The following is a schedule of readings for each unit of the semester (this is subject to change based on our class progress). The readings listed under a particular day are the readings that will be discussed in our meeting that day; therefore, you should complete the readings prior to our meeting. For every day of new reading, there will be a Reading Accountability Quiz (RAQ) due at the start of class that covers the material for that day's reading.
Information on the course books that you need to purchase is available on the FAQ page. If a book needs to be acquired (purchased, rented, borrowed, or stolen) by you, it will be marked [Acquire]. If it is available either as a link or PDF on the Canvas page, it will be marked [Canvas].
Monday, August 19th
Read the syllabus
Familiarize yourself with the Canvas page
Complete the Entry Survey
Wednesday, August 21st
Read the Close Reading Prompt and sign up for a due date
Read the Writing and Reading Tips on Canvas
Friday, August 23rd
Read Part I (pages 1–44) of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun (2021) [Acquire]
Monday, August 26th
Read Part II (pages 47–110) of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun (2021) [Acquire]
Wednesday, August 28th
Read Part III (pages 113–180) of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun (2021) [Acquire]
Friday, August 30th
I will instruct you to annotate a specific passage of the novel for an in-class activity.
Monday, September 2nd: NO CLASS, LABOR DAY
Wednesday, September 4th
Read Part IV (pages 183–264) of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun (2021) [Acquire]
Friday, September 6th
Bring in an excellent question that prompts analysis rather than summary.
Monday, September 9th
Finish (pages 267–307) of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun (2021) [Acquire]
Wednesday, September 11th
Read W. B. Yeats, "The Second Coming" (1920) [Canvas]
Friday, September 13th
Reread and annotate "The Second Coming" in preparation for discussing it in detail in class.
Monday, September 16th
Read selections from Gertrude Stein, Tender Buttons (1914) [Canvas]: "A Carafe, That Is a Blind Glass" (7), "A Paper" (21), "A Drawing," "Water Raining," "Cold Climate," "Malachite," "An Umbrella," "A Petticoat" (22), "Milk," "Eggs" (47), "Apple" (48), "Chicken" (54). Read another poem from any page of your choosing and come prepared to talk about it.
Wednesday, September 18th
Read pages 1–35 (until "as Peter Walsh shut the door") of Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway (1925) [Acquire]
Friday, September 20th (ASYNCHRONOUS CLASS)
I will instruct you to prepare some thoughts in response to a particular question about a passage in Mrs. Dalloway.
Monday, September 23rd
Read pages 35–73 (until "that she did not like that man") of Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway (1925) [Acquire]
Wednesday, September 25th
Read pages 73–99 (until "Calmly and competently, Elizabeth Dalloway mounted the Westminster omnibus") of Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway (1925) [Acquire]
Note: Formulate a Topic Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, September 27th
I will ask you to bring in an excellent (specific, arguable, and complex) claim about Mrs. Dalloway.
Monday, September 30th
Finish (pages 99–137) Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway (1925) [Acquire]
Wednesday, October 2nd
Review for midterm. Bring in your questions.
Note: Find Sources and Working Bibliographies Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, October 4th: No class (this is time for you to complete the midterm)
Midterm due Sunday, October 6th at Midnight
Monday, October 7th
Virginia Woolf, Chapter 3 of A Room of One's Own (1929) [Norton 383–393)
Wednesday, October 9th
Read chapters 1–7 (pages 3–62) of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart (1958) [Acquire]
Note: Saving Sources Using Zotero Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, October 11th
I will ask you to bring in comparisons you've started to make between Things Fall Apart, and either Klara and the Sun or Mrs. Dalloway.
Monday, October 14th: NO CLASS, FALL BREAK
Wednesday, October 16th
Read chapters 8–13 (pages 63–125) of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart (1958) [Acquire]
Friday, October 18th
I will ask you to bring in your notes comparing three passages.
Monday, October 21st
Read Part 2 (pages 129–167) of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart (1958) [Acquire]
Wednesday, October 23rd
Finish (pages 171–209) Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart (1958) [Acquire]
Note: Taking Notes for Documentation Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, October 25th
Choose one keyword from this semester (you can find our keywords on the "Running List of Keywords" link under "Midterm"), and choose two texts that you think have something to say about this keyword. Bring in a list of observations about how the keyword operates in each of the texts and a statement about what this comparison teaches us about the keyword.
Monday, October 28th
Read Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "The Headstrong Historian" (2008) [Canvas]
Wednesday, October 30th
Read Jorge Luis Borges, "On Exactitude in Science" (1946) and Jean Baudrillard, from The Precession of Simulacra (1981) [Canvas]
Note: Outlining & Writing a Thesis Statement Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, November 1st
Read Harryette Mullen, S*PeRM**K*T (1992) [Canvas 63–96]
I will ask you to bring in annotations for two poems.
Monday, November 4th
Read chapters 1–10 (pages 1–46) of Don Delillo's White Noise (1985) [Acquire]
Wednesday, November 6th
Read chapters 11–20 (pages 47–104) of Don Delillo's White Noise (1985) [Acquire]
Note: Rough Drafts & Documentation Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, November 8th
Activity to come
Monday, November 11th: NO CLASS, VETERANS' DAY
Wednesday, November 13th
Read Part II (pages 107–156) of Don Delillo's White Noise (1985) [Acquire]
Friday, November 15th
Activity to come
Monday, November 18th
Read chapters 22–27 (pages 159–201) of Don Delillo's White Noise (1985) [Acquire]
Wednesday, November 20th
Read chapters 28–35 (pages 202–258) of Don Delillo's White Noise (1985) [Acquire]
Note: Revise & Polish Your Draft Workshop from 4-5pm in Evans Library 204 (no registration required)
Friday, November 22nd
Activity to come.
Monday, November 25th
Finish (pages 259–310) of Don Delillo's White Noise (1985) [Acquire]
Wednesday and Friday, November 27th–29th: NO CLASS, THANKSGIVING BREAK
Monday, December 2nd
Read Leslie Marmon Silko, "Yellow Woman" (1974) [Canvas]
Wednesday, December 4th
Mandatory Assessment will be completed in class (20 minutes)
Review time for final: bring in your questions!
Friday, December 6th: No Class (use this time to complete the Final Exam)
Final Exam due Tuesday, December 10th at 3pm (Section 01) or Monday, December 9th at 3pm (Section 02)