Jules LawWinter 2015313 University Hall; 1-5526OH: W2-3; Th11-12 and by appointmentENG 213 Introduction to Fiction: Narration, Detection, and Identity

What happened? Who am I? Who did it? And how do narratives help us answer these questions? Do the activities of interpretation and discovery only repeat the very puzzles they attempt to solve? Is there any innocent re-telling or detection? From short stories to long novels, from stories of growth to tales of crime, from early 19th-century England to late 20th-century America, these are some of the questions that preoccupy literary writers. In this course we will explore the various ways writers create and resolve mysteries about identity through the technique of narrative; and we will consider the complicated relationships between discovery and guilt, action and narration, crime and detection. Along the way, we will consider examples drawn from one of the most dominant forms of narrative in contemporary culture: film.

Texts: Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (Broadview Press); Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes Selected Stories (Oxford); Bram Stoker, Dracula (Broadview Press); Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (Norton Critical Edition, fourth edition); Dashiell Hammett, The Maltese Falcon (Vintage); Toni Morrison, The Bluest Eye (Vintage). n.b. - Texts will be available at Norris Bookstore.

Please note: you must acquire the specific editions ordered for class, since chapters and page numbers vary from edition to edition. Texts marked below by an asterisk are available in digital form under the "Course Documents" section of the course Blackboard site on the web.

Films: Scott, Blade Runner (1982); Kasdan, Zero Effect (1998); Herzog, Nosferatu (1979); Coppola, Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992); Coppola, Apocalypse Now (1979); Huston, The Maltese Falcon (1941). Streamed versions of the films are available on our course Blackboard site.

Method of Evaluation: midterm exam (15%); 750-word midterm paper (15%); final exam (30%); 1250-word final paper (30%); class participation (10%).

Academic Integrity: Your work for this course must be your own. Period. Please read the College's policy on academic integrity, for which you are responsible (its available on the web and in the undergraduate catalog), and ask your instructor if you have questions or concerns.

Note: In addition to handing in papers in section, you will be required to submit an electronic version of your essays to SafeAssignment (there is a link to this site in the "Assignments" content area of our Blackboard site). All papers for this course may be analyzed electronically for violations of the university's academic integrity code and may also be included in a database for the purpose of testing for plagiarized content.

Which is all to say: honesty remains the best policy, and the best way of getting the most out of your education.

Schedule of Lectures and Assignments:

M.Jan.5IntroductionW. Jan.7Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, pp. 347-352, 47-71 [353-359, 45-71].

M. Jan. 12Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, pp. 71-160 [71-174].W.Jan.14Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, pp. 161-221 [175-244].

M.Jan.19No class: observance of Martin Luther King day.W. Jan.21Doyle, *"The Musgrave Ritual" and "A Scandal in Bohemia."

M.Jan.26Doyle, "The Speckled Band" and "The Red-Headed League."W. Jan.28Stoker, Dracula, pp. 29-94.Th/F.Jan.29-30Mid-term paper due in section.

M. Feb. 2Stoker, Dracula, pp. 95-256.W. Feb.4Stoker, Dracula, pp. 257-314.*Plato, The Phaedrus, ch. xxv.M. Feb.9Stoker, Dracula, pp. 315-369.W. Feb.11Stoker, Dracula, pp. 370-419.*Stoker's correspondence with Walt Whitman.*Whitman, "Whoever you are, Holding me now in Hand," "Are You the New Person drawn toward Me?" and "Trickle, Drops."F.Feb.13Mid-term exam in Leverone Auditorium (note this is a Friday!).

M. Feb.16Conrad, Heart of Darkness.W. Feb.18Conrad, Heart of Darkness, pp. 3-77.Achebe, "An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness," in Conrad, Heart of Darkness, pp. 336-349.

M. Feb.23Hammett, The Maltese Falcon, pp. 3-150.W. Feb.25Hammett, The Maltese Falcon, pp. 151-217.

M.Mar. 2Morrison, The Bluest Eye, pp. 3-131.W.Mar.4Morrison, The Bluest Eye, pp. 132-206; conclusion.

M.Mar.9Morrison, The Bluest Eye; conclusion.Final paper due in lecture.

Thurs. Mar.193:00 p.m. Leverone Auditorium. Final exam. Please note that this is NOT our regular meeting time!

Films:

Many of the films discussed in lecture will also be available for viewing on the web, via the course Blackboard (Course Management System) site, which you can reach by clicking on: https://courses.northwestern.edu. We will look at Blade Runner when we read Frankenstein; The Zero Effect when we read our Sherlock Holmes stories; Nosferatu and Bram Stoker's Dracula when we read Dracula; Apocalypse Now! when we read Heart of Darkness; and The Maltese Falcon when we read The Maltese Falcon.

TAs: E-mail:Office Hours

Hannah Chaskinhmchaskin@gmail.comM11, W1Andrew Keenerandrewkeener2018@u.northwestern.eduM11, F2Stephanie Pentzstephaniepentz2012@u.northwestern.eduM11, W1Will Piercewepierce@u.northwestern.eduM11, W12Sarah Roth sarah.e.roth@gmail.comM11, W9Susanna Sackssusannasacks2019@u.northwestern.eduM1, F2

TA offices are all in University Hall 420.phone: 491-4991

Sections:

NumberTATimePlace

60Hannah ChaskinTh 4:00-4:50Fisk B17 (basement)61Sarah RothTh 4:00-4:50Harris L06 (basement)62Hannah ChaskinTh 12:30-1:20Locy 30163Stephanie PentzTh 4:00-4:50Fisk B17 (basement)64Sarah RothF 11:00-11:50Harris L06 (basement)65Stephanie PentzF 11:00-11:50University Hall 21866Susanna SacksF 12:00-12:50University Hall 018 (basement)67Will PierceF 12:00-12:50University Hall 31868Andrew KeenerF 12:00-12:50University Hall 218 69Andrew KeenerF 1:00-1:50University Hall 018 (basement)70Will PierceF 1:00-1:50University Hall 21871Susanna SacksF 1:00-1:50 University Hall 318

Attendance. If you do not plan to attend class, then this is not a good course for you. Attendance at section is required; attendance at lecture is necessary in order to get a good grade. There may be quizzes given during the quarter to audit attendance. Since there are only nine section meetings, even one unexcused absence from section can affect your grade. If you accumulate three unexcused absences, you will almost certainly receive a failing grade in class participation and be asked to meet with your instructor to determine if you can still pass the course.

Assignments, Exams and Papers. You must be able to attend the midterm exam (Fri. Feb. 13) and final exam (Thurs. Mar. 19). These tests will be given ONLY on these dates. If you are participating in a scheduled, university-sponsored event, and a university official is available to proctor the exam, you may be able to take the exam off-site. A 750-word paper is due at the beginning of section on Jan. 29 or 30 (depending on your section), and the final 1250-word paper is due on Mon. Mar. 9 at before the final lecture. Your TA will provide more detailed instructions. Extensions must be requested more than 48 hours in advance. Otherwise a late paper is a late paper.

Late papers: papers submitted up to 24 hours late will be docked one half letter grade. Papers submitted 24 hours to one week after the original due date will be docked one full letter grade. Papers submitted between one and two weeks late will be docked two full letter grades. Papers are not accepted more than two weeks late.

A detailed set of instructions--really a kind of tutorial--on how to write a good English paper is available in the Course Documents section of our Blackboard site (under "Help"). It's not light reading, but if you study it carefully you will learn an awful lot. Set aside some extra time before starting to write your first paper so you can take advantage of this resource. Remember, the first rule for writing a good paper is that it can't be done in a day (or night!).

Grading Criteria:

A A work is well written, without significant flaws in grammar, diction, or spelling, and demonstrates strength, precision, and variety in its vocabulary and syntax. It is capable of expressing sophisticated relationships, such as analogy, antithesis, contradiction, or contingency. It demonstrates an accurate understanding of relevant facts in the novel, and extends points made in class (or in critical readings) to new passages. It also makes significant observations about the novels formal features.

BB work is competently written, without significant flaws in grammar, diction, or spelling. It demonstrates some recognition of sophisticated relationships such as analogy, antithesis, contradiction, or contingency. It reflects an accurate understanding of relevant facts in the novel and attempts to extend points made in class (or in critical readings) to new passages. It takes some notice of the novels formal features.

CC work demonstrates minimally adequate writing, which manages to communicate basic ideas more or less accurately despite some confusions caused by errors in grammar, diction, or spelling. It accurately characterizes the relevant facts of the novel, and competently rehearses points made in class.

The Usual Disclaimers:

Announcements about any changes in readings assignments, deadlines, etc., are made at the beginning of class. If you do miss a class, or are late, it is your responsibility to get good notes from someone else in the class. There may be pop quizzes at the beginning of sections; these count toward the class grade. Pop quizzes cannot be made up if your absence is unexcused.

The electronic world, like all others, is an imperfect one. Always make allowance for disasters. Make sure you maintain running backups and/or hard copies of all work written on computer. If the computer misplaces or erases your work, or declines to print it expeditiously, you are still responsible for submitting some material evidence of your work on time.

Illness: if you have a yucky common cold, you still need to make it to class. I know, I know . . . attending classes when you've got a cold isn't fun, and it certainly isn't going to help with your recovery . . . but it won't substantially hinder it either. If you've got something more serious, you need to stay away. If you need more time to complete an assignment you may of course have it, but you need to contact your instructor in advance, not on the day the assignment is due.

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