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W i nt e r Q u a r t e r

Ch-Ch-Changes

The spirit and many aspects of the program syllabus remain the same for winter, but much of the program work is significantly different.

Schedule

While we've maintained the same basic schedule throughout the week, some of your time will be very different. In addition, the schedule of weekly assignments will be quite different.

CLASS SCHEDULE

Monday

10-12 (Lecture) A1105

1-3 (Programming Lecture) E1105

Tuesday

10-11:30 (Lecture &c.) A2105

12-1 (Writing Workshop) A2105

Wednesday

10-1 (Programming Workshop) GCC2

Thursday

10-12 (Writing Workshop) C1107

1-4 (Seminar) A3107 / 9

Programming Lab & Writing Workshop

We're doing Programming instead of Math this quarter. Each week you'll have reading and homework associated with the Programming Lab, and lab work to turn in after each lab. The computer can be an immensely powerful tool for exploring the combinatorial space of potential literature. We'll learn the basics of computer programming this quarter with an eye toward making the computer do our bidding, focusing especially on the manipulation and generation of text. We'll use the Python programming language, which is particularly known for its ease of use - it's a great language for beginning programmers

Writing Workshops are divided. Each Tuesday, you'll be presented with a literary/creative writing concept, sometimes a guest writer, and a short in-class exercise. You'll be assigned a longer experiment to complete for that same Thursday. On Thursday, you'll complete a short worksheet, but the major part of your time will be spent critiquing the experiments you've written. The following friday, you'll submit your experiment along with a revision strategy before 3:00 pm. Some time in writing workshops will also be devoted to projects and project critique. The goal of workshops is not to create strong individual pieces but to develop a critical vocabulary for our work and for each other's work and a way of discussing our writing productivel.

Project Work

By project we mean your creative project, proposed last quarter. We'll keep tabs on your project work by way of several check-ins, including required work with program assistants/tutors. You'll also be doing work with your project group to critique each other, but you'll be scheduling much of this outside of class. You should take advantage of our office hours as well to get assistance on your work from faculty. Project work will generally be due on fridays.

Thesis

Your Thesis replaces the Essay & Syntheses from last quarter. Instead of multiple essays, you'll write just one 12-15 page essay that makes use of the first five readings of the quarter and your own research. This, too, will go through a structured process of drafts, and so on. Most Thesis components will be due on fridays.

Readings & Seminar Work

Our readings this quarter are almost exclusively novels, mostly longish, difficultish ones. Each week, in preparation for Thursday's seminar, you'll complete an assigned task, not always a Seminar Paper—sometimes answering a question, making a chart, a creative response, etc. The goal is to get you to read actively and have fun with these crazy books. This seminar work will be due each Thursday in seminar. Late work will not be accepted.

Because there is no formal seminar on Monday, you will not turn in Seminar Notes. Our hope is that the exercise of making notes and writing responses to your readings has become second nature and that you will continue an equivalent practice in your notebook/portfolio. In fact, at the end of the quarter, we'll be looking for lots of evidence of your critical reading process.

Your critical engagement with the texts is particularly important in the development of your Thesis essay.