Welcome to English 31-60, 30 Credtis (distance)

Information from course co-ordinator

This course consists of five modules that will be taught as follows: "American Literature" (7.5 credits), “Literary Translation” (3.5) and “Topics in Linguistics” (4) will be taught in the fall semester. In the first part of the term, you will study “American Literature” (weeks 36-45 or period 1) and in the second half of the term you will study “Literary Translation” (weeks 46-49) and “Topics in Linguistics” (weeks 50-03). During the spring term you will study “Survey Course in Linguistics” (7.5) and “British Literature” (7.5).

Students attending courses in English at the University of Gävle are required to attend class in order to receive a passing grade. Studying English at our college does not only involve obtaining subject knowledge, but also improving one’s ability to speak and write English, and this can only take place if students meet their teachers and actively participate in the instruction. Furthermore, most modules feature live, face-to-face, group work in order to accommodate the general course objective that “students should be able to compare and critically evaluate one’s own and others' work”. Failure to participate in such activities will therefore make it impossible to attain a course objective. For these reasons, we require attendance, with only minor exceptions. To take exams and pass the course, students must attend at least eight seminars in each of the 7.5 cr. modules (Linguistics Survey, British Literature, and American Literature) and at least four seminars in Topics in Linguistics and Translation. This fall, classes will be held every Thursday, from 14 to 16, except for the last module (Topics in Linguistics, weeks 50-03), where classes will be held on Thursdays, from 13 to 15.

The Translation module and the Linguistics survey end with written exams, but all five modules feature written assignments and/or oral assessments. More information about the content and assessment procedures for individual modules will be published by the instructors on the course site in Canvas (see “Communication” below). The teaching usually consists of lectures and seminars, but each module has its own structure and policy with respect to the forms of teaching.

You should order all your course books in good time. A good idea is to get hold of the books indicated in the course syllabus (kursplan) as soon as possible. The following selection of the titles included in the bibliography for “American Literature” will be studied this semester: R.W. Emerson’s essay “Self-Reliance”, Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself”, The Scarlet Letter by N. Hawthorne, “The Purloined Letter” by E.A. Poe, “Bartleby, the Scrivener” by H. Melville, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass, Mark Twain’s Pudd’nhead Wilson, Charlotte Perkins Gilman's short story "The Yellow Wall-paper", The Great Gatsby by S. Fitzgerald, a selection of poems by Emily Dickinson, Ezra Pound, William Carlos Williams, Robert Frost, and Langston Hughes, and Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. You should also get hold of the sixth edition (2023) of An Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory by A. Bennett and N. Royle. This is the critical source for this module.

Since this course runs at 50%, you must be prepared to allocate 20 hours of study per week, including class attendance, reading and writing assignments. Studying for 15 credits in one term is like a half-time job.

In Canvas, you will find specific information, such as detailed module descriptions, class schedules, teaching materials, course requirements and assignments. You will find all this information gathered in one document we may refer to as the “module syllabus.” A great part of your work will be carried out via Canvas, too. Once the module has started, you should check the course site on Canvas on a daily basis. Important information will be posted by your instructors on the course site. If you have questions about the course in general, contact the course coordinator. If you have questions about a module, you should contact the instructor of that module.

All the meetings for this course are online; most of our classes will take place in "online classrooms" via the web conferencing system Zoom. Access to the digital classrooms will be provided through links posted on the course site on Canvas. Please note that you need to have a headset, a microphone and a webcam to be able to fully participate in our Zoom sessions. See also these rules and guidelines for student participation in online classes: https://www.hig.se/download/18.21fe87d518ee72dec5d2d9ab/1713701568605/HIG_Digital_undervisning_SVE.pdf External link..

Cheating and plagiarizing are serious academic offenses, which result in failing the module in question and being reported to the college’s disciplinary commission. To learn about plagiarism and get basic information on how to avoid it, please read this page: https://hig.se/Ext/Sv/Biblioteket/Skriva-och-publicera External link. /Plagiering.html. More information will be provided in Canvas and you will have to pass a plagiarism quiz before you can access certain course materials.