CHL137

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CHL137

• Harry Potter Literary Allusion, Childrens
  Literature, and Popular Culture
• Dr. Annette Wannamaker
• Please find a seat in the first 10 rows.
• Please do not sit in the back rows of the
  auditorium.

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Intro to course

• Well hand out the course syllabus in a bit.
  There are a few corrections to be made, so please
  follow along with a pen.

• Please fill out and hand in the survey. Remember,
  there are no right or wrong answers--just be
  honest! Im trying to get an accurate sense of
  the make-up of the class.

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Professor Dr. Annette Wannamaker

• Office 603L Pray Harrold
• Office Hours 1215-2 p.m. Mon/Wed and 5-630
  p.m. Tuesdays
• Also by appointment
• Email awannamak_at_emich.edu

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Whats wrong with this email?

• From cutiepants34_at_hotmail.com
• To awannamak_at_emich.edu
• Subjectbooks
• _______________________
• What is the books 4 yr claas?
• _________________________________
• Handout How to email your profs

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Graduate Assistant Jennifer Filion

• Office 607F Pray Harrold
• Office Hours
• 10-11 a.m. Mondays and
• 12-1 p.m. Fridays

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Need help?

• We have office hours
• Mondays 10-11 a.m. and 1215-2 p.m.
• Tuesdays 5-630 p.m.
• Wednesdays 1215-2 p.m.
• Fridays 12-1 p.m.
• Or, you can make an appointment.
• Or, you can email at any time.
• Dont ever hesitate to ask for help with any
  reading or writing assignment or for studying for
  exams or quizzes!

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Gen Ed outcomes

• CHL137 is a General Education Knowledge of the
  Disciplines Humanities Course.
• This means that the class, like all the other
  classes in this category, is required to meet
  specific outcomes students are expected to
  come out of the course able to demonstrate
  knowledge of childrens literature as a
  discipline in the humanities.

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Course Description and Rationale What is the
purpose of this course?

• Since the books in the Harry Potter series
  are childrens texts and a cultural phenomenon,
  they also have become symbols in larger cultural
  battles over religious values, literacy, and the
  role of childrens literature in shaping the next
  generations beliefs about gender, social class,
  race, imperialism, capitalism, and spirituality.
  This makes these books an ideal model to use in a
  classroom to illustrate the relevance of
  literature and literary studies to society.

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Rationale cont.

• A close study of these novels as complex
  literary works that have roots in classic
  literature, as cultural phenomena, and as the
  objects of public debates can highlight for
  students all that is at stake in literary
  interpretation and cultural production.
  Therefore, students in this course will explore
  questions such as

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Questions to think about

• Do the books have literary value, or are they
  just commercial products?
• Are the books dangerous for children to read, or
  do they benefit children?
• Where is the line between literature, media, and
  mass-produced products, and should there/can
  there be a line?
• Why are these books so popular, and what does
  their popularity tell us about who we are and
  what we, as a culture, believe ourselves to be?

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Course Outcomes

• In order to think critically about these, and
  other questions, the class will read some of the
  novels in the series classic literature, myths,
  folk tales, and legends alluded to in the novels
  and articles covering some of the public and
  academic debates about the novels.

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Note

• Some assignments on the syllabus (listed next)
  have been changed to accommodate the lecture hall
  format for example, instead of writing reading
  journals, students will take reading quizzes.

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Outcomes cont.

• Students will
• take reading quizzes
• take two exams
• work together in groups to research, write about
  and present to the class an aspect of the novels
• write a position paper
• This is a combination of assignments that will
  require students to synthesize various ideas and
  to apply what they have learned to their own
  interpretations of the books.

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Knowledge of the discipline outcomes

• Ideally, by the end of the course, students
  will have a better understanding of literary
  terms and concepts of the significance of
  literary allusion of the role of literature in
  contemporary culture of the debates that experts
  have about such issues as literary merit or
  ideology in literature and of the ways that both
  the form and the role of literature are evolving
  within the context of Twenty-first Century global
  capitalism.

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Students must demonstrate competence in each of
the following outcomes to successfully complete
the course
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1. Students will

• discuss and write about current public debates
  about the novels, which can lead to an empathic
  understanding of other points of view and can
  demonstrate for students the role of literature
  in society,

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2. Students will

• learn basic literary terms and concepts and learn
  to apply these to written literary analysis,

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3. Students will

• discuss and write about current debates in the
  field of childrens literary studies,

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4. Students will

• learn to develop their own interpretations of
  various literary texts in discussion and through
  informal and formal writing assignments,

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5. Students will

• engage with a study of literature within a
  specific cultural context and the ways that
  context affects and reflects the meaning of a
  text,

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6. Students will

• learn to understand and analyze the books in J.K.
  Rowlings Harry Potter series as complex,
  inter-textual works of literature that borrow
  heavily from classical texts, mythology, legend,
  and folktales, and

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7. Students will

• learn about and engage in current public debates
  about the role of the humanities in contemporary
  culture, and by writing about these issues in a
  variety of formats, students will complete the
  course having gained a better understanding of
  the roles of literature in society, of what is at
  stake in the interpretation of a literary work,
  and of the ways that literary texts function as
  cultural artifacts.

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Definitions

• Dont worry if youre not familiar with all the
  terms and concepts just listed.
• Well start to define them next class period.

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Required texts

• Colbert, David. The Magical Worlds of Harry
  Potter (second edition, revised and updated)
  Wrightsville, N.C. Lumina Press, 2004.
• Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerers
  Stone. New York Scholastic, 1997.
• -----. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
  New York Scholastic, 1999.
• -----. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
  New York Scholastic, 2000.
• Course Packet from Mikes Book Store ONLY.

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On-line texts

• Download and print the following texts and add
  them to your course packet
• Go to the on-line syllabus with links
• for CHL137 Winter 2008
• http//www.emich.edu/public/english/childlit/chl13
  7win08.html

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A Note about spoilers

• Because the Harry Potter books are part of a
  series, which together create one long narrative,
  we will at times make references to books later
  in the series. If you havent read all the books
  in the series and dont want the plot spoiled
  for you by hearing what happens in book VI or
  book VII the first week of class, then please
  finish all the books before class begins. This
  is a course concerned with literary and cultural
  analysis, which means we cant curtail academic
  discussions simply because some students dont
  want their reading experiences spoiled. On the
  other hand, because I expect students to engage
  in close readings of texts, we will try to focus
  our discussion and analysis on whichever book in
  the series currently is under discussion.

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Course Requirements and Grading

• Grading Scale 1000 total points
• 1000-940A 939-900A- 899-870B 869-840B
  839-800B- 799-770C 769-740C 739-700C-
  699-670D 669-640D 639-600D- lt600F.

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Points out of 1,000 Assignments

• 300 18 Reading Quizzes worth 20 points each
  (possible total of 360 points)
• 200 Position Paper
• 200 Group Research Project and Presentation
• 150 Midterm Exam
• 150 Final Exam

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Reading Quizzes 300 points

• During the course of the term, students will take
  18 quizzes based on the reading due for that
  days class. It is very important to me that
  students taking a literature course actually read
  works of literature and essays about literature.
  Therefore, completing the assigned reading will
  count for a significant portion (30 percent) of
  the course grade. Furthermore, students who
  regularly attend class are more likely to
  succeed. Therefore, the quiz grading system is
  designed to encourage regular and punctual
  attendance.

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How the quiz system works

• Each quiz is worth 20 points.
• If you are absent, you earn a zero on that days
  quiz.
• If you come to class too late to take the quiz,
  you will earn a zero on that days quiz.
• Quizzes cannot be made up after class and cannot
  be taken early before class begins.
• It is not acceptable to take the quiz, and then
  leave class. This is rude. (If you dont want to
  attend classes, then please drop the course).

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Extra points

• There will be 18 quizzes, which count for 300
  points out of 1,000 possible for the course.
• Therefore, if you attend every day, do all the
  reading, and receive 100 percent correct on every
  quiz, it is possible to earn 360 points (which
  would be 60 points extra credit)

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excused absences

• If, for example, you miss two days of class and
  then have two other days when you dont complete
  all the reading and only earn 10 points on two
  quizzes, it is still possible to get full credit
  (300 points). In other words, I assume most
  students will need to miss a class or two because
  of illness or family matters and I also assume
  that most students will not always be able to
  complete every bit of the reading. Therefore,
  students should be able to miss two or even three
  classes without any adverse effect to their
  grade These are your excused absences. Please
  plan accordingly and use your excused absences
  wisely. If you miss more than two or three days
  of class, for whatever reason, it will lower your
  grade

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Official Dept. policy

• The official English Department policy is that
  students who miss two weeks worth of a class, for
  whatever reason, (four classes in a section that
  meets twice a week) should expect to fail that
  course and should withdraw.

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Two exams 150 points each

• There will be a mid-term and a final in this
  course and I will do a brief review before each
  exam. The exams will be a combination of fill in
  the blank and short essay questions. Students
  will be required to demonstrate comprehension of
  materials covered in all assigned reading
  (whether or not it is discussed in the class
  lecture), of materials covered in class lecture
  and discussions, and of materials taught by other
  students in presentations.

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Group Research Projects and Presentations 200
points

• During the course of the semester, groups of
  students will work together to research an
  assigned topic. Groups will be randomly assigned.
  There is some in-class time designated so that
  groups can meet to work, but most groups may also
  need to meet outside of class as well. Youll
  need to decide among yourselves how to organize
  and divide tasks.

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Oral and Written report

• The groups will present their findings on an
  assigned date in two ways
• The Group will turn in One Written Report
  complete with a Bibliography of Research
  conducted.
• 2. The Group will teach their topic to the class
  in a 15-minute presentation

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Grading 200 points

• Is based on three factors
• 1) The Written Report, which will demonstrate
  thorough and careful academic research,
• 2) The Presentation, which will creatively and
  effectively teach important information to the
  rest of the class, and
• 3) Written Peer Evaluations from fellow group
  members, which are meant to ensure accountability
  to the group.

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1. The written report

• Each group will receive an assignment sheet with
  a general topic, and lists of sub-topics and
  suggestions. The groups then will need to conduct
  thorough academic research on their topic and
  present their findings in a typed report with a
  bibliography of sources used.

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2. Group Presentation

• The group will teach information to the class in
  a way that is interesting, clear, and that
  connects all information to the Harry Potter
  novels in a meaningful way. Groups can use
  whatever presentation style they think is most
  effective (a skit, overheads, writing on the
  blackboard, Powerpoint, etc.). Be creative and
  have fun!

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3. Written peer evaluations

• After you have completed your presentation and
  turned in your written report, each member of the
  group will turn in a form that evaluates
  contributions made by other members of the group.
  I will take the written peer evaluations into
  account when calculating grades for the group
  project.

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Position Paper 200 points

• Students will write a typed double-spaced 5-page
  (12 point type) position paper that develops an
  interpretation of the Harry Potter novels or some
  aspect of the novels as cultural phenomenon.
  Students can write about a specific theme,
  symbol, or issue in the HP novels of their
  choosing. The essay should develop a specific
  thesis, which asserts an interpretation using
  evidence from the novels.

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Politeness Policies

• Part of my job as a professor is to create a
  learning environment where students feel safe,
  respected, and able to get the most out of their
  learning experiences. I promise to treat all
  students with respect, but also must work to
  maintain a structured learning environment.

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Be on time.

• When you come to class late, it is disruptive
  to everyone around you. If you cannot make it to
  my class on time (11 a.m., not 1102 or even
  1101) please drop the course.

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Turn off your cell phone.

• It is not okay for your cell phone to ring in
  class. It is not okay to text message during
  class. If you are expecting a very important
  call (your wife is about to have a baby, for
  instance) you can talk to me and to your
  classmates before class to let us know that your
  cell phone will be on and may ring during class.
  Otherwise, turn it off.

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Laptops are only for note taking.

• Students who use their laptops during class to
  surf the Internet, to poke friends on Facebook,
  or to play World of Warcraft will no longer be
  allowed to bring laptops into the classroom.

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Please respect fellow students and your
professors.

• The following are examples of behaviors that are
  not respectful

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Not respectful

• doing your math homework or reading the newspaper
  during a lecture.

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Not respectful

• coming to class unprepared.

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Not respectful

• text messaging a friend on your cell phone or
  blackberry playing a game on your cell phone.

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Not respectful

• Surfing the web or updating your Facebook profile
  on your laptop.

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Not respectful

• whispering or making notes to the person sitting
  next to you in ways that cause disruptions -- (a
  little of this is okay, of course).

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Not respectful

• putting your books into your backpack 5 minutes
  before class is over.

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Not respectful

• interrupting other students when they are
  speaking, telling a fellow student to shut up,
  telling a fellow student his/her beliefs are
  stupid, immoral, wrong, silly, etc.

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Not respectful

• Walking in and out of the classroom during class
  (unless, of course, there is an emergency).

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On the other hand, active, engaged participation
and questions of all sorts are encouraged.
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It is always okay to

• dislike a text we are reading or to disagree with
  an interpretation of the text I teach (in
  discussion or in writing). Indeed, that is the
  purpose of academic writing and discussion
  develop an interpretation of your own and defend
  it with evidence. I may not always agree with
  your interpretations, but I do not grade on
  agreement--I grade papers based on the quality of
  your argument, research, and evidence.

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It is always okay to

• bring some coffee, soda, or food into the
  classroom, as long as you pick up after yourself
  when you leave and as long as you are not
  disruptive.

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It is always okay to

• raise your hand to interrupt me (even in mid
  lecture) to ask a question or ask for
  clarification as long as you dont talk over or
  interrupt other students.

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Next few days . . .

• Theres no reading assigned for Wednesday so
  youll have time to buy the books.
• Well work on defining some key terms and on
  working through some questions about the Harry
  Potter books

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Next week

• A week from today, there is reading assigned.
  Well start with some essays discussing Harry
  Potter fan culture, controversies about the
  books, and allusions in the books.
• Next week youll be assigned the group research
  projects as well.