University
of Florida
AML 2070 ~ Survey of American Literature
Section 0529 ~ Women of Color and the Poetics of
Resistance
Spring 2007 MWF Period 9
Classroom: Rinker Hall Room 115
Instructor:
Angelique V. Nixon
E-mail: angelnix@ufl.edu
Office: Student Activities Center, BGSO Cubicle,
3rd Floor Reitz Union
Office Hours: MW Period 8 or By Appointment
Phone: (352) 392-6650 (English Dept)
Website: www.clas.ufl.edu/users/angelnix
COURSE
OVERVIEW
This course introduces specific aspects of American literature through
a study of significant writers, forms, and issues-specifically contemporary
poetry, personal narratives, and essays by women of color with a particular
focus on resistance. We will read poetry in conjunction with personal
narratives and essays that offer insights and ways of reading poetry.
More specifically, we will engage with the poetics of resistance-the aesthetic
principles of resistance in literature. Also, we will engage in a range
of issues, such as the politics of history and identities, intersections
of race, gender, class and sexuality, liberation struggles, language,
migration, and displacement, among others. Overall, the goal of this course
is to write critically about literature, and to develop strategies on
how to speak and write about significant social and political issues using
contemporary tools for analysis (i.e. schools of theory such as Feminist
and Postcolonial).
COURSE
OBJECTIVES
- Identify key issues
within contemporary American literature by women of color
- Understand the
significance of social and political issues in writings by women of
color
- Become familiar
with reading and analyzing poetry, personal narratives, and essays
- Develop strong
academic writing strategies, along with analytical and research skills
- Develop a critical
vocabulary for describing and writing about literature
REQUIRED
TEXTS
[All texts are available at Orange & Blue Textbooks, 309 NW 13th Street,
Ph #375-2707]
- AML 2070, Section
0529 Course Packet
- Alexander, Meena.
The Shock of Arrival. Boston: South End Press, 1996.
- Harjo, Joy. In
Mad Love and War. Hanover: Wesleyan University Press, 1990.
- Lorde, Audre.
The Black Unicorn. New York: W.W. Norton, 1978.
- Lorde, Audre.
Zami: A New Spelling of My Name. Berkeley: Crossing Press, 1982.
- Pettigrew, Dawn
Karima. The Way We Make Sense. San Francisco: Aunt Lute Books, 2002.
- Strunk, William
and E.B. White. The Elements of Style. 4th Ed. New York: Longman, 2000.
- Walker, Alice.
Horses Make a Landscape More Beautiful. San Diego: Harvest, 1986.
RECOMMENDED
TEXTS
- A comprehensive
grammar/style handbook will be necessary for this class.
(Suggestions: Prentice Hall Reference Guide to Grammar and Usage)
- A comprehensive
desk dictionary and thesaurus will be necessary for this class.
OTHER
MATERIALS
- Two Folders: one
for your Portfolio of Responses and one to hold all other writing and
notes.
THE
WORK OF THE COURSE
THE WORK OF THE COURSE
(Details under Assignments & Course Schedule)
Assigned Readings: Course Packet and Seven Texts
Three Formal Papers: Paper One 15%, Paper Two 15%, & Paper Three 20%
Final Essay Exam: 20%
Portfolio of Response Papers ( total, 2 pages each): 15%
In-Class Performance (Includes an Oral Presentation): 15%
COURSE
POLICIES
Class
Attendance and Participation
You are allowed only THREE class hour absences, and each absence after
those three will lower your grade by a letter grade each time. An excused
absence requires documentation such as a doctor's letter or written proof
of participation in a University related event. Six or more class hour
absences, excused or unexcused, will result in an E unless you successfully
apply for a grade of W. Tardiness in class is also not permitted. Two
late arrivals in class are equivalent to one absence. In-class writings
will be done, some of them unannounced, and cannot be made up. Class work
requires that you bring the text and the folder containing your work to
every class. If you don't, you will be asked to leave, and this will count
as an absence. In general, this is an active course requiring active participation.
You have to be here.
Email
and Class Web page
You are expected to check your email regularly; I will frequently give
class information, assignments, and links in emails for which you will
be responsible. The Class Web page will be on my website [www.clas.ufl.edu/users/angelnix],
click Teaching, then AML 2070.
Courtesy
Pagers or cellular phones should be turned off or not brought into the
classroom. Disruptive behavior, as defined in the Student Handbook, will
not be tolerated.
Gordon
Rule
This is a "Gordon Rule" class, which means that you must write
6,000 words and achieve a grade of "C" or better to receive
credit. You must complete all the assignments to pass this course.
Late
Assignments
Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the assigned date. Papers
will NOT be accepted after the class in which they are due. Even with
an excused absence, students should make every attempt to turn assignments
in on time.
Academic Honesty
As a University of Florida student, your performance is governed by the
UF Honor Code, available in its full form at http://www.reg.ufl.edu/01-02-catalog/student_life/.
The Honor Code requires Florida students to neither give nor receive unauthorized
aid in completing all assignments. Violations include cheating, plagiarism,
bribery, double submissions, and misrepresentation, all defined in detail
at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/judicial/honestybrochure.htm. Plagiarism is
the presentation of the words or ideas of another as one's own. You would
commit plagiarism by using, without crediting the source: 1) Any part
of another person's essay, speech, or ideas (even if paraphrased or expressed
in your own words); 2) Any part of an article in a magazine, journal,
newspaper, or any part of a book, encyclopedia, CD, online internet page,
etc.
Grade
Complaints
For individual assignments, you should discuss any grade dispute with
the instructor. For final grade disputes, meet with the instructor first
before taking the matter to the English Department (4008 Turlington).
At that time, you must have all the work you completed for the course.
Students
with Disabilities
The University of Florida complies with the Americans with Disabilities
Act. Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with
the Dean of Students Office. The Dean of Students Office will provide
documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation
to the Instructor when requesting accommodation.
Harassment
In this course, we will be reading sources that originate from different
cultural situations. You are likely to read and hear rhetoric and arguments
in this class that you disagree with. It is even possible that some of
the texts in this course may offend some students. If you know that you
are easily offended by texts that challenge your sensibilities and that
express religious or political views other than your own, then you may
want to consider registering for a different section of this course. That
said, you will not encounter material in this course that discriminates
against any race, gender, or religion. The classroom should be a place
of critical exploration and lively discussion. Different opinions are
encouraged, sought out, and necessary to make this class function; and
such differences should be discussed respectfully among those who disagree.
However, making discriminatory comments on the basis of race, gender,
ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, etc., toward any group or individual
constitutes unacceptable behavior and violations of this policy can result
in disciplinary action.
ASSIGNMENTS
Guidelines
for Written Assignments
- All assignments
must use MLA style. All disciplines at the university use a particular
style manual. In English, we use MLA. You will need to consult a handbook
for directions on how to cite and quote texts in MLA style.
- All assignments
must be typed. You must use a word processor. The ink must be black,
Font must be Times New Roman, 12 point, and the paper must be white.
- All assignments
must be double-spaced so comments can be written between the lines.
- All assignments
must have one-inch margins on all four sides and must be stapled.
- All assignments
must be paginated using MLA style guidelines (Top Right Corner).
- All assignments
must be proofread for technical/grammatical correctness.
- Papers that do
not conform to all of the above will not be accepted.
- Always save your
writing on a disk or CD, hard drive, via email, as well as a paper copy.
It is a good policy to always save copies of work for all your classes.
Response
Papers
The semester is divided into Three Units (Details on Course Schedule).
You are required to write TWO responses (a full two pages) per unit (One
will be an official typed response and One will be in the form of an in-class
writing). You must engage in a few of the readings, and analyze one or
two specific themes and issues that we have discussed for that particular
unit. Choose the readings and issues you are most interested in because
these responses will help you to develop your papers. By the end of the
semester, you should have SIX two-page Responses in your Portfolio - which
will be collected and graded as a portfolio of your work.
Formal
Papers
You will be writing THREE formal academic papers that are polished, well-developed
arguments. For the first two papers (4 pages each), you are required to
engage with the themes and issues through analyzing at least one of the
major texts and two personal narratives or essays from each unit. For
the final paper (6 pages), you will be required to develop an argument
about the major themes and issues of the course through a critical examination
of at least two major texts by using the tools for analysis (theoretical
frameworks and definitions) covered in the course. I will provide you
with the specific prompts and requirements for these papers well before
each paper is due, and we will work on these papers extensively in class.
In-Class
Performance
In-class performance consists of all in-class work, quizzes, participation,
class discussions, and an oral presentation. The oral presentation will
be a five-minute report on your final paper and you will prepare a working
thesis and annotated bibliography of sources. You are expected to put
forth effort for this course in class and outside of class, and therefore,
your grade for performance and portfolio will reflect the quality of your
work, not the quantity. This class will require you to write regularly.
Consequently, there is no time to "make up" work missed.
Grade
Distribution and Scale
Paper One 15%
Paper Two 15%
Paper Three 20%
Portfolio of Response Papers 15%
In-Class Performance (Includes Oral Presentation) 15%
Final Essay Exam 20%
Course
work will be returned to you with a letter grade. When calculating your
final grade, letters will be counted as follows:
- A+ = 100 || B+
= 89 || C+ = 79 || D = 65
A = 95 ||||| B = 85 |||| C = 75 |||| E = 50
A- = 91 |||| B- = 81 ||| C- = 71
At the end of the
semester, your number grades will be averaged and your final grade for
the course will be calculated as follows:
- 100-90 = A ||
89-86 = B+ || 79-76 = C+ || 69-65 = D
85-80 = B |||| 75-70 = C |||| below 65 = E
AML 2070 Women of Color & The Poetics of Resistance
COURSE SCHEDULE
Readings
and assignments must be completed by the beginning of each designated
week. You must bring the Course Packet to each class along with the other
texts we are covering for that week. All Papers must conform to the guidelines
for written assignments outlined earlier. This schedule is subject to
change with notice and the needs of the class.
Unit
One: The Politics of History and Identity
Week 1 (Jan 8th -
12th)
Mon - Introduction to Course: Discuss Course Requirements, Policies, and
Schedule
Wed & Fri - short readings from Course Packet:
Leslie Marmon Silko, "America's Debt to the Indian Nations: Atoning
for a Sordid Past"
Silko, "Auntie Kie talks about U.S. Presidents and U.S. Indian Policy"
Audre Lorde, "Age, Race, Class and Sex: Women Redefining Difference"
Gloria Anzaldua, "Speaking in Tongues: A Letter to Third World Women
Writers"
Trihn T. Minh-ha, "Commitment from the Mirror-Writing Box"
Week 2 (Jan 15th
- 19th ~ MLK Holiday Jan 15th)
Joy Harjo, In Mad Love and War
Joy Harjo, "Warrior Road" (Packet)
Paula Gunn Allen, Introduction to Spider Woman's Granddaughters (Packet)
Week 3 (Jan 22nd
- 26th)
Dawn Karima Pettigrew, The Way We Make Sense
Shrunk and White, Elements of Style - Part I & II
Lecture on Writing about Literature and Academic Writing Strategies
Week 4 (Jan 29th
- Feb 2nd)
Leslie Marmon Silko, "Yellow Woman and the Beauty of Spirit"
(Packet)
Leslie Marmon Silko, "When Sun Came to River Woman" & "Cottonwood"
(Packet)
Finish Reading Shrunk and White, Elements of Style - Part III, IV, &
V
Discuss and Review Paper One Assignment and Requirements
Unit
Two: Poetry and Revolution
Week 5 (Feb 5th -
9th)
Audre Lorde, Zami
In-Class Work and Peer Review of Paper One
Week 6 (Feb 12th
- 16th)
Audre Lorde, The Black Unicorn
Audre Lorde, "Poetry in not a Luxury" & "Transformation
of Silence" (Packet)
Paper One DUE
Week 7 (Feb 19th
- 23rd)
Alice Walker, Horses make a Landscape look more beautiful
Alice Walker, "In Search of our Mother's Gardens" & "Definition
of Womanist" (Packet)
Unit Two cont. ~ Poetry and Revolution
Week 7 cont.
Lecture on Writing Strategies for Paper Two
Discuss and Review Paper Two Assignment and Requirements
Week 8 (Feb 26th
- Mar 2nd)
bell hooks, "Revolutionary Attitude" and "Loving Blackness
as Political Resistance" (Packet)
Gloria Yamato, "Something about the subject makes it hard to name"
(Packet)
In-Class Work and Peer Review of Paper Two
Week 9 (Mar 5th
- 9th)
Conferences
Paper Two DUE
Unit III - Language, Migration, and Displacement
Week 10 (Mar 10th
- 18th)
SPRING BREAK - No Classes
Week 11 (Mar 19th
- 23rd) - (all in Packet)
Ruth Irupe Sanabria, "Las aeious"
Judith Ortiz Cofer, "The Myth of Latin Women"
Marjorie Aogsin, "Death in the Desert: The Women of Ciudad Juarez"
Julia Alvarez, "I came to help: resistance writ small"
Lorna Dee Cervantes, "Poem for the young white man…"
Opal Palmer Adisa, "Madness Disguises Sanity"
Week 12 (Mar 26th
- 30th)
Meena Alexander, The Shock of Arrival
Week 13 (Apr 3rd
- 7th)
Lecture on Writing Strategies for Paper Three
Discuss and Review Paper Three and Oral Presentation Assignment and Requirements
Week 14 (Apr 9th
- 13th)
In-Class Work on Paper Three & Presentation
Week 15 (Apr 16th
- 20th)
Oral Presentations
Peer Review for Paper Three
Week 16 (Apr 23rd - 27th)
Paper 3 DUE
Review for Final Exam
FINAL EXAM WEEK -
April 28th- May 4th
Final Comprehensive Essay Exam (Details to be announced)
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