Course Goals:

For some of you this course will be your first time reading Shakespeare in college whereas for others of you, this is your second or even third Shakespeare course. For those of you starting out, your goals will be:

• to understand the meaning of selected plays of Shakespeare.
• to understand the context of Shakespeare;s time as it relates to understanding the plays.
• to determine your own interpretation of the plays after having compared and contrasted the interpretations of various directors and actors with your own.

For those of you who are more advanced, I hope that this will give you a chance to think more deeply about the plays, to read some background and criticism, and to write what I hope will be an advanced-level paper.

Reading List:

David Bevington. The Necessary Shakespeare. Read the Introduction to the book and the intros to each play. Quizzes from time to time.

Cabrini Library Electronic Resources JSTOR here

Course Requirements:

• Preparation for class and participation in discussions. I judge your preparation by checking the marginal notes you write in your book. Read the Introduction to the book and the intros to each play. Quizzes from time to time. (30 percent).
• Two papers. (22.5 percent each). There are 3 opportunities to do papers before the final paper. You must do 2 out of the 3.
• Final paper. (25 percent). All do this one.

You are expected to hand in all assignments on time.

For Paper Assignments:
Assignments handed in after the due date will be incrementally marked down to a lower grade. Assignments handed in later than one week past the due date will not be accepted. The class has moved on in the lesson plan and you will be expected to maintain the pace.

For Discussions:
You can show your preparation for class in a number of ways. I like to see how well you have annotated your text. You can offer thoughtful remarks in class. You can keep a notebook/journal of your ideas, and show it to me, etc.

Attendance:

For this class to be successful, your active involvement is needed. I expect each student to ask a question or make a comment in each class. I want you to report your excused absences to me before the start of class. 
(Although I am not excessively anal, I do get annoyed if you frequently show up late for class, etc.) 

At the start of class I do want you to open your book to where we left off and open your notebook and be ready to participate.

Absences due to illness, intercollegiate athletic events, etc., are considered "excused" absences if reported to me in advance via phone (x8360) or via e-mail jzurek at cabrini dot edu, and with the appropriate doctor’s note or athletic director’s note. You will not be penalized for missing that class; however, you are responsible for making up what we learned in class during your absence. It is up to you to find out what you must do both for the missed class as well as for the following class. More than three unexcused absences from this course will likely result in a substantially lower grade or even failure.

Papers:

Your papers should explore the meaning of Shakespeare's plays for you. In some cases, the characters and themes will challenge what you hold, in other cases, support and inspire. You should always thoroughly analyze the plays in order to support and substantiate your points. Each paper should be at least 6 pages long.

Try to set aside chunks of undistracted time for your reading. If the cast of characters is difficult, I suggest writing down the names of the characters on a 3 x 5 card and making a brief note of who the character is. Make brief notes in your book for each logical section. Sections may be as short as part of a column. Just brief notes recalling what is going on may be helpful.

Getting started on your papers: Review all your notes and responses to your reading. Discuss your ideas with others. Do you find a nagging question, some one idea that is really important to you? Are there any patterns of issues or questions? Writing on these topics is usually most interesting.

A thesis that makes connections between two works or among several works is usually more interesting than a thesis that focuses on only one item, but again I leave that judgment to you. Your thesis should be your own view on an interesting topic. You may develop a topic explored in a discussion thread, if you wish, or you may embark on an entirely new topic. I have some sample thesis statements for you from actual student papers, with my comments and how to improve the thesis.

You may consult and cite other critics if you wish, but if you use other critics, it should be to provide a starting point or point of contrast to your own. There is no doubt that resources in a college library are far richer than what you will find online. If you are familiar with writing essays for other literature courses, there is nothing you need to do differently here. If you have never had a college literature course, please let me know if you would like more guidance.

Footnotes to the plays are not needed. Just identify references with these abbreviations ( R&J, Ham, Oth, R3, MAAN, H5) Reference to scenes and lines are done this way: Ham.3, 2, 132 = Hamlet, Act 3, scene 2, line 132. Don't use Roman numerals. If you refer to other critics or online sources, you must acknowledge their ideas, using MLA format.

You will find all the writing and citing guidance that you need for your papers at the college’s Writing Center web site http://www.cabrini.edu/writing/tools/index.htm

An excellent Internet bibliography for studying Shakespeare is A Selected Guide to Shakespeare on the Internet (Revised 08/31/04).

What each grade means:

A = You have an excellent and very insightful grasp of the plays as shown both in discussions and in your written work. You present your ideas in an interesting and insightful manner. Your preparation for and participation in discussions and your presentation of your ideas in discussions and in your papers are all exceptional.
B = You have very good, careful, diligent discussion participation and written work. You show effort, ability, and insight in preparation, participation, and presentation of ideas but not to an outstanding degree in all areas.
C = Your assignments are completed adequately, plays read on time, discussions submitted in on time. You have an adequate basic understanding of the main points of the plays as shown in discussion participation and papers, but some aspect of preparation, participation, or presentation of ideas is deficient. 
D = You did not read some of the plays on time or you did not hand in some work on time or you showed only a rudimentary understanding of the plays or you participated weakly in discussions.
F = Some work was missing or some plays not read or you missed more than 20 percent of the discussions.

Cabrini College Academic Honesty Policy:

The principal objective of the Cabrini College Academic Honesty Policy is to encourage a dynamic, open and honest intellectual climate based on the personal and academic integrity of all members. It is the responsibility of students to help maintain the community of academic integrity. Students shall not receive credit for work that is not a product of their own efforts. For a full description of the policy, please see the 2005-2006 Undergraduate Catalog. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to:

• Plagiarism (see below for further explanation)
• Cheating
• Information falsification or fabrication
• Theft or destruction of intellectual property
• Facilitation of academic dishonesty

For a first violation, the faculty member will meet with the student or otherwise communicate the charge. The faculty member will complete an Academic Honesty Violation Charge Form, stating the violation and assigning a penalty. The student should sign and date the charge form and return it to the faculty member. The student may request a hearing before the Academic Honesty Board by indicating that option on the form. For a second violation in a given course, the faculty member will follow the same procedures as in the first incident but will assign a penalty of failure of the course without privilege of withdrawal. For any second or subsequent violation during a student’s academic career at Cabrini College the Academic Honesty Board shall conduct a hearing.

Remember that all sources, including Internet sources, must be cited appropriately when using the author’s exact words or paraphrasing. Exact words must appear in quotations and their source must be cited. If you have any questions about citing sources properly, consult a faculty member, librarian, the Writing Center staff ( http://www.cabrini.edu/writing/tools/index.htm), or the MLA style manual.

Disability Support Services:

Cabrini College provides support services and appropriate accommodations for qualified students with documented disabilities. If you are a student who requires classroom or testing accommodations, please contact Disability Support Services at 610-902-8572 or email at dss@cabrini.edu. Please note that classroom or testing accommodations can only be provided to students who have Accommodation Notification Forms from Disability Support Services. Students are responsible for providing the instructor with the Accommodation Notification Forms and informing the instructor when they need academic adjustments.