop strategies for careful reading of literary texts.
to develop strategies for analyzing, in writing, specific aspects or attributes of literary texts.
to understand the complex relationship between America's literature and its culture.
to enjoy what we read.

grade.breakdown

5 short response papers (2 pp or 500 words) 10% ea, 50% total
In-class presentations 20%
Final Exam 30%

Note: Course preparation and participation (in class and out of class) is crucial to our having a fun, engaging, and enlightening experience. Figured into students' overall grades are attendance, attentiveness to assignments, and attitude. Please keep this in mind.

response.papers

On five occasions during the semester, students will be asked to examine carefully one narrow aspect of a text we have been reading and discussing. The purpose of these focused and precise essays, no more than 2 pages in length, is to hone students' abilities to grapple with one limited topic of interest, whether that topic be a rhetorical strategy, a narrative trope, a single image or set of images (motif), a sustained theme, or a formal element. Students will be asked to write thesis-driven, focused, and controlled papers. <click here for a schedule of due dates for papers>

in-class.presentations

During the course of the semester, students will be asked, in pairs, to present their classmates with key information about the authors and texts that we will read. Specifically, presenters will do research online and at the library. Then, they will present the following information to classmates:

biographical information about the author
bibliographical information about the author's other works
excerpts and summaries of reviews of the text
excerpts and summaries of literary criticism of the text
a list/explanation of key themes or motifs that we may want to discuss in class

In addition to presenting information to the class, presenters will be asked to turn in notes and a portfolio of their research. <click here for a schedule of presentation dates>

attendance

Please note the English Department Policy on Attendance: to be eligible to pass an English course, a student may miss no more than three times the weekly number of class meeting, regardless of the reason for these absences. This means that for classes like this one that meet three times a week, students who have in excess of nine absences cannot pass the course. Frequent absences, even when they fall short of this absolute limit, will adversely affect your grade.

"get out of jail free" card

To promote an atmosphere of personal responsibility and fairness, each student will receive one "get out of jail free" card at the beginning of the semester. In other words, the goal here is to encourage students to be conscientious about completing assignments, done right the first time, by their due dates. Students may use your card one time (I will keep a record of who uses his/her card and when) to:

"buy" a 24-hour extension on an out-of-class assignment
"buy" an opportunity to revise an essay for a better grade
create a "crib sheet" for the final exam on one side of the card

Students may not use their card to get out of an exam or assignment, to excuse an absence, or to retake a quiz or exam. They may not trade or sell cards to any other student.

texts

Coupland, Douglas. Generation X. St. Martin's P.
DeLillo, Don. Underworld. Scribner.
Grant, J. Kerry. A Companion to the Crying of Lot 49. U of Ga P.
Johnson, Charles. Oxherding Tale. Scribner
McCaffery, Larry. Storming the Reality Studio. Duke UP (on the schedule this appears as SRS)
Pynchon, Thomas. The Crying of Lot 49. Perennial.
Russ, Joanna. The Female Man. Beacon P.

schedule (click here to view)