GREAT
BOOKS IV
SYLLABUS
Spring
2006
Course Goals
The
primary objectives of this seminar course include the following:
1)
The
demonstration of devoted and close reading of the texts,
2)
The
production of writing that is creative and primarily analytical in nature, and
3)
Class
participation that demonstrates an honest dedication to an accurate
understanding of the text as well as a propensity to discuss the works as based
on interpretive questions.
4)
Since
this is the final great books course in the colloquium, each student is expected
to be full participatory and desirous of perfecting their abilities as
excellent writers, thinkers, speakers, and knowledge experts on the subject at
hand. Raise the bar for yourself.
Ultimately, I desire that each one of you
attains a level of creativity and autonomy that will benefit you not only in
other classes, but in life itself.
Thus, our goal as co-learners in this class is to actively seek to
reinforce the idea that: "The goal of the Great Books program is to
instill in the student the habits of mind that characterize a self-reliant
thinker, reader, and learner."[1]
Instructor
Phone:
310.506.4831
Office:
KSC 150
E-mail:
thompson@pepperdine.edu
Office Hours
By
appointment only. Please contact me
directly to set up an appointment.
Reading List
Books,
1985.
Vintage Books. 1989.
Dostoevsky,
Fyodor. The Brothers Karamazov.
Trans.
Vintage
Books, 1975.
Szymborska,
Wislawa. View With a Grain of
Sand. Trans.
Discussion (10%)
Each student is expected to be participatory on
a daily basis. Make it a consistent
habit to be prepared with several interpretive questions daily. Your participation will be graded each
day based on the quality, quantity, insight, textual application and knowledge
that you offer.
Attendance
You have two free absences, following which your
final course grade will be lowered 1.5% per absence. Use the two free ones wisely.
Class
Cancellation Days
I am out of town on February 9 and February 23.
For those two days, class will not meet but I expect you to keep up with the
reading.
Weekly Writing
Assignments (15%)
Each writing assignment is to be a product of
the material read that week. The
papers are due at the beginning of each Monday class. Each paper is to be two full pages in
length. Each paper is to be turned at
the beginning of class on hard copy adhering to basic MLA format. Late papers receive a score of
zero. NO ELECTRONIC SUBMITTALS. Be prepared to share your writing with
the class – that is, be prepared both to receive and to give constructive
criticism.
The nature of each weekly writing assignment
will be determined by the instructor.
They each will be one of the following: interpretive/analytic, genre mode, great
ideas “Syntopicon” based, instructor wildcard, or student
freestyle. Aim for professional
quality writing worthy of publication, wherein there is a a distinct thesis, a
clear argument, and creative thought.
Use text judiciously and with discrimination. Avoid using first person. Be sure to form a definite position that
can be explicated via the text. You
may only use texts from the Great Books Colloquium reading list. Each paper should be a product of
analytical thought and careful analysis presented in a creative form.
Each paper will be graded as follows: Title and Opening – 1 point,
Thesis – 3 points, Argument – 3 points, Text Selection and Analysis
– 2 points, Editing – 1 point. Total – 10 points.
Reading/Discussion
Schedule (days)
Kierkegaard
– 3, Nietzsche – 3, Dostoevsky – 11, Darwin – 2,
Kawabata – 3, Szymborska – 3
Extended Writing (75%)
You
must complete three extended writing assignments, in the form of papers that
represent a fully developed version of one or more of your weekly writing
assignments.
The
first paper, worth 15%, is to be 4 -5 pages in length, and is to be based
solely on
The
second paper, worth 35%, is to be 8-9 pages in length, and is to be based on Nietzsche and Dostoevsky. This paper is due by March 30 at midnight.
The
last paper, worth 25%, is to be 6-7 pages in length, and is to be touch on at
least three authors from this course, at least one of whom must be Kawabata, Szymborska, or Darwin. It is
due April 27 at midnight.
Each
extended writing submittal is graded on the following basis:
Thesis
Thesis Statement 10
Well Structured Plan 10
Analysis
Thesis Execution 10
Logical Completeness 5
Logical Flow 5
Text
Appropriately Chosen 10
Sufficiently Explained 10
Risk/Interest
Interesting Reading 10
Creativity 5
Strong Conclusion 5
Language
Mature Vocabulary 5
Varied/Interesting
Sentence Structure 5
Mechanics
Punctuation 5
Spelling 5
Total 100
Anonymity
All
writing is to be submitted with no name. Instead, affix your university ID to
the paper on the front page. DO NOT USE YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER. This will ensure that I evaluate your
writing objectively and honestly.
Rough Drafts
Rough
drafts are always welcome and may be submitted up to 36 hours prior any paper
deadline.