ENGL1102: Popular Culture

Dr. Amanda MaddenE-mail: amanda.madden@lcc.gatech.edu

Office: DM Smith 116Office hours: MWF 1:05-2:05

ENGL 1102 A3 MWF 9:05-9:55, Skiles 370ENGL 1102 J1 MWF 10:05-10:55, Skiles 370ENGL 1102 G2 MWF 12:05-12:55, Skiles 370

ENGL 1102 L2 MWF 2:05-2:55, Skiles 370

Course Description

In this class, we will examine the following questions: What is popular culture? Is it definable? How does class, race, gender, ethnicity, culture impact definitions? Who gets to decide exactly what popular culture is? What power does definition confer upon the decision-maker, the taste-maker? What is the relation of popular culture to other culture(s)?

Do adaptations of historical and literary representations of the hero in pop culture effectively disseminate, distort, or bring a fresh perspective to canonical literary texts and historical moments? In the reading of texts such as Haruki Murakami’s Kafka on the Shore, Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta, Assassin’s Creed II, the albums of Amorphis among others, we will analyze how pop culture deploys memory, changes the story, and reifies or challenges extant notions of cultural literacy. Using WOVEN (Written, Oral, Visual, Electronic, and Nonverbal) modes of communication as a guideline, students will analyze pop culture artifacts in their exploration of whether or not new media can enhance our understanding of these important narratives or changes the definition of what it means to be culturally literate.

Course goals

In particular, this course is designed to build upon your critical thinking and evaluative skills, help you develop a research toolbox, aid in honing the principles of effective argumentation and rhetoric, and reinforce best practices for effective writing at the college level. Using pop culture adaptations of history and literature as an analytical lens, by the end of this course you will be able to evaluate and construct arguments in a variety of modes. You will demonstrate proficiency in the process of articulating and organizing rhetorical arguments in written, oral, visual, and nonverbal modes, using concrete support and conventional language.

The programmatic expectations for learning are as following:

Course Materials

The following texts are required for this class:

WOVENText. The custom course text, WOVENText, may be purchased through the GATech Barnes and Noble bookstore, the Engineer’s bookstore, and at the Bedford St. Martin’s website.

Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore ISBN-10 1-40000-7927-6Alan Moore, V for Vendetta, ISBN 978-1-4012-0841-7*One other work to be determined by the class

The following text must also be purchased at a venue of your choice. This will enable you to select your platform (PC, Xbox, etc.)

Ubisoft. Assassin’s Creed II

*Note: Because popular culture is always changing and shifting and varies according to standpoint, it is a useful exercise to decide what, why, and how something becomes popular culture in the moment. In order to examine the temporal and contextual specificities of popular culture phenomenon, weeks twelve through fourteen have been designated a free-choice period for the class. This means that you as a class will be choosing a popular culture text you would like to examine for these three weeks. This text may be a novel (The Hunger Games, the Hobbit, Ender’s Game), comic book (the Avengers, Batman), movie franchise (Star Wars, Lord of the Rings), television show (Game of Thrones, Battlestar Gallactica), etc. that the class feels is a sufficient popular culture phenomenon to examine in detail. In the second week of class, the class will nominate texts, discuss and debate the various merits of each one, and finally decide upon this text via consensus. Each student will be responsible for ensuring their access to the text.

All other course readings will be available on the T-Square course site and/or Course Reserves.

The Reading schedule is posted on the syllabus. All readings are expected to be completed before the class session for which they are assigned.

A note on sensitive material: At times this class will examine texts dealing with violence, sexual themes, and other material of a sensitive nature. We are all adults in this classroom. I will endeavor to treat these texts with sensitivity and I expect you to do the same.

Assignments

First, a word on the School of Literature, Media, and Culture’s programmatic expectations. Each student in ENGL 1101/1102 classes is required to produce 25 “pages” of polished written work. It may seem like you will be doing a ton of writing and reading in this course. You will be. It’s required of you and is expected by me, my department, Georgia Tech, and the Board of Regents. That being said, I always endeavor to make the composition process as fun and painless as possible with interesting and engaging assignments that teach you more than the five-paragraph essay.

*An IMPORTANT note about assignments: The assignments in this class are cumulative and will build upon one another. The best way to learn how to write is to do it frequently and to do it often. In that spirit, each assignment will be equally important for your grade especially as we work through multiple iterations and revisions. For each assignment you will be presenting a proposal, a rough draft, and a final product. **This class will create a dynamic environment where interests and foci sometimes shift and change as part of your input and our mutually created class culture. With sufficient advance notice, I may delete or substitute readings as necessary or alter assignments. You are responsible for checking T-Square on a regular basis. You are also responsible for any directions that are given in class.

Participation (15% of grade/150 pts)Active engagement is integral to this course and is the foundation for your grade. My responsibility is not only to teach you how to become a better writer and but also, as a corollary, a better thinker, regardless of your skill or affinity for the subject. If you make the effort to engage with this class, I am confident that by the end of the semester you will be a more proficient and comfortable writer simply because you will receive plenty of practice. Active participation is crucial to this process. If you simply show up for class, rarely speak, and do only the minimum work necessary to complete your assignments the best grade you can achieve in this class is a B regardless of your writing skills. At minimum, you will be expected to participate substantively in class 10 times and on the course piazza site and the class wiki 15 times. During the second week of class we will be putting together a participation rubric and drawing up a contract to be signed by each student. I also reserve the right to give pop quizzes on the reading and do substantive in-class writing if I feel that participation is flagging

for various reasons. You will be receiving a participation grade three times over the course of the semester.

Reading Response Group Blog (20% of grade/150 points)The goal of this assignment is practice your writing and analytical skills for a wider audience, receive feedback, and create a writing community. Once enrollment has solidified, I will be dividing you in groups of five and you will be creating WordPress blogs. Throughout the semester you will be using this blog as a sort of collective journal. You will be asked to post reading responses, reviews, and reflections among other short assignments. These posts will be a way for you to work out your ideas as well as a point of departure for deeper reflection. While I will not be correcting these extensively or providing detailed feedback on every blog post (a total of six), I expect you to use these blogs to reflect upon pop culture and engage with the texts while following the basic rules of composition. Moreover, at the end of the semester I will be assessing your blogs for development and improvement over the course of the semester.

Autobiographical Mix Tape/Playlist (15% of grade/150 points)In Haruki Murakami’s Kafka on the Shore, Kafka mediates the retelling of a classic story with music playlist. This playlist serves as a soundtrack for this modern retelling of the heroic journey. In this assignment, you will be imitating Kafka by creating your own soundtrack to the hero’s journey which you will post on your blogs with commentary. The outcome will be a deeper analysis the process of adaptation and how it changes and/or adds to a text. Further guidelines will be forthcoming.

Adaptation Review Podcast (20% of grade/200 points)In this assignment, you will write produce a podcast analyzing a text dealing with the issue of race, class, and/ or gender in a popular cultural adaptation of the hero’s journey. In particular, you will be considering the ideas of media, medium, and cultural mediation and their impact on how a text is disseminated and adopted. You will also consider how these processes either reinforce or challenges stereotypes. Further guidelines will be passed out as the semester progresses.

Game Design and Group Presentation (20% of grade/200 points)For this assignment, you will be designing and presenting a game which adapts a piece of literature or historical moment into a game. This may be a board game, a role-playing game, a computer game etc. During the course of this assignment, your group will present a proposal, construct the game itself, and present it to the class. More details will be forthcoming as the semester progresses.

WOVEN Portfolio (10% of grade/100 points)This will showcase the drafts, iterations, revisions, and reflections on the work you have done throughout the semester. This course has no final exam. In lieu of a final exam, this course has a required portfolio, which counts for 10% of your grade.o Students will work on portfolios periodically throughout the semester.

o The portfolio will be completed during the WPFE, both in class and out of class. The portfolio will be due during Final Exam Week.

As a result, it is important for you to save all the iterations of the drafts that you do. More details forthcoming as the semester progresses.

TOTAL points allowable for the class—1000 pts.

A note on WPFE:

This course includes no quizzes or tests during the WPFE. All quizzes and tests must be graded and returned or available for review on or before the last day of class preceding final exam week.

No new assignments will be given in the WPFE. The only work during the WPFE is work related to the portfolio, which is on the syllabus from the beginning AND worked on during the semester before the WPFE.

All projects, other than the portfolio, must be graded and returned or available for review on or before the last day of classes.

Grading Policy

A: 90-100 C: 70-79 F: below 60

B: 80-89 D: 60-69

A grading rubric has been provided at the end of this document and will be provided for all assignments.

Course Policies

Attendance and Participation Policy: The Writing and Communication Program has a Program-wide attendance policy, which is allows twice the number of weekly class meetings for absences without penalty, regardless of reason. After that, penalties accrue. Exceptions are allowed for Institute-approved absences and individually

negotiated situations such as documented hospitalization or documented family emergencies (documented, for example, by the Office of the Dean of Students).

Attendance and active participation and engagement in class are required. Students who have not done the reading and/or who do not actively participate during the class period may be

penalized. Students may miss a total of 6 classes over the course of the semester without penalty. The attendance policy does not make any distinction about the reason for your absences. Only absences

officially excused by the Institute (i.e., due to participation in official GATech athletics, to religious observance, to personal or family crisis and excused by documentation from the Dean of Students) or those negotiated in advance will not be counted among your allotted absences.

Students are responsible for finding out what they may have missed while absent from class. Except for absences officially excused by the Institute or exceptional and unanticipated situations, I do not

allow students to make up missed quizzes, presentations, or in-class assignments. Each additional absence after the allotted number will result in a deduction of one-third of a letter grade from a

student’s final grade.Students are expected to keep up with their own attendance record; see me if you have a question about how many classes you have missed according to my records.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ACCOMMODATION: If you require accommodation to compensate for a disability, please speak with me outside of class so that we can identify an appropriate course of action.

If you have a documented disability and anticipate needing accommodations in this course, please make arrangements to meet with me soon, preferably in the first week of the semester. Please request that an ADAPTS staff verify your disability and specify the accommodation you will need.

Georgia Tech complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Any student who may require an accommodation under such provisions should contact me as soon as possible and no later than the end of the first week of classes or as soon as you become aware. No retroactive accommodations will be provided in this class.

Discrimination and Harassment: Georgia Tech does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. This class adheres to those guidelines. Alternative viewpoints are welcome in this classroom. However, statements that are deemed racist, sexist, classist, or otherwise discriminatory toward others in the class will not be tolerated.

No form of harassment or discrimination is allowed in this class. In keeping with the professional nature of this course, only professional behavior is acceptable between the instructor and the students and between students. No harassment of any kind is allowed in class including but not limited to gender, age, ability, religion, sexual orientation, and ethnicity.

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism You are responsible for knowing and abiding by GT’s policy for academic integrity. Consult the Honor Code online at http://www.honor.gatech.edu.

The Communication CenterThe Communication Center is located in Clough Commons, Suite 447. It is an excellent resource for any student (undergraduate or graduate) who wants help with a communication-related project. You can visit the center for help at any stage of the process for any project in any discipline. The knowledgeable and friendly tutors are available to help you develop and revise your projects. They are not available to “fix” your projects. Please do not ask the tutors to proofread or edit your projects. For information on making an appointment please visit this website: <http://communicationcenter.gatech.edu/content/make-appointment>. If you need assistance with the appointment system, you can call 404-385-3612 or stop by the center. All services are free and confidential.

SCHEDULE

Week One

08/20Mon.

Introduction, Syllabus Overview

08/22Wed.

Reading: WOVENText, “Multimodal Synergy”

08/24 In class-writing, setting up WordPress accountshttp://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html

Week Two

08/27, Mon. Amorphis, SkyforgerReading: Simon Trafford and Aleks Pluskowski, “Antichrist Superstars: The Vikings in Hard Rock and Heavy Metal,” T-Square

08/29, Wed. Amorphis, Skyforger

08/31, Fri.

Amorphis, SkyforgerAssignment: Blog One Due

Week Three

09/03, Mon. No Class

09/05, Wed. Reading: Kafka on the Shore http://www.randomhouse.com/features/murakami/site.php Listening: Radiohead"Kid A" (Album)The Archduke Trio" performed by Rubinstein, Heifetz, Feuermann trio (The Million Dollar Trio)/Oistrach Trio

09/07, Fri.

Reading: Kafka on the ShoreAssignment: Playlist Draft Due, Peer Workshop

Week Four

09/10 Reading: Kafka on the ShoreMorris, Barry: “Round Up the Usable Suspects: Archetypal Characters in the Study of Popular Culture”

09/12Wed.

Reading: Kafka on the Shore

09/14Fri.

Reading: Kafka on the ShoreAssignment: Blog #2 Due

Week Five

09/17, Mon.

Reading: Kafka on the ShoreSophocles, Oedipus the Kinghttp://classics.mit.edu/Sophocles/oedipus.html

09/19Wed.

Reading: Kafka on the Shore

09/21Fri.

Reading: Kafka on the ShoreAssignment: Playlist Due

Week Six

09/24 Mon. Reading: Assassin’s Creed IIJacob Burckhardt, The Civilization of the Renaissance in ItalyMarcello Simonetta, “The Renaissance of City-States,”http://www.laphamsquarterly.org/roundtable/roundtable/the-renaissance-of-city-states.php

09/26Wed.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed IIJeremy Hu, “A Renaissance Scholar Helps Build Virtual Rome,” Live Science Bloghttp://www.livescience.com/8945-renaissance-scholar-helps-build-virtual-rome.html

09/28Fri.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed II

Week Seven

10/1Mon.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed IIKeith Stuart, “Assassin’s Creed and the Appropriation of History,” Guardian UK, 19 November 2010.

10/3 Reading: Assassin’s Creed II

Wed. Lauro Martines, April Blood 10/5Fri.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed IIAssignment: Group Game Proposal Due

Week Eight

10/8Mon.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed IIEdward Muir, Mad Blood Stirring

10/10Wed.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed IIEdward Muir, Mad Blood Stirring

10/12Fri.

Reading: Assassin’s Creed II Machiavelli, excerpts from the PrinceAssignment: Blog #3 Due

Week Nine

10/15Mon.

NO CLASS FALL BREAK

10/17Wed.

Readings: V for Vendetta

10/19 Readings: V for VendettaAssignment: Adaptation Analysis Rough draft due

Week Ten

10/22Mon.

Reading: V for VendettaCall, Lewis, “A is for Anarchy, V is for Vendetta: Images of Guy Fawkes and the Creation of Postmodern Anarchism,” Anarchist Studies 16, no. 2 (January 2008): 154-72.

10/24Wed.

Reading: V for Vendetta

10/26Fri.

Peer Review Workshop—No class

Week Eleven

10/29Mon.

Readings: V for VendettaScreening: V for Vendetta

10/31Wed.

Reading: V for VendettaExcerpts from What the Gunpowder Plot Was

11/2Fri.

Readings: V for VendettaAssignment: Blog #5 Due

Week Twelve

11/05Mon.

Reading: _____________

11/07Wed.

Reading: ______________

11/09Fri.

Reading:________________Assignment: Adaptation Analysis due

Week Thirteen

11/12Mon.

Reading: ___________________

11/14Wed.

Reading:____________________

11/15 Reading: ____________________

Fri. Assignment: Blog #6 Due

Week Fourteen

11/19Mon.

Reading: _____________________

11/21Wed.

Reading: ______________________

11/23Fri.

Reading: ______________________

Week Fifteen

11/26Mon.

Group Project Presentation

11/28Wed.

Group Project Presentation

11/30Fri.

Group Project PresentationAssignment: Game Project Due

12/3Mon.

Portfolio Workshop

12/5Wed.

Portfolio Workshop

12/7Fri.

Portfolio Workshop

Assignment: Portfolio Due, Wednesday, December 12.

Rubric for Artifacts

Scale 1: Basic 2: Beginning 3: Developing 4: Competent 5: Mature 6: Exemplary

Rhetorical Awareness:

Argument considers audience, persona,

message, and medium

Ignores two or more aspects of the rhetorical situation and thus does not meet the expectations of the task

Ignores at least one aspect of the rhetorical situation and thus compromises effectiveness

Attempts to be rhetorically aware, but the attempt is inappropriate or insufficient

Addresses the rhetorical situation in a predictable way

Addresses the rhetorical situation with unexpected insight

Addresses the rhetorical situation in a sophisticated, unique manner

Stance and Support: Involves a confusing or States a trite, overly Ambiguous claim lacks Offers a clear, unified, Offers a clear, unified, Offers an inventive, well-

Central claim is duly supported by evidence

unspecified position that is not effectively supported by evidence

general position that is supported by weak evidence

unity because evidence contradicts or competes

standard position illustrated by predictable evidence

distinct position illustrated by compelling evidence

informed position illustrated by well-chosen evidence

Organization:

Clear structure logically moves from

introduction to conclusion

Omits a unifying and cohesive claim, exhibits weak paragraph unity, and offers ineffective transitions

Offers ambiguous or unsupportable claims in the thesis and/or topic sentences and uses simple transitions that fail to connect ideas

Uses claims that are sometimes imprecise or poorly matched to content in ways that comprise logical development and transitions

States a unifying claim with clear supporting points, employs a recognizable organizational scheme with mechanical transitions

Asserts and sustains a claim that develops progressively, adapts typical organizational schemes to the context, and achieves substantive coherence

Asserts a sophisticated claim developed with complex, multiple perspectives that are organized to achieve maximum coherence and momentum

Conventions: Competent

adherence to usage standards; skillful integration and

citation of sources

Involves excessive grammatical, punctuation, and/or mechanical errors that disrupt the message

Involves a major pattern of grammatical and/or mechanical errors

Involves some distracting grammatical, punctuation, and/or mechanical errors

Adheres to usage standards, with only minor errors

Exhibits mastery of linguistic conventions

Manipulates conventions in ways that advance the argument

Design for Medium:Well-chosen design features enhance

audience motivation and participation

Lacks the visual features necessary for the document’s genre

Involves distracting inconsistencies in features such as headings and type

Uses consistent visual features appropriate for the genre but poorly matched to content

Uses standard, recognizable design features generally suited to genre and content

Creates visual appeal with features that highlight and enhance specific content

Persuades with careful, seamless integration of design and content

Total=