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Semester I, 2012

General Education/Writing 111 or its equivalent is a prerequisite for all courses in the English department except some Level I Interim courses. While a few courses have additional prerequisities, most Level I and Level II courses are open to all -- majors and non-majors alike -- after General Education/Writing 111. Level III courses (numbered 300 or higher) are primarily for English majors and ordinarily build upon prior work. All Level III courses require as a prerequisite English 185 and at least one Level II course in an area of relevant background as confirmed by the instructor or the department. Any course offered in the English department can count as an elective in the major.

All English Courses:
English 150: Fundamentals of Creative Writing
English 185: Literary Studies
English 200: Topic: Racial Identity and Subjectivity in American Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800)
English 201: Transatlantic Anglo Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800)
English 203: Asian American Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800)
English 204: (Pending Approval) South Asian Literature (Cross Cultural)
English 220: Topic: Declarations of Independence in 19th Century American Literature (Literary History, Post-1800)
English 223: Old and Middle English Literature: The Weird and the Wonderful (Literary History, Pre-1800)
English 225: Neoclassical and Romantic Literature (Literary History, Pre-1800)
English 250: Linguistics (Elective)
English 258: Folklore (Cross Cultural)
English 260: Topic: Literature and Philosophy (Cross Disciplinary)
English 280: Topics in Genre: Renaissance Lyric Poetry (Genre, Pre-1800)
English 291: Intermediate Nonfiction Writing (Genre)
English 292: Intermediate Poetry Writing (Genre)
English 293: Intermediate Fiction Writing (Genre)
English 296: Screenwriting (Genre)
English 340: Topic: Money and American Literature
English 347: Topic: Post Colonial Studies and Beyond
English 399: Seminar: Drama and Moral Choice

English 150: Fundamentals of Creative Writing (Diane LeBlanc)
xxxxThrough reading, discussion, and writing exercises, students will develop a broad foundation of strategies in creative writing and a general understanding of craft across genres--fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Risk-taking, experimentation and play will be encouraged. The course is open to all students who have taken or are currently taking GE/WRI 111 or equivalent. This course is highly recommended for 200- and 300-level creative writing courses. (WRI) Top of Page

English 185: Literary Studies
xxxxxThe foundation course of the English major, English 185 introduces students to poetic and dramatic form, narrative structure, and critical theory.  In addition, students engage with literature as a living practice and address its role in a culture by attending dramatic performance and readings by visiting writers and critics.  Although texts vary with the instructor, all sections explore the contemporary vitality of literatures in English and their strong connections to the past. (ALS-L, WRI)
Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent.
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           185-A: Literary Studies (Mary Titus)
           185-B: Literary Studies (Joan Hepburn)
           185-C: Literary Studies (Mary Trull)

English 200: Topic: Racial Identity and Subjectivity in American Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800) (Carlos Gallego)
xxxxxThe main aim of this course is to explore the interconnections between Enlightenment-modern theories of subjectivity and race, and their influence on representations of the racial subject in twentieth century American literature. Balancing canonical with non-canonical readings, we will analyze different theories of subjectivity, and how these theories are modified when addressing the issue of race. Particular attention is paid to Hegel's master-slave dialectic, and how thie theory of subject formation has influenced subsequent notions of subjectivity. Being one of the most influential theories in modern and postmodern philosophy, Hegel's model has impacted the work of Freudians, Marxists, existentialists, and post-structuralists alike. As such, it has proven to be a direct or indirect influence on the work of most great American authors. Although the readings in this course will focus specifically on twentieth century American ethnic literature, the theoretical texts are comparative and include Enlightenment authors. Students are encouraged to explore the intersections of the literary texts with the theoretical readings, examining how one medium accommodates, challenges, and even transforms the other. (ALS-L) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent.
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English 201: Transatlantic Anglophone Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800) (Jon Naito)
xxxxx"Anglophone literature" is an increasingly common way of designating English-language literature from places other than the United States or Britain. Examples of Anglophone literature include English-language writing from Africa, the Caribbean, and South Asia. However, the idea of grouping such potentially disparate literatures together raises a number of questions. While it is relatively common to study the literature of a nation, an ethnic group, or a region as speaking of, to, and for a community, to what extent can Anglophone literature be said to do the same? Are concepts such as race, gender, class, and sexual identity truly comparable across nations and continents? What about genres such as the novel? Conversely, might the deisgnation of these diverse literatures as "Anglophone literature" offer a valuable opportunity to examine historical and cultural phenomena that involve multiple peoples around the globe?

This course will consider the above questions and many more in relation to Anglophone writing from Africa and the Caribbean. In order to provide both an historical understanding of Anglophone literature and an appreciation for its ongoing transformation, our reading will encompass both influential works by established writers and contemporary works by emerging voices. (ALS-L, MCS-G) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 203: Asian American Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800) (Jennifer Kwon Dobbs)
xxxxxIn the Yellow Peril smack down, both the evil Asian and the good Asian strike exotic poses: Tokyo Rose - beautiful turncoat who lures U.S. soldiers to their deaths - versus Suzie Wong - Hong Kong hooker with a heart of gold, which she's eager to give away to white male tourists. These U.S. cultural scripts along with Kato v. Fu Manchu, model minority v. unassimilable alien, among others imagine Asian immigrants and Asian Americans in violent ways that have supported U.S. policies such as the exclusionary acts, Japanese internment, Cold War orphan rescue and adoption, and post-9/11 racial profiling. This course introduces a cross-genre selection of writers whose artistry disrupts these sterotypes while raising significant questions about colonization, gender and sexuality, globalization, war and transnationalism. Ancillary readings in critical theory will enhance our discussions of Edith Maud Eaton, Carlos Bulosan, John Okada, Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Sun Yung Shin, among other writers as well as some possible films. Students will make presentations, write essays, and take a midterm and final exam. (ALS-L, MCD)
Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 204: South Asian Literature (Cross Cultural, Post-1800) (Joseph Mbele)
xxxxxSome of the most exciting writing in the world, not in translation but in English, is coming from South Asia: India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. A geographical area shaped greatly by British colonization, South Asia is changing rapidly now as globalization introduces a new kind of colonizer. We’ll study this area – its history, culture, and religion, what unifies it and what pulls its peoples apart – by reading dramatic literature that tells compelling stories about individuals and groups that seem far different and far away from 21st century Minnesota. Writers may include Kiran Desai, Salman Rushdie, Aravind Adiga, Pradeep Jeganathan, Michael Ondaatje, and Jhumpa Lahiri. (ALS-L) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 220: Topics in Literary History: Declarations of Independence in 19th Century American Literature (Literary History, Post-1800) (Carol Holly)
xxxxxThis course examines the history of nineteenth-century American literature by focusing on the topic of freedom. Writing in the decades before the Civil War, many writers embraced the idea of literary independence for American writers, spirtual liberation from the religious institutions of the past, and the opportunity for unlimited development of the self. Others were concerned with the possibilities of freedom from slavery, from marriage, or from economic oppression. As they attempted to create more realistic and regional representations of American life after the war, writers continued the effort to liberate their writing from the constraints of the past and to dramatize the possibility of (or limits to) freedom in post-war America.  Developments in a variety of genres--the novel, the short story, the autobiographical narrative, and poetry—will be considered. Among the writers we may consider: Irving, Poe, Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Melville, Whitman, Fern,  Fuller, Stowe, Douglass, Dickinson, Twain, James, Freeman, Crane, Chopin. (WRI, ALS-L) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 223: Old and Middle English Literature: The Weird and the Wonderful
(Literary History, Pre-1800) (Karen Cherewatuk)
xxxxx Two themes persist in early British literature: the role of fate (Old English wyrd) versus free will and the power of wonders - from the miraculous to the magical. In English 223, we trace these themes in the Old English sermons, charms and riddles, biblical epics and Christian texts, and the heroic epic Beowulf. In the Middle English period, we continue our exploration in romances from the Arthurian and non-Authurian traditions (including Malory's Morte Darthur), allegories, like Pearl, the mystical treatises of Julian of Norwich and Margery Kempe, and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. (ALS-L, WRI) Prerequite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent.
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English 225: Neoclassical and Romantic Literature (Literary History, Pre-1800) (Colin Wells)
xxxxxNo two successive periods of English and American literature contrast more starkly than the Neoclassical and Romantic periods. The Neoclassical period (1680-1790), which coincided with the Enlightenment and the lead-up to the American Revolution, emphasized reason and moderation and focused on representing and improving the world as it is; the Romantic period (1790-1840), arising against the backdrop of the French Revolution, celebrated imaginative excss and the prospect of escaping the world as it is for one far stranger and more exciting. In this course we will read important works from both periods, from England, Ireland and America, and we'll examine them stylistically, thematicallly and as social and historical commentary. Are you a Romantic or Neoclassical at heart? Take the course and find out. This course offers ALS-L credit for General Education, and counts toward the Literary History and pre-1800 requirements of the English major. (ALS-L) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 250: Linguistics (Elective) (R Ito)
xxxxx Students encounter principles and approaches to linguistic analysis based on phonemics, morphology, and syntax. Students explore aspects of semantics, language acquisition, variation, and change, including grammatical analysis of documents ranging from film clips and advertisements to professional memos and literary texts. The course provides an overview of the history of English, serves as introduction to the linguistics concentration, and fulfills the linguistic requirement of the Communication Arts and Literature License. Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 258: Folklore (Cross Cultural) (Joseph Mbele)
xxxxx Focuses on verbal folklore: narratives, songs and shorter forms such as proverbs. Explores the intrinsic qualities of each as literary creations and also the ways in which they operate together when combined or in dialogic relationship. The folktale or the epic, for example, incorporate a variety of these forms, such as the proverb, the song, or the riddle, to form a complex whole. (ALS-L, MCS-G) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 260: Topic: Literature and Philosophy (Cross Disciplinary, Post 1800) (Carlos Gallego)
xxxxx The primary aim of this course is to introduce students to the "dialectic of modernity" initiated by Hegel's views concerning the development of History as Self-Consciousness. We will study Hegel's theory of the master-slave dialectic, and how this model of human consciousness has been developed and modified throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Some of the theorists that will be covered include Marx, Nietzsche, Freud, Adorno, Sartre, Lacan, Foucault, and Badiou. We will also discuss the impact of modernity on individual consciousness, paying particular attention to the issues of madness, criminality, and political oppression, as well as the more traditional analytic categories of race, gender and class. In order to facilitate our discussion of these abstract issues, we will do "close readings" of American texts that address these concerns. The writers we will read include Faulkner, Ellison, Pynchon, Delillo, and Pineda. (ALS-L) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 280: Topics in Genre: Renaissance Lyric Poetry (Genre, Pre-1800) (Mary Trull)
xxxxx"Lyric poetry" generally describes short, song-like poems that focus on one speaker's persona or inner world. In the English Renaissance, lyric poetry experienced a wildly creative phase, during which poets invented the English or Shakespearean sonnet, blank verse, the sestina, and many other forms. Poets of the period included William Shakespeare; Philip Sidney; Mary Sidney, Countess of Pembroke; Edmund Spenser; Ben Jonson; John Donne; George Herbert; and John Milton. Their poetry would influence every literary era thereafter. This class will study the English lyric poetry of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries with an emphasis on poetry's connections to music, oral recitation, and other forms of performance. We will also explore the roles of Classical and European poetic traditions and movements such as Humanism and Prostestantism in shaping English poetry. This course will involve extensive participation in structured discussions and debates, two oral recitation of a memorized poem, and an in-class presentation. Students will write several short essays and complete two exams (ORC; ALS-L)
Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 or equivalent
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English 291: Intermediate Nonfiction Writing (Genre) (Staff)
xxxxxCreative Nonfiction is a name given to the modern essay, distinguishing it from fiction but acknowledging its use of fictional techniques and its starting point in the creative imagination. In this course you will practice writing a variety of nonfiction pieces that might include a focused memoir, a reflection, a collage, cultural criticism, and literary journalism. (WRI) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 and sophomore standing or English 150
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English 292: Intermediate Poetry Writing (Genre) (Jennifer Kwon Dobbs)
xxxxx This course provides a general overview of the craft of poetry with attention to contemporary prosody. In addition to learning a portable craft vocabulary, students will read established and emerging 20th-21st Century poets for aesthetic models to inform their artistic processes and to develop their literary sensibilities. Through discussion in seminar and workshop settings, students will strengthen their knowledge of contemporary poetry's possibilities and apply them to their own creative work. Course assignments will consist of workshop responses, class presentations, short papers, and a portfolio of original writing. (WRI) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 and sophomore standing or English 150
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English 293: Intermediate Fiction Writing (Genre) (Staff)
xxxxxA course in the craft of contemporary fiction, this class involves intensive reading and writing of contemporary short fiction and exploration of craft issues. The writing process—that is drafting, developing, experimenting, revising—will be emphasized over product.. (WRI) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 and sophomore standing or English 150
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English 296: Screenwriting (Genre) (Thomas Pope)
xxxxxWant to write a script for that short film that's living in your head? Do you dream of becoming a screenwriter and want to see where the rubber meets the road? Or do you just want to learn the fundamentals of screenwriting? This class will provide powerful tools to let the genie out of the bottle and help you understand why a movie works or doesn't work. Organized in a workshop structure, each week each student will write an assignment, starting with short exercises, progressing to a series of short movie scripts, and culminating in ten and then fifteen minute scripts. In learning through doing, students will come to understand the basics of structure, dialogue, character and dramatic situations. Each week each assignment will be read aloud in class and critiqued in an atmosphere which will be supportive, encouraging, and a lot of fun. (WRI) Prerequisite: GE/WRI 111 and sophomore standing or English 150
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English 340: Topic: Money and American Literature (Mary Titus)

"A man who dies rich dies disgraced."  Andrew Carnegie
"He who dies with the most toys wins" Bumper sticker

xxxxxIn this seminar we will read works by several American writers, exploring the ways in which their writing addresses the meaning of money in American culture. The course will fall into two sections.  In the first two thirds, we will read and discuss literature together (in this class literature includes film).  Students will write at least three very short exploratory essays on our shared texts.  In the second, seminar members will undertake an ambitious research and writing project that grows out of one of the exploratory essays. The seminar will provide both structure and an audience for work on these longer essays.
Prerequisite: Open to rising juniors and seniors who have completed English 185 and at least two level-II English courses or by permission of the instructor.
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English 347: Postcolonial Studies and Beyond (Jon Naito)
xxxxxAt the time of its emergence in the 1980s, postcolonial theory and the larger field of postcolonial studies that it inaugurated were seen as offering an urgent call to expand the scope of literary studies beyond Europe and the United States while also demanding a fundamental reevaluation of the literatures of the West. It has influenced critical work on canonical British writers such as Jane Austen and William Shakespeare; it has shaped academic work on the literature, film, and popular culture of Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Europe; in particular, it has inflected the study of minority and ethnic literatures within the United States and elsewhere; and it has provided a challenge to and been challenged by globalization.

xxxxxFrom the start, then, postcolonial studies has been an expansive project, and it is the goal of this course to acquaint you with its breadth and depth. Students will acquire a solid foundation in postcolonial theory as well as allied theoretical approaches such as those of diaspora and transnational studies. Our readings will include both foundational works by major thinkers and contemporary writings that have the potential to shape the field for years to come. Approximately two-thirds of our time will be devoted to theory, with the remaining third set aside for the consideration of literary texts and films. No prior knowledge of postcolonial literature or theory is required. (ALS-L)
Prerequisite: Open to rising juniors and seniors who have completed English 185 and at least two level-II English courses or by permission of the instructor.
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English 399: Seminar: Drama and Moral Choice (Karen Marsalek)
xxxxxFrom medieval dramas that allegorized a soul's battle with temptation to contemporary plays on the ethics of nuclear weapons like Michael Frayn's Copenhagen, the stage has been a site for exploring questions of private and public morality. In this class we'll examine these issues in plays including Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, George Bernard Shaw's satire Major Barbara, Tony Kushner's "gay fantasia on national themes" Angels in America (1993), and Sarah Ruhl's In the Next Room: the vibrator play (2009). Together we'll study the plays as literary forms, as performance, and as cultural negotiations both in their historical contexts and in 2012. When possible, we'll see the plays on stage or on video. "Drama and Moral Choice" is designed for students who want the small-group learning atmosphere of a seminar and the challenge of researching and writing a substantial essay (15-20 pages) on a play of their choice.

xxxxxThe semester will fall into two parts. Regular class discussion, a performance project, and short papers will characterize the first part of this seminar. During the second part of the course, you will pursue your final research project on any English-language play you like. We will continue to meet weekly as a class to talk about resources and bibliographical issues, to workshop drafts, and to have writing conferences. My goal is to support you in choosing a topic that excites you and writing a paper that you are proud of. At the end of the semester you will hand in your final essay and give a presentation about your research to an audience of your classmates and invited guests.
Prerequisite: Open to rising juniors and seniors who have completed English 185 and at least two level-II English courses or by permission of the instructor.
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