This course introduces students to the rigors and discipline of the writing process, stage by stage, from choosing a topic, to collecting information, brainstorming, planning and outlining, drafting, revising and editing, to proofreading and finalizing. Each stage is punctuated with assignments and exercises that familiarize students with the rhetorical modes, from description, to comparison/ contrast, narration, classification, extended definition, cause-effect, and argument. In in-class and at home work, students will practice producing grammatically correct and logically sound claims, arranged in coherent paragraphs; understand and develop the thesis statement; learn to distinguish between primary and secondary sources; learn to annotate sources, and incorporate quotes in their writing with proper lead-in sentences and follow-up; begin familiarizing with citation styles; learn to use information technology, from research to writing and formatting.

The course is a study of American literature from the colonial, though the romantic, realist/naturalist, modernist and contemporary literary periods, with particular focus on the major writers Particular emphasis is placed on the diversity and representativeness of American literature.

In this course students will learn a broad array of concepts and methods in literary studies and writing, taken directly from the self-reflective work of creative writers and the critical work of scholars. The acquired knowledge and expertise will enable students to navigate upper division courses in writing and literature, and to approach the capstone project, with competence, poise, and style.

A seminar in which students select a publication, production or research project to complete over the course of two semesters. Students are required to choose a project in creative writing (fiction, poetry, drama, or creative non-fiction), or a scholarly thesis, work with an advisor to complete their projects over the course of their final two semesters as seniors.

This course prepares students to plan, research, and write academic-level research papers au- tonomously. Students are guided through all writing stages, from preparing an articulated re- search proposal, to collecting sources and arranging them in an annotated bibliography, to out- lining, drafting, and, finally, completing the paper in accordance with current MLA guidelines. Each stage is also punctuated with writing drills in the form of in-class essays, citing and quot- ing drills in the form of worksheets, annotation drills on select academic sources related to the class theme, and a thorough overview of the use of library resources, both material and elec- tronic. Students will also practice discussing and explaining their project in workshop sessions.

This introductory level literature class is designed to help students acquire the skills for reading, appreciating, writing, and critically analyzing fiction. This course intends to introduce the students to basic concepts about literary technique, elements of fiction, and innovation while honing their critical thinking skills.

Modernism was an international movement that drew from influences throughout Europe in its desire to break with the past and create a new way of expressing experience--to “Make it New”— to use Ezra Pound’s famous phrase. This course will examine the characteristics that define the “Modern” in literature, but we will also examine how the modernist aesthetic influenced other cultural and artistic expression in the early decades of the twentieth century

This course is a seminar on the principles of effective expository writing with a focus on the critical perspectives and theories that enliven contemporary literary, art, and cultural studies. Through an historical survey of critical theory, including an introduction to relevant terminology, the course will cover various types of arguments, appropriate to different concerns and cultural contexts. The theory addressed in this course spans theories of race, class, gender and national identity, postmodern and poststructuralist perspectives, Marxist critique, and psychoanalytic approaches. Writing assignments will provide students with the opportunity to apply these theories to literary works, film, painting, and built space.

Nonfiction is a genre that has grown more diverse and creative than ever, embracing all styles from serious to whimsical and encompassing every topic imaginable. This course will focus on the creative process and the generation of several different forms of writing within the nonfiction genre, including the personal essay, the memoir, biography, and the journalistic or magazine profile

A seminar in which students select a publication, production or research project to complete over the course of two semesters. Students are required to choose a project in creative writing (fiction, poetry, drama, or creative non-fiction), or a scholarly thesis, work with an advisor to complete their projects over the course of their final two semesters as seniors.