Syllabus for English 273: Women in Literaure: Multicultural Issues and Perspectives

by Beverly-Lynne Aronowitz

from VCCA Journal, Volume 7, Number 1, Summer 1992, 50-54

© Copyright 1992 VCCA Journal

Texts:

Fisher, Dexter, Editor. The Third Woman: Minority Women Writers of The United States. Sarton, May.

Johanna and Ulysses. A short novel.

Yezierska, Anzia. Bread Givers. A novel.

Teaching and Learning Format:

The readings in this course focus on the literature of American women in the 20th century, with paticular attention to the voices of women rich in cultural diversity: Native American, Asian American, African American, Chicana. Where necessary as background material, writings by men will be included. Students will participate in a collaborative process of reading, discussing and writing about literaure through a variety of activities, which center on the formation of genre,aesthetics, and cultural contexts, and social issues. Essay writing will emphasize a process of drafts beginning with informal reaction essays, the sharing of readings and peer critiquing.

Evaluation:

Portfolio Assessment: All writings in process will be contained in a portfolio for review periodically by the instructor, as well as at midterm and final exam. See Calendar for Midterm Assessment Week and Final Exam.

Attendance:

Students are required to attend all scheduled class meetings. Please discuss unavoidable absence with instructor beforehand. Absence from a total of two weeks of classes may result in failing the course.

Please note date to withdraw from course without failure.

Make-up Policy:

Both student and instructor will decide on method to make-up missing assignments.

Learning Activities:

In English 273, we will read essays, short stories and poetry of women representing diverse cultural and racial groups in the United States. On occasion, we will see relevant videotapes and hear guest speakers.

Through reading, listening, talking, and viewing students will

• Become famiiar with the literary history, cultural background and aesthetic forms of the writers.
• Become familiar with the social and political contexts to understand with empathy the themes of the writers.
• Explore each others diverse cultural backgrounds which may parallel or intersect with the voices from the readings.

Learning Objectives:

• Listen and talk with each other in effective and sympathetic exahange.
• Express individual responses to the readings both in talk in small and whole group discussion and in writing through a process of drafts.
• Relate themes in literature to current issues and social contexts.
• Investigate individual cultural backgrounds with the research tools of interviewing family members and researching family archives: i.e. family photograph albums and family documents.
• Share perspectives with peers using written esay, slides, autdiotapes or videotapes.

Applicable Learning Resources:

In addition to the texts, students will view videotexts and hear guest lecturers. See Calendar.

Course Outline is on file in the Department of English.

Spring 1992 Calendar, English 273

Week 1
January 14-16

• Video: Tuesday, January 14 The Emerging Woman UR 12996 40 min.
• Introduction to Native American Literature: See Introduction in Third Woman: 5-14.
• Paula Gunn Allen, The Sacred Hoop, Handout

Week 2
January 21-23

• Video: Thursday, January 23 Indians of North America: A Quiet Revolution. UR 16

Week 3
January 28-30

• Selections of short stories from Third Woman. Silko, "Stories and their Tellers--A Conversation with Lesie Marmon Silko" (18-23).
• Silko, "Storyteller" (70-83).
• Student(s) responsible for presentation and readings of poetry selections.

Week 4
February 4-6

• Paper# 1: Analysis of any independent reading of a short story in this section.

Week 5
February 11-13

• Introduction to Chicana Literature. See Third Woman, pp. 307-313.
• "La Malinche," from Tordorov, The Conquest of America. Handout.
• Excerpt Octavio Paz, Labryrinth of Silence. Handout.
• Video scheduled Tuesday, February 11. Glance at The Mexican Pre-Hispanic Cultures JSR 855 30 min.
• Selection of short stories from Third Woman.
• Lucero-Trujillo. "The Dilemma of the Modern Chicana Artist and Critic." (324-331).
• Perez. Two versions of The Weeping Woman (3l5-316).
• Toscano. "La Llorona" (317-318).
• Moreno. "La Llorona, Crying Lady of the Creekbeds: 483 Years Old and Aging" (319-310).
• Trambley. "Pay the Criers" (361-376).
• Student(s) responsible for presentation and readings of poetry selections.
• Paper #2: Analysis independent reading of a short story from this section.

Week 6
February 18-20

• Video scheduled Thursday, February 20.Instructor attending SCETC Raleigh, NC. Chicano Park. JSR New Order. 60 min.
• Readings continued from Week #5 noted above.

Week 7
February 18-21.

• Introduction African American Literature. See Introduction
• Third Woman. pp. 139-148.
• Alice Walker "Saving the Life That Is Your Own: The Importance of Models." (151-158).
• Alice Walker, "Looking for Zora." Handout.
• Assignment: Read Anzia Yezierska, The Bread Givers. Due Week 10, Tuesday, March 17.

Week 8
March 3-5

• Portfolio Review: Midterm Assessment. Tuesday, March 3.
• Thursday, March 5: Guest, Professor Roberta Johnson (PRC).
• Alice Walker, "Strong Horse Tea." Handout.
• Zora Neal Hurston, "Sweat" Handout.

Week 9
Spring Recess. March 10 to March 12

Week 10
March 17-19

• Discussion: Yezierska The Bread Givers March 17.
• Assignment: May Sarton, Johanna and Ulysses. Due: March 3l.
• Video Scheduled Thursday, March 19. From My Grandmother Unto Me. JSR New Order 52 min. Instructor at CCCC, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Week 11
March 24-26

• Video Scheduled Thursday, March 26, Acting Our Age: A Film About Women Growing Older VCU 1711. 58 min. Instructor at CEA, Pittsburgh , PA.

Week 12
March 31-April 3

• Discussion Johanna and Ulysses.
• Paper #3 Analysis of any work covered in this section.

Week 13
April 7-9

• Introduction Asian-American Literature.
• See Introduction in Third Woman. pp. 433-440.
• Introduction from Frank Chen's Aiiiiiiiii. Handout.
• Sechi. "Being Japanese Doesn't Mean 'Made in Japan'" (442-449).
• Tuesday or Thursday, April 7 or April 9: Guest: Dr. Gloria Hsu, (DTC).
• from John Okada's No-no Boy. Handout.
• Maxine Hong Kingston. "No Name Woman" from Woman Warrior (460-469).
• Lee and Oberst. "My Mother's Purple Dress." Handout.
• Nora Cobb, "Sessions." Handout
• Yamamoto. "Seventeen Syllables" (485-495).
• Chang. from Intimate Friends (501-504.)

Week l4
April 14-16

• Adrienne Rich, "Compulsory Heterosexuality and the Lesbian Existence" (Handout).

Week 15
April 21-23

• Tuesday, April 2l or Thursday, April 23: Guest: Dr. Ron Buchanan (WC) on Rita Mae Brown. (Handouts)

Week 16
April 27-30

• from Joan Nestle's Restricted Country. (Handout)
• from Robert Bly's Iron Man. (Handout)

Week 17
Tuesday, May 2nd--Last day of class.

• Activity for Examination: Due--Paper #4 on any of the works dicussed above.Paper is due day of examination to share with us.

Beverly-Lynne Aronowitz is an assistant professor of English at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Richmond, Virginia. Her special interests are in collaborative learning, issues of the multi-cultural classroom, and multi-cultural literature, especially that of women. Mrs. Aronowitz has been team teaching a multi-cultural version of English 273 ("Literature by Women") and has developed and taught special sections of English 111 ("College Composition") with a focus on international issues.