City University of New York



Brooklyn CollegeThe City University of New YorkEnglish DepartmentEnglish 1012: Seminar in Expository WritingTTH 9:30-10:45 Boylan 3408Professor Marie RutkoskiEmail: MRutkoski@brooklyn.cuny.eduOffice Hours: T/TH 12:15-2:15 (and by appointment), Boylan 2157“Writing intensive seminar focusing on a topic chosen by the instructor. Provides students with an opportunity to explore a particular subject in depth and further explore skills of critical thinking, research techniques, and clear expression necessary for academic writing.”—Brooklyn College BulletinThe theme for this course will be “empathy.” We will read works from a variety of genres: essays, journalism, short stories, and novels. Your final project will be to produce an original research paper that addresses the course’s theme in some way. Course goalsBy the end of the course, you will be able to:--write a formal, coherent essay in academic style that presents and supports an argument with evidence, including research.--understand and use methods of research (including identifying, annotating, incorporating and citing sources).--understand the ethics of research and writing (including proper citation, and the meaning and consequences of plagiarism).--use appropriate conventions of language (grammar, spelling, etc.).--learn to use the library and its databases.My expectations of youCome to class. Be prepared. Participate. Be on time. Let me know if you are having trouble with any aspect of the class.Required textsLeslie Jamison, The Empathy ExamsJacqueline Woodson, Brown Girl DreamingTruman Capote, In Cold BloodAdam Smith, The Theory of Moral SentimentsFrederick Douglass, NarrativeAll other texts will be distributed in class or made available in the course pack.GradingAttendance and participation: 15%--This will be based on your in-class written work (graded on a check-plus, check, check-minus basis) and your active participation in class discussion. Remember: there are many ways to participate, including asking questions, responding to other people’s comments, offering comments on the texts we read, giving advice about your peers’ work, and sharing difficulties with your own.Written assignments (excluding the essays): 10%--These have to do with using and understanding library research. They are graded on your ability to identify, understand, and use a source. They are graded on a check-plus, check, check-minus basis)Essays (all letter grades):--These essays will be graded on style, attention to the conventions of formal writing (grammar, citation, etc.), the presentation of an argument, and the support of it through evidence. Please note that although we will engage several kinds of texts this semester, these essays must take on the form of an analytical argument. It can be literary (i.e., you can analyze a literary text and use research to support your arguments) or can present an informed opinion about some aspect of society, science, history, etc., so long as your argument is interesting and unique in some way, and is well supported.--First short essay: 5%--second short essay 5%--third short essay 10%--Final Essay: 25%Final project description (letter grade): 10%Research draft pages (graded on a check-plus, check, check-minus basis): 10%Final exam (letter grade): 10%--The final exam will test that you have read the texts assigned, and can properly cite a source. It may also address other topics we cover this semester.* The passing grade for English 2 is A through C-. Students who do not pass or receive an NC (No Credit) must repeat the course. A grade of F can result from too many absences, failure to complete assignments, or plagiarism. An NC may be given if the student has come to class and completed all the class requirements, but the work itself is still not yet at a passing level.Submission of EssaysWith the exception of the final essay, which will be submitted by email, all of your essays should be submitted to be BOTH as a hard copy and by email (as an attachment).Missing and Late WorkLate work drops a grade level for every day it is late. If the work is late, it must be given to me (placed in my hand, not in a mailbox) no later than a week after it is due. No exceptions, including lateness due to computer problems.AbsencesYou are allowed two absences for whatever reason. Absences due to religious beliefs, illness (with doctor’s note), or bereavement (as odd as this might sound, please bring some kind of evidence, such as a prayer card or a note from the funeral home) do not count toward that total. After two absences, your participation grade will be lowered by a half a grade for each extra day missed. I reserve the right to give you a full absence if you are habitually late to class, leave early, or text in class.You cannot make up any in-class exercises for any day missed. You can certainly do them, but you won’t get credit for it. It’s not possible to make up an exercise that’s meant to be done with your peers. If you have been absent because of religious beliefs, illness, or bereavement the missed exercises will neither count for you or against you. They simply won’t be factored into the final attendance and participation grade.Electronic DevicesI require you to bring physical copies of texts to class. If you absolutely must, for whatever reason, use an electronic device to read the materials, please speak with me. Do not take notes on a computer, tablet, or phone.A word about phones. If there is a medical, family, or emergency reason for you to have your phone on and be able to check a message, please talk with me before class. Otherwise, I will expect you to have your phones silent and put away at all times. If I find that you are texting, surfing the web, etc., I’m likely to mention it with a warning the first time, but repeat or egregious offenses can result in you being asked to leave the class and marked as absent for that day. Please also be aware that I might notice cell phone (or internet) use and choose not to mention it—but I will remember it when it comes time to give you your grade for attendance and participation. There are many ways to participate in class. Paying careful attention to your peers and our discussion is one of them. EmailsYou are very welcome to email me! A few requests:Try not to be last-minute with your emails (if you email me for advice the day before an assignment is due, I might get the email too late to do much about it).Please title your emails with something relevant. Anything vague like “hello” I tend to ignore as spam. In fact, it would be very helpful if your subject line read “English 2” plus whatever it is you wish to discuss. Write formally. Please use proper grammar, punctuation, etc.Sign your name, especially if your email address is something I will not recognize as your name, like angel7star8@.PlagiarismThis is a very serious thing. Don’t be tempted. If you are caught, you will be automatically failed, and faculty members MUST report it to the school. Plagiarism includes using papers or portions of papers from the internet as your own work, and using unattributed (i.e., not properly cited) sources from books, articles, the internet, etc. If you are worried that you might be unknowingly plagiarizing, speak with me before you turn that work in. Not knowing what you were doing isn’t an excuse for plagiarizing; it is YOUR ethical responsibility to know what it is and how to avoid it.ScheduleTh January 29IntroductionPaul Bloom, “Against Empathy”In-class diagnostic essayT February 3For today, read Simon Baron-Cohen’s response to Paul Bloom (also on the same page as the link below, if you click on Baron-Cohen’s name) Smith, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Section IYou can read this book for free online; however, I urge you to buy a physical copy of it—or, in lieu of that, bring a printed-out copy of the readings to class. Here is the online link: February 5Miah Arnold, “You Owe Me,” Michigan Quarterly ReviewLeslie Jamison, “In Defense of Saccharin(e), The Empathy ExamsAristotle, Poetics, “Tragedy and its Six Constituent Elements”T February 10Jamison, “The Empathy Exams”Leslie Jamison, “Pain Tours” (I and II). Read all of them.“Should Writers Avoid Sentimentality?” The New York Times, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Section IITh February 12: Lincoln’s Birthday: NO CLASSEST February 17Jamison, “Grand Unified Theory of Female Pain”Smith, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Section IIIYou will be put in discussion groups; make certain to email a copy of your paper to the members of your group by our next class meeting. CC me. If you are late, your group members are excused from reading your paper for discussion on the 18th; you, however, must still read theirs by then.Th Feburary 19Tobias Wolff, “Say Yes”George Saunders, “Victory Lap”ASSIGNMENT DUE: First essay, 3-5 p.T February 24Danielle Evans, “Someone Ought to Tell Her There’s Nowhere to Go”Smith, The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Part III, Chapter 1-2 and 4Discussion of first short paper (group work)Th February 26Review of library databases (either in class or in the library)How to search the web effectivelyWhat is a good source?How to cite sourcesASSIGNMENTS DUE: 1. Citation of one source that has something to do with empathy, and a few sentences about why it’s interesting to you (counts toward participation grade)2. (Optional revision of first essay) T March 3Montaigne, “Of Cannibals”Selections from Frantz Fanon and Edward Said, TBAASSIGNMENT DUE: List of five sources from an academic database that has something to do with a specific topic related to empathy. Make certain that you head your list with a title that states that specific topicTh March 5“Ferguson Documents: Officer Darren Wilson’s Testimony,” NPR Blow, “The Perfect Victim Pitfall,” The New York Times writing. Using evidence.T March 10 WorkshopUsing sources: what to quote, how, and why.Th March 12In-class prep for second short paper: making an argument, presenting a thesis. If you’d like for us to workshop your thesis, email it to me by Sunday, October 6th. You will be put in discussion groups; make certain to email a copy of your paper to the members of your group by our next class meeting. CC me. If you are late, your group members are excused from reading your paper for discussion on the 15th; you, however, must still read theirs by then.T March 17Discussion of second short essay (class as a whole)ASSINGMENT DUE: Second short essay, 3-5 p (Cite one secondary source. You should write about one of the texts we’ve read so far this semester, aside from Bloom’s and Baron-Cohen’s. Engage the text in some way: offer an interpretation of it, disagree with it, examine its logic, etc. Make sure that you use the skills of close reading.)Th March 19Discussion second short paper (group work)T March 24Discussion second short paper (group work)Possible in-class exerciseTh March 26Frederick Douglass, NarrativeJerald Walker, “How to Make a Slave,” Southern Humanities ReviewT March 31Frederick Douglass, NarrativeSadiya Hartman, Scenes of Subjection (Selection)Unit 2: IndictmentTh April 2Jacqueline Woodson, Brown Girl DreamingWoodson, “The Pain of the Watermelon Joke,” The New York Times April 7, Th April 9: NO CLASS (spring recess)T April 14Woodson, Brown Girl DreamingTh April 16* Please note: I will not be here today. Another professor will substitute for meIn-class prep work for third final short essay (which should focus on an event).T April 21Jamison, “Devil’s Bait”Developing a research paper topic. How to write an annotated bibliography.How to use Interlibrary Loan (ILL) and CLICS (CUNY Libraries Inter-Campus Services)Discussion of third short essayASSIGNMENT DUE: Third short essay (3-5 p) Th April 23Jamison, “Lost Boys”Truman Capote, In Cold BloodDiscussion third short essay (group work)ASSIGNMENT DUE: come in with evidence that you have ordered a book through ILL or CLICS.***M April 27Jacqueline Woodson will be appearing on campus. You are urged to attend this event, and extra credit will be given if you do. More details to come about where and when it will be.T April 28Capote, In Cold BloodWriting style workshop: passive voice, tense, rhetorical questions…ASSIGMENT DUE: Annotated bibliography (five sources)Th April 30Capote, In Cold BloodFurther discussion of research paper.Methods for developing and sustaining a longer argumentOutliningT May 5In-class discussion of project descriptionsIn-class drafting of research paper: theses and opening paragraphsASSIGNMENT DUE: Project description (250-500 word description of final essay project)Th May 7Research paper draft pages 1-2 due for in-class discussionT May 12* Please note: I will not be here today. Another professor will substitute for meResearch paper draft pages 3-4 due for in-class discussionTh May 14* Please note: I will not be here today. Another professor will substitute for meResearch paper draft pages 5-6 due for in-class discussionM May 18ASSIGNMENT DUE: Final research paper (7-10 p). Submit by emailed attachment.FINAL EXAM Date and time TBA ................
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