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This course aims to explore the artistic achievements, conceptual underpinnings and underlying values of modern and postmodern Western culture through a broad survey of approaches including the Age of Enlightenment, Romanticism, Psychoanalysis, Existentialism, Postmodernisms (Structuralism, Deconstruction, Marxism, Hermeneutics) and Feminisms. The course is aimed at a comparative approach, and thus begins with an examination of Friedrich Nietzsche's writings in relation to Romanticism, Modernism and Postmodernism, in conversation with Thomas Mann's appropriation of Nietzsche's politico-aesthetics in his literature. When these are relevant, films that spontaneously intersect with the material, such as Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice , are incorporated into the discussion. From then on, the seminar expands outwards into a broad survey of different approaches, whose examination take into consideration historical context, as well as intertextual conversations or debates. The course aims to ricochet in between the use of primary texts and secondary texts.
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This course will employ principally a discussion and seminar format, and will integrate the effective use of technology (e.g., Blackboard, PowerPoint, videos, when relevant). Please note the hand-out on Blackboard and how to register for this course online a.s.a.p. Note that to fulfill the requirements necessary to not only pass, but do well in the course, you will need to learn the essentials of Blackboard as soon as possible. The essentials, other than registering, entail learning how to use threaded conversations (Under “Communication—Discussion Board” and “Communication—Small Groups—Discussion Board”); checking for “External Link” PowerPoint posts and “Announcements,” and checking posted grades (Under “Student Tools--Check Your Grade”). There are other additional features you may use, such as the e-mail feature under “Communication.”
Ultimately, the course is largely discussion-oriented, and students play an active role in ensuring the success of the course. Students are required to come in, having read the assigned texts for the day, in order to present and defend their interpretations of the texts, as well as critique those of others and pose clarificatory questions. In-class oral participation and attendance will also comprise 10% of the total mark. Thus skills of reading, listening, and speaking, which all rest upon prior preparation, form an integral component of the course. Extended discussions via Blackboard threaded conversations during the periods in between sessions, will be used to help set up and continue generating class momentum. These threaded e-mail conversations will comprise 10% of the total mark, and will be monitored and evaluated by the professor; on weeks when major requirements, such as final paper proposals, or drafts, or peer commentaries are due, the Blackboard requirement is cancelled. The threaded conversation exercise integrates writing with skills of argumentation and discussion. Students are required to log in once a week, anytime between Thursday morning (after the Wednesday seminar) and Monday midnight prior to the next class, to carry on these electronically mediated conversations. THERE IS NO MAKE-UP OR LATE WORK THAT WILL BE ACCEPTED.
After five sessions handled principally by the professor, the duty of giving a brief summary and critique of some of the assigned texts for the day, and of generating discussion, will be rotated among the students in groups, in pairs or trios, depending on the size of the class. This is designed to enable students to be more actively involved in class discussions, and to give them a trial run for their final reports (that will resemble conference presentations in format). Students giving PowerPoint presentations are required to e-mail their presentations to me ( kpicart@english.fsu.edu ) 24 hours before they are due to report; kindly write in a cover note, asking Scott to ftp your presentation to the “picart” website, so he knows what the e-mail is about. On the day of the presentations, the presenters are required to come in with a diskette version (just in case something goes wrong with the web) and two hard copies of the PowerPoints in “hand-out” format. AGAIN, NO LATE WORK WILL BE ACCEPTED. One copy will be kept on file; the other will be marked and returned to you. To save paper and ink, I am detailing below the instructions for printing out PowerPoint presentations in “hand-out” format.
Throughout the semester, various required readings will be available through the reserve section of Strozier Library, both in hard copy form and in e-reserve form (see sheet regarding directions for accessing these articles through the web).
Here are the instructions for the best way to print out PowerPoint presentations:
I. From the web
(You must have the PowerPoint program installed in your computer to do it this way)
1. Use Netscape to get to http://campus.fsu.edu
2. After you log in and get to the course webpage, click to External Links.
3. Click on the PowerPoint presentation you would like to print out.
4. A window will open to ask if you would like to "save it to disk" or "run from the current location". For convenience's sake, click "run from current location." This will download and transfer the presentation to the PowerPoint program on your computer.
5. Go to "File" on the menu. Scroll down to "Print".
6. When the print menu pops up.
a. You can choose from "slides". This will print each slide on a full page.
b. To save paper, you can choose to print as "handouts". On a section on the right, you can choose how many slides you would like on each page.
c. Also, there are checklist options at the bottom, I recommend clicking "pure black and white" for clearer pictures on a black and white printer.
d. When you are finished, click the "OK" button.
II. From the PowerPoint Program.
1. Click on the "my computer" icon.
2. Click on the icon representing where your file is saved (for example, if the PowerPoint presentation you wish to open is on your disk, click A:)
3. Click on the file in order to open.
4. Go to "File" on the menu. Scroll down to "Print".
5. When the print menu pops up.
a. You can choose from "slides". This will print each slide on a full page.
b. To save paper, you can choose to print as "handouts". On a section on the right, you can choose how many slides you would like on each page.
c. Also, there are checklist options, I recommend clicking "pure black and white" for clearer pictures on a black and white printer.
d. When you are finished, click the "OK" button.
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At the end of the course, students will be required to submit and present papers that intersect with the themes and methods discussed in the course. Movement towards the completion of the paper will be achieved through a step-wise procedure that will expose students to the fundamental steps involved in producing such a creative and scholarly piece. These steps move from writing up a preliminary project description, to a review of related literature or context review, to a first draft, and culminating in revisions based on teaching apprentice reviews, peer comments, and remarks from the professor. The content of the papers must intersect with the themes and methods of the course in a clear way, though without simply regurgitating the contents of the course, and they must be between 10-15 pages, typewritten, double spaced, 1 inch margins all around, in length.
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The final exam session of the course will be devoted to brief 5 minute presentations (introducing the key questions and conclusions) of the students' projects to cap the course, followed by 5 minute periods of questioning from the open floor by the class. Such a format will give students exposure to a mock conference/roundtable format. Final presentations and final papers, inclusive of earlier drafts & reviews, and a list of changes done (with detailed justifications showing what changes you have done, and which not, with explanations) are due on the same dates. Once again, PowerPoint outlines, using at most 3-5 slides, are required, and these should be e-mailed to me and Scott, again asking for his help in ftp-ing the files, 24 hours ahead of time. On the day of the presentation, again bring diskette versions (just in case something goes wrong) and two hard copies of the PowerPoint in hand-out form. Again, NO late work will be accepted.
The criteria for marking these presentations are as follows:
| Summary of Essential Arguments |
30% |
| Critique/Evaluation |
30% |
| Ability to Stimulate/Further a Discussion |
30% |
| Use of PowerPoint/Creative Ways to Present the Material |
10% |
Though group work should allow various collaboration styles, remember that you will be marked individually. Time allotment per student will depend on the total number of students enrolled in the class, and will be announced by Week 3, after the students have signed up. Either way, the professor reserves the right to at least 30-40 minutes of class time for announcements and for final remarks/concluding discussions.
ATTENDANCE DURING THESE FINAL PRESENTATION DAYS IS A PREREQUISITE TO PASSING, AS IS THE SUBMISSION OF PAPERS ON TIME.
Students are required to watch three out of the six films we are using in this course before we discuss these in class. These films are: Visconti, Death in Venice (Week 4, 1/31) ; Bedazzled {1967 or 1999 versions} (Week 6, 2/14); Whale, Bride of Frankenstein OR Branagh, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (Week 9, 3/7)—optional to count as a bonus blackboard post.
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According to university policy, students who accumulate more than two weeks' worth of absences are
in danger of failing (that's four TR classes); those who are involved with university-sanctioned events (inclusive of, but not limited to athletics, band, ROTC, academic honor societies, and nursing) may not be counted absent on days scheduled as service work for the university. To be excused on such days, obtain a signed statement on FSU letterhead, authorizing such a schedule of projected absences, from your advisor,
by the second week of classes . This is the student's responsibility; without such a document, those absences will be counted. Documented illnesses (get an authorized note from your physician or Thagard) will also be counted as excused absences. In all these cases, however, the students are still held responsible for work due that day and for all material covered, inclusive of class announcements or if necessary, changes to the course calendar;
if a major requirement is due, such as a draft of the final paper, it is the student's responsibility to get the paper to the instructor either ahead of time, or on the day itself, through e-mail (
kpicart@english.fsu.edu ).
No late work is acceptable. However, in this class, you are allowed three free passes in terms of minor requirements such as chapter summaries or threaded conversation/e-mail posts; that is, I will cancel the three lowest chapter summaries and three lowest e-mail posts, which are submitted weekly.
Use those free passes wisely.
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The Florida State University General Bulletin contains an Honor Code that is repeated verbatim in the Student Handbook. You are responsible for knowing and conforming to it; in addition to the information listed in the Handbook, you are also cautioned that:
• If you take material that is not yours, from any source (inclusive of websites), and copy it into anything you submit, you are obligated to provide a footnote, endnote or parenthetical reference and works cited list at the end of the paper.
• Material that is lifted verbatim from other texts must be placed in quotation marks or, in the case of anything longer than three sentences, blocked quotes, indicating its source, as in item # 1 above.
• Material that is paraphrased must also be documented as in item # 1.
• Persons who violate the Honor Code and any of the items above in any requirement, whether minor or major, will receive an “F” for the course.
Students with documented disabilities needing academic accommodations should, in the first week of class : 1.) register with and provide documentation to the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC) and 2.) bring an authorized letter from SDRC to the professor, indicating the need for academic accommodations, if necessary. This and all other class materials are available in alternative format, upon request. I will do everything I can to ensure fairness to everyone in class.
| Attendance & Participation |
10% |
| Email Participation |
15% |
| Student-led Discussions/Reports |
15% |
| Preliminary Proposal for the Final Paper |
5% |
(Inclusive of Literature Review & Methodology ) |
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| First Draft |
20% |
| Peer Review |
5% |
| Final Presentation |
15% |
| Final Paper |
15% |
Caroline Picart, Resentment and “the Feminine” in Nietzsche's Politico-Aesthetics (Penn State University Press, 1999) ISBN: 0-271-01889-5
Caroline Picart, Thomas Mann and Friedrich Nietzsche: Eroticism, Death, Music and Laughter (Rodopi, 1999) ISBN: 90-420-0557-2
Friedrich Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy (New York: Penguin, 1993). ISBN: 0-14-043339-2
Thomas Mann, Death in Venice and Seven Other Stories , trans. H.T. Lowe-Porter (Vintage, 1989). ISBN: 0-679-72206-8
Thomas Mann, Dr. Faustus: Life of a German Composer . . . (New York: Vintage Books, 1999). ISBN: 0375701168
Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra , trans. Walter Kauffman. (New York: Viking Penguin, 1978) ISBN: 0140441182
Rene Descartes, Discourse on Method & the Meditations, Great Books in Philosophy (Prometheus Books, 1989). ISBN: 0879755261
Mary Shelley, Frankenstein , intro. Diane Johnson (New York: Bantam, 1981). ISBN: 0-553-21247-8
Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents (New York: WW Norton, 1989). ISBN: 0-393-30158-3
Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray (Modern Library, 1998). ISBN: 0375751513.
Franz Kafka, The Trial , intro. George Steiner (New York: Schocken Books, 1992). ISBN: 0-8052-1040-7
Dan Latimer, Contemporary Critical Theory (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers, 1989) ISBN: 0-15-513494-9 (Recommended Text—will be on reserve)
By
January 17 , please hand in the following information on the smallest sized index card with a recent photo of you (photocopy your I.D. cards, if worse comes to worst). For students who have taken courses from me in the past, you may skip the photo, but I will need your latest contact information and your profile below.
| Name: |
| Nickname: |
| Year: |
| Major: |
| Minor: |
| Background in English, Humanities, Philosophy, Criticism or Women's Studies (if any): |
| Home Phone: |
| E-Mail: |
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Ultimately, the professor reserves the right to revise these requirements and the term schedule if necessary. Full credit will be earned for the course only if all requirements are completed on schedule . There are no make-up e-mails and no make-up papers—though students may make advanced e-mail submissions, or hand in an early paper if they are going away on a trip, for example. Three threaded conversation posts will be cancelled from the final tally, but NO more than that. In case accidents or emergencies come up, it is the student's responsibility to inform the professor as soon as possible, preferably before the requirement is due (particularly if it is a major one—e.g., reports, drafts) so that alternative plans may be made, if warranted.
