COURSE SYLLABUS General Information Title: ENGL 355/4A James Joyce: 3 credits; Winter Semester, 2009 LECTURE : Location : FG-351 Day : Tuesday Thursday Time : 1445 - 1600 Instructor: Jason King; Department of English/Centre for Canadian Irish Studies Contacts: Office – McConnell Building 674-3; Office Hours, W 1-2pm; TH 1414:45pm, or by appointment; Email:
[email protected]. Course Description: The course will serve as an introduction to James Joyce’s Ulysses, and will pay particular attention to the social, cultural and political forces in Ireland and beyond which shaped his writing. Because of the limited time available, we will deal with the sections of the novel in different ways; most will be discussed in detail in class, others will be reported on by groups. We will examine Ulysses in its literary, cultural, historical and mythical contexts, and do a close textual analysis of representative sections so that a general appreciation of the novel can be achieved. Central to the course will be discussion of Joyce as a modernist whose fiction explores a range of narrative, stylistic and formal experiments. By the end of the course, you should have a solid sense of Joyce’s accomplishments in this work, and should feel competent to re-examine his works with confidence and authority. FORMAT: Lecture/class reports and discussion/group work TEXTS: – EVALUATION: Class presentations, attendance and participation Short essay Term paper 30% 30% 40% Joyce, James. Ulysses (Annotated Student Edition). New York: Penguin Books, 1992. With an introduction by Declan Kiberd. Learning Outcomes for Students To introduce students to the literary achievement of James Joyce as evidenced in his novel, Ulysses. To place the novel in the social, cultural and literary context in which it was created. To introduce students to some of the essential literary skills and critical methodologies which can usefully be applied to the novel To guide students in becoming adept in responding sensitively, imaginatively and creatively to the unique features of this extraordinary literary work, and to refine their ability to communicate that response effectively in both oral and written form. 2 To emphasize to students the richness and ambiguity at the heart of literary texts, and of the consequent need to develop an informed and authoritative voice when presenting critical arguments based on literary analysis. Course Content and Tentative Reading Schedule o The course will begin with a brief introduction to the Ireland of Joyce’s time, a short summary of the highlights of Joyce’s literary life, and a general introduction to Ulysses. o We will then proceed to respond to the various sections of the novel, in the manner and according to the timetable outlined in “Reading Assignments on Ulysses.” We will attempt to follow this timetable as closely as possible. Assignments and Grading o Students will be expected to work in groups outside of the classroom to prepare reports on selected selections of the novel. o In the third week or so of class, a short essay of five pages on will be assigned, and will be due two weeks later. o Term papers (approx. 8 to 10 typed pages) will be assigned after this seminar and will be due the last week of classes. Group presentations and participation: The portion of the mark assigned for this part of the evaluation will be decided by the degree to which you have become engaged with the text in preparation for class, as reflected in your participation in class, and especially your group presentation. Each group will also be responsible for devising at least five questions for discussion, which must be e-mailed (
[email protected]) to me on the Saturday (by 6pm at the latest) on the weekend before the class. Overall improvement from the first short essay to the term paper will also be factored into this portion of the mark. Penalty for unexplained absences: 2-3 missed classes: - one letter grade 4-5 missed classes: - two letter grades 6+ missed class: automatic course failure. Short Essay: This introductory essay will allow you to get to know the rationale for my grading system. It will also allow me to discover the general needs of the class in preparation for the special seminar on essay writing. The short essay will therefore serve as a starting point for me to help you with your essay-writing skills. If you wish, I will review this the essay in detail with you, and your grade might be raised if there is evidence of a considerable improvement between the short essay and the term paper. Term Paper: You will have a selection of topics, some of which will touch on issues we have discussed, while others will be on more general topics. Your primary goal is to demonstrate that, within the broad spectrum of issues explored in the course, you can generate ideas by approaching some aspect of the novel, and then can present those ideas in an argument that is clearly structured, well developed and authoritatively expressed. The quality of the ideas and the manner in which the argument is presented will be the primary factors in grading the term paper. 3 General Tips on Evaluation: In general, those students who are the most successful in a course are those who o Attend all classes o Are fully prepared for all classes o Participate as much as possible in class o Have a clear understanding of the specific nature of assignments o Hand in assignments on time o Learn from comments on previous assignments o Discuss any questions they may have for the teacher, either after class, during offices hours, or by email o Do not allow tasks – readings, assignments, consultation with me – to wait until the last minute Teaching Philosophy and Methods o My principal concern as a teacher is to foster in you an enthusiasm for the o o accomplishments of James Joyce in Ulysses. Regardless of what level you may be as a reader of, and writer on literature, at the beginning of term, my goal is to help you to develop so that by the end of semester you show a distinct progression in your abilities. My assumption is that all students wish to do as well as they possibly can in this class. I will be do my very best to facilitate your development and, in turn, I assume that you likewise will be committed to reach your maximum potential in the course. To this end, I assume that you will show up in time for every class, will not only have done the reading but will have reflected to a significant degree on the text so that you can make a worthwhile contribution to class discussion. After the initial introductory lectures, the course will proceed through a combination of lectures, group presentations, and other strategies involving individual and group work. While my job as a teacher will be, to a certain degree, to introduce you to Joyce’s novel and demonstrate the different ways it might be approached, ultimately the learning process is centred in you. For that reason, I expect that most of your learning will take place outside the classroom, working on your own and in your group. Participation in groups has many benefits, including developing your ability to articulate and test your ideas, to discover the perspective of others, and to learn to perform effectively as a member of a diverse unit. o o Responsibilities of Students: Given the teaching methods of this course and the mark breakdown, attendance at all classes is considered essential. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class. It is your responsibility to sign the attendance sheet. If you arrive late for class and cannot sign the sheet, see me after class to do so. However, out of courtesy to other students and the teacher, you are strongly encouraged to arrive in class on time. o In short, I expect you to attend every class and to be on time. o I expect your group to send me your questions for discussion well before the class in which you will be presenting your chapter. o If for some extraordinary reason you must miss class, do not compound your loss by failing to find out what you need to do to prepare for the next class. o You should know that Concordia takes the issue of plagiarism very seriously. I will refer suspected cases of plagiarism to the Vice-Dean, Student Affairs, who has a range of 4 penalties for those who plagiarise, including expulsion from the university. You can avoid plagiarism by consulting Concordia’s Library citation and style guides: http: /library.concordia.ca/citations.html. 5 Eng 355 James Joyce Jason King Bibliography on James Joyce: These are some general books on Joyce and on Ulysses; many others are available. Attridge, Derek, ed. Cambridge Companion to James Joyce 2nd ed. Attridge and Daniel Ferrer, eds. Post-structuralist Joyce: essays from the French Attridge and Margery Harper, eds. Semi-colonial Joyce Beja, Morris and David Norris, eds. Joyce in the hibernian metropolis: essays Blamires, Harry. The Bloomsday Book: a guide through Joyce's Ulysses. Budgen, Frank. James Joyce and the making of Ulysses Bowen, Zack. Ulysses as a comic novel. Bowen Zack. Musical allusions in the works of James Joyce Chenge, Vincent. Joyce, race and empire Delaney, Frank. James Joyce’s odyssey: a guide to the Dublin of Ulysses Ellmann, Richard. James Joyce (The definitive biography) Ellmann, Richard. Ulysses on the Liffey Ellmann, Richard. The consciousness of Joyce Fairhall, James James Joyce and the question of history Gifford, Don and Robert J. Seidman, Notes for Joyce: an annotation of James Joyce’s Ulysses. Gibson, Andrew. Joyce’s Revenge: History, Politics, and Aesthetics in Ulysses Gilbert, Stuart. James Joyce's Ulysses: a study. Hart, Clive, ed. James Joyce's Ulysses: critical essays. Hayman, David. The mechanics of meaning Henke, Suzette James Joyce and the politics of desire Kain, Richard M. Fabulous voyager: a study of James Joyce's Ulysses. Kenner, Hugh. Joyce’s voices Kenner, Hugh. Ulysses Lawrence, Karen The odyssey of style in Ulysses Mahaffey, Vicki. Reauthorizing Joyce Nolan, Emer. James Joyce and Nationalism Norris, Margot. A companion to James Joyce’s Ulysses Pearce, Richard, ed. Molly Blooms: a polylogue on “Penelope”and cultural studies Reynolds, Mary T. James Joyce: a collection of critical essays Seidel, Michael. Epic geography: James Joyce’s Ulysses Sultan, Stanley. The argument of Ulysses. Thornton, Weldon. Allusions in Ulysses Concordia University 6 JAMES JOYCE Group Information: You will be asked to participate in a group and each group will be given the responsibility of contextualizing one chapter of Ulysses each week for the class. In class, members of the group will have the responsibility for introducing the chapter in order to generate discussion and facilitate textual analysis of Ulysses. Each group will have between fifteen and twenty minutes to deliver its presentation; it is strongly recommended that groups work together and nominate one or two (no more than three) speakers to address the class in a focused and interactive manner rather than each member of the group prepare a separate and disconnected speech. Each group will also be responsible for devising at least five questions for discussion, which must be e-mailed (
[email protected]) to me at least three days (by 6pm at the latest) before the class. These questions will be incorporated into a handout that will be e-mailed to the class. All students are expected to print out the handouts, read them carefully, and bring them to class. Each group will also be responsible for submitting a report (approximately one and a half to two pages in length) on the night of the presentation that will detail the group’s preparations, division of labour, and summarize how individual group members perceived and responded to the assigned readings. The quality of the group presentation, questions for discussion, and the report will all be equally weighted in determining the grade. Group presentation grades will be given to students when they receive back their short essay or term paper. Students who would like more detailed feedback about their group presentations are welcome to consult with me about them during office hours. Note: It is important that individuals work successfully together. If there are obstacles to the successful functioning of your group (conflicts in time, etc.), inform me so that you can be assigned to an alternate group. You may wish to note the names and coordinates of your group members here: 7 Lecture and Discussion Schedule: Introduction: Ireland; Joyce; Ulysses (Jan 6, Jan 8) Film Screening: The Telemachiad section of Joseph Strick’s film version of Ulysses (1967).Reading: Declan Kiberd, “Introduction”. Part I: THE TELMACHIAD 1. 2. 3. Telemachus (Jan. 13); Recommended Reading: Vincent Cheng, “Imagining Selves”, Joyce, Race and Empire, 151-184. Nestor (Jan. 15) Recommended Reading:; E.L. Epstein, “Nestor” in Hart & Hayman, 17-24. Proteus (Jan. 20) Recommended Reading: J. Mitchell Morse, “Proteus,” in Hart & Hayman, 29-49. Part II: THE WANDERING OF ULYSSES 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Calypso (Jan. 22). Recommended Reading: Cormac Ó Gráda, “Lost in Little Jerusalem: Leopold Bloom and Irish Jewry”, Journal of Modern Literature, 27, 4 (Summer 2004): 17-26; Andrew Gibson, “Only a Foreigner Would Do: Leopold Bloom, Ireland, and Jews”, Joyce’s Revenge, 42-59. Lotus-Eaters (Jan. 26); Hades (Jan. 28) Reading: R.M. Adams, “Hades,” in Hart & Hayman, 91-114 Aeolus (Feb. 2) Reading: Declan Kiberd, “Ulysses, Newspapers, and Modernism”, Irish Classics, 463-481; Matthew Spangler, “The Parable of the Plums”, Theatre Journal vol. 57 n. 1 (2005): 100-103. Lestrygonians (Feb. 4) Scylla and Charybdis (Feb. 9, Feb. 11) Reading: Andrew Gibson, “Gentle Will is Being Roughly Handled: Scylla and Charybdis, Joyce’s Revenge, 60-80; Robert Kellogg, “Scylla and Charybdis”, Hart & Hayman, 147-179, Goldberg, The Classical Temper. Wandering Rocks (Feb. 16); Reading: Hugh Kenner, “The Arranger”, Ulysses, 61-71. Sirens (Feb. 18); Reading: Jackson Cope, “Sirens”, in Hart & Hayman, 217-242. Short Essay Dues Cyclops (March. 3, March 5); Reading: Emer Nolan, “Talking About Injustice': Parody, satire and invective in Ulysses”, James Joyce and Nationalism, 85-118; Seamus Deane, “Joyce and Nationalism”, Celtic Revivals, 92-107; Vincent Cheng, “Imagining Nations”, Joyce, Race and Empire, 185-218. Nausicaa (March. 10) Reading: Andrew Gibson, “Waking Up in Ireland: Nausicaa”, Joyce’s Revenge, 127-149; Jennifer Wicke, “Joyce and Consumer Culture”, Cambridge Companion to James Joyce, 234-253; Jennifer Levine, “Nausicaa,” 128-34; Patrick McGee, When is a Man not a Man,” 122-27; and Richard Pearse, “Nausicaa” 106-14 all in Beja and Norris Oxen of the Sun (March. 12) Reading: Andrew Gibson, “An Irish Bull in an English China Shop: Oxen of the Sun”, Joyce’s Revenge, 150-182; Hugh Kenner, “Metempsychoses”, Ulysses, 107-117; Karen Lawrence, Odyssey of Style; Mark Osteen, “Cribs in the Countinghouse,” in Beja and Norris, 237-49. Circe (March. 17, March. 19). Film screening: The Circe section of Joseph Strick’s film version of Ulysses (1967). Reading: Suzette Henke, “Uncoupling Ulysses: Joyce’s New Womanly Man”, James Joyce and the Politics of Desire, 106-125. Part III: THE HOMECOMING 16. Eumaeus (March 24) Reading: Gerard Bruns, “Eumaeus,” in Hart & Hayman, 368-83 17. Ithaca (March. 26) 18. Penelope; (March. 31, April. 2); Suzette Henke, “Molly Bloom: The Woman’s Story”, 8 James Joyce and the Politics of Desire, 126-165. Concluding class (Final Essay due): (April 9)