ENGL 399 Outline 2016/17 Winter Margaret Atwood

COURSE NUMBER:

ENGL 399B

COURSE TITLE:

Special Topics in English - 2016/17 Winter: Reading Hope: Margaret Atwood

NAME OF INSTRUCTOR:

Dr. Tina Trigg

CREDIT WEIGHT AND WEEKLY TIME DISTRIBUTION:

credits 3(hrs lect 3 - hrs sem 0 - hrs lab 0)

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

A course on a topic of figure of special interest to a member of the English faculty and offered on a non-recurring basis.

Prerequisites: ENGL 204, 205

2016/17 Winter

Through short and long fiction, poetry, essays, speeches, and cultural commentary, Margaret Atwood turns an incisive critical eye to our contemporary world. Her work overtly challenges the underpinnings of our society – gender relations, cultural stereotypes, capitalist ideologies, social roles, and Western values – and exposes their potential for destruction. Yet through this stark imaginative world and its uncomfortable questions, Atwood’s writing reveals a source of hope.

In this course, we will examine the criticisms in selected poetry and prose, seeking to establish how a Christian worldview challenges and yet often confirms Atwood’s representation of Canadian society. What questions is she asking? How do we respond? And what hope can this writing possibly offer?

To achieve these goals, the course will combine lecture, discussion, a response seminar, and various writing assignments, including one research essay, an in-class response paper, and a final examination. All assigned readings are to be completed before the scheduled class(es). Readings are indicated on the attached syllabus, but may be amended as required. Any changes will be announced in the preceding class and posted to Moodle.

REQUIRED TEXTS:

Novels:

Lady Oracle (1976)

The Handmaid’s Tale (1985)

The Heart Goes Last (2015)

Short Fiction

The Tent (2006)

Other short readings of mixed genres:

as posted to Moodle

MARK DISTRIBUTION IN PERCENT:

Response seminar	10%
In-class response paper	20%
Research paper	35%
Final Examination	35%

	100%

COURSE OUTLINE:

JANUARY

Thurs 5 What are we doing here? Introduction, academic integrity & course outline
Tues 10 Hope, genre-crossing, and cultural critique
Thurs 12 Short fiction: The Tent
Tues 17 The Tent
Wed 18 – Thurs 19 INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES CONFERENCE – no classes
Tues 24 Early novel: Lady Oracle
Thurs 26 Lady Oracle
Tues 31 Lady Oracle

FEBRUARY

Thurs 2 IN-CLASS RESPONSE PAPER (20%)
Tues 7 STUDENT RESPONSE SEMINARS (10%) & The Handmaid’s Tale Thurs 9 These two weeks will involve student-led seminars (responses to poetry)
Tues 14 and full-group discussion of the middle-period novel.
Thurs 16 Advance sign-up is required. Sign-up, assignment, rubric, and poetry selections will be made available on Moodle early in the term.
Mon 20 – Fri 24 SPRING BREAK – no classes
Tues 28 The Handmaid’s Tale

MARCH

Thurs 2 The Handmaid’s Tale
Tues 7 Non-fiction selections (see Moodle)
Thurs 9 Non-fiction selections (see Moodle)
Tues 14 Non-fiction selections (see Moodle)
Thurs 16 Recent novel: The Heart Goes Last
Tues 21 The Heart Goes Last
Thurs 23 The Heart Goes Last
Tues 28 The Heart Goes Last
Thurs 30 Misc. genres: early Atwood (see Moodle)

APRIL

Tues 4 Misc. genres: middle-period Atwood (see Moodle)
Thurs 6 Misc. genres: recent Atwood (see Moodle)
Tues 11 & Atwood in 2017
Thurs 13 What’s what and summing up

Final exam outline

Last day of classes for winter term

Required texts, assignments, and grade distributions may vary from one offering of this course to the next. Please consult the course instructor for up to date details.