Weekly schedule. Subject to change—be attentive to the most updated version on this page.
| Date | Reading due | Writing due |
| Week 15: Peer-review workshops and presentations | ||
| Tuesday, Dec 1 |
|
Peer Review Worksheet x 3 |
| Thursday, Dec 3 |
|
In class: brainstorm 4 outcomes |
| Week 16: Portfolios | ||
| Tuesday, Dec 8 | Last day of class:In class: work on common writing errors
Come with questions about your 1st or final papers |
|
| Exams period | ||
| Wed, Dec 16 | No finals meeting! Get outta here. | Portfolio due |
Week 1: Introductions
Thursday, Aug 27
In class: several introductions to novels (Huckleberry Finn, Robinson Crusoe, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym) and several hoaxes.
Blog post (by Friday at 5pm): What is a hoax? What is the distinction between literature and a hoax?
Week 2: Humbug & The Freak Show
Tuesday, Sept 1
- Little Seagull, W14
- Barnum selections (on course reserves)
- Rosemarie Garland-Thomson, Extraordinary Bodies, chapter 3 (electronic access through library)
Take the Little Seagull quiz (21 question version) and email me the results
Thursday, Sept 3
- Terry Eagleton, “What is Literature?” (on course reserves)
- Little Seagull, W1&2
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am): What tactics do people commonly rely on to persuade others that their hoaxes are the real deal? Use Barnum’s promo for either Joice Heth (p.104) or the Feejee Mermaid (p. 109) to illustrate your point with specific examples. What makes for a successful or unsuccessful hoax?
Week 3: Media Hoaxes & Satire
Tuesday, Sept 8
- Edgar Allan Poe, “The Unparalleled Adventure of One Hans Pfaall” (1835)
- The New York Sun, The Great Moon Hoax (1835)
- Goodman, The Sun and the Moon, preface and chapter 1 (on course reserves)
- Little Seagull, W8
In class: The Memory Palace, “The Moon in the Sun”
Take notes comparing and contrasting Poe’s essay with the New York Sun pieces.
Thursday, Sept 10
- Little Seagull, W7·
- Selections from The Onion·
- LiterallyUnbelievable.org· Snopes.com·
- A. Brad Schwartz, “The Moon Hoax, Jon Stewart, and Other Reminders that Fake News is the Best News“
- The Emory Wheel, “Emory Goat Herding Club”
In class: Assignment 1 distributed
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am): Select a text from the readings for today, i.e., an article from The Onion. Using the terms of the “rhetorical triangle” that we discussed this week, write a brief (c.250-350 words) rhetorical analysis of your source. Be sure to use specific evidence to back up your claims.
Week 4: Media Hoaxes, pt. 2: War of the Worlds
Tuesday, Sept 15
- Listen to the War of the Worlds broadcast (59’19”)
- Watch American Experience, War of the Worlds (52’10”)
- Listen to Radiolab: “War of the Worlds” (62’25”)
- LitWeb: “The Elements of the Essay” (read thru all sections under this heading)
- Have a hoax selected for Paper 1
- Come to class with notes on how the original broadcast establishes a convincing tone. Then, take notes on specific techniques used in the video and audio documentaries to convey information and make a claim. How are they different? How the same?
Thursday, Sept 17
- Jeffrey Pooley and Michael J. Socolow, “The Myth of the War of the Worlds Panic”·
- Optional: LitWeb, “The Writing Process“
- Complete draft of Paper 1
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am): Revise your blog post from last week to make it a more effective rhetorical analysis. Then, comment on the post and explain what changes you’ve made.
Week 5: The Supernatural
Tuesday, Sept 22
- Readings from The Strange Case of William Mumler (on course reserves)
- Charles Case, “The Ghost and Mr. Mumler” (on course reserves)·
- Karl Schoonover, “Ectoplasms, Evanescence, and Photography” (on course reserves)·
Blog post (by Tuesday at 8am):Post an image you have doctored to suggest supernatural presence, or, alternatively, another hoax of interest to you. You can do this as high-tech or low-tech as you like. Explore the library’s resources, which include computers stocked with software. If you don’t have a camera and want one, you can check them out on campus!Post the image to the course website with a brief reflection on the hardest and easiest parts. Was it easy to make something convincing? What challenges did you face?
Thursday, Sept 24
- Henry James, “The Ghostly Rental”
In class: clips from The Blair Witch Project
Assignment 2 distributed
Paper 1 due
In class: Paper 1 reflection
Week 6: Science vs. Pseudoscience
Tuesday, Sept 29
- Sawbones, “Dr. Mesmer”
- Poe, “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar”
- Ali et al., “Empirical Neuroenchantment” (on course reserves)
Blog post (by Tuesday at 8am):Propose a topic for your hoax podcast, explaining why it will be well-suited to the podcast medium, and how you plan to take advantage of the auditory format. In arguing for why your tactics will be successful, provide examples from the podcasts we’ve listened to.
Thursday, Oct 1
- Watch An Honest Liar (available on multiple platforms–$0.99 to rent on Amazon)
In-class: Visit from David Morgen to talk about podcast production
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am): Propose two possible “brands” or styles for your podcast, specifying what techniques you would use to achieve each. Include comments on what audience each targets.
Week 7: Science vs. Pseudoscience, pt. 2
Tuesday, Oct 6
- Relisten to The Moon in the Sun and several minutes of Radiolab, taking detailed notes about how the audio is constructed.
- Link a word doc to a blog post in which you: A) give a detailed description of your audience, and B) present a first draft of your podcast.
Thursday, Oct 8
- Leslie Jamison, “The Devil’s Bait” (on course reserves)
- Link a work doc to a blog post with a revised and final script (though you can always ad lib a bit when you’re actually recording). Identify whether you will need voice actors and how many.
Week 8: In which we do not see one another
Tuesday, Oct13
Fall Break
Thursday, Oct 15
No class (attend Wednesday lecture)
Podcast due by Saturday, 10/17 at 5pm
Week 9: Presenting podcasts & literary hoaxes
Tuesday, Oct 20
In class: present podcasts
Thursday, Oct 22
- Bierce, “Moxon’s Master” (1899)
- Michel, “The Grandmaster Hoax”
- OWL at Purdue: “The Research Essay” (read the sections about genre, choosing a topic, and where to begin)
In-class:
- Research paper assigned
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am): c.250 words. What were your favorite features of other people’s podcasts? What made particular podcasts so successful? What ideas would you steal if you could?
Week 10: Hoax literature
Tuesday, Oct 27
- S. Weir Mitchell, “The Case of George Dedlow” (1866)
- Robert I. Goler, “Loss and the Persistence of Memory” (on course reserves)
Blog post (by Tuesday at 8am): Perform a 250-word close reading of a sentence or two of your research paper subject (provide that sentence). Start by minutely dissecting the language as we’ve done in class–look at syntax, perspective, verbs, adjectives, evocative images, and so on. After having that established, zoom out to relate that quote to your source as a whole–how does it tell you about character development, tone, metaphor, themes, tropes, appeals to the reader, development of the story, etc etc. Point to specific words, phrases, or images as evidence.(In-class writing: pull one more piece of evidence from your paper 1 source and close read)
Thursday, Oct 29
Library visit
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am): Suggest three possible research questions about the subject of your final paper.
Week 11: Memoir
Tuesday, Nov 3
- Selections from The Education of Little Tree (on course reserves)
- Henry Louis Gates, Jr., “’Authenticity,’ or the Lesson of Little Tree” (on course reserves)
- Allen Barra, “The Education of Little Fraud”
- LitWeb, “Effective Quotation” (read “Rules” and “Useful Strategies”)
Prospectus for final paper (by Monday at 5pm)
Thursday, Nov 5
- Little Seagull, W12
- LitWeb, “Citation and Documentation” (read both parenthetical and works cited)–for a more comprehensive list of documentation, see Little Seagull, p 109-112).
- Re-read your first paper & be prepared for in-class revision of citations and quotation integration.
Blog post (by Thursday at 8am) Find an illuminating secondary source for your research question. Explain where you found it, what search terms got you there, and why you’ve chosen this one as opposed to others. Summarize your source and explain how it changes how you are approaching your topic. Provide a proper citation for your source.
Week 12: Workshops
Tuesday, Nov 10
- LitWeb: Thesis
- “How to Structure and Organize Your Paper.“
- “Topic Sentences and Sign Posting“
- Peer papers that I’ve distributed
Before class: Begin to revise Paper 1 (your rhetorical analysis) with attention to 1) incorporating more or stronger evidence from your primary source; 2) improving your close readings of that source; 3) incorporating your evidence more elegantly or effectively; and 4) citing your evidence appropriately.Remember to save your revision into a new file as you work!
Blog post: Compose a paragraph or two describing your revisions. Include quotations of old and new text and explain how you’ve improved the essay.
In class: revision of paper 1 thesis & reverse outlining
Thursday, Nov 12
Exploratory essay and bibliography with introductory thesis
In class: from research to outline
Week 13: Passing, pt. 2
Tuesday, Nov 17
Blog post (by Tuesday at 8am): Building on your annotated bibliography and any research you’ve done since, outline your final essay, including your thesis, topic sentences, and quotations that you think will be of use.
Thursday, Nov 19
Class cancelled for individual conferences
Week 14: Passing, pt. 2
Tuesday, Nov 24
No class: workday for papersResearch paper due to me and your peer review group by midnight
Thursday, Nov 26
Thanksgiving Break