SECTION: 3735, T 8-9 /R 9 period, Tur. 2353



Instructor: Afshin Hafizi
English Department, University of Florida

mhafizi@english.ufl.edu
Office: Rolfs Hall, 5th floor
Office hours: TR 10th period

LIT 2210 Course Objectives :

World literature is the active coexistence of all contemporary literatures, says Goethe. This implies a modification of the relation to the self and the other. Though it does not entail the effacement of differences, it requires its intensified interaction. Such, for Goethe, is the essence of modernity.
The relation to the foreign appears, in Goethe, as the encounter of that which is opposed to us, as the cultivation of what is antagonistic to our own nature. Thus each culture must search in the other what it lacks as well as what is most opposed to it. The foreign is always only an alter ego, which entails that the relation to the foreign is above all a relation of contemporaneity: there can be no commerce and interaction with the dead.
Before the age of Weltliteratur (World Literature), the relation to the foreign is one of refusal, or of misunderstanding, or of disfiguring or "parodistic" annexation (the case of Romans and of French culture till the nineteenth century), or of faithful and respecting welcome (the case of German from the second part of the eighteenth century onwards). With the arrival of world literature, the relation becomes more complex. Different cultures seek to contemplate themselves in the mirror of others and to look in it for something they cannot perceive by themselves. It is only through a detour of the other that one can become oneself. The self is not at home before its encounter, and its subsequent appropriation, of what is absolutely foreign to it.

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT: This course provides you with the necessary fundamentals of college-level literary analysis. Through the assigned readings and class discussions, you will develop the ability to read, comprehend, and critically discuss widely disparate varieties of literature. Through the assigned papers, you will explore diverse methods of analyzing and understanding literature. Throughout this course, the students have also opportunities to learn how to introduce a topic or issue, articulate, support and develop a thesis, work with secondary material and do research according to Modern Language Association (MLA) guidelines.

WHAT I EXPECT: I expect you to complete assignments on time, and in the correct format, to participate in class discussions and take full advantage of the material covered in this course, to attend class and turn in your own work. I also expect you to communicate to me any difficulties you may be having with the content of this course. Needless to say that I expect you to show basic grammar/mechanics skills in your writings.

You can help yourselves to achieve these ends by doing the following:
1. Keep up with reading and writing assignments.
2. Do all assignments before a class session begins.
3. Participate in class discussions and editing sessions.

Required Texts:

Westling, Louise, et al (eds.). The World of Literature. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1999.

Kincaid, Jamaica. A Small Place. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000.

Beckett. Samuel. Waiting for Godot. New York: Grove Press, 1954.

Joyce, James. The Dead. Ed. Daniel R. Schwarz. New York: Bedford Books, 1998.

coursepack

Grading policy:

Participation in class discussions 10%
Attendance 10%

Essay 1: Mid-term 30%
Essay 2: Final 30%

Journals/Response papers 10%
Presentations/pop quiz 10%

Course Requirements:

1. Class presentation of the reading material by two or more students as well as pop quizes on the readings. Students will assigned in advance for class presentation.
2. Response papers, of one double-spaced page, responding to all the assigned readings as well as movies. They need to be grammatically sound: well-constructed sentences, no spelling errors, etc.
3. Eight journal entries (thought journals) of a paragraph of no less than eight double-spaced lines. The journal entries will be collected at various times during the semester. Please use a folder.
4. Two polished essays of four double-spaced pages (each). Specific instructions will be given on the topics of these essays. The student is free to choose to write his/her essay in a specific type of argument, i.e., definition, comparison/contrast, persuasion, etc.

Grading Scale:

A: For superior work with a forceful and compelling thesis, clearly and imaginatively written, devoid of grammatical and stylistic errors, thoughtfully organized, insightful, and creative.
A= 100-90

B: For quality work, substantive in argument and organization, with strong thesis and support, well organized and free from most technical errors, fairly well-polished and proofread.
B+ = 89-86,
B- = 85-80

C: For competent work, fulfills the assignment adequately, has clear thesis and some support, sufficiently organized, free from most technical errors, somewhat polished and superficially proofread.
C+ = 79-76
C- = 75-70

D: For inadequate work, unfocused and confusing, awkwardly written, ineffective thesis, and unpolished.
D + = 69-66
D- = 65-60

E: For unacceptable work, weak or confusing thesis, half-completed, irrelevant material, and no sense of organization or structure. E = 59 or bellow

Rules and Regulations

1) Because students are to spend time in class on their writing, on consideration of varied viewpoints in class discussions, and on how audiences respond to drafts in workshops, class attendance is required.
a. No unexcused absences is allowed. One absence due to illness or family crisis will be excused if documented to the instructor's satisfaction. Each unexcused absence will reduce the final grade by 10%. Students participating in a university-sponsored event (athletics, theater, music, field trip) will be excused if there is documentation from an appropriate authority. Students excused from an absence are not excused from the work assigned for a class session; each student must arrange with the instructor for make-up procedures.
b. One or two tardies will be excused if the reasons are acceptable to the instructor (e.g., a long exam in the previous class; a bus breakdown) and if there is valid documentation. Otherwise, tardiness is unacceptable because disruptive; Three unexcused tardies is equivalent to one unexcused absence, i.e., subject to reduction of the final grade by 10%.

2) All assignments must be done and submitted at the beginning of class on the day assigned and in the assigned format. Each assignment will have specific features, but in general, major essay assignments are on 8" ×11"1/2 white, smooth -edged paper, in font 12, double-spaced with 1" margins on all sides, and on one side. All out-of-class essays must have rough drafts that show individual revisions, and they must be typed or printed with ribbons or ink dark enough for easy reading.

3) Each out-of-class essay must be photocopied so that a student will have a copy to keep until the original is returned.

4) All work must be completed for a grade since the work assigned fulfills the Gordon Rule, which stipulates that students are to write a minimum of 6000 words that receive feedback, are graded, and give experience in various types of writing important in the disciplines, workplace, and civic arena.
5) The success of this class hinges on class participation. Individually, you are expected to participate regularly in ongoing discussions. If you do not speak in class, you will not receive an "A," no matter the quality of your written work.

6) All students are expected to honor their commitment to the university's honor code. Unless otherwise indicated by the instructor in connection with class group work, all work must be individual and original. Evidence of collusion (working with another student or tutor not connected with the class), plagiarism (use of another's ideas, data, and/or statements without acknowledgment or with only minimal acknowledgment) or multiple submissions (submitting the same work for more than one class) will lead to the procedures set up by the university for academic dishonesty.

7) Each student is expected to show respect for diversity or opinions expressed during discussions and in drafts. Each student is also expected to balance the desire to express opinions with the recognition that other students in the class also desire to be heard. Also expected are respect for the gender, racial, and ethnic differences among students in public-supported institutions.

8) Complaints about separate assignments are to be discussed with the instructor, not with the department. Complaints about the final grade should be discussed with the instructor in at least one conference soon after the next term begins. If the conference on the final grade does not resolve the problem in valid, college-level manner, the complaint can be expressed on a form in the English office, 4008 TURL; the form must be accompanied with copies of every assignment and the instructor's directions. The form and accompanying course material will be given to the Director of Writing Program for further action. The review committee may decide the grade should remain as it is or be raised or lowered; its decision is final. The material submitted for the complaint is to remain on file in the English Department.

Course Schedule: Following is an overview of the course. More detailed information will be available as the semester progresses. I reserve the right to change or modify any assignment or due date orally in class.

Week 1: Introduction to World Literature

Week 2: (13-17 January) Introduction to the Literature of the Middle Period, I

T: Farid Al-Din Attar (12th Cent.)

R: Abelard and Heloise (12th Cent.)

Week 3: (20-24) Introduction to the Literature of the Middle Period, II

T: Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose (film), I

R: Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose (film), II

Week 4: (27-31) Introduction to the Literature of the Middle Period, III

T: From The Thousand and One Nights (14th Cent.)

R: Thomas More (16th Cent.)

Week 5: (3-7 February) Introduction to the Literature of the Middle Period, IV

T: First draft of essay I due, brainstorming

R: Michel de Montaigne (16th Cent.)

Week 6: (10-14) Introduction to the Literature of the Modern Period

T: Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Notes From Underground

R: Naguib Mahfouz's "Zaabalawi"…and Howthorne's "Birthmark"

Week 7: (17-21)

T: The shower (film)

R: Sonu Hwi's "Thoughts of Home"

Week 8: (24-28)

T: Henrik Ibsen's A Doll House (film)

R: Final draft of essay I, peer review

Week 9: (3-7 March)

T: James Joyce's The Dead

R: James Joyce's The Dead, critical approaches I

Week 10: (10-14) Spring Break, no classes

T: James Joyce's The Dead, critical approaches II

R: Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot

Week 11: (17-21)

T: Ettore Scola's Passione d'amore

R: Anton Chekhov's "lady with a pet dog"

Week 12: (24-28)

T: Documentary on Borges (1899-1986)

R: Borges's "Funes the Memorious"; "The Circular Ruins" & "The Garden of…"

Week 13: (31-4 April) The discourse of hospitality I

T: Pasolini's Teorema

R: Camus's "The Guest" & "The Adulterous Woman"

Week 14: (7-11) The discourse of hospitality II

T: Jamaica Kincaid's A Small Place

R: class discussion

Week 15: (14-18)

T: Moretti's Caro Diario

R: first draft of essay II due, brainstorming

Week 16: (22 end of class)

T: Conclusion