SPRING 2010
COURSE SYLLABUS
COURSE DESCRIPTION
A study of literature and art of the Renaissance in the context of social, intellectual, historical, and cultural developments in England and Europe. The course highlights authors like Desiderius Erasmus, Niccolò Machiavelli, Thomas More, William Shakespeare, and Miguel de Cervantes; and painters like Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, Hans Holbein the Younger, and Nicolas Poussin. An important goal of the course is to make evident the relations between literary and artistic works and the material and social contexts within which they were produced. Methods and perspectives addressed include New Historicism, Cultural Materialism, and Cultural Studies.
TEXTBOOKS
OTHER RESOURCES
Luminarium: Renaissance English Literature
Voice of the Shuttle: Renaissance and 17th Century English Literature Resources
Jack Lynch, Literary Resources: Renaissance
University of Washington Libraries Webliography: Medieval and Renaissance
Digital Librarian: Medieval and Renaissance, Best of the Web
Selected Bibliography of Methods, Literary and Cultural Theory
COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND POLICIES
1) Two essays (25% each, 50% total)
Students will write two short analytical essays (around 5 typewritten pages each) responding to prompts from the instructor regarding the possible significance and implications of selected textual passages, images or other materials. Essays will be graded on the basis of relevance to and engagement of the course ideas and concerns, close attention to details, clarity of thought and writing, analytical depth, and insight into the significance and implications of the materials under analysis. Papers must follow the guidelines provided by the instructor. For standards used in the grading of essays see Grading Standards and Procedures, and Grading of Essays and Other Written Work.
2) Term Project, Annotated Bibliography, and Project Presentation (25%)
Each student will undertake a term project which may be a paper (5-10 pages); creative writing (short story, play, or set of poems -- also 5-10 pages); an original art work (painting, sculpture, drawing, instrumental and/or vocal music composition and performance, play skit or other dramatization, dance choreography and performance, collage, film, live or recorded performance piece, etc.); or other (including documentaries, websites, field research/interviews, etc.). Students may also propose projects in media and forms not listed here. All work must be clearly relevant and related to the class materials. All works must be created during and for the specific purposes of the course. ALL PROJECTS MUST INVOLVE SCHOLARLY RESEARCH. Each project, regardless of the medium used, must be accompanied by an ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY including at least 10 (ten) sources -- each entry in the bibliography must include full citation/bibliographical information and a brief (one paragraph minimum, one page maximum) discussion of the relevance to the project of the cited item. Each student will make an IN-CLASS PRESENTATION (10-15 minutes) (see schedule below for presentations date) describing, explaining, and/or performing her/his project. All projects must be approved by the instructor in advance -- students will submit a brief, one-paragraph PROJECT PROPOSAL (see schedule below for proposal deadline) describing the topic, medium/materials, ideas to be explored in the project, and a tentative list of sources to be consulted. Students choosing to write a formal paper must follow the guidelines provided by the instructor. For further information on the writing and grading of essays see Grading Standards and Procedures, and Grading of Essays and Other Written Work. Creative projects in the visual arts or other media not involving writing may be accompanied by a written reflection if the student feels the need for explanations beyond those offered in the presentation and the bibliography).
3) Participation, and Other Performance (25%)
In addition to other grades, the instructor will assess and grade each student's
overall accomplishment, development, and involvement in the course. This grade
will take into account aspects of a student's performance such as class participation,
preparation, contributions, effort, attentiveness, improvement, responsibility,
etc.
4) Other Policies
Grading: All aspects of the course will be graded on a 100-point scale where 90-100
= A, 80-89 = B, 70-79 = C, and 0-69 = F. For details, see "Grading Criteria for Graduate Students."
Deadlines: Make-ups/extensions for a missed deadline will only be given in cases of documented serious illness or other valid, non-frivolous excuse such as documented participation in official University academic, service or sports events (it will be up to the instructor to determine and decide on the acceptability of an excuse). Otherwise, students must meet all deadlines specified in the syllabus.
Attendance Policy: An attendance measurement will be calculated equal to the percentage of total class time attended. The course grade may not exceed that percentage (i.e. if a student attended only 75% of the total class time, the course grade may not be higher than 75 or C). Notice also that, at the discretion of the instructor, any student missing more than 30% of the total class time may fail the course. All absences, regardless of the reason, are taken into account in the calculation of the attendance percentage.
Academic Honesty and Student Conduct Policy: All students in the course are expected to observe the University's guidelines on student conduct as described in the Code of Conduct and Creighton University's Student Handbook (especially the section on "Academic Honesty Policy" dealing with problems of plagiarism, cheating, etc.). All work turned in for credit in this course must be personal and original, produced during the course of the semester and for the specific purposes and according to the guidelines of the given assignments. Any misrepresentations, concealments, or distortions of source, origin, collaboration or authorship of such materials will be considered forms of academic dishonesty and will result in failing the given assignment or, at the discretion of the instructor, the entire course. Problems such as repeated lateness arriving to class (or departing early), inattentiveness, or disruptive behavior will adversely affect attendance and/or the class participation grade. Seriously disruptive behavior can also result, at the discretion of the instructor, in more severe penalties, including failing the entire course.
Email Communication: The University considers a student's Creighton email address the official means of communication with faculty and administrators. All students are responsible for checking their email messages as they might contain important and time-sensitive information relevant to the course, including notifications on changes to reading and other assignments, deadlines, class cancellations or reschedulings, etc. A student who prefers to receive email at a different address must inform the instructor.
Special Needs or Accommodations: Any student requiring special arrangements or other accommodations, due to disabilities and or other special circumstances, is encouraged to request such arrangements from the instructor and the Office of Disability Accommodations.
Grading: All aspects of the course will be graded on a 100-point scale where 90-100 = A, 80-89 = B, 70-79 = C, 60-69 = D, and 0-59 = F. At the discretion of the instructor, a normative curve may be applied to the grades at the end of the term. The course grade will be calculated according to the following formula:
Two Essays |
50% |
| Term Project, Annotated Bibliography, and Presentation | 25% |
Participation and Other Performance |
25% |
Total |
100% |
SCHEDULE
Thu Jan 14
Thu Jan 21
Thu Jan 28
Thu Feb 04
Wed Feb 11
Wed Feb 18
Thu Feb 25
Thu Mar 04
Thu Mar 11
Thu Mar 25
Thu Apr 01
Thu Apr 08
Thu Apr 15
Thu Apr 22
Thu Apr 29
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Last modified: 01/09/2010