English
1012: Going
Viral: What Makes Popular Literature? Tanya
Pollard |
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3408 Boylan TR 9:30-10:45 E-mail:
Tpollard@brooklyn.cuny.edu
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Office:
3108 Boylan Phone: 718-951-5000 x 6216 Hours:
T 12:15-1:30, 3:15-4:30, Thurs 9-9:30, and by appt |
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Why do some books, plays,
films, and songs explode onto the market, capturing the popular imagination far
beyond the competition? Why do
some still haunt us decades or centuries later? This class pursues the art of writing
the research paper through exploring popularity and viral reach. We will read texts that attained viral
popularity in different historical moments, before shifting into an
independent research practicum in which students will inquire into factors
behind popular texts of their own choosing, and present these factors to the
class while shaping their own final research papers on their topics. Assignments will include regular short
reading quizzes, four short close reading essays, and one final research
paper, which will include a written proposal with annotated bibliography; a
provisional draft for in-class editing; an interim draft for professorsÕ
comments; and a final draft. |
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Week |
Date |
Assignment |
Presenters |
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1 |
2-2 |
Introduction:
What is popular literature? |
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2-4 |
Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine (1592), Act 1 |
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2 |
2-9 |
No class (CUNY runs Friday
schedule) |
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2-11 |
Tamburlaine,
Acts 2-3
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1 |
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3 |
2-16 |
Tamburlaine, 4-5 |
2 |
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2-18 |
TamburlaineÕs afterlife:
Tom Rutter, from The Cambridge Introduction to Christopher Marlowe; Holger Scott Syme, ÒMarlowe
in his MomentÓ
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3 |
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4 |
2-23 |
Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice |
4 |
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2-25 |
Pride and Prejudice |
5 |
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5 |
3-1 |
Pride and Prejudice |
1 |
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3-3 |
Rachel Brownstein, from Why Jane Austen; Marilyn Francus,
ÒAusten Therapy: Pride and Prejudice and Popular CultureÓ |
2 |
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6 |
3-8 |
Arthur Conan Doyle, ÒThe
Speckled BandÓ |
3 |
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3-10 |
Doyle, ÒThe Red-Headed
LeagueÓ |
4 |
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7 |
3-15 |
Research workshop - Library room 120 |
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3-17 |
Doyle, “A Scandal in
Bohemia”
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5
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8 |
3-22 |
Sherlock Holmes’ afterlife: Fic, 39-70
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1
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3-24 |
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9 |
3-29 |
Harry Potter |
3 |
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3-31 |
Harry Potter |
4 |
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10 |
4-5 |
Harry PotterÕs
afterlife: Fic, 151-174 |
5 |
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4-7 |
Proposals due; writing workshop |
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11 |
4-12 |
Presentations on materials |
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4-14 |
Presentations on materials |
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12 |
4-19 |
Presentations on materials |
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4-21 |
Research paper due; peer-editing workshop |
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spring break |
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13 |
5-3 |
Revised research paper due; presentations on papers |
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5-5 |
Presentations on papers |
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14 |
5-10 |
presentations on papers |
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5-12 |
presentations on papers |
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15 |
5-17 |
Revised research paper due |
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Course Requirements
and Expectations: |
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Attendance Because
your contributions to class discussion are a central part of your work for
this course, attendance is crucial.
If you miss more than three classes, your overall grade will drop; at
six absences, you will fail the class. Arriving late, leaving early, or
taking breaks during class session will count as a partial absence. |
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Texts Some
of our readings are books, available at the college bookstore; others will be
PDFs available on Blackboard.
Please bring printed copies of readings with you to class so that we
can cite textual evidence without distraction from electronic devices. |
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Participation Learning
is a collaborative process, which works best when each of you engages fully
with the texts and with each other.
To this end, I will expect you to participate actively in class
discussions, and you will be required to present ideas for class discussion
on a rotating basis. Your
contributions will determine a significant portion of the semesterÕs grade.
In order to build a classroom atmosphere of courtesy and concentration,
please avoid behavior that is disrespectful and interferes with othersÕ
learning, including rudeness, talking while others are speaking, and ringing
from cell-phones, pagers, watches, etc. |
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Writing Over
the course of the semester you will write three short (2 page) papers
accompanying in-class presentations; one paper proposal (including a 2-page
project description and an annotated bibliography); and a longer (8-10 page)
research paper, which we will draft and revise in stages. All written work should have a central
claim that is well argued, clearly written, and directly supported by close readings
of textual passages; the research paper will also incorporate, and respond
to, at least three secondary sources.
All papers should be stapled, typed, double-spaced, in a 12-point
font, with one-inch margins on all sides. Written work is due at the start of
class, and lateness will result in lowering of the grade by one-third of a
grade per day. Any use of othersÕ
ideas must be fully acknowledged in footnotes; speak to me if you are unsure
about what this means. Plagiarism
is a serious offense, and will result in failing the class and being reported
to the DeanÕs Office. |
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Coursework
and grading:
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Selected Recommendations for Additional Readings:
Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith, Pride
and Prejudice and Zombies (Quirk Books, 2009)
Bronwen Thomas, ÒWhat is Fanfiction and why are People saying such Nice
Things about It?,Ó Storyworlds: A Journal of Narrative Studies 3.1
(2011), 1-24.
Rachel Brownstein, Why Jane
Austen? (Columbia University Press, 2011)
Helen Fielding, Bridget JonesÕ
Diary (Picador, 1996)
Tad Friend, ÒThe Mogul of the
Middle,Ó New Yorker, Jan 11, 2016 http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/01/11/the-mogul-of-the-middle
Andy Kesson and Emma Smith,
ÒIntroduction: Towards a Definition of Print Popularity,Ó in The Elizabethan Top Ten (Ashgate, 2014),
1-15.
David McNally, Monsters of the Market: Zombies, Vampires and Global
Capitalism (Brill, 2011)
Joseph Roach, It
ÒWhat Does It Mean to Go Viral Online?Ó
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