PROF. HARVEY’S HOMEPAGE (AML 4213 link at top): www.fiu.edu/~harveyb/bruceharvey

http://www.turnitin.com

COURSE SUMMARY

AML 4213—Journeys to America (Early American Literature)
Spring 2010
Monday & Wednesday evenings 5:00-6:25
Biscayne Bay Campus

Prof. Bruce Harvey

BBC AC1 378
Office Hours: 3:00-5:00 Monday, 4:00-5:00 Wednesday, and by appointment

Office Phone: 305-919-5254
Home phone: 954-920-8938 (for non-routine situations and inquiries)

harveyb@fiu.edu

Key concepts about this country's national identity took shape as European travelers explored and then settled upon the continent.  In this course, we'll read travel narratives, autobiographies, political-religious treatises, novels, and other literary works to examine how the new nation, ideologically and psycho-culturally, came into being.  Our readings will especially focus on pre-1830 cross-cultural encounters and clashes from a variety of perspectives (native American, European, and African).

I will give occasional lectures to fill in historical or cultural or theoretical context, but the bulk of class time will be devoted to discussion.  Besides introducing you to a fascinating area of study, a major goal of this course is to improve your analytical abilities--specifically, your ability to see how texts work rhetorically, aesthetically, and culturally.  Another major goal is to develop your skill and pleasure in communicating ideas, both in class and on paper. 

This is a senior-level literature course, with a lot of reading and a lot of writing, and you should be prepared to commit yourself intensely to both; if you require being quizzed to keep up with the readings, you should not take this class!

TEXTS (in the BBC bookstore)

Shakespeare, The Tempest (Penguin)

Sagely, imperialistic-minded Prospero vs. the sly, lyrical, beastly Caliban: this late play of the Bard presents the key issues that later define the New World experience.

William Andrews, ed. Journeys in New Worlds (Wisconsin)

This volume includes an autobiography of a demur Puritan woman, Mary Rowlandson, who learns to survive in the Indian “wilderness”; and the memoir of a Quaker woman who recalls her rebellious escape from paternal and cultural tyranny to carve out a space of independence in the New World.

Olaudah Equiano, The Interesting Narrative and Other Writings (Dover)

From village in Africa, to slave ship, to the Americas and middle-class success: Equiano’s life-story captures the early tensions of African-American identity in elegant and stirring prose.

Ben Franklin, Autobiography (Dover)
The quintessential American—or is he?  To know Franklin in his brief autobiography is to know key aspects of “American” identity.

Charles Brockden Brown, Wieland and the Memoirs of Carwin the Biloquist (Penguin)
One of the first American gothic potboilers, this novel revolts against the sunny pragmatism and rationalism of Franklin.
 

 COURSE POLICIES & ASSIGNMENTS

Participation and attendance:  Every student is a vital part of the class community, and I will expect you to work to make the class an intellectually energizing experience.  The flow of good discussions will result in a course more satisfying for everyone.  Participation can take a variety of forms--the raising of questions or issues, stating opinions about the work or topic being discussed, responding to other students’ or my comments, involvement in group activities, and so on. Classroom participation will affect your final grade positively, helping to pull it up a notch or two, especially in borderline cases.

Always bring the syllabus and current text to class.  Regular, and on time, attendance is required. You get two absences penalty free.  I won't ask, and you don't need to tell me the reason.  For subsequent unexcused absences, your grade will be docked ½ a notch--e.g. B+ to B if you missed two unexcused days.  If you miss more than six classes, you cannot pass the course. 

Response Papers: Responses papers help make sure you are on "top" of the readings and prepared for discussion (in lieu of quizzes or exams!).  There will be ten of them, each worth ten points; grades will be based on a standard grade scale (i.e., A- =9, B- = 8, etc.).  There will be one or two catch-up responses towards the end of the semester, but otherwise they will be due, via Turnitin, on the designated dates on the syllabus.  Usually, you’ll be asked to respond to a passage in a work we’re about to discuss, or you’ll be asked to select a significant passage on your own and justify/explain its significance; sometimes the cues may be more open-ended.  I’ll give the response paper cue at least one week in advance.  I’m not a word counter, but you should try for about 250 (one page) words for each response.  A decent style, solid grammar, and clarity and insight are expected. 

Essay:  Topics will be given for this ten-page paper; I encourage you, however, to develop your own.  A handout for topics and essay-writing tips will be provided down-the-road. Little slack will be given for sloppy prose.  Any essay with a number of major grammatical or sentence-construction glitches will be returned without a grade, and at my discretion will be deemed late.  A late paper will be penalized a grade for each class period submitted late, and only emergencies will allow you to submit your essay late without a penalty. 

Take-home Final Synthesis Exam:  You will be given three or four broad and comprehensive questions roughly two weeks before the due date of the exam (the otherwise date for an in-class exam, if there were one).  You will choose one of the questions, leading you to discuss an issue/theme/etc. in four or five of our main authors.  Instructions will be provided down-the-road.
 

Incompletes:  These can only be granted if you have a health or family emergency.

Plagiarism:  Don't do it.  Plagiarism is easy to detect (especially by the Turnitin site), and the consequences for being found guilty of it can be devastating for your FIU career (besides being ethically nasty).  If you do not know FIU's policies on plagiarism, learn them.  If you get desperate/stressed in your course work, it’s better to talk to your professor than to passively not turn in work or cheat.

Conferences, Email, etc.:  I am always happy to meet with you during office hours to talk more about the readings or other course matters.  For brief questions or to set up a conference outside of my regular office hours, you may call me at my home number (for emergencies), leave a message on my office phone (305-919-5254), or email me at harveyb@fiu.edu.  I almost always return email messages within the same day I receive them, so if you don't get a reply within a day, you should assume I didn't get the original message.  P.S. If you are interested in pursuing an advanced degree, whether in a profession (Law, for example) or an MA or PhD in an English or Humanities field, feel free to come by to discuss such with me. 

 SYLLABUS CALENDAR

E-text = primary text or a secondary/critical essay that you should print out, read, & bring to class.

Prof's Stuff = lecture notes, study questions, etc., for you to review before/after the associated class; read these in conjunction with the evolving “Course Summary” linked at the top of this page.

Web Links = selected cultural-historical or author links, to be read before the associated class.

Red font = reminders, admonitions, notes of encouragement, and etc.