After columbus
Bachelor's degree
In Maynard (USA)
Description
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Type
Bachelor's degree
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Location
Maynard (USA)
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Start date
Different dates available
Sometime after 1492, the concept of the New World or America came into being, and this concept appeared differently - as an experience or an idea - for different people and in different places. This semester, we will read three groups of texts: first, participant accounts of contact between native Americans and French or English speaking Europeans, both in North America and in the Caribbean and Brazil; second, transformations of these documents into literary works by contemporaries; third, modern texts which take these earlier materials as a point of departure for rethinking the experience and aftermath of contact. The reading will allow us to compare perspectives across time and space, across the cultural geographies of religion, nation and ethnicity, and finally across a range of genres - reports, captivity narratives, essays, novels, poetry, drama, and film. Some of the earlier authors we will read are Michel Montaigne, William Shakespeare, Jean de Léry, Daniel Defoe and Mary Rowlandson; more recent authors include Derek Walcott, and J. M. Coetzee.
Facilities
Location
Start date
Start date
Reviews
Subjects
- Writing
- Materials
Course programme
Lectures: 2 sessions / week, 1.5 hours / session
Writing
You will be writing four essays for the class, which should total between 20-25 pp. At least the first of these must be revised, including not only proof-reading but substantive rethinking, and will be regraded; revisions of later essays are allowed but not required.
Do talk about the reading and your writing as much as you wish with classmates and friends, but be sure you credit their ideas in the finished paper; collaboration is excellent. I don't encourage use of secondary sources for this subject; if you do use them, you must acknowledge your sources in a footnote, even if you do not quote them word for word. Using secondary sources is not required; if used, they must be acknowledged and properly cited. This includes internet sources! (You can refer to a useful guide to evaluating on-line sources.) Writing is almost always a collaborative process at some level, but failure to respect the intellectual property of others counts as plagiarism. Plagiarism — use of another's intellectual work without acknowledgement — is a serious offense. It is the policy of the Literature Faculty that students who plagiarise will receive an F in the subject, and that the instructor will forward the case to the Committee on Discipline. Full acknowledgement for all information obtained from sources outside the classroom must be clearly stated in all written work submitted. All ideas, arguments, and direct phrasings taken from someone else's work must be identified and properly footnoted. Quotations from other sources must be clearly marked as distinct from the student's own work. For further guidance on the proper forms of attribution see me, or consult the style guides available in the Writing and Communication Center and the MIT Website on Plagiarism.
Participation
Your regular attendance and engagement with class discussion counts towards this part of the work for the subject. Unexcused absences will be reflected in your grade. You can also expect to lead at least one discussion on the reading; particulars will depend on the size of the class.
Grading
Writing 80%
Presentation and Participation 20%
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After columbus