Reflection

Please take a few moments and blog a reflection about the course you've just completed. Have your opinions about literature improved? Changed? How so? How do you feel about Gothic? Did anything surprise you? Did you enjoy the reading? If I should teach this class again, which readings should I omit or add? What was your favorite?

I really enjoyed being your instructor this semester, and I hope you've enjoyed the class as well. Have a great summer!

"Yellow Wallpaper," "A Good Man is Hard to Find," and "A Rose for Emily."

Since we have an assortment of readings for the weekend, I'd like you all to think about themes you see filtering through the narratives. What are the underlying messages? In order to understand "Wallpaper," you might want to read why she wrote it. Read her article: "Why I Wrote 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" (You might have to sign in and go back and re-click link.) It is very interesting. Having read her article, speculate the perception men (physicians in particular) had about women's health. "A Good Man is Hard to Find" is difficult for many students, but remember that the Flannery O'Connor was a strong Christian and her works carry Christian Themes. Also, keep in mind the Southern Gothic with both "Good Man" and "Emily." Who is grotesque? Who is insane? Any revised Southern Bells? Any other elements? In "Good Man," do you note any white perceptions of Black Americans noted? In "Emily," do you note progress encroaching in on the old order? Do you note time standing still? Do you not any "Yankees" in town? If so, who? These are some ideas to feed your thoughts . . .

Writing Prompts for "Jean-ah Poquelin" by George Washington Cable

1. Discuss how Cable juxtaposes two contrasting types of male characters; Jean, who is strong, and Jacques who is gentle. Are there any similarities between either one and White?

2. Consider the mob violent charivari scene. Who are these people? Are they Northerners or Creoles? What are the feelings between colonial French-Americans and Anglo American values? Describe their conflicts. What nationality is White? I mean, where is he from? Do you see any evidence that he changes his identity as a result of his style in this particular town? Would it surprise you to know that Creoles felt that their fellow New Orleanian, Cable, betrayed them by what they saw as his excessively biting satire and critique of the Creole community in his fiction.

3. Consider and write about the changing South. In what ways does it change? Is there resistance? How does the subject of change influence the narrative. How is this story Southern Gothic. Do you see any of the Southern Gothic troupes. (PPT is in eCollege)

4. Discuss and talk about symbolism. Do you see any symbolism in this narrative in regards to the bayou, to the land, to the house, to the local?

5. Discuss how Cable uses “local color” (one of our study words) to create a sense of realism of the South. Do you feel Cable satirizes or criticizes ethnic stereotyping and/or the romantic myths of the “noble aristocracy” of the “Old South”?

6. Do a characterization study of the main characters—how are they drawn from stereotypes?

Charles Chesnutt’s Goophered Grapevine (The Atlantic Monthly 1887) and The Sherriff’s Children (Nov. 1899).

Today we talked about the element of resistance in the medieval idea of Carnival and how it has morphed into the modern-day, middle-class novel. Shortly before Chesnutt published “The Sheriff’s Children” (Nov. 1899), he published an essay entitled “What is a White Man?” How does “Sheriff’s Children” address this question? How does he "resist" popular notions of racial identity? How do you think this topic went over with readers? As you probably guess, he was criticized for highlighting issues of miscegenation; critics felt he should return to his folktales, which were so popular with readers, such as “The Goophered Grapevine.” Yet is “Goophered” benign? Critic Charles Warner argues that “[Goophered] adapts the folk practice of "masking" to counteract the racial stereotypes held by its predominantly white audience.” So then, how is Julius “performing” for his white audience? Keep in mind that there is a story within a story. Why would Chesnutt do this? Why not have Uncle Julius tell the whole story to begin with? Furthermore, Warner states that Chesnutt echoes the "stereotypical association of blacks with nature (rather than culture), Chesnutt images the haunted ("goophered") slave Henry as an extension of the grapevine.” Keep in mind again what we discussed today—that whites often saw black Americans as a commodity rather than equal human beings. Blog your thoughts.
Source: Craig Hansen Werner, "The Goophered Grapevines: Overview" in Reference Guide to Short Fiction, 1st ed., edited by Noelle Watson, St. James Press, 1994.

Writing Prompts for Our Nig by Harriet E. Wilson

1. Our Nig; or, Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, in a Two-Story White House, North. Showing That Slavery's Shadows Fall Even There—this is the original title (see page 1). From all indications, Wilson’s narrative is the first novel published by an African American and the first novel published by a black woman in English. Considering this momentous work, why would it be lost to scholars for over 120 years? In reading Wilson’s narrative, do you see any reason why her biographical novel was lost to us until it was rediscovered and recovered by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. in 1983? Or to restate the question, do you see any political indictments on a) the North, b) abolitionists and/or Christians, and c) freed or escaped black activists? Note what scholar Margo Jefferson wrote about Wilson:

Wilson was all too aware that, with New England's moral attention turned to
enslaved blacks down South, a tale of a black female indentured servant up North
was ill timed. I do not pretend to divulge every transaction in my own life,
which the unprejudiced would declare unfavorable in comparison with treatment of
legal bondmen, she declared in a preface designed to ease advanced minds and
frail egos. I have purposely omitted what would most provoke shame in our good
anti-slavery friends at home.... I sincerely appeal to my colored brethren
universally for patronage, hoping that they will not condemn this attempt of
their sister to be erudite [scholarly], but rally around me a faithful band of
supporters and defenders.

Use examples from the text to argue your stand.

Work Cited: Margo Jefferson, "Down and Out and Black in Boston," in The Nation, New York, Vol. 236, No. 21, May 28, 1983, pp. 675-77.

2. How is this work different than the ones we’ve read thus far in this course? Why would Wilson write her story, a crucial testimony in the voice of a black American, in the form of a fiction rather than autobiography? Why use the 3rd person when speaking about her own history? Do you see Gothic elements? In what ways does it or does it not fall into the Gothic genre?

3. Do you see Wilson using elements of the sentimental and the melodramatic in her narrative? How so?

4. Henry Louis Gates writes, “It is the complex interaction of race-and-class relationships ... which Our Nig critiques for the first time in American fiction.” In this class, we’ve talked about how oppressed characters resisted oppression sometimes in subtle ways. In what ways does “Our Nig” resist oppressive authority? Consider what Our Nig has to say about race, class, and sex (gender) during "antebellum" (pre-Civil War) America? Why is it that women are so often, in our readings, the persecutor of other women?

5. In what ways does Frado/Wilson associate herself with personal power and salvation?

6. What does the text have to say about motherhood? Consider the many mothers in the text--beginning with "poor Mag." In other novels, we have the missing mother trope, but here, we have mothers, but what kind?

"The Fall of the House of Usher" Trailer from 1960 Staring Vincient Price

What do you think of this film clip? Please feel free to comment in "my" comment box!

See Prompts for tonight just below. LD

Prompts for "House of Usher"

Select one prompt and focus on "meaning making" from the text.


1) In “The House of Usher” how does Poe use the setting (and trivial things like the painting, books, and songs) to mirror the inner turmoil of the R. Usher? Pay attention to the description of the house, the character of which the narrator links with the character of the family (113). How does the House's character mirror the family? Have we seen this before in our readings? We'll see it again . . .

2) How is feminine beauty described in “House of Usher”? Would you call Usher a Byronic hero? How is the relationship between the brother and sister described? Is there significance in their being twins? Is there implied incest? If so, how does it affect the narrative and the reader of the narrative?

3) Is Madeline dead when she is placed in the coffin? Do you think she is murdered? If so, why? Do you detect any irony in the ending? What do you make of her disease? (“affections of a partially cataleptical character”) (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalepsy).

4)What kind of narrator is used in this piece? Is he reliable? Speculate as to why Poe would use this type of narrator for his work.

5) How is Poe’s Gothic different from the other Gothic narratives we’ve read/watched thus far this semester? Also, how is the short story different from the novella (“Lois”) and novels?

See this link for a definitions of difficult words in “House of Usher”: https://secure.layingthefoundation.org/english/vocab/novels/Fall%20of%20the%20House%20of%20Usher.pdf

Writing Prompts for Young Goodman Brown

You need only select one prompt to expand upon. Or if there is an area you want to write about not covered below, please feel free to blog those thoughts. What I want as an instructor is to see students struggle with "meaning-making" of the text.

1. How does Hawthorne use symbolism in his piece? Like “Lois,” there is significance in naming. Why does he use the names he does? What symbolism is associated with the surroundings/setting? . . . the forest, for example?
2. How is the allegorical? What statement does Hawthorne appear to be making with his allegorical tale about human nature?
3. What role does the guide play? Who does he look like? And why? How does the guide convince him to keep going? And who does he see along the way? What significance is placed on these people?
4. How does Brown break the spell? Or does he? Why does he stress that Faith should resist evil but not himself? Do you see any Biblical parallels?
5. How is the tale similar or different then “Lois the Witch”? You can refer to events or even narrating and writing techniques (who are the narrators of the tales?), character development, symbolism, allegorical message, social critiques, etc.

Female Gothic

1. Women supporting women: How important are female relationships during the settings of Northanger Abbey, Jane Eyre and "Lois the Witch"? What happens when these female protagonists find themselves in danger? Do you think that perhaps Austen, Bronte, and Gaskell imply that women need to form not only friendships but true friendships with other women, and that women need to support each other? Do you see any instances where women do not support women? Think about the degrading remarks about governesses in Jane Eyre. Think about the witch in England (Ch. 1). Who is her accuser, yet who does she damn? Think about Lois' other accusers? In the end, does Lois ever receive comfort? (I know we have not finished Jane Eyre, but we will see that she does ultimately find female friends and begins to gain confidence in herself as man's equal.)

2. The Cinderella formula: In "Lois the Witch," do you see some sort of take on the Cinderella formula? How is the formula the same and how is it different? Is there a prince? Does he save the heroine? What message do you see women writers making women getting caught up in fairy tales--the passivity of waiting for a man to "save" them. Does beauty in weakness serve women well or does it contribute to their downfall? We'll get into this more when we finish Jane Eyre.

3. Do you note a theme of prejudice in "Lois the Witch"? Does this prejudice continue through to the end, or do you see "redemption"--changes of heart? In what areas do you see prejudice? Use examples from the text to explain your thoughts. Remember that the writer is British and the setting is America. Remember also that news travels overseas and the British have prejudices about American's as well and American prejudices.

4. Maureen T. Reddy in "Female Sexuality in 'The Poor Clare': The Demon in the House" ("The Poor Clare" is another Gaskell Gothic novella) argues that:

The witch and the demon are in fact the same being; like the female demon, the
witch is a persistent
literary image that is rooted in male fears of women. The very persistence of
these images throughout the centuries shows the power of the terror of female
sexuality, which is seen as an alien thing that must be
destroyed if society
is to survive. In the nineteenth century, the witch and the female demon are
joined by a third figure, the madwoman, whose distinguishing features are wildness and uncontrolled lust.
Elizabeth Gaskell's
use of these images is interesting not only for what it reveals about her own preoccupations, but
also for the light it casts on women's response to the
mythology of women in
Victorian culture.

Would you agree with Reddy? From our readings, what happens to women who are outspoken? Who refuse to marry where they are told? Who seek to have their own will? Has your opinions of Isabella and Matilda changed? (Remember their narrative is set in the medieval ages--hundreds of years before "Lois"). How is Lois perceived as sexual? How do men react to Lois versus the other women?

5. What statements does Gaskell make about Catholicism vs. Protestantism? About Church and State? About religious fanaticism, Calvinism (pre-destination), and unchecked religous power?

6. Gothic has been know to support disobedience to oppressive patriarchal rule, yet Lois' home appears to share authority with Manasseh (male--imagine a Southern accented "Master") and his mother "Grace" (female). Can we read "patriarchal" rule as any "parental" rule--or any authority that is opresses. Do you see the novel as allegorical?

Jekyll's Suicide

I had someone express some confusion about the suicide of Jekyll and Hyde, so I thought I would try to explain it. Key to understanding J & H is understanding that they are one and the same person--one dies then the other dies. On page 97, towards the end, Utterson finds Hyde dead, wearing clothes too large for him. Lying nearby is a crushed vial of "kernels" (cyanide poison). We assume that Hyde had enough control at that point to kill himself, thus killing Jekyll. The text reads: "Utterson knew that he was looking on the body of a self destroyer" (a suicide). Now, at this point, Utterson thinks this is only Hyde's dead body and on page 99, when he finds Jekyll's letter, he begins to believe Jekyll is still alive (2nd half of page). Jekyll's letter tells him to go and read Lanyon's letter (Lanyon had warned Jekyll that he had written a letter to Utterson to be opened when J or H died--(phrased this way because he knew that Utterson didn't know J & H were one person). Utterson reads Lanyon's letter that reveals J & H are the same person--remember he witnessed H turn into J? There is a 3rd enclosure found in the laboratory (see pg 100): (1) Jekyll's will, (2) the initial letter about Lanyon's letter, and (3,) the "confession" that makes up the last portion of the novel, page 107. So, Jekyll doesn't know fore sure how it will all end. When he writes, "as I lay down the pen and proceed to seal up my confession, I bring the life of that unhappy Henry Jekyll to an end," he is in essence ending the "confession" or, perhaps, his biography. Many times during this era, biographies were called "Life of [blank]" Like Boswell's Life of Johnson.

Jekyll administers the poison, but perhaps he wondered if Hyde would overpower the psyche and stop it. Perhaps we could read, "Will Hyde die upon the scaffold? or will he find courage to release himself" as Hyde consenting to the suicide? Jekyll doesn't know what Hyde will do or how it will end. Perhaps he is making allowance that Hyde would prevent the suicide. These are avenues that leave the text open for speculation. Was Hyde a willing accomplice in the suicide?

I think what is confusing is that we are reading the events out of order. Even from the beginning, Hyde has already been created/released by Jekyll and hurt the girl, but then the narrative goes on to describe the horror done to the girl. The narration jumps around in time, confusing the reader. Even the sequence of reading the letters is confusing. This is a literary technique used by authors to get the reader so confused that he/she thus feels the confusion, essentially, that the characters are feeling in the text. It also makes the reader work at understanding the text, and thereby, forcing the reader deeper into the text in order to gain that "understanding." Very avant-garde for Stevenson's time.

Hope this helps. I think it is like one of those movies, each time you watch it, you see something you didn't see before.

The Value of Novel Reading

Today we talked about Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey. Austen's novel cautions young women about reading novels--in particular gothic novels. If we judge by Austen's heroine and hero, she seems to support novel reading, which can be rewarding, but she also appears to caution readers against an overactive imagination--a balance of imagination and rational thinking. We can see irrational thinking due to novels when Catherine enters the dead Mrs. Tilney's bed chamber expecting to find evidence of a murder, and rational thinking when she answers her younger siblings' questions regarding the abbey. Take some time and blog your own thoughts about novel reading. Do you see any value in reading novels? Do novels have anything to teach us about society? (Hint: research Uncle Tom's Cabin). Does it work as a mirror, giving us a reflection of ourselves (society) in which we may see flaws? Can literature move a society to change? Can you think of any novels that have changed your life or changed the way you view society (current or historical)?

Writing Prompts for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

1. Stevenson had a dream, from which he awoke and wrote J & H in three days. His wife was underwhelmed and told him that he should consider writing it as an allegory (see definition in your course readings). He tossed the manuscripts into the fire (oh, that makes me cringe), and re-wrote J & H as an allegory. Carefully reading J & H will uncover multiple levels of meaning: science and scientist out of control, a reflection on human nature, and/or the duality of man, science as good--helping to find the bad guy, etc. Journal what allegorical meanings you see and use examples from the text.


2. In this Gothic fiction, it seems that Mr. Utterson serves as a detective-type figure. Do you see any evidence that J & H is a precursor to the “detective novel” genre? (Technically, the genre began with the Sherlock Holmes novel in 1887.) Be sure to pull examples from the text to support your answer.

3. How does Stevenson anticipate Freud? In what ways do you see J & H as a perfect study for psychoanalysis?

4. One aspect of Gothic fiction is the Gothic castle setting. Stevenson doesn’t use a castle, but he uses other settings about London to create the same terror inspiring feeling (Look at the Literature of Terror vs. Horror below). Look over the narrative and, using examples from the text, explain how Stevenson built another aspect upon the Gothic setting: think of the city of London, think of the House, the door, the courtyard, think of the laboratory. Blog your thoughts with examples from text.

5. In the beginning, Mr. Utterson states “I incline to Cain’s heresy,” and “I let my brother go to the devil in his own way” (61). Earlier, the limited omniscient narrator states that Utterson sometimes wondered “almost with envy, at the high pressure of spirits involved in [others’] misdeeds.” So, Mr. Utterson is a unique character and, as you probably noticed, most of the story is through his p.o.v—even though it is omniscient. Knowing that, do you think that perhaps the portrayal of events would have been different had, say, through Mr. Enfield narrated? or even another character. Blog your thoughts.

The Literature of Terror vs. the Literature of Horror:

Following a distinction drawn by Ann Radcliffe in her essay "On the Supernatural in Poetry," many critics rely upon a sharp division between the literatures of terror and horror.

Works of terror create a sense of uncertain apprehension that leads to a
complex fear of obscure and dreadful elements [see the sublime]. The
essence of terror stimulates the imagination and often challenges intellectual
reasoning to arrive at a somewhat plausible explanation of this ambiguous fear
and anxiety. Resolution of the terror provides a means of escape.

Works of horror are constructed from a maze of alarmingly concrete imagery
designed to induce fear, shock, revulsion, and disgust. Horror appeals to
lower mental faculties, such as curiosity and voyeurism. Elements of
horror render the reader incapable of resolution and subject the reader's mind
to a state of inescapable confusion and chaos. The inability to
intellectualize horror inflicts a sense of obscure despair.

Castle of Otronto Prompts

Let the following prompts inspire you to "make meaning-making" from the fiction you have just read. You are not restricted to the prompts, but you can write about anything you see as significant in the text.

1. Take a feminist point of view and blog your ideas about the role of women in the text's setting. What options do women have? Are these options reasonable considering the time period? What concerns do characters have for women's feelings? Speculate as to Walpole's views about women.

2. How does the text promote chivalry and romance? By romance, I don't mean just love between two people, but heightened sensitivity to feelings and emotions.

3. Speculate as to what Walpole may be saying about patriarchy and monarchy. Do you think he supported unquestioned allegiance to King and country--unquestioned submission to authority (King or parent)? Do you think his personal views about his father played into the text? Do you think it is reasonable to see the text allegorical--that Walpole was actually making commentary about 18th century England?

4. Do you see a moral theme in the tale?

5. What do you make of the conclusion? What does the conclusion say about marriage and romantic relationships.

6. Do you see evidence of Shakespearean influence in the story? How so?

Analysis of Victorian Gothic Dress

Image from this website:

Assignment No. 1

Add a comment to this post that includes your name (First name and last initial) and blog address, so that I can add it to the list on our course page. Also let me know if you have any questions regarding the syllabus or anything discussed in our first meeting of the course. Make sure you read the previous posts as well, which includes the syllabus, the schedule of course readings, and the list of presentation topics. Email me at lynda.davis@tcu.edu if you have any questions.

Presentations

Individual Presentations

The Rise of Gothic Literature

Each student will present a 5 to 10 minute oral presentation on one of the following authors or historic/Gothic themes. Students will select one item from the following list (on a first come first serve basis) and prepare a one-page handout and a short oral presentation. The handout should combine text and images with a short bibliography, and the student should seek to present his/her presentation is light of the week’s readings. Students should feel free to incorporate PowerPoint presentations, Youtube videos, or any other visual aid into their presentation.

To sign up for a topic: Please comment on this post and sign up for the topic of your choice--first come first served--one student per subject. I would advise students to briefly research the topics so that they can make an educated decision in choosing their topic.

Choices: One student per subject:

1. Doppelgangers Now Free
2. Transcendentalism (Shea P)
3. Walpole, Horace (me)
4. Robert Lewis Stevenson me
5. Harriet E. Wilson (Rachel W.)
6. Elizabeth Gaskell (Spenser)
7. Harriet Jacobs and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl & Slave Narratives (Jared)
8. Jane Austen (Noelle N.)
9. Tennessee Williams (Kelsey W.)
10. William Faulkner (Adam)
11. Edgar Allen Poe (Harry)
12 Joyce Carol Oates (Lauren)
13. Calvinism & Reformation (Wes B.)
14. Romanticism (Rachel R)
15. Nathaniel Hawthorne (Brett)
16. Darwinism (Kacie B)
17. Charles Chesnutt (Erica Lawrence)

18. George Washington Cable (Keion)
19. Anne Radcliffe (Romance of the Forrest) (Susan S.)
20. Flannery O’Conner (Te L)
21. Charlotte Perkins Gilman (Justin)
22. Chuck Palaniuk (Joe)
23. French Revolution (Angela Goodwin)
24. Jacobites (Chas)
25. Gothic Architecture me

Tenative Schedule of Readings

(Note that this schedule is subject to change at instructor's discretion)
Week 1: Monday, July 6th
Introduction to course
Select Project
Introduction to the Gothic genre (begin reading Castle of Otranto)
Tuesday, July 7th
Horace Walpole, Castle of Otranto
Preface, Chapters 1, 2, & 3
Film: Hamlet
Wednesday, July 8th
Finish COO: Chapters 3, 4, and 5
Film: Hamlet
Presentation: Horace Walpole
Presentation: Gothic Architecture
Thursday, July 9th
Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 42-82
Presentation: Darwinism
Presentation: Robert L. Stevenson
Friday, July 10th
Finish novel, 83-122
Presentation: Doppelgangers
Presentation: Romanticism
Week 2
Monday, July 13th
Selected readings from and summary of Romance of the Forrest and Northanger Abbey - obtain readings from eCollege
Presentation: Ann Radcliffe
Presentation: Jane Austen
Presentation: French Revolution
Discussion: The Sublime and the Beautiful
Tuesday, July 14th
Watch Northanger Abbey
(get started reading "Lois the Witch")
Wednesday, July 15th
Elizabeth Gaskell’s Gothic “Lois the Witch”
Presentation: Elizabeth Gaskell
Presentation: Salem Witch Trials
Presentation: Jacobites and the Stuart monarchy
Thursday, July 16th
Watch The Crucible
Presentation: Nathaniel Hawthorne
Presentation: Calvinism
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”
Friday July 17th
Edgar Allan Poe "The Fall of the House of Usher" (1839), "The Masque of the Red Death" (1842),
Watch film: Ligeia
Presentation: E. A. Poe
Presentation: Transcendentalism
Week 3
Monday, July 20th
Our Nig (page 1-43)
Presentation Harriet E. Wilson
Presentation on Harriet Jacobs and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
Tuesday, July 21st
Our Nig (44-80)
Watch Skeleton Key
Wednesday, July 22nd
Charles Chesnutt, “The Goopherded Grapevine” and “The Sheriff’s Children” from Conjure Woman
Presentation: Chesnutt
Finish Skeleton Key
Thursday, July 23rd
Watch To Kill a Mockingbird or Streetcar Named Desire
Presentation: Tennessee Williams
Friday, July 24th
George Washington Cable, “Jean-ah Poquelin”
Presentation: Cable
Finish Watching To Kill a Mockingbird or Streetcar Named Desire
Review Final
Week 4
Monday, July 27th
Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily”
Presentation: William Faulkner
O’Conner “A Good Man is Hard to Find”
Presentation: Flannery O’Connor
Charlotte Perkins Gilman: “The Yellow Wallpaper.”
Presentation: Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Tuesday, July 28th
Joyce Carol Oates--:Where are you going, where have you been
Presentation: J. C. Oates
Watch film Smooth Talk
Wednesday, July 29th
Presentation: Chuck Palahniuk
Begin Watching Fight Club
no readings
Thursday, July 30th
Finish Fight Club
gather in groups to study
no readings
Friday, July 31st
Final Exam
Final Paper due

Syllabus

Texas Christian University

English 10103.020
Intro to Fiction:
The Rise of Gothic Literature

M-F10:05-12:00; Reed 203

Instructor: Ms. Lynda Davis
Office: 312 Reed Hall
Phone: 817-257-5311 and/or 817-257-5318 (e-mail messages are preferred and are more reliable)
Email: lynda.davis@tcu.edu
Office hours: T 9:00-10:00 a.m.; Wed 8:00-10:00 or by appt.

__________________________________________________________

Course description:
This course will study the rise of Gothic fiction in eighteenth-century England and Scotland, its migration across the Atlantic to America, and then its subsequent transformation into Southern Gothic and then film. We will begin by examining the elements that comprise literature (plot, characterization, point of view, conflict, figurative language, etc.), and then more specifically, gothic literature, the sublime and the beautiful, the natural and the supernatural, the ironic and the terrifying, the ghostly specters and the mad scientist, etc. As a class, we shall explore how these literary and generic elements are used to explore the social issues that drive the narratives. This course will analyze novels, short stories and film.

Learning Outcomes:
Students will demonstrate an understanding of basic literary terminology by posting online reading responses to select prompts and by writing essays, which delve further than just reiterating class discussions. Students will also demonstrate an understanding of how Gothic literature reflects societal trends, political issues, religious beliefs, and psychological fears. In this class students will read and analyze gothic fiction (novels, novellas, short stories, and film) and then examine how these works reflect and influence society on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Students will contemplate how the rise of the gothic novel in Great Britain influenced American literature and contributed to the popular genre of the Southern Gothic. Students will also analyze how the Gothic tradition has evolved over the years into modern film.

Required texts & Materials:
Horace Walpole, Castle of Otranto, 1764 (Longman)
Robert Lewis Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 1886 (Longman)
Harriet E. Wilson, Our Nig, (Penguin)

Booklet of class readings purchase from TCU print shop in Grand Marc
$$ for photocopying when needed
A Gmail account for blogging
Package of 3X5 index cards (enough for 1 per day)
Blue books for exams

Course and grading components:

Class participation (10%):
To be a full participant in this class, you must:
1) attend class daily, having completed the readings in advance;
2) participate fully in class discussions;
3) complete all informal in-class, and take-home writing assignments
Your participation grade will be based on the above three criteria. Please note that full attendance and completion of writing assignments will earn you a participation grade of C; to achieve a higher grade, you must distinguish yourself in class discussions.

Reading quizzes (10%):

At the beginning of each class (generally the first five minutes), students will take a quick quiz based upon the readings. These writing assignments are designed to indicate whether you are completing the assigned reading. Note: If a student arrives once those quizzes are collected, he/she cannot earn points for the quiz. Make-up quizzes will not be given for any reason, but for University-excused absences, students can choose to take the quiz in advance. Because issues are bound to arise over the course of the semester, the two lowest Reading Quiz grades will be dropped. 3X5 cards are required for the quizzes.

Blogs and Homework (10%):

Each student must set up a blog at Blogger.com for the purposes of this course. You will write responses to the readings (in conjunction with pre-determined prompt(s) by me) and discuss class matters on your blogs. The blog for each class meeting is due by 9:45 a.m. each day we meet in class. Since the purpose of these entries is to prepare you for class discussion, late blog entries will not count for credit (you can, of course, post them early.) Additionally, these blogs should serve to help you focus and formulate your thoughts for class discussion. Remember that this is a graded portion of the class and that a blog is a public forum, so please keep in mind how professionalism impacts your grade and compose your blog entries with your readers in mind (see Classroom Atmosphere and Etiquette below). If you have already created a blog on Blogger for a previous course, you are welcome to continue using the same blog address for this course.

Presentation (10%):

Each student will give a presentation (no less than 5 minutes, no more than 10) on an author, historical subject, or a literary element selected from a list given the first day of class (to be discussed further in class). In addition to the presentation, the student will be responsible for a 1-page handout for the class (26 copies, including mine) that incorporates text, images, and a short bibliography on the subject to be presented.

Paper (25%): You will write one paper for this class that focuses on gothic element(s) in the readings. More explanation about the paper will be forthcoming in a class handout.

Exams (35%): You will take two exams in this course. The first will be a midterm covering the first two weeks of works we have read, but the emphasis of the exam will focus on defining literary elements (15%). The second will cover the remaining works and will have an essay question covering the course as a whole (20%).

Attendance policy:
You are allowed to have a total of two absences, excused or unexcused, during the semester without affecting your grade. Absences beyond this will result in a lowered grade; more than 4 absences will result in failure of the course. Persistent tardiness will also affect your grade. Tardies: Please be on time for class. Students who are tardy (five minutes late or more) are a distraction to the whole class. Three tardies will equal one absence for the course.
In a literature course, much of the course work is demonstrated through in-class discussions and activities. Regular attendance is necessary to success in this course. It is a department policy to only excuse official university absences. Those representing TCU in a university-mandated activity that requires missing class should provide official documentation of schedules and turn in work in advance. Absences due to illness, sleeping-in, and long weekends are unexcused and all count toward the four-absence limit. Since illness is likely at some point during the course, you are encouraged to reserve your unexcused absences for times when you are too sick to come to class. This means that, even with a doctor's note, the absence is not automatically excused. Students whose absences are due to circumstances beyond their control may appeal this policy by scheduling a meeting with me. To do well in this course, you must come to class.

Late Work:

If you know you will miss a class in which your assignment is due, you will need to submit the assignment ahead of time. Late papers will be penalized one letter grade for each day beyond the due date unless the instructor has agreed to late submission in advance of the due date.

Classroom Atmosphere & Etiquette:

I envision our classroom as a place where all of us can share our ideas, thoughts, and questions without fear of being made fun of or embarrassed. Our classroom interaction will be based on respect for all of the writers and readers we encounter this semester. The university classroom should be considered a professional milieu. Therefore, please conduct yourselves as you would in a professional and/or business setting. While we may discuss issues that generate strong emotion, please engage in debate—not name-calling, denigration, or disparagement. Moreover, class discussions that degenerate into venues for opinion not backed by research are generally non-productive and are discouraged.

Out of respect for a professional environment, please refrain from using any mobile technology—regardless of whether or not it is silenced—including but not limited to MP3 players, cell phones, text messaging, etc. Each student may have a computer in our classroom, but please limit your computer activities during class time to those related to this course. Other usage will negatively impact your grade and may serve as dismissal from the class for the day. Also, please turn mobile phones to silent mode during class. In cases where a student is experiencing special circumstances, professionalism dictates that he/she inform the instructor (me) in advance.

Policy on plagiarism:

Plagiarism is the unacknowledged use of others’ ideas, words, or sentences in your writing. Passing off words, sentences or paragraphs from a book or article as your own, submitting another person’s paper, copying another’s answers on a quiz or exam, or using a prepared paper from a website are absolutely unacceptable actions. As a form of cheating, plagiarism is a serious form of academic misconduct and carries heavy consequences. If I discover plagiarism in your writing or your tests, I will give you a grade of zero on the assignment and recommend that you be failed from the course. Please consult the student handbook’s policy on academic misconduct (3.4) for further information.

Policies and Procedures for Students with Disabilities:
Texas Christian University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 regarding students with disabilities. Eligible students seeking accommodations should contact the Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities in the Center for Academic Services, located in Sadler Hall, 11. Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the Coordinator as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations. Further information can be obtained from the Center for Academic Services, TCU Box 297710, Fort Worth, TX 76129, or at 817-257-7486. Adequate time must be allowed to arrange accommodations and accommodations are not retroactive; therefore, students should contact the Coordinator as soon as possible in the academic term for which they are seeking accommodations. Each eligible student is responsible for presenting relevant, verifiable, professional documentation and/or assessment reports to the Coordinator. Guidelines for documentation may be found at http://www.acs.tcu.edu/DISABILITY.HTM. Students with emergency medical information or needing special arrangements in case a building must be evacuated should discuss this information with their instructor/professor as soon as possible.

Note: This syllabus is subject to change.
Course calendar: Readings should be completed before class on the day reading is listed.