English 314: British Literature After 1800

Professor Kathryn Conrad
Spring 2009
Monday - Wednesday
    55835: 11 am-12:15 pm
    76265: 3-4:15 pm
4076 Wescoe Hall
Office hours:  M W 1-2:30 pm, 3025 Wescoe

Prerequisites (from University timetable)

Admission to English courses numbered 300 and above is limited to students who have completed the freshman-sophomore English requirements or their equivalents. All students are required to enroll in ENGL 101 and to remain continuously enrolled in ENGL 101 or ENGL 102 until ENGL 102 (or ENGL 105) has been completed.   All CLAS students, as well as students from several other schools, are also required to complete a 200-level English class.

Enrollment (from University timetable)

The Department of English reserves the right to terminate administratively the enrollment of any student who misses two consecutive class meetings during the first two weeks of the semester. Should an emergency situation cause the student to miss two consecutive class meetings, the student should contact the instructor or the English Department, 864-4520, immediately. Students are expected to submit promptly requests to drop should they decide to disenroll from English classes.

Drop Policy (English Department statement)

If you are having trouble succeeding in the course, it is especially important that you consult with me so that we can develop a plan of action that may enable you to complete the course.  If you decide to drop this class, please refer to the Registrar's website.
From  Feb. 6-April 16, you will be assigned a grade of W.  You may not drop or withdraw after April 16, 2009. 

Recording of Classes:  At KU, course  materials prepared by the instructor, together with the content of lectures, are the property of the instructor. Video and audio recording of lectures without the consent of the instructor is prohibited.  On request, the instructor will usually grant permission for students to audio tape lectures, on the condition that these audio tapes are only used as a study aid by the individual making the recording. Unless explicit permission is obtained from the instructor, recordings of lectures may not be modified and must not be transferred or transmitted to any other person, whether or not that individual is enrolled in the course. (Adopted from KU Faculty Council statement)

At KU, course  materials prepared by the instructor, together with the content of lectures, are the property of the instructor. Video and audio recording of lectures without the consent of the instructor is prohibited.  On request, the instructor will usually grant permission for students to audio tape lectures, on the condition that these audio tapes are only used as a study aid by the individual making the recording. Unless explicit permission is obtained from the instructor, recordings of lectures may not be modified and must not be transferred or transmitted to any other person, whether or not that individual is enrolled in the course. 

Course Description and Texts

This course is a survey of British literature of the Romantic, Victorian, Modernist, and contemporary periods. We will be concerned in this course not only with close readings of the literature and literary form but also with some of the political and social issues that serve as context for the literature. Our readings will include essays, poetry, drama, short fiction, and novels. Do note that this will be a poetry-intensive course.

These books are available for purchase.

• Damrosch, David, ed. The Longman Anthology of British Literature, 3rd edition, vols. 2A, 2B, and 2C OR all-in-one edition.
• Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre.  Norton.
• Recommended: Faigley, Lester.  The Brief Penguin Handbook. 3rd ed. 

Grades (consist of three major components)

1. 15%:  Attendance, participation in discussion (online and in class), group work, and short assignments.  Students will be expected to access materials online and participate in Blackboard discussion blogs. Students must participate in the Blake blog, the Virginia Woolf blog, any blog discussions that replaced days cancelled by the University or Prof. Conrad, and at least four others. Students are responsible for keeping track of their blog postings. All readings and blog postings to be completed by date listed on the syllabus.  Students are expected to attend every class and should contact me by e-mail before your absence if you must miss class. All unexcused absences will negatively impact a student's grade.  Three unexcused absences will result in failure of this course.  Students are responsible for keeping track of their own absences.
2. 30%:  Exams: a midterm and final examination (identification and short essay) as listed on the syllabus. (15 % each.)
3. 55%:  Two papers of 2000 words (approx. 7 pages).  Paper topics will be available online two weeks prior to the due date on Blackboard website. You should read the grading guidelines, available on Blackboard, and review the plagiarism policy below before handing in your papers.

Grading Policy (CLAS guidelines)

In this course we will be using the new +/- grading scale, approved by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences to describe intermediate levels of performance between a maximum of A and a minimum of F.  Intermediate grades represented by plus or minus shall be calculated as .3 units above or below the corresponding letter grade. 

Policy on Student Academic Creations (English Department statement)

Since one of the aims of this course is to teach students to write for specific audiences, ungraded student-authored work may be shared with other class members during the semester in which you are enrolled in the class. Please do not submit materials on sensitive subjects that you would not want your classmates to see or read, unless you inform the instructor in advance that you do not want your work shared with others.

Other uses of student-authored work are subject to the University’s Policy on Intellectual Property and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. If your instructor desires to use your work outside of this class (e.g. as a sample for another class or future classes), you will be asked to fill out and sign a written form authorizing such use.

Other Resources

Students with Disabilities: The staff of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD), 135 Strong (Lawrence), 785-864-2620 (V/TTY), coordinates accommodations and services for KU courses. If you have a disability for which you may request accommodation in KU classes and have not contacted them, please do as soon as possible. Please also see me privately in regard to this course (Adopted from SSD statement).

Writing Center:  Most colleges and universities have a writing center, a place for students to talk about their writing with trained peer consultants. At KU, we call our writing centers Writer's Roosts.  When you visit, bring your work in progress and an idea of what you would like to work on-organization, support, documentation, editing, etc.  The Roosts are open in several different locations across campus; please check the Writing Center website for current locations and hours. The Roosts welcome both drop-ins and appointments, and there is no charge for their services. For more information, please call (785) 864-2399 or send an e-mail to writing@ku.edu (Adopted from Writing Center Statement).

External links:  The Blackboard website contained a list of relevant external links.

Weather cancellations:  Call 785-864-SNOW to discover whether classes have been cancelled by the University due to inclement weather.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is stealing and passing off someone else's ideas or words as one's own or using information from another's work without crediting the source.  Any detected cheating offense--including but not limited to plagiarism; the unauthorized use of crib sheets, texts, or other materials during an examination or quiz; the copying of another student's work (even with the permission or aid of that student, who is thereby culpable); the use of prewritten essays (the student's own or someone else's); the uncredited adoption of another writer's interpretation of a work; the copying of all or part of websites; or the unauthorized use of work written for another assignment or class--will be reported to the University. A record of each verified offense will be kept throughout the student's association with the University (Adapted from FSE statement).

Plagiarism is not a game, nor is it simply a "shortcut" when time presses.  It is a very serious form of academic misconduct and will be treated as such in this class. When you consult outside sources for ideas--through published or unpublished essays, interviews, the Internet, conversation, etc.--you must cite those sources clearly in your work. I understand that academic work can be daunting: if you are struggling with an assignment, are unclear about my expectations, or are behind on your work, please consult me. There is always a better path than plagiarism; I can work with you to help you find your own voice while incorporating others' ideas appropriately. If after reading the statement above, you are still unclear about what constitutes plagiarism, ask me BEFORE turning in an assignment.  In my class, I guarantee that it is better to turn in a paper late than to plagiarize.  One of the goals of English courses is helping you to improve your writing, and plagiarism undermines that process entirely.

A plagiarized  assignment will result in failure of the assignment (no credit given); it also impacts your larger course grade more than a paper that merely receives an F, and will usually result in failure of the course. The Department of English has a zero-tolerance policy on plagiarism. Formal records are kept by the Department of English and reported to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, who also keep them on file. I may also send a copy of the plagiarism form to the home department or school of any student who is found to have plagiarized.