Schedule


Schedule of Readings and Assignments for English 236

The first four classes of the course focus on selected readings designed to start students thinking about the relation between literary interpretation and other paradigms of research. These classes will run in normal discussion mode. From Class 5 on, the course will enter workshop mode where everything is geared toward facilitating–and keeping the rest of the class informed about--team projects. Some of the workshop classes will feature presentations of projects-in-progress; others will be "studio" sessions giving team members a chance to work side by side.

= Solo assignment  = Team assignment

Section 1: Theory

 

Class 1 Notes

Class 1 (January 7) — Introduction: The Idea of Literature+

Class 2 Notes

Class 2 (January 14) — Distant Reading 

Create a bio for the Class Members page of the course wiki; include your intellectual interests. (For details, see Assignments)

 

Class 3 Notes

Class 3 (January 21) — Text Analysis: Concordance, Model, Deformance?

Teams to be formed in class on this date. [Students may choose instead to work individually on projects supporting their dissertations.]

 

Class 4 Notes

Class 4 (January 28) — Datamining, Pattern Recognition, Visualization (with an addendum on Social Computing)

At least one team-meeting outside class by this date to begin brainstorming. (For details, see Assignments)

 

Class 5 Notes

Class 5 (February 4) — Project Idea Presentations

 Choose a literary work (or part of a work) that the team will work on.  Present to the class your team's rationale for choosing the work and at least two initial project ideas. (For details, see Assignments)

 

Class 6 Notes

Class 6 (February 11) — Workshop 

Create an annotated bibliography of 5 research resources related to your team's project (including not only items from the relevant secondary, theoretical, or technical literature but also at least one online or downloadable tool that might be added to the Toy Chest). (For details, see Assignments)

 

Class 7 Notes

Class 7 (February 18) — Workshop

 Write 4-page research report on one of the items in your annotated bibliography. (For details, see Assignments)

 

Class 8 Notes

Class 8 (February 25) — Workshop 

 

Class 9 Notes

Class 9 (March 4) — Workshop 

 

Class 10 Notes

Class 10 (March 11) — Final Presentations 

Formal presentations of team projects. (For details, see Assignments)

 

(March 15)

Final essay or other form of combined analytical/reflective/creative thinking about your team project or its primary literary work due. (For details, see Assignments)