ENGLISH 823 / Spring 2006
Fragmented
Narratives in Contemporary U.S. Fiction
Professor:
Sandra Jamieson http://www.dept.drew.edu/engl/sjamieso/
Electronic
contact:
(email): sjamieso@drew.edu (AIM) ProfJamieson
Phone
contact:
(office): 973.408.3499 (home):
908.757.1051
Class
meetings:
Tuesdays, 7:00-9:30 p.m.
BC
18
Office:
S.W. Bowne 118, (Office hours for this class):
Tuesdays, 4:00-6:00 and by apt
Printable syllabus (.pdf): http://www.users.drew.edu/sjamieso/ENGLG-823/E823-S06.pdf
Wallace
Martin calls narrative "a
fundamental mode of explanation" and Fredric Jameson describes it as
"the central function . . . of the human mind." Narratives are
deceptively complex things in which the interplay between content and
form
creates either satisfying suspension of disbelief or frustration and
hyper-consciousness of the role of language and interpretation. So how
does the
narrative structure adopted by a writer change the way we read the
story being
told? Why do some writers seem to delight in challenging the
assumptions of
linearity that shape the traditional Western notion of story? And why
are so
many contemporary North American novels written in such a fragmented
form?
The
fragmented narrative is not a new
phenomenon within the history of the novel--indeed the earliest novels
adopted
what we might call a fragmented form. Nor are theories of narrative
new;
however, Narrative Theory as such is still quite new, developing in
Europe
after World War II. As they shifted from interpretation of what texts
"mean" to how they "work," as Jameson puts it, these
theorists studied narrative structure in the hope of developing a model
that
could apply to all novels, and later to all forms of narrative in a
multitude
of disciplines. Others have developed and problematized those models,
exploring
narrative structure from a socio-cultural perspective and considering
the role
of social class and narratives of identity in story-telling structure. Yet others have explore the fragmented
novel as a function of postmodernity.
According
to Ramón Saldívar, the creation of fragmented narratives
can be interpreted as "a strategy to enable readers to understand their
real conditions of existence in postindustrial twentieth-century
America."
What we will do in this course is review some of these narrative
theories
through contemporary North American novels, exploring the ways they
help us to
read and the ways reading helps us to understand how narrative works
Ñ in
short, we will develop theories of our own.
| Narrative Theory (in the order we will read it) | Fiction (in the order we will probably read it) |
|
Martin
Wallace, Recent Theories of Narrative Ramón
Saldívar, Chicano Narrative: The Dialectics of Difference Gerald
Vizenor, Narrative Chance: Postmodern Discourse on Native American
Indian Literatures Socially Symbolic Act. (the whole book is worth owning actually, but I will hand out the extract) *Available from the professor, not in the bookstore. |
Robinson,
Marilynne, Gilead Tomás Rivera And the Earth did not Part / Y no se la tragó la tierra Rolando Hinojosa, The Valley Thomas Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49 Paul
Auster, "City of Glass" (The New York Trilogy) Toni
Cade Bambara, The Salteaters. Don
DeLillo, White Noise. Toni
Morrison, Paradise. Maxine
Hong Kingston, The Woman Warrior .......................................................................................................................................................... |
|
|
|
John
Dos Pasos, The 42nd Parallel
(Book I of USA) Toni
Morrison, Jazz, Beloved Don
DeLillio Underworld, Cosmopolis Paul
Auster, The Book of Illusions Marilynne
Robinson, Housekeeping Thomas
Pynchon, GravityÕs Rainbow Leslie
Marmon Silko Almanac of the Dead Oscar Zeta Acosta Autobiography
of a Brown Buffalo |
This
course is designated a "research emphasis" course.
This means that as part of the course, members of the class will
explore
resources available through the library and practice using them in ways
that
will further their entry into the academic discipline of English and
the
professional life of an academic.
For this class the research component will dovetail into the
formal
paper as follows:
Conference
proposal:
Each
student will meet with Jody Caldwell, Reference Librarian, to
explore the resources one might consult to learn what is happening in
the field
of narrative theory and/or American literature right now. Each student
will
select a text from the class, or a theory from the class and a text of
his or
her own choosing (in consultation with me) and do the following:
1)
survey what
has been published on narrative issues raised by that text;
2)
identify a
question or concern that has not been sufficiently addressed or that is
"hot" and
has not been resolved with
regard to this text;
3)
survey what
has been said that is related to your question or concern;
4)
develop an
annotated bibliography of sources that could be used in further study
of this
question or concern;
5) write a conference proposal in which you summarize the work that has been done on narrative issues in your selected text, identify the question or concern that you believe still needs to be addressed, and then explain why your take on it will help us understand the text more fully.
6) research which conferences might be
appropriate venues for your proposal, and revise it
as
necessary to relate to the theme of the conference.
Jody
Caldwell will work with course members to identify topics and
sources, as will other Library faculty. We will also discuss
appropriate topics
in class. I will provide lots of
information about conference proposals and feedback on your topics
along the
way, and I urge everyone--especially those who have completed a year or
more of
coursework--to actually submit the conference proposal.
The worst that can happen is that it
gets accepted . . .
Conference
Proposal Due Dates:
By
March 28th
you should have identified a
conference to which you could send a paper (we will discuss this) and a
copy of
that CFP and the work/author you wish to discuss is due (you may revise
this
plan as you read later works).
By
May 2nd a draft of the conference
proposal
package (the working bibliography, a draft of your conference proposal,
and one
or more calls for papers/conference descriptions for which it might be
appropriate). You may submit it earlier if you decide to send your
conference
has an earlier deadline.
The
final conference proposal package (the complete annotated
bibliography, the conference proposal, and one or more calls for
papers/conference descriptions for which it might be appropriate) is
due no
later than May 16 along with the final paper
(see below).
The
Final Paper:
The
final paper for the course will be the actual paper described
in your conference proposal. I'd like you to submit a paper that would
take
15-20 minutes to read aloud (a conference paper!). That is about 8
pages double
spaced. Although we do not read aloud the page references, these should
be
included in the paper as in-text citations (follow MLA to the letter).
Most
people presenting papers at literature conferences do actually read the
paper,
although they might have a formal version of the paper to give to
people who
ask for one and an annotated/less formal version suitable for oral
presentation
(we will talk about delivery strategies). This is due no later than May
16th
with the proposal package (see above).
Most professional organizations produce annual annotated bibliographies of sources in their field. Several journals also produce annotated bibliographies (including The National Council of Teachers of English and the Modern Language Association) and many scholars keep their own annotated bibliographies within their fields, at least for areas of particular interest. The annotated bibliographies you prepare for this class will help you develop and refine this habit. They will also help you to practice finding the most significant criticism on any given author. For this class, each student will compile an annotated bibliography of at least ten IMPORTANT sources on one author to be shared with the class on the day we discuss work by that author. Final bibliographies will be shared with all class members and will be used as a resource for the final paper.
In preparation for class you will write VERY BRIEF position papers on something of interest about the narrative structure of the work to be discussed in class. These should be no more than two paragraphs long (that is, approximately 200-300 words, and no more), and should be a way for you to practice identifying interesting or troublesome aspects of the text. I will collect these, but their major value is as a vehicle for you to explore ideas and as a stimulant for class discussion.
In
order to practice your professional paper-giving skills, two
students per week will present round-table position papers on that
weekÕs
reading. The goal of these presentations is to BRIEFLY apply the
theories we
have read and discussed to the novel assigned for that week and raise
questions
of narrative and related issues (see above). Students reading position
papers
will deliver the presentation formally, and will then lead class
discussion on
the issue raised in that position paper.
Following the assigned presentations, we will discuss other
issues
raised in other position papers and the works in general.
Class
participation is your invitation to enter the academic
community. Academics talk to each
other at conferences, on listservs and discussion groups, and through
books and
articles. Thoughtful class participation helps to prepare you for full
entrance
into the academic community. Academics also share their ideas and texts
as they
are in development, and the dialogue that follows enriches our work
(and our
lives). For this reason, English 823 is a seminar; however, a seminar
is only
as strong as its weakest member.
If you are to make this class a partnership in learning you will
need to
be prepared for class, you will need to participate thoughtfully, and
you will
need to respect the other students in the class.
Grades
will be determined based on the conference proposal, the
final paper, the annotated bibliography, presentations, and class
participation, with the greatest weight placed on the final paper. I
will be
happy to discuss your progress at any point.
Introduction:
Martin Wallace, Recent Theories of Narrative
Martin
Wallace, Recent Theories of Narrative
Marilynne
Robinson, Gilead
Gerald
Vizenor, Narrative Chance: Postmodern Discourse on Native American
Indian
Literatures;
Sherman
Alexie, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven
Ramón Saldívar, Chicano Narrative: The Dialectics of Difference
Tomás
Rivera And
the Earth did not Part/Y no se lo tragó la tierra
Ramón
Saldívar, Chicano Narrative: The Dialectics of Difference
Rolando
Hinojosa, The Valley
Frederic
Jameson, an extract from The Political Unconscious: Narrative as a
Socially
Symbolic Act.
Week
7: March 21st
Thomas
Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49.
Paul
Auster, "City of Glass" from The New York Trilogy.
March
28th: conference call for papers due
(find a relevant conference and print the details). Identify the text
you plan to write about (this can be revised as you read more of the
fiction for the course).
Toni
Cade Bambara, The Salteaters.
Don
DeLillo, White Noise.
Toni
Morrison, Paradise.
Week
12: April 25th
Gerald
Vizenor, Narrative Chance: Postmodern Discourse on Native American
Indian
Literatures;
Leslie
Marmon Silko, Ceremony
Maxine
Hong Kingston, The Woman Warrior
May
2nd: conference proposal due (follows guidelines for selected
conference CFP).