Rewriting America. What is America? Many think this is an easy question that we can
answer by core concepts that have become dominant in American culture and
society. America is the land of freedom,
individual opportunity, equality (between different sexes, races, ethnicities,
abilities, and sexual orientations), and liberty. Or is it?
Where have these concepts come from, and what do they really mean? Should they be taken as natural facts, or are
they rather social conventions that cloud some of the more pressing problems
facing us today? What mythologies do we
tell ourselves about America and what are the consequences? This class will challenge the cultural myths
and conventional assumptions that structure American culture and society, while
examining, interrogating, and researching important current events.
As this is an honors course,
students will be expected to deeply engage with a variety of college-level
writing, write and revise extensively, and research a complex topic. Formal assignments will include summary and
response, compare and contrast, a research proposal, and a research paper. Students will also do weekly short writing
assignments in order to engage with the reading, work up to longer papers, and
pre-write for the research paper.
Students will meet with me at least twice throughout the semester and
will participate in peer review. At the
end of the semester students will present their research to the class, and put
together a final portfolio including their revised papers and a critical
analysis of their own writing. We will
spend a lot of time discussing argumentative writing, how to incorporate
outside sources, and how to use the library. Through focusing on a complex,
challenging, and relevant topic, this class will prepare you for the critical
thinking and writing you will be expected to do as honors students.
Required Texts:
Gary
Colombo, Robert Cullen and Bonnie Lisle, Rereading
America, 9th edition
Gerald Graff and Cathy
Birkenstein, They Say, I Say: The Moves
that Matter in Academic Writing, 3rd edition
Richard Bullock and
Francine Weinberg, The Little Seagull
Handbook,2nd edition