Amcon 101 Syllabus
Materials:
Frederick Douglas, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas (Dover, 1995) [Douglas]
Joseph Ellis, ed., What Did the Declaration Declare? (Bedford, 1999). [What Did]
Eric Foner, The Story of American Freedom (Norton, 1998). [Foner]
Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter (Dover, 1994). [SL]
Peter Mancall, ed. Envisioning America (Bedford, 1995).[Envisioning]
Neal Salisbury, ed. The Sovereignty and Goodness of God (Bedford, 1997). [Sovereignty]
Ann Raimes, Keys for Writers
various photocopied materials available in a reading packet [RP]
other materials on the web, some required and some suggested
Requirements:
Regular attendance and active participation are required. (25% of final grade)
Careful daily preparation of common readings and other assignments.
Timely completion of all writing projects. (75 % of final grade = 15 % for each of five projects)
Involvement in other activities, such as WebCt discussion or evening programs, as specified.
Though not required, participation in other course and program actities, such as weekly dinners and "beyond the classroom" events, is encouraged.
Each of the five formal writing projects of the semester will be discussed in class. Students are encouraged to consult with the instructors at
any stage in their work. Instructions for each assignment and its parts are provided below. Usually written work should be typed (word-processed), double-spaced, with reasonable margins; each piece of work should include your name and the course title.
1. An op-ed piece on use of Disney's Pocahontas in public school.
2. Essay based on a close reading of The Scarlet Letter.
3. Expository Essay "Declaring My Independence"
4. Research on a 19th century Reformer.
5. Group Magazine: Freedom
Op-ed piece of use of Disney's, " Pocahontas" in public school: This project has four stages; the final stage synthesizes the initial three stages into an op-ed piece for your local newspaper. We are interested in the "cultural work" an image does as well as what it looks like. In all four parts you consider how images of Pocahontas are related to the historical person (the subject), the maker of the image, and the
intended or subsequent audiences of the image. By the second and third stages you are asked to analyze and compare in addition to describing; by the final stage you are asked to evaluate as well.
· My mental image: (due September 17) Write a one paragraph description of your current image of Pocahontas. If you were to portray her in an image (e.g. in a painting), how would she look?
· Initial response to Disney film: (due Sept. 21)Write 1-2 pages of informal response to the film. This might include points of comparison with the 17th century documents, questions you'd like to explore, observations about the images, etc.
· Label for visual image: (due Sept. 24) After viewing all the images provided on the web, select one. You will write a brief (about 400 word) essay that could serve as a label for that image as part of a public exhibition. The essay should help viewers read the image on its own and in connection with the other images.
The reading by Sylvan Barnet offers useful suggestions about looking at the image. Begin by making a small, quick sketch of the image, concentrating on what artist emphasized. Note how the artist composed the work relative to what you want to do with it or can do with it. Next, briefly answer the questions Barnet raises and add any of your own. You may be able to do this by looking at the image, but you may also consult library resources for more information. There may be questions that remain unanswered.
Now go on to draft your label. Keep in mind that each work of art has a variety of interesting stories that you will choose among in order to develop your thesis. Some of the stories or parts of them will be found in the imagery itself--the way figures are composed (i.e. have been arranged by the artist to relate them to one another in a telling way), the way visual dynamics (e.g., diagonal elements, curving ones color, etc.) express specific ideas and value. Some stories or aspects of them will reside not just in the imagery but in the object itself (e.g. what it is and how it was used by people) and how the object and imagery relate to the artist and the artist's culture and times rather than to the historical subject, namely Pocahontas.
Op-ed piece: preliminary draft (due Sept 26) and final draft (due Oct. 1) Imagine that the middle school you attended announces plans to show Disney's "Pocahontas" as part of the program for Native American Awareness week. Write a letter to your local newspaper taking a stand concerning this plan. In your letter make use of the thinking you did in the previous three steps of this project as part of your argument for your position. (500-750 words)
Close reading of conclusion of Scarlet Letter: preliminary draft (due Oct. 19) and final draft (due Oct. 26). MORE TO COME
Declaring My Independence: expository essay More details to follow
· Initial paragraph: (due Sept. 10)
· Expanded draft (due Oct. 31)
· Final draft (due ???)
Research on 19th century reformer (e.g. abolitionist, woman?s rights advocate, etc.)
· Library research guide: (due Nov. 30)
RESOURCES TO BE CONSULTED: include full bibliographic data for each source
a biographical dictionary
two encyclopedias: one general, one specialized
two scholarly journal articles located using two different indexes
treatment in one monograph
a relevant government document
one credible website
QUESTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED: likely you will combine information from more than one source in order to respond to these questions.
Who was this person? basic biographical data such as dates, locations, family, education, associations, activities
What did this person believe in or care about?
What did this person do about those convictions and commitments?
How did this person account for those convictions and commitments?
In what ways are this person's views and actions like or unlike those of the persons who declared national independence for the 13
colonies?
What about our current social or political situation would be of interest to this person?
· Letter to PAC speaker selection committee or introduction of reformer at PAC sponsored lecture (due Dec. 3 or 5) Throughout
this term we have been interested in how the ideal of freedom has informed Americans? notion of themselves and shaped their nation and
society. This assignment has two parts: 1) research about the life and ideas of a 19th century advocate of reform; and 2) preparation and
presentation of a letter to the PAC committee speaker selection committee arguing for or against inviting this person to speak at St. Olaf or an
introduction of the person to a St. Olaf audience. In your letter or introduction present relevant information about the reformer?the
reformer?s life, views and activities?as well as the making connections back to the nation?s founders and forward to our contemporary
situation. Either a letter or an introduction will be 500-750 words.
Group production of magazine on the topic of freedom (due at final)
NB: this assignment is still being developed.
· Must include at least one written item from each group member
· Creativity counts
· May include materials used in class; may include other materials as well.
· Budget subsidy of $#; you must prepare 3-1/2 dozen copies
In the first semester of American Conversations, freedom--a central theme of American identity and life--is at the center of our work. Historian Eric Foner asserts that freedom is "an essentially contested concept." This suggests that freedom is gained and understood by contest; whether by physical confrontation or in mental and verbal debate, freedom is won by struggle and interaction. Our contest is of the mental and verbal sort. It takes place in conversations across time, across cultures, and among ourselves.
The expectation that such conversations are fruitful undergirds this program and guides its design.
A more informed, reflective, and complex understanding of freedom and its place in the culture of the United States is a primary goal of our work together. In addition the course is designed to address St. Olaf College's general education objectives, particularly those for First Year Writing and Historical Studies in Western Culture, the two requirements met by American Conversations I and II.
Instructors:
Carol Holly, Rolvaag 416, x 3447
L. DeAne Lagerquist, Boe 104, X 3175
Materials:
Frederick Douglas, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas (Dover, 1995) [Douglas]
Joseph Ellis, ed., What Did the Declaration Declare? (Bedford, 1999). [What Did]
Eric Foner, The Story of American Freedom (Norton, 1998). [Foner]
Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter (Dover, 1994). [SL]
Peter Mancall, ed. Envisioning America (Bedford, 1995).[Envisioning]
Neal Salisbury, ed. The Sovereignty and Goodness of God (Bedford, 1997). [Sovereignty]
Ann Raimes, Keys for Writers
various photocopied materials available in a reading packet [RP]
other materials on the web, some required and some suggested
Requirements:
Regular attendance and active participation are required. (25% of final grade)
Careful daily preparation of common readings and other assignments.
Timely completion of all writing projects. (75 % of final grade = 15 % for each of five projects)
Involvement in other activities, such as WebCt discussion or evening programs, as specified.
Though not required, participation in other course and program actities, such as weekly dinners and "beyond the classroom" events, is encouraged.
Each of the five formal writing projects of the semester will be discussed in class. Students are encouraged to consult with the instructors at
any stage in their work. Instructions for each assignment and its parts are provided below. Usually written work should be typed (word-processed), double-spaced, with reasonable margins; each piece of work should include your name and the course title.
1. An op-ed piece on use of Disney's Pocahontas in public school.
2. Essay based on a close reading of The Scarlet Letter.
3. Expository Essay "Declaring My Independence"
4. Research on a 19th century Reformer.
5. Group Magazine: Freedom
Op-ed piece of use of Disney's, " Pocahontas" in public school: This project has four stages; the final stage synthesizes the initial three stages into an op-ed piece for your local newspaper. We are interested in the "cultural work" an image does as well as what it looks like. In all four parts you consider how images of Pocahontas are related to the historical person (the subject), the maker of the image, and the
intended or subsequent audiences of the image. By the second and third stages you are asked to analyze and compare in addition to describing; by the final stage you are asked to evaluate as well.
· My mental image: (due September 17) Write a one paragraph description of your current image of Pocahontas. If you were to portray her in an image (e.g. in a painting), how would she look?
· Initial response to Disney film: (due Sept. 21)Write 1-2 pages of informal response to the film. This might include points of comparison with the 17th century documents, questions you'd like to explore, observations about the images, etc.
· Label for visual image: (due Sept. 24) After viewing all the images provided on the web, select one. You will write a brief (about 400 word) essay that could serve as a label for that image as part of a public exhibition. The essay should help viewers read the image on its own and in connection with the other images.
The reading by Sylvan Barnet offers useful suggestions about looking at the image. Begin by making a small, quick sketch of the image, concentrating on what artist emphasized. Note how the artist composed the work relative to what you want to do with it or can do with it. Next, briefly answer the questions Barnet raises and add any of your own. You may be able to do this by looking at the image, but you may also consult library resources for more information. There may be questions that remain unanswered.
Now go on to draft your label. Keep in mind that each work of art has a variety of interesting stories that you will choose among in order to develop your thesis. Some of the stories or parts of them will be found in the imagery itself--the way figures are composed (i.e. have been arranged by the artist to relate them to one another in a telling way), the way visual dynamics (e.g., diagonal elements, curving ones color, etc.) express specific ideas and value. Some stories or aspects of them will reside not just in the imagery but in the object itself (e.g. what it is and how it was used by people) and how the object and imagery relate to the artist and the artist's culture and times rather than to the historical subject, namely Pocahontas.
Op-ed piece: preliminary draft (due Sept 26) and final draft (due Oct. 1) Imagine that the middle school you attended announces plans to show Disney's "Pocahontas" as part of the program for Native American Awareness week. Write a letter to your local newspaper taking a stand concerning this plan. In your letter make use of the thinking you did in the previous three steps of this project as part of your argument for your position. (500-750 words)
Close reading of conclusion of Scarlet Letter: preliminary draft (due Oct. 19) and final draft (due Oct. 26). MORE TO COME
Declaring My Independence: expository essay More details to follow
· Initial paragraph: (due Sept. 10)
· Expanded draft (due Oct. 31)
· Final draft (due ???)
Research on 19th century reformer (e.g. abolitionist, woman?s rights advocate, etc.)
· Library research guide: (due Nov. 30)
RESOURCES TO BE CONSULTED: include full bibliographic data for each source
a biographical dictionary
two encyclopedias: one general, one specialized
two scholarly journal articles located using two different indexes
treatment in one monograph
a relevant government document
one credible website
QUESTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED: likely you will combine information from more than one source in order to respond to these questions.
Who was this person? basic biographical data such as dates, locations, family, education, associations, activities
What did this person believe in or care about?
What did this person do about those convictions and commitments?
How did this person account for those convictions and commitments?
In what ways are this person's views and actions like or unlike those of the persons who declared national independence for the 13
colonies?
What about our current social or political situation would be of interest to this person?
· Letter to PAC speaker selection committee or introduction of reformer at PAC sponsored lecture (due Dec. 3 or 5) Throughout
this term we have been interested in how the ideal of freedom has informed Americans? notion of themselves and shaped their nation and
society. This assignment has two parts: 1) research about the life and ideas of a 19th century advocate of reform; and 2) preparation and
presentation of a letter to the PAC committee speaker selection committee arguing for or against inviting this person to speak at St. Olaf or an
introduction of the person to a St. Olaf audience. In your letter or introduction present relevant information about the reformer?the
reformer?s life, views and activities?as well as the making connections back to the nation?s founders and forward to our contemporary
situation. Either a letter or an introduction will be 500-750 words.
Group production of magazine on the topic of freedom (due at final)
NB: this assignment is still being developed.
· Must include at least one written item from each group member
· Creativity counts
· May include materials used in class; may include other materials as well.
· Budget subsidy of $#; you must prepare 3-1/2 dozen copies
