ENGLISH 101

T/R 9:30-10:45

Burrage (BU) 026

Benjamin Vogt

Office: Gaylord 307

Hours: T / R 8:30-9:30 by appointment

Phone: 6748 (hours only)

enfrancais@att.net (always & at any time)

http://enfrancais.home.att.net

In this course you will become effective, efficient, and effervescent thinkers and essayists. You will gain creative and analytical confidence through: reading diverse texts; constructively critiquing the work of your peers and professional authors (we may prefer, at times, to destructively critique professional authors); and forming thought-out oral and written arguments with compelling facts to back them up. We will be activists of the mind and spirit—human or other—as well as aficionados of the fine home furnishings offered by Ikea.

QUOTES OUR CLASS WILL LIVE BY

Writing is a way of arguing with ourselves, a way of keeping ourselves honest by discovering precisely what we believe and finding out whether we are justified in believing it. – Jim Raymond

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. – Gandhi

Try not to become a [wo]man of success, but rather to become a [wo]man of value. – Albert Einstein

The reward for conformity is everyone likes you but yourself. – Rita Mae Brown

TEXTS

The New Yorker Magazine

Arts and Letters Daily (artsandlettersdaily.com)

Alternative Press Review (altpr.org)

In the Lake of the Woods—Tim O’Brien

The End of Nature—Bill McKibben

Writing With Style, 2^nd Ed.—John Trimble

MLA Handbook, 6^th Ed.—Joseph Gibaldi

http://enfrancais.home.att.net

THE PERCENTAGES

Essay 1—20% (3-5pp)

Essay 2—20% (3-5pp)

Essay 3—30% (4-6pp)

Participation—20% (in class, workshops, conferences, discussion leading)

Quizzes—10%

POLICIES

Absences—As per Doane policy you are expected to attend every class. I expect to be notified in advance of the class if you are: 1) participating in a co-curricular event, with a note from a person in charge of the event; 2) sick, with a note from a doctor or a school nurse explaining your illness (you can email me if you’re sick and provide that note later on). In both cases you are responsible for missed work and for checking in with me.

Tardiness—I expect you in class and on time. If you are more than 10 minutes late I will count you as absent. Excessive tardiness will be reported to advisors.

Plagiarism—Passing off someone else’s ideas as your own—this includes the gist of an idea as well as direct quotations. When in doubt give credit for the idea; referenced material always makes you appear more reliable, trustworthy, and convincing to a reader.

Respect—For your classmates, yourselves, and me. Never put down another’s idea, but never be afraid and hold back from speaking your mind and going against someone’s opinion—just do so considerately, constructively, and informatively. We’re here to learn, engage, and push the envelope of thought together.

All Essay Drafts— -2/3 full letter grade each day late (one day will also include not turning in the essay at the beginning of class on the date due); -1/3 letter grade for papers that do not specifically follow the basic guidelines of the prompt (length, works cited, etc.—take pride in your work). You will have the opportunity to draft each paper twice while receiving peer and instructor feedback. The second draft will receive a final grade.

Discussion Leading—5% participation. No credit if not fully prepared and participatory. You only go once, with a partner, so make them count. More to come on this in class and on website.

Workshop Comments—150 word DETAILED and SUPPORTED and thus HELPFUL write up on each group member's essay. Missing comments will drop your participation grade by 2% per essay. No late comments will be accepted.

All readings and assignments due at the beginning of class on day listed.

You will ne notified in advance of any changes made to the syllabus.

TNY: The New Yorker

ALD: Arts and Letters Daily

SEPTEMBER

Thursday 2

Intro / Testing

Tuesday 7

Style: Ch. 8; Lake: 1-93

Thursday 9

Style: Ch. 2; Lake: 94-146; Essay 1 prompt

Tuesday 14

Style: Ch. 3 & Ch. 9; Lake: 147-249

Thursday 16

Style: Ch. 2 (pp. 21) AND Ch. 4 (pp. 32-44); Lake: 250-303; Thesis workshop

Tuesday 21

Style: pp. 6-12, 45-52; Transitions / Organization Workshop (bring essay parts)

Thursday 23

Essay 1.1 due with copies

Tuesday 28

Workshops w/ comments

Thursday 30

MLA: Ch. 5 & 6; Video: PBS Bill Moyers "Global Warming"

OCTOBER

Tuesday 5

Essay 1.2 due; TNY / ALD: Selections; Environmental Advertising in TNY

Thursday 7

Style: Ch. 6; TNY / ALD: Selections; Video: PBS Frontline "Oil"

Tuesday 12

Style: Ch. 7; Nature: 3-61; Essay 2 prompt

Thursday 14

Style: Ch. 9 (again), Ch. 7 cont.; Nature: 61-109

Tuesday 19

Fall Recess—No Class

Thursday 21

Style: Ch. 13; Nature: 109-217

Tuesday 26

Style: Ch. 12 (punctuation and conciseness)

Thursday 28

Essay 2.1 due with copies

NOVEMBER

Tuesday 2

Workshops w/ comments

Thursday 4

Movie -- "Supersize Me"

Tuesday 9

Essay 2.2 due; Finish "Supersize Me"; TNY / ALD: Selections; Essay 3 prompt

Thursday 11

TNY / ALD: Selections

Tuesday 16

TNY / ALD: Selections

Thursday 18

TNY / ALD: Selections;

Tuesday 23

Essay 3.1 due; Final prompt

Thursday 25

Thanksgiving—No Class

Tuesday 30

Conferences—No Class

DECEMBER