Gregory Eiselein

Jo from Little Women

ENGL 382 American Survey 2

Eisenhower Hall 21 | MWF 10:30 | Fall 2006

Designed for English majors, American Survey 2 is an examination of American literature from the Civil War to the present. We will trace the development of significant literary styles and periods and examine authors important to our contemporary understanding of America's literary history.

American Survey 2 takes a literary-historical perspective on American writing.

Literary: we will read texts carefully, paying close attention to what is said and how it is being said. Such close reading will help us to discover not only what texts mean but also how they mean and how they come to have different, sometimes contradictory meanings in different contexts.

Historical: we will read texts to learn about past ideas, cultures, societies, peoples, events. We will consider questions such as: What was the significance of those writings in their original contexts? What did those writings do in the past? What is the importance of those past writings to us in the present? Historical literary analysis means figuring out how literary texts relate to other texts and events of the same period; it also means figuring out how literary texts relate to the larger course of American literary history.

As we explore the ways historical knowledge enriches our understanding of literary texts and examine the divergent meanings and various functions of literary texts at different moments in history, this literary-historical perspective will enhance our understanding and appreciation of American literary texts.

Texts

• Nina Baym, ed., The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 2, 1865 to the Present (Norton)
• William Faulkner, The Sound and the Fury (Norton)
• Louisa May Alcott, Little Women (Norton)

Class Communication

• Contact the instructor: Telephone: 532-0386 | E-Mail: eiselei@ksu.edu | Office Visit: Drop by ECS 108-C
• Post to the course listserv: american2@k-state.edu

Course Materials

• Syllabus
• Reading Schedule
• Improving Reading and Comprehension of American Literary Texts
• Essay 1: Comparing Texts of the Same Era / Exploring Literary Periods & Styles
• Essay 2: Historical Analysis / Critical Response
• Discussion Projects
• Midterm Examination Review Sheet
• Final Examination Review Sheet

Course Resources

• The Norton Anthology of American Literature Site: The website that accompanies the anthology for the course. This is the link you take for the online quizzes.
• The Making of America: A huge database of nineteenth-century books and journals at Cornell University. A second MOA site can be found at the University of Michigan.
• Realism in American Literature: Definitions from Donna Campbell's superb American literature website.
• Modern American Poetry: Cary Nelson's site for the study of modern American poetry.
• William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury: A Hypertext Edition: This web resource should help sort out the narrative and chronological structure of Faulkner's great novel. Check out the criticism on this site as well.
• Postmodernism: A database on post-World War II literature and culture at the University of California at Berkeley.
• The Multicultural U. S. Fiction Web: Richard Pearce's online resource at Wheaton.
• A great place to begin your research about authors in our course: K-State's Hale Library.
• Attend a Literary Event: Department of English Visiting Writers and Speakers | English Department Colloquium | KSU Theatre Schedule | McCain Auditorium Schedule | University Calendar |