English 4603: Twentieth-Century American Drama

Syllabus for ENGL 4603 (CRN 31311): Twentieth-Century American Drama Spring 2012 Spring 2012

Syllabus for ENGL 5413 (CRN 31312): Dramatic Literature: American Drama

Syllabus for AMST 5833 (CRN 30268): America in Perspective: American Drama

Italicized information applies only to students enrolled for graduate credit.

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. John Mercer, Professor of English, Department of Languages and Literature, College of Liberal Arts, Northeastern State University

Mailing address: NSU-BA, 3100 E. New Orleans St., Broken Arrow, OK 74014

Office phone: 918-449-6541 NSU-BA switchboard: 918-449-6000

Office: BALA 280 Office hours (all times p.m. unless labeled otherwise): Mon. 11:30 a.m.-12:50, 3:50-5:30; Tues. & Wed. 3:00-4:20, 7:20-7:40; Thurs. 5:30-7:10, 10:10-10:30

Fax for faculty in BALA: 918-449-6571 (Faxes must include cover sheet with my name.)

Mailbox: Box 4 in BALA 261 (Give items for my mailbox to staff assistant in BALA 267.)

E-mail: mercer@nsuok.edu or mercer25@att.net

Instructor’s faculty Web page: http://arapaho.nsuok.edu/~mercer

Alternative path to faculty Web page: www.nsuok.edu > Current Students > Academics > Faculty Web sites > Mercer

E-MAIL POLICIES:

(1) You don’t need to send the same message to BOTH of my e-mail addresses; my NSU e-mail is automatically forwarded to my ATT account.

(2) To receive e-mail announcements relevant to this class, please enable your e-mail to receive messages from my ATT account. If you don’t, my messages may go to your spam folder.

(3) Please do NOT submit a completed assignment by e-mail unless I specifically ask you to do so or unless it is the only way you can submit it on time. If you must submit a completed assignment by e-mail, send it by attachment, but also submit it in hard copy (to me, my office, my mailbox, or by fax) at your first opportunity.

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Study of major American plays of the twentieth century

PREREQUISITE: None

COURSE PURPOSE: ENGL 4603 counts as an upper-division (advanced) English elective toward an undergraduate English or English Education degree, or toward an English minor. ENGL 5413 counts as a literature course toward an M.A. in English. AMST 5833 fulfills the American literature requirement or counts as an elective for an M.A. in American Studies.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES: In studying plays by twentieth-century American dramatists, you will demonstrate your ability to

(1) identify the plots and characters of the assigned plays

(2) analyze literary and theatrical devices used in the plays

(3) analyze the assigned plays as reflections of twentieth-century American society

(4) analyze the theme of the American dream in the assigned plays

(5) analyze a significant theme or technique of your choice in the assigned plays

(6) critique film adaptations of the assigned plays

(7) write a graduate-level research paper in MLA form that relates at least one assigned play to your academic interests

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS:

(1) Textbooks: Please bring to each class session the text(s) containing the play(s) assigned for that week.

(a) Jacobus, Lee A. The Bedford Introduction to Drama. 6^th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2009. ISBN-10: 0-312-47488-1. ISBN-13: 978-0-312-47488-1.

(b) Wilder, Thornton. Our Town: A Play in Three Acts. New York: Harper Perennial, 2003. ISBN-10: 0-06-051263-6. ISBN-13: 978-0-06-051263-7.

(2) Online documents: Please print and bring to class the documents from the class Web page that relate to each week’s assignment.

COMPUTER FORMAT AND MANUSCRIPT FORM: Use a computer to produce documents for this class. Carefully follow the guidelines in “Computer Format and Manuscript Form” on the home page of my faculty Web site under “Documents for all classes.”

WARNING ABOUT COURSE CONTENT: Plays reflect the times in which they are written. As a result, several of the assigned plays, especially those written after 1960, contain potentially offensive language and content that involves violence, homosexuality, and incest. If this content would be a problem for you, please immediately look at the assigned plays Glengarry Glen Ross and Angels in America. If you would not be comfortable reading plays like this, you should consider dropping this course and enrolling in a different one. I would be happy to discuss this issue with you.

DAILY AVERAGE: Your daily average will be the percentage of points you earn out of the number possible for quizzes, video critiques, and late attendance.

(1) QUIZZES: At the beginning of each class period, after you have had an opportunity to ask questions, you will take a quiz on that day’s assigned reading. Each quiz will be worth ten (10) points. To take quizzes, you must be present in class; you cannot make up missed quizzes for any reason.

(2) STUDY GUIDES: Each week when a study guide on the reading assignment is available, you are expected to earn a minimum of five (5) points by answering questions. (Fully answering all questions on a single study guide could be worth as many as twelve [12] points.) Additional study-guide points you earn beyond those required will help compensate for any other daily points you may miss during the semester.

(3) VIDEO CRITIQUES: Four (4) times during the semester you will write a critique of a screen adaptation of an assigned play. (Follow instructions in the document “Writing a Video Critique” on the class Web page.) Each critique should be about at least one (1) full page and no longer than two (2) pages in length and will be worth ten (10) points. If you are going to be absent, submit your video critique in advance in hard copy, by fax, or by e-mail attachment by 7:20 p.m. on the evening it is due. If you submit your video critique by attachment, please also give it to me in hard copy the next time you are on campus. If you have a legitimate reason for not submitting a video critique on time, make arrangements with me in advance for an alternative due date. Otherwise, late critiques will be penalized as described below under “LATE WORK AND MAKE-UP EXAMS.”

(4) LATE ATTENDANCE: As an incentive to be present for the entire class period, you will receive five (5) daily points if you are present at the end of the class period at 10 p.m. To receive these late-attendance points, you must sign the sheet that will be passed during the last few minutes of the period.

STUDY GUIDES: I will try to post on the class Web page a study guide for each reading assignment one (1) week before it is due. Please use each study guide as follows:

(1) As you read each assigned work, read the corresponding part of the study guide, and look for the answers to the questions.

(2) Before you come to class, answer as many of the questions as you can. Copy and paste the text of the study guide into your own document; retain the numbers, letters, and questions from the study guide; and insert your answers in highlighting or color so they will stand out from the questions and explanatory material. At the top of each study guide you submit, report the amount of time you spent answering the questions, not including time spent merely reading the assigned works.

(3) If you spend thirty (30) minutes or more answering any study-guide question marked “extra credit,” submit your answer separately from the rest of the study guide and with a completed “Extra-Credit Submission Form” on top. (See “Documents for all classes” near the top of my home page.)

(4) Bring to class a hard copy of your study guide with your answers inserted.

(5) In class ask about any study-guide questions you can’t answer and, if you wish, make handwritten additions to your study guide. Unless you tell me otherwise, I will assume that all handwritten answers have been added in class.

(6) At the end of each class period, submit your study guide. I will assign daily points to your answers and return your study guide to you the following week.

(7) If you are not able to attend class but have a study guide to submit, please leave it at my office the next time you are on campus. Do NOT submit study guides by e-mail.

EXTRA-CREDIT DAILY POINTS: You may earn an unlimited number of extra-credit daily points for answering study-guide questions (beyond the five [5] points required per week) and for doing other activities listed below. Your daily average, however, cannot exceed 100%.

Place a completed “Extra-Credit Submission Form” on top of each extra-credit item you submit. Carefully follow the “Instructions for Extra-Credit Submissions.” Both of these documents are found near the top of the home page of my faculty Web site under “Documents for all classes.” Of the various ways to earn extra credit listed and explained under “Other Types of Extra Credit” in “Instructions for Extra-Credit Submissions,” the following apply to this class:

· PERFORMANCES on stage, film, television, or video of American plays, especially those studied in this class, or programs relating to the lives and times of American playwrights (A list of videos and DVDs on reserve in the NSU-BA library is posted on the class Web page.)

· CLIPPINGS OR INTERNET MATERIAL relevant to this class

· ADDITIONAL READING of unassigned American plays from the textbook (Zoot Suit, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, I Am My Own Wife, 365 Days/365 Plays, The Clean House), other American plays, or critical essays or theatre reviews of American plays

· ANALYSIS supporting your interpretation of a controversial aspect of an assigned play

· RESEARCH to answer questions relevant to this class

· CREATIVE WRITING related to the playwrights, plays, and/or techniques studied in class

In addition, you can earn extra-credit daily points for

· BRINGING VIDEOS TO CLASS: You may earn one (1) extra-credit daily point for bringing to class a VHS or DVD version of the play we’re studying that evening. (Maximum points for bringing videos: one [1] point per week and ten [10] points for the semester.) To receive extra-credit points, please give me the video at the very beginning of the class period with the following information listed on an attached sheet of paper:

o your name, your course number, and the date

o the title of the production you have brought

o the version of the production (such as the director, leading actor[s], studio, and/or date of the production)

o the format of the production (VHS or DVD)

o where/how you got this video

o the scene you would recommend I play in class (VHS tapes must be cued in advance)

FINAL ESSAY: Early in the semester, choose a theme, technique, or other literary, dramatic, or cultural element found in many of the assigned plays, get my feedback on your topic, and look for relevant material as you read the plays. At the end of the course, submit a final essay of at least four (4) and no more than about six (6) full typed, double-spaced pages that develops your own focused, original thesis concerning this topic. Integrate brief references to as many assigned plays as possible in each body paragraph; do not discuss each play in a separate body paragraph. In the essay as a whole, include specific references to at least eight (8) plays, unless you have my permission to use fewer plays because of the nature of your topic. No outside research is expected or required, but if you use research, document in MLA form with parenthetical citations in the body of the paper and a works-cited page at the end. Use the checklist provided for this essay. See the model final essays posted on the class Web page.

Below are some examples of relevant broad topics and how they might be focused, limited, or narrowed:

Broad topics More focused topics (may require further limitation)

the American dream the desire to own a house and land

materialism, greed negative consequences of pursuing material success

the American family causes of dysfunction in the American family

family relationships failure of communication between husbands and wives (or between fathers and sons or between brothers)

sex the social stigma attached to premarital, extramarital, homosexual, and/or incestuous relationships

gender powerlessness of women in the assigned plays

race racism against African Americans in American society

American social customs American customs related to illness, dying, and death

American history important 20^th-century political events reflected in the plays

pessimism (or optimism) the causes of hopelessness in the plays

staging, stage design/practice use of stage setting to convey theme

genre/elements of comedy techniques that create humor

genre/elements of tragedy the main characters’ experience of Aristotelian “recognition”

RESEARCH PAPER: For graduate credit, choose a topic that relates to your own academic interests and to one (1) or more of the assigned plays. Write a research paper that integrates references to at least one (1) assigned play and at least five (5) reputable secondary sources. Document your paper as directed in the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6^th ed., using parenthetical citations in the body of the paper and a works-cited page at the end. The length of the paper, not including the works-cited page, should be at least six (6) full typed, double-spaced pages and no more than about eight (8) pages. Follow the steps listed below under “ASSIGNMENTS.”

LATE WORK AND MAKE-UP EXAMS: If you cannot submit an assignment or take an exam at the scheduled time, you must make arrangements with me ahead of time. Otherwise, missed exams cannot be made up, and late assignments will be penalized. Assignments submitted by 5:30 p.m. on the Monday after they are due will be penalized 10%; assignments submitted by class time the following Thursday (one week late) will be penalized 20%; assignments submitted two weeks late will be penalized 40%. Unless you have made prior arrangements, assignments will NOT be accepted more than two (2) weeks late.

ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT: In this class academic misconduct includes but is not limited to cheating on quizzes, exams, or the research paper; submitting work that is not your own; copying the exact words of a source without using quotation marks; copying a source’s sentence structure; using a source’s ideas without documentation; or assisting others in these actions. Please carefully read the consequences of academic misconduct at http://offices.nsuok.edu/academicaffairs/SyllabiInformation.aspx.

ATTENDANCE: Enrollment in this course obligates you to attend class regularly. Absence from any class period is serious because it causes you to miss an entire week of class work. Absence from more than two (2) class periods is considered excessive, indicating that you are not likely to do well in the class. If you enroll late, you will be counted absent for each class period you have missed from the beginning of the semester.

Attendance will be taken from quiz papers only. To be marked present, you must submit a quiz paper with your name, the course number, and the date. If you arrive after the quiz or do not attempt to answer any of the questions, submit a paper with these three items so that you will be counted present. If you must leave class immediately after the quiz or before the break, write “ABSENT” in LARGE LETTERS beside your name on the quiz paper (but you will receive any quiz points you earn). If you must leave class before the end of the period, please tell me in advance.

CLASS CANCELLATION: If all NSU-BA classes are canceled because of bad weather or any other reason, cancellation will be announced on Tulsa-area radio and television stations—and usually on the home page of the NSU Web site and the telephone greeting for NSU-BA. If all classes are not canceled, it is my responsibility and intention to hold class. You, however, must make your own decision about whether it is safe for you to drive to class. In the unlikely event that my class is canceled when other NSU-BA classes are meeting, you should be notified through the class calling tree. See additional information concerning NSU’s INCLEMENT WEATHER / DISASTER POLICY at http://offices.nsuok.edu/academicaffairs/SyllabiInformation.aspx.

CHILDREN ON CAMPUS AND IN CLASS: According to NSU-BA policy, children under age sixteen (16) cannot be left unattended anywhere on the campus, including the library, café, and student lounges. Because many of the plays studied in this class are not appropriate for children, please do not bring children with you to class without my getting my advance permission.

CLASSROOM COURTESY: Out of courtesy to your classmates and me, please do NOT

(1) talk when another student or I am addressing the class.

(2) eat in class (unless you bring food to share with the entire class). Drinks with lids or caps, however, are permitted.

(3) bring children or other visitors to class without my prior permission.

(4) allow your cell phone to disrupt class. Please turn off cell phones in class.

(5) repeatedly get up from your seat during class.

(6) use a notebook computer or other electronic device in class for any purpose other than to take notes or to look up information on the Internet to share with the class.

(7) send or read text messages in class.

(8) leave class early or during the break without telling me in advance.

ADDITIONAL SYLLABUS INFORMATION ON NSU WEB SITE: Additional syllabus information on the Academic Affairs page of the NSU Web site is to be considered part of this syllabus. Please read carefully the information that appears on the following topics at http://offices.nsuok.edu/academicaffairs/SyllabiInformation.aspx:

· ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT [including plagiarism]

· ADA COMPLIANCE [for students with disabilities]

· INCLEMENT WEATHER/DISASTER POLICY [class cancellation]

· TEACH ACT [copyright protection of instructional materials]

· TEXTBOOK INFORMATION

· RELEASE OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION [privacy rights]

WITHDRAWAL FROM CLASS:

· If you drop a class by January 23, you will receive a 100% refund of tuition. If you drop a class after January 23, you will receive no refund.

· If you have never attended the class by the end of the third week of classes, you will be withdrawn from the course for non-attendance and will receive the grade of NA (never attended), which does not affect your grade-point average.

· During the sixth through the tenth weeks of the class, if it would be impossible for you to make a satisfactory grade because you are not attending class, submitting assignments, taking exams, and/or otherwise making a reasonable attempt to be successful in the course, I will have you administratively withdrawn from the course. If you are administratively withdrawn, you will receive a grade of AW (administrative withdrawal), which does not affect your grade-point average.

· If you drop a class by April 8, you will automatically receive a W, which does not affect your grade-point average. To drop a class, you must process an official drop slip. Be sure to keep a copy of your drop slip to prove that you have officially dropped.

· If you drop a class after April 8, you will receive a W if you are passing or an F if you are failing at the time you drop.

· The last day to drop a class is May 2.

COURSE GRADE (subject to announced changes):

Percentage of course grade

Undergraduates Graduates

Daily average (quizzes, study guides, video critiques,

late attendance, and extra-credit points) 25% 20%

Midterm exam 25% 20%

Final comprehensive exam 25% 20%

Final essay 25% 20%

Research paper _-__ 20%

100% 100%

A = 90-100%

B = 80-89%

C = 70-79%

D = 60-69%

F = 0-59%

ASSIGNMENTS: Assignments are subject to announced changes. You are responsible for all such changes whether or not you are present when they are made. If a class meeting is canceled and you receive no instructions to the contrary, continue to follow the assignment dates given here. When a play is assigned, read not only the play but also the textbook’s introductions to and commentaries on the playwright and play. Italicized assignments apply only to students taking the course for graduate credit.

Jan. 12 Introduction to course

In-class viewing of the first part of Desire under the Elms

Jan. 19 Susan Glaspell, Trifles

Eugene O’Neill, Desire under the Elms

Study Guide 1 due.

Jan. 26 Thornton Wilder, Our Town (found in a single-play edition, not in the anthology)

Study Guide 2 due.

Feb. 2 Tennessee Williams, The Glass Menagerie

Study Guide 3 due.

Feb. 9 Tennessee Williams, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (found in a single-play edition, not the anthology)

Study Guide 4 due.

Video Critique 1: Submit a video critique of The Glass Menagerie or Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

Feb. 16 Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman (including A Production Casebook on this play)

Study Guide 5 due.

Feb. 23 Lorraine Hansberry, A Raisin in the Sun

Study Guide 6 due.

Video Critique 2: Submit a video critique of Death of a Salesman or A Raisin in the Sun.

Mar. 1 Edward Albee, The Zoo Story

Study Guide 7 due.

During this week, bring to a scheduled 30-minute conference a proposal for your research paper, including a discussion of topic (minimum one page), tentative thesis, tentative list of main points to develop thesis (in complete sentences), and a working bibliography of at least ten (10) potential sources in MLA form.

Mar. 8 Take midterm exam (meet in computer classroom BALA 130).

Mar. 15 Sam Shepard, Buried Child

Study Guide 8 due.

Mar. 22: Spring break

Mar. 29 David Mamet, Glengarry Glen Ross

Study Guide 9 due.

Video Critique 3: Submit a video critique of Glengarry Glen Ross

Apr. 5 August Wilson, Fences (including A Production Casebook on this play except for articles on Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom)

Study Guide 10 due.

Submit the following items paper-clipped (not stapled) in this order: checklist; complete draft of research paper (at least 6 full pages); integrated, highlighted photocopies or printouts of 3 pages of source material; and works-cited page.

Apr. 12 Tony Kushner, Angels in America: Millennium Approaches

Study Guide 11 due.

Video Critique 4: Submit a video critique of Angels in America, Part 1: Millennium Approaches.

During this week, have a 30-minute conference with me to discuss the draft of your research paper.

Apr. 19 Paula Vogel, How I Learned to Drive

Study Guide 12 due.

Submit the following items paper-clipped (not stapled) in this order: clean checklist; research paper (at least 6 full pages); integrated, highlighted photocopies or printouts of 3 additional pages of source material; works-cited page; and, in order, all items submitted with draft on Apr. 5.

Apr. 26 Moisés Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project, The Laramie Project

Study Guide 13 due.

Submit final essay.

May 3 Take final exam (meet in computer classroom BALA 130)