American Ghost Stories and other
Hauntings
"Without stories there is no
articulation of experience: people would be unable to understand and celebrate
the experiences of self, community, and world. And so cultures value the
tellers of stories. The storyteller takes what he or she tells from experience
his or her own or that reported by others and in turn makes it the
experience of those who are listening to the tale" (87)
Jennifer Sergi
Is there really no such thing
as a ghost? Do things really go "bump in the night'? Americans seem to
have a fascination with ghosts. Nickelodeon airs Scooby Doo and
Casper
re-runs. Hollywood has made movies like: Casper the Friendly Ghost,
Ghostbusters, Ghost, The Lady in White, The Ghosts of Mississippi, Harvey,
The Piano Lesson, and Truly, Madly, Deeply, to name a few. What
do these popular television shows and "flicks" have in common? Why do ghosts
visit the living? What do directors and produces want audiences to derive
from these movies (other than a night out on the town?) These are just
a few questions we will ask and they will help us as we "bring to life"
AMERICAN Ghost Stories by nineteenth and twentieth century American authors
of different regions, genders and races.
To make this course enjoyable
and thought provoking, we will all have to work together and diligently.
Enthusiastic participation is a must! This course will demand your time
and brain-cells. I expect you to spend at least three (3) hours preparing
for each class [reading, THINKING, locating patterns, formulating questions,
writing]. Group and class discussion, papers, exams, etc. will all help
you to achieve the following:
Sharpen your ability to
derive meaning from a text through close, critical analysis. You will be
able to:
-
use appropriate critical vocabulary
(setting, theme, climax, ambiguity, narrative perspective)
-
annotate a text and suggest
the significance of important passages
-
identify patterns and details
that may uncover meaning
-
explore and speculate
about textual ambiguities
-
express well reasoned opinions
about the quality of a work based on textual evidence
-
discuss how different critical
approaches (new critical, cultural, feminist, African-American and psychoanalytical)
expose added insight and complicate interpretations
Gain a fuller understanding
of American ghost stories and their writers. You will be able to:
-
define the basic characteristics
of a ghost story
-
identify the different types
of ghosts and explain their reasons (good and bad) for their haunting the
living
-
offer a theory about the purpose
of ghost stories (Why did the author write it?)
-
identify and speculate the reasons
for recurrent issues
-
discuss the consequences of
ghosts who become real (in body)
-
discuss how ghost stories impact
readers
Increase your awareness of
the diverse community of readers and writers of literature. You will be
able to:
-
share your insights with your
groups and the class to develop individual, original interpretations as
well as to arrive at some general consensus about a work
-
learn to locate secondary materials
(book reviews, criticism, history, art, and audio-visuals) to reconstruct
the historical, political, and cultural forces which may have influenced
or shaped an author and his or her work.
-
evaluate critical articles (Critics
contributions, shortcomings, insight, oversight)
-
employ critical articles to
support your views, but also to explore overlooked ideas
Increase your awareness of
the link between literature and the human experiences. You will be able
to:
discuss ways in which literature
can increase awareness of ourselves and others
discuss how literature increases
our knowledge of what it means to be human
Improve your ability to organize
and present your insights. You will notice an improvement in your ability
to:
explore meaning / implications
as you write critically about a work
write an organized, thesis-driven
argument
supply sufficient evidence for
a persuasive argument
improve general writing skills
(paragraphing to style)
adapt style and purpose to audience
learn correct MLA documentation
Required
Texts:
Please purchase the editions
I ordered from Student Stores. This saves SO much time when we work on
locating specific images & passages.
Hawthorne, The House
of Seven Gables
James, The Turn of
the Screw
Kingston, The Woman
Warrior
Meyer, Thinking and
Writing about Fiction
Morrison, Beloved
Naylor, Mama Day
Wharton, The Ghost
Stories of Edith Wharton
Other
Reserve articles, books,
& non-print materials
Course Pack
An e-mail address
A light weight, portfolio
Course Requirements:
Daily
Spend at least three
(3) hours preparing for each class.
a) Read, annotate, locate
patterns and important images, lines, scenes etc.
b) THINK about what your
are reading. What is going on? Why? How does the author present the story?
What is ambiguous in the story? Why? How does this story apply to real
life?
c) Formulate questions for
discussion
d) Prepare for "pop quizzes."
e) Prepare to participate
in group / class discussion and activities.
Writing
Submit "Salient Feature"
essays. See Course Pack for guidelines.
Submit three analytical
papers. See Course Pack for guidelines.
Since you will do a substantial
amount of writing, you will NOT have an in-class mid-term. However, you
WILL have a cumulative final