British Literature II
Target students by Grades 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Seating priority none
Number of times course can be taken 1
Credit per semester 0.5
Meeting time Daily
Description
This course introduces students to various British novelists, poets, and playwrights of nineteenth and twentieth century English literature. While the course concerns mostly novels, lyric poetry, drama, the essay, short stories, and literary criticism might also be included. In addition, students develop an understanding of British culture and the evolving character of the British nation and its people.
Objectives
- To understand how works of literature illustrate the character of the British people and act as historical spokesman.
- To develop unity and coherence in formal essays, using precise thesis statements, textual support, and logical arguments.
- To engage in meaningful dialogue with class members, citing textual support and sharing responses in search of greater understanding of literature.
- To appreciate literary criticism as a doorway into a greater conversation of literature.
- To recognize the ever-changing nature of the English language and to gain dexterity using it in various written and spoken contexts.
Student performance
- Regular, detailed annotation of texts in response to close reading
- Oral presentation of research project
- Performance of an art project that connects text with another medium of art
- Writing engaging, clear, and logical arguments while citing textual support
Assessment
- Reading and vocabulary quizzes
- Oral presentations displaying clear analyses of texts and drawing connections between the texts and other mediums of art
- Two formal literary essays written out of class
- Class participation, including daily sharing of annotations
Text/materials needed
- Conrad, Heart of Darkness
- Hardy, The Return of the Native
- Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
- Wilde, The Importance of Being Ernest
- Selected short stories and poetry (to be provided)
Contemporary American Literature
Target Students 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Number of times the course may be taken 1
Seating Priority none
Credit per semester 0.5
Meeting Time daily, plus weekly tutorials
Description
This course is designed to familiarize students with the major themes of post-World War II American authors. The literature focuses on the experiences of representative figures in their quest for self-actualization and their rightful place in contemporary society.
Objectives
- To encourage students to examine their own values.
- To better understand the complexities inherent in the search for personal meaning.
- To appreciate the literary style and ideas of the authors under review.
- To develop skill in written and spoken articulation.
Student Performance
- Close reading of the texts
- Writing about literature
- Participation in class activities and discussion
Asessment
- Quizzes and tests
- Papers
- Engagement in class discussion
Texts
- Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
- Ellison, Invisible Man
- Heller, Catch-22
- Kesey, One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest
- Miller, Death of a Salesman
Classical Mythology
Target students grades 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Number of times course can be taken 1
Seating priority none
Credit per semester .50
Meeting time daily, plus weekly tutorial
Description
Myths provide richly developed patterns of stories and ideas that connect us to what human beings have always thought, wondered, and dreamed about. Understanding myths enables us to respond to a vast storehouse of symbols, images, and stories that human beings have used since the first story was acted out. While the course is primarily concerned with Greco-Roman mythology in literature, students also read myths from other cultures and traditions. In addition to the main literary focus, the class explores connections between mythology and the various arts offerings at Interlochen.
Objectives
- To understand how myths work in literary traditions, and how they continue to make meaning in contemporary society.
- To explore the archetypal patterns in mythology as paths to understanding something about our dreams, our actions, and our destiny.
- To explore why artists continue to return to myths as sources for their art.
- To learn how students can connect their personal interests and art majors to the study of mythology.
Student Performances
- Regular reading
- In-class journal writing
- Daily class discussions
- The creation of visual, sound and movement pieces based on the texts
Assessment
- Open-book essay exams and two formal analysis papers
- Journal conferences
- Participation in a variety of projects that explore the connections between arts and academics
Texts/Materials
- Atwood, The Penelopiad
- Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces
- Ovid, Metamorphoses
- Sophocles, Oedipus Rex
- O'Conner, Woe is I
- Additional readings provided by instructor
- three-ring binder
Modern European Literature
Target students by grades 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Number of times course can be taken 1
Seating priority none
Credit per semester .50
Meeting time daily, plus weekly tutorial
Description
This course has been designed to introduce students to European Literature in the Modern Period, which necessarily involves on ongoing discussion of both the Modern Era and Modernism in all the arts. The required texts represent several giants of this subject area, Modernist writers whose work and influence can hardly be overstated. Emphasis is placed on the historical context in order to understand what forces were driving this transformative era in popular culture and the arts.
Objectives
- To understand the historical context that gave rise to Modernism.
- To develop critical acuity through literary analysis and interpretation by close readings of a text.
- To recognize distinctly Modernist elements such as style, symbol, metaphor, and subject matter.
- To hone and polish writing skills through regular writing assignments and essay examinations.
Student Performance
- Reading with text annotation for identification/analysis/interpretation of key passages
- Production of formal literary essays as well as less-formal reader response reflections and questions
- Individual /group presentations and regular dictionary consultation.
Assessment
Pre-assessment, formative assessment and post-assessment in the areas of course content, vocabulary, participation, and presentations, including both objective and performance-based models.
Texts/Materials
- Joyce, Dubliners
- Mann, Death in Venice and Other Stories
- Sartre, No Exit and Three Other Plays
- Woolf, To the Lighthouse
The Short Story
Target students by Grades 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Number of times course can be taken 1
Credit per semester 0.5
Meeting time Daily
Description
This course examines short fiction as a vehicle for the expression of the variety and commonality of the human experience and ideas. Reading and discussion of classic and contemporary stories provide the opportunity to review the elements of fiction and become acquainted with a diverse body of authors.
Objectives
To experience the pleasure of reading some of the world's finest short stories.
To develop literary analytical skills and to become conversant with literary terminology.
To increase vocabulary and sensitivity to language.
To develop skill in critical reading, writing, and oral expression.
Student Performance
Reading, writing, speaking
Attendance at lectures, films, demonstrations
Maintenance of detailed reflection notebook
Assessment
Objective and essay tests and quizzes
Formal and informal writing assignments
Active participation in small and large group discussion and activities
Text/materials needed
- Anderson, Winesburg, Ohio
- Canin, Emperor of the Air
- Goia and Gwynn, The Art of the Short Story
20th Century American Literature: Tales of the Jazz Age, 1915-1941
Target students by grades 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Number of times course can be taken 1
Seating priority none
Credit per semester .50
Meeting time daily, plus weekly tutorial
Description
The "Roaring Twenties," one of the most vibrant decades in American literature, gave rise to both the Harlem Renaissance and what F. Scott Fitzgerald called "the Jazz Age." This course focuses on major writers whose work defined the core aspects of American Modernism symbolic imagery; uses of taboo subjects; the fragmentation of human experience; the alienation of the individual; and new, psychological insights. In addition, students listen to Jazz music of the era and study its impact on literature.
Objectives
- To encourage generative knowledge and understanding of authors whose works defined modern American literature.
- To develop connections between the student's own art field and this course as entry points to understanding literature.
- To practice and understand critical reading, reasoning, and writing skills.
- To generate a variety of performances that demonstrate students' ability to interpret, analyze, and evaluate literature.
Student Performances
- Regular reading
- In-class journal writing
- Daily class discussions
- The creation of visual, sound and movement pieces based on the texts
Assessment
- Open-book essay exams and two formal analysis papers
- Participation in a variety of projects that explore the connections between arts and academics.
Book List and Materials
- The Norton Anthology of American Literature (7th ed.), Vol. D
- Faulkner, Light in August
- Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
- O'Conner, Woe is I
- three-ring binder
Psychological Literature
Target students by Grades 11, 12, PG
Pre-requisite, if needed English II
Number of times course can be taken 1
Credit per semester 0.5
Meeting time daily, plus weekly tutorial
Description
All great works of imaginative literature, while not imparting truth in the ordinary sense, nevertheless contribute to a realistic understanding of the nature of human motivation. The course emphasizes significant works by authors for whom a primary focus is the exhaustive psychological development of character. Although students examine some material on Freudian and Jungian psychology and other personality theory, the predominant concern of the course remains literary analysis.
Objectives
- To advance simultaneously toward a deeper appreciation for literature and a more profound awareness of human nature.
- To further skills in analyzing literature and particularly in discerning the complexities of characterization.
- To develop facility and specificity in class discussion and in the writing of formal literary essays.
- To increase vocabulary and sensitivity to language.
Student performance
- Close reading and annotation of classic texts.
- Note-taking and participation during class discussions.
- Planning and revision of literary essays.
- Occasional presentations and scene performances.
Assessment
- Class participation, attendance, promptness, preparation, attitude, discussion, note-taking, and use of tutorials
- Comprehension of vocabulary, course concepts, and literary characters, as demonstrated through vocabulary quizzes, examinations, and writing assignments
- Literary essays and attention to the writing process
Text/materials needed
- Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment
- Kafka, The Metamorphosis
- Lahiri, Interpreter of Maladies
- Shakespeare, Macbeth
- Stevenson, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
- three-ring binder
