Humanities 211-01 & 03
Tradition: Continuity
FALL 2000
Helen Roulston



FH 207
MWF 8:30 & 9:30
Office: FH7B 1O
Office Hours: MWF 11:30-12:30
TTH 8:30-11:00, T 11:00-2:00
Office Phone: 762-4712
E-mail: helen.roulston@murraystate.edu
Website: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/5426
http://www.geocities.com/helenroulston
Humanities Website

II. Catalog Description: An exploration of humanistic themes as reflected in literary and philosophical works prior to the twentieth century.

III. Purpose:
        1. To examine specific human themes from a variety of perspectives;
        2. To improve students' ability to read, analyze, and compare literary and philosophical works and
        to discuss and write about the questions they suggest;
        3. To introduce students to significant literary and philosophical works and the historical and cultural
         traditions from which they emerged.

IV. To Receive Credit, Students Should Be Able to:
        1. Identify some important issues in western thought prior to the twentieth century;
        2. Understand and compare the diverse positions expressed in the works read in the course;
        3. Communicate that understanding effectively.

V. Course Outline: The course readings are divided into three units:
        The Ancient World
        Middle Ages and Renaissance
        Enlightenment and Romantic Periods.
The course as a whole will trace the development of three themes:
        Self
        Other
        Community.

VI. Instructional Activities: Class activities include discussion of readings and background lectures.

VII. Field, Clinical, and/or Laboratory Experiences: Films and forums are provided. Students are encouraged to use the world and the Internet as their laboratory as well.

VIII. Resources: Students may use computer labs to surf the Interned and to type their papers. Students are encouraged to communicate with the professor via e-mail about their papers and attendance.

IX. Grading Procedures: There will be 2 exams, both essay and objective, plus 2 typed papers, at least 750 words, on interpretive, analytic, or comparative topics.
        Extra papers, including major overhauls of poor essays, may be handed in for extra credit. All essays must be revised. Satisfactory minor revisions will get a check, more extensive revisions a check plus or double plus. Each paper and exam will be counted equally. This unit is 75% of the grade.
        Quizzes and optional extra-credit assignments, such as written evidence of attendance at previously approved university and community events, count a total of 10%. Each quiz and piece of written evidence will count 10 points towards the 10%. Alternatives to missed quizzes may be handed in provided the absences are excused and the professor approves.
        The final exam, both essay and objective, counts 15%.
        Essay grades are based on style, content, organization, spelling and grammatical accuracy, handling of any appropriate research material, as well as promptness. Papers late without excuse will be marked down one step of a grade (e.g., A to A-, B+, etc.) for each class period after the due date.)
        A=90-100, B=80-89, C=70-79, D=60-69, E=0-59
        Students must complete all the work to receive a passing grade in the course.

X. Attendance Policy: Regular class attendance is vital to academic success.
        The official Humanities absence policy will be enforced. The course grade will be lowered one-third of a letter grade for each unexcused absence over three. To avoid the grade penalty, students must offer plausible excuses, preferably authorized written ones, whenever they miss classes. All students must be aware that missing more than 25% of scheduled class sessions (10 classes) for any reason whatsoever will result in automatic failure of the course. If this last requirement causes problems for students, especially those with legitimate excuses, they must take up the matter with the Director of Humanities, who, along with the Humanities Committee, is responsible for this policy.

XI. Academic Honesty Policy: Students are responsible for following the College of Humanistic Studies policy on academic integrity.
        "Cheating, plagiarism (submitting another person's material as one's own or doing work for another person which will receive academic credit) are all impermissible. This includes the use of unauthorized copying of examinations, assignments, reports or term papers, or the presentation of acknowledged material as if it were the students' own work. Disciplinary action may be taken beyond the academic discipline administered by the faculty member who teaches the course in which the cheating took place." Students are also responsible for the more detailed policy statement posted on classroom bulletin boards.

XII. Texts and References:
Humanities 211 Supplementary Text (Sup)
Davis, et al., Western Literature in a World Context. Vol. I (WLWC)
Dickinson, Selected Poems
Austen, Pride and Prejudice
Voltaire, Candide

XIII. Prerequisites: English 101, 102, IDC 101, 102 or the equivalents

PART 1: THE ANCIENT WORLD
M Aug 21       Introduction to the Course and its Themes: Self, Other, Community

W Aug 23       Introduction to the Ancient World (WLWC, 8-14); Introduction to Homer (WLWC, 19-24); Homer,
                       Odyssey, Bks.1, 3 (WLWC 156-83)

F Aug 25        Homer, Odyssey, Bks. 4-5 (WLWC, 183-218)

M Aug 28      Homer, Odyssey, Bks. 9-10 (WLWC, 218-46)

W Aug 30      Homer, Odyssey, Bks. 11-12 (WLWC, 246-74)

F Sep 1          Homer, Odyssey, Bks. 19-21 (WLWC, 274-301)

M Sep 4        Labor Day: No Class

W Sep 6        Homer, Odyssey, Bks. 22-24 (WLWC, 301-26)

F Sep 8          Sophocles, Antigone [WLWC, 409-45)

M Sep 11      Aristophanes, Lysistra (WLWC, 418-512)

W Sep 13      Plato, "The Parable of the Cave" (WLWC, 513-15, 534-39)

F Sep 15        Plato, "Apology"; "Phaedo" (excerpt) (WLWC, 516-34)

M Sep 18      Genesis (WLWC, 674-86); Ovid, Metamorphoses (WLWC 642-52)

W Sep 20       Aristotle, "The Nicomachean Ethics" [The Doctrine of the Mean] (WLWC 541-43)

F Sep 22         Confucius, Analects (WLWC, 870-74); ESSAY 1 DUE

M Sep 25       Jesus, "Sermon on the Mount" (WLWC, 15-18, 756-68)

W Sep 27        Ecclesiastes (Sup, 37-41)

F Sep 29         Epicurus (Sup, 18-26)

M Oct 2          Epictetus (Sup, 27-36)

W Oct4           Epictetus (Sup, 27-36); Review

F Oct 6           EXAM 1

PART II:        MIDDLE AGES AND RENAISSANCE

M Oct 9          Boccaccio, Decameron (WLWC, 1265-67, 1282-87)
        
W Oct 11        Chaucer, Prologue to Canterbury Tales (WLC, 1303-24)

F Oct 13          Fall Break: No Class

M Oct 16        Chaucer, "Prologue to the Wife of Bath's Tale"; "Wife of Bath's Tale" (WLWC, 1324-48)

W Oct 18        Chaucer, "Prologue to the Pardoners Tale"; "Pardoner's Tale" (WLWC, 1348-60)

F Oct 20         Machiavelli, The Prince (WLWC, 1627-43)

M Oct 23        Shakespeare, The Tempest (WLWC, 1822-59)

W Oct 25        Shakespeare, The Tempest (WLWC, 1859-98)

F Oct 27         Milton, Paradise Lost Book 9 (WLWC, 1975-78, 2002-26); ESSAY 2 DUE

M Oct 29       Milton, Paradise Lost Book 9 (WLWC, 1975-78, 2002-26); Shakespeare, "That Time of Year,"
                       "Th'Expense of Spirit," "My Mistress Are Nothing like the Sun" (WLWC 2050-51)

W Nov 1        Donne, "The Good Morrow," "The Sun Rising, "Batter My Heart" (WLWC 2053-58); Milton,
                       "When I Consider" (WLWC 2061); Review

F Nov 3          EXAM 2

PART III:      THE ENLIGHTENMENT AND ROMANTIC PERIODS

M Nov 6        Hobbes, Leviathan (Sup, 59-69)

W Nov 8        Locke, Second Treatise of Government (Sup, 70-83)

F Nov 10       Jefferson, Declaration of Independence (Sup, 84-87)

M Nov 13      Voltaire, Candide Chaps. 1-18 (1-40)

W Nov 15      Voltaire, Candide Chaps. 19-30 (40-77)

F Nov 17        Austen, Pride and Prejudice (1-72)

M Nov 20      Austen, Pride and Prejudice (73-132)

W Nov 22      Thanksgiving Break: No Class

F Nov 24        Thanksgiving Break: No Class

M Nov 27      Austen, Pride and Prejudice (133-88)

W Nov 29      Austen, Pride and Prejudice (188-262)

F Dec 1          Dickinson, Selected Poetry Selected Poems

M Dec 4        Dickinson, Selected Poetry Selected Poems

W Dec 6        Dickinson, Selected Poetry Selected Poems

F Dec 8          Dickinson, Selected Poetry Selected Poems; Review

Teaching