Broadly, the English department expects each student to be a critical, interpretive reader and a writer of standard English prose that is clear, concise, and precise. In particular,
1) As a writer, the graduate should be able to:
- compose sentences that are grammatically correct and stylistically effective;
- employ a variety of transitional devices to develop coherent paragraphs;
- employ the fundamental rules of composition and rhetoric and to combine those paragraphs into essays in each of the expository modes: narration, description, argument/persuasion, and—especially—analysis;
- write a 7-10 page literary analysis in which he
*develops an original thesis by adducing concrete evidence from a primary source;
*uses a variety of secondary sources (both print and on-line) to bolster his analysis;
*scrupulously follows MLA guideline in preparing his manuscript.
2) As a reader, the graduate should appreciate reading as an essential and potentially rewarding—even enjoyable!—part of his everyday life. He should be able to:
- apprehend the formal elements (structure, point of view, setting, parts of plot, etc.) that constitute the heart of any imaginative work—poem, novel, short story or play;
- identify, describe (using the appropriate terminology), and interpret the literary devices, techniques, strategies at work in a given text;
- recognize basic allusions (biblical, mythological, etc.) in a given text;
- readily grasp both the meaning and the formal elements that render that meaning in any piece of expository prose.
Course Offerings
AP Language and Composition
A course for those who wish to become superior writers, this seminar is designed to make each student a skilled reader of prose written in a variety of periods and disciplines, and a writer flexible enough to compose in a variety of modes and for a variety of purposes. The student will examine various expository and creative texts, with an eye towards recognizing each as a potential model for his own prose. A number of papers will be assigned each quarter, ranging in length from one paragraph to 10 pages. The teacher will guide the student through the process of drafting, response by peers/teacher, and substantive revision.
AP Literature and Composition
This course is a college-level seminar in literary analysis. Students read, discuss, and write about a variety of text from a variety of cultures and literary epochs. The course is taught with an eye towards the AP exam in May: throughout the year, students are graded on their facility with analysis, interpretation, and expression.
Prerequisite for above courses: departmental approval.
English IV
From the list of courses below, seniors choose a separate course for the fall and spring semester. Each semester course must be successfully completed with a passing grade [70 and above] in order to receive the required one credit in English for senior year.
English IV: Utopia or Dystopia: 20th Century Visions of the “Perfect Society” in Literature
Can you imagine living in a society run and controlled by Amazon women? Better yet, how about being a worker in a society where there is no emotion or feeling? What if we had a government that watched your every move with video cameras…wait…sound familiar? Then, there’s everyone’s concept of the perfect world – a beach paradise of single adults where “nothing could go wrong…” In the class, we will explore several different kinds of Utopia created by 20th century authors. Together, we will read, analyze and write about the texts as we search for the motives behind each vision that idealizes or criticizes their respective societies. Hopefully, we will also understand what these Utopia can show us about our own views of the “perfect world.”
From this, we will be creating our own Utopias (or Dystopias), forcing us to think about those social conditions in need of change in the world today. Ultimately, we will look at essential questions: Can a perfect society ever be achieved? What are the elements of a “perfect society?” What are the components of each author’s “Utopian” vision? Why have authors tried to create perfect societies? We will read a variety of books, including classic, modern and children’s literature. In addition, we will explore our own society through magazines, commercials and short stories and examine other Utopian visions in film, television and poetry. At least six essays (including one research assignment) will be assigned during the semester.
English IV: The Hero in Literature
The critic Northrup Frye has said “fictions may be classified…by their hero’s power of action.” This course will examine the concept of the hero as it has evolved through the five epochs of Western literature, beginning with the earliest examples of heroism (Moses, Jesus, Heracles, Prometheus), through the romantic hero (King Arthur, Lancelot, Fisher King), to high mimetic (Henry V), low mimetic (Robert Jordan), and ironic (Francis Phelan). Texts will include selections from Greek, roman, Norse myth, as well as selections from the Old and new Testaments, Beowulf, Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Once and Future King by H.H. White, Henry V by Williams Shakespeare, and Grendel by John Gardner. Quizzes and tests will be given on a regular basis, but the emphasis of the course is on writing. At least six essays (including one research project) will be assigned each semester and there will be a semester exam.
English IV: The Craft of Poetry
This one semester class will dedicate itself to the study and practice of poetry. In this seminar-style class we will read the works of a variety of poets and identify and discuss their defining thematic and aesthetic features. Based on our readings we will incorporate these features into our own poems; approximately half the semester will focus on student-written poems. We will discuss these poems in class and practice the art of revision. Tests and papers will be given after each unit; students will keep a portfolio which will comprise their final exam. Texts: Perrine’s Sound and Sense (junior year poetry text), The Poetry Home Repair Kit (Kooser).
English IV: Writing for Hearts, Minds, and Souls: The Religious Battleground in the Literature of Renaissance England.
This one-semester course examines the massive religious upheaval in England during the 16th and early 17th centuries. As students will remember, Henry VIII’s schism with the Roman Catholic Church led to over a century of religious debate and violence culminating in the English Civil War. Since writing for profit was a rare and lowly position at the time, authors such as Shakespeare, John Donne, Kit Marlowe, and Aemilia Lanyer relied on generous patrons to finance their work. As a result authors often walked a fine line on religious and political issues. This course examines the influence of religious identity, royal succession, and noble patronage upon the writers of the English Renaissance period. We will focus particularly on works produced during the tense transition from Elizabeth I’s reign to James I’s. An entertaining aspect of the course with be the role, both real and sensationalized, of the Jesuits in religious discourse, political influence, and even espionage and assassination. Since many of these authors wrote for a specific audience and their works were transmitted through letters, the class will model a writing coterie (“An organized association of persons for political, social, or other purposes; a club”). Students will write letters examining and critiquing the authors each cycle. They will also produce several critical essays and a research paper.