Hogge (Weber St. Univ.)

General Information

Abstract

The primary purpose of this course is to introduce students to the literary movements of realism and naturalism by (1) in-depth discussion of the literature of assigned authors and (2) student reports, accompanied by written analyses, of other important authors not assigned in the course outline. By using this two-pronged approach, an instructor can (1) teach the "canon" authors; (2) highlight undervalued women authors; and (3) broaden the canon by exposing students, many for the first time, to the important writings of Native Americans, African Americans, Mexican Americans, and Americans of Chinese ancestry.

Population

This course serves as an introduction to American literature from the Civil War to 1900. The course has approximately 30 students in it (mostly juniors and seniors) and is run mostly in a discussion format.

Bibliography:

Texts:

Lauter, et. al., Heath Anthology of American Literature, Volume 2

Additional Readings:

Excerpts from Walt Whitman's Song of Myself; selected poems of Emily Dickinson; Mark Twain's "A Medieval Romance"; selections from the Fantastic Fables of Ambrose Bierce; and excerpts from Joel Chandler Harris, Artemus Ward, Petroleum V. Nasby, and Bill Nye.

Bibliography:

Wayne C. Booth's The Rhetoric of Fiction; Eugene Current-Garcia and Walton R. Patrick's Realism and Romanticism in Fiction; and Edward Stone's What Was Naturalism?

General Writing and Pedagogy:

Throughout this course students are required to write a daily journal in which they respond to each author studied. At the end of the course, they submit the "best" of the journal (3 typed pages). In addition, students are required to write a creative essay (2-3 pages), a critical analysis (2-3 pages), and a term paper based on guidelines from the D.C. Heath American Literature Student Essay Contest (4-5 pages). Students present an oral report, complete several in-class writing assignments, and do some collaborative work, reviewing each other's papers. And they take two unannounced quizzes and a final examination.

Reading Schedule

Unit #1; 1 class session.

Excerpts from Walt Whitman's Song of Myself and selected poems of Emily Dickinson (handout)

Unit #2

(2 class sessions.) Sarah Orne Jewett's "A White Heron" and "A Foreigner"; Mary E. Wilkins Freeman's "A Church Mouse," "The Revolt of 'Mother,'" and "Old Woman Magoun" (Heath)

Unit #3

(6 class sessions.) Mark Twain's The Gilded Age (Chapters 27 & 28), "A True Story," Old Times on the Mississippi (Chapters I & II), Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and "The War Prayer" (Heath)

CREATIVE ESSAY ASSIGNMENT

Unit #4

( 2 class sessions) William Dean Howells ' excerpts from Suburban Sketches, The Rise of Silas Latham, The Editor's Study, Criticism and Fiction, along with "Editha" and "Editor's Easy Chair"; Henry James' excerpt from "Hawthorne," plus Daisy Miller: A Study and "The Beast in the Jungle" (Heath)

Unit #5

(2 class sessions) Kate Chopin's "Desiree's Baby," "A Respectable Woman," "The Story of an Hour," "Lilacs," "A Pair of Silk Stockings," and "The Storm" (Heath)

Unit #6

(4 class sessions) Ambrose Bierce's "Chicamauga"; Hamlin Garland's "Up the Coule"; Stephen Crane's "A Mystery of Heroism," "The Open Boat," "The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky," and selected poems; and Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wall-Paper" and a chapter from Herland (Heath)

Longer Paper (Heath Essay Contest)

Unit #7

(2 class sessions) Henry Adams' excerpts from Mont-Saint Michel and Chartres and The Education of Henry Adams; Booker T. Washington's chapters from Up From Slavery (Heath)

Unit #8

(3 class sessions) Each student is assigned to read the selections of a specific author who has not yet been discussed in this class.

Short Papers and In-class Reports