English 102 Course Description, Text, and Learning Objectives

Course Description

Students will learn how to develop valid interpretations of literature through careful, thoughtful reading of fiction, poetry, drama, and the essay. They will be introduced to literary terminology and the standard critical approaches. They will learn how to use various levels of source materials and also how to express clearly their views about literature in expository writing, including essays with formal research documentation. Prerequisite: grade C or better in English 101.

Required Texts

Clarke, M.B. Retellings. New York: McGraw Hill, 2004.

General Objectives of the Course

Students will learn the fundamental elements of poetry, drama, fiction, and the literary essay; they will learn fundamentals of literary criticism as a means of approaching literary texts; they will learn how to incorporate both source materials and their own ideas in properly documented essays. Overall, they will increase their appreciation of literature, their skill in reading it, and their ability to convey ideas about it.

Specific Objectives

The student will

Reading Matter

• Read works of recognized merit in poetry, drama, fiction, and the essay, the readings to be drawn from a variety of historical eras;
• Read works of literary criticism, both primary and secondary sources;

Discovery

• Learn about the historical, social, cultural, and creative contexts that influence the writing of literature from period to period;
• Learn about the relationship between the literature and the lives of the writers;

Analysis

• Learn to interpret literature on the basis of textual evidence;
• Learn to recognize and understand the value of standard literary elements and devices within literary works;
• Learn to recognize conventional themes within and among literary works;
• Learn to distinguish between generally held and private interpretations and to accept that there may be more than one valid interpretation of a given work;