In this course we will be looking at American literature from World War I up to the present day. We will be reading two novels and a play, as well as a sampling of short stories and some poems. One focus in reading these stories will be to see how they reflect American history and society.

For each reading we will be selecting a student discussion leader. One discussion leader will be selected at random a week in advance. This discussion leader should not only prepare to lead a 20-minute discussion on the given work, but should also select a short extract (7-15 lines) from the work for the group to focus on. The extract should be representative of the work. Bring seven (7) copies of the passage to class so that the members of the group can share a copy amongst themselves. If there is a second reading for the week, the second discussion leader will be chosen at random at the beginning of that particular section and no extract. The marks for leading a discussion will be combined with the class participation grade, so please make sure that you come to class prepared and ready to join in.

In addition to keeping up with the readings, you should complete the worksheets on the texts for that week before coming to class. The worksheets contain questions about the readings and are intended to prepare you for the seminar discussion and the final test at the end of the semester. The questions are not difficult, though they are designed to get you thinking about the story. If there is no quiz for that week, the worksheets will be collected and graded. Important: Be sure to turn in the worksheet on time each week because no late submissions will be accepted! Worksheets are also available by going to the class website and clicking on the date for that particular week.

All the readings—including both novels—are available online and can be accessed by links on the class page. Since this is an English program and the overall goal is to improve your language skills, it is expected that students complete all the readings and read them in English.

A short 3-5 page paper on one or two works from the reading list is due by November 29. Remember: no re-telling of the story and no plagiarism (copying or not identifying your sources). In the latter case, the paper will receive an automatic 1 (one, egy, eins, un, uno)--no re-writes.

Grading

For the seminar you get a gyakoralati jegy, which is based on 4 factors:
• Class participation (30%)
• A 3 - 5 page paper (20%)
• Quizzes/worksheets (25%)
• In-class test (25%)