Summer 2004

Syllabus

Advanced Composition on the Natural Sciences and Applied Technology: English 302BN2: Tues/Thurs, 7:20-10:100 pm

Now Located Permanently in Robinson A101!

Short Talk Schedule

Learning to Write an Abstract

• Instructions
  
• Practice I
  
• Practice II

Student Models

For Short Talk

• On "Richard Feynman's Definition of a Good Experiment"
• Two Short Talks on Last Orders, Novel and Film: "Shifting Points of View versus Ensemble Cast and Flashbacks"

Essay #1

• "The Great American Scream Machine" and "The Golden Gate Bridge"
  
• "From Dictaphone to Disc: The Beginnings of the In-Home Concert
  

Book Reviews

• "The Scientific Method: A Review of Darwin's The Voyage of the Beagle and Mark Ridley's Darwin Reader"
  
• "Adventures of a Curious Character"

Essay #2

• "Improving Life with Arthritis"
  
• "Ritalin and ADHD"
  
• "Unravelling the Mystery"
  
• "Caesarean Childbirth: A Modern Convenience?"
  
• "Deserts, Wind and Water"
  

Film Review

• Stephen Frears's Mary Reilly: Social Stratification and Class Consciousness in 19th Century England

Further Online Materials

• A short list of books by and on Richard Feynman
  
• Four Feynman Books by Michael Swaine, "Programmer's Bookshelf", Electronic Review of Books
  
• Reviews of Dava Sobel's book, Longitude upon which the film, Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude is based.
• Two NOVA Transcripts: In Search of the First Language as aired by PBS; and Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude as aired by PBS.
• A short list of books and essays on topics, texts and films related to Steve Olson's Mapping Human History: our human genetic and cultural heritage and history.
• A short list of books and essays on the science of medicine.
  
• Internet Movie Database information for Wit.

Spring 2004

Syllabus

Advanced Composition on the Natural Sciences and Applied Technology: English 302N12: Monday, 4:30-7:10 pm, Robinson B204
English 302N13: 7:20-10:100 pm, Enterprise Hall 275

Short Talk Schedule

Learning to Write an Abstract

• Instructions
  
• Practice I
  
• Practice II

Student Models

For Short Talk

• On "Richard Feynman's Definition of a Good Experiment"
• Two Short Talks on Last Orders, Novel and Film: "Shifting Points of View versus Ensemble Cast and Flashbacks"

Essay #1

• "The Great American Scream Machine" and "The Golden Gate Bridge"
  
• "From Dictaphone to Disc: The Beginnings of the In-Home Concert
  

Book Reviews

• "The Scientific Method: A Review of Darwin's The Voyage of the Beagle and Mark Ridley's Darwin Reader"
  
• "Adventures of a Curious Character"

Essay #2

• On A Month in the Country, Novel and Film: The Power of Mise-en-scène versus Landscape and Dialogue: Opening Scenes.
• On Last Orders, Novel and Film: "Mise-en-scène versus Verbal Imagery: What Human Beings Treasure Most.
• Guidelines for writing a Literary Essay.
• A Comparison of Stevenson's Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Martin's Mary Reilly
  

Essay #3

• "Improving Life with Arthritis"
  
• "Ritalin and ADHD"
  
• "Unravelling the Mystery"
  
• "Caesarean Childbirth: A Modern Convenience?"
  

Film Review

• Stephen Frears's Mary Reilly: Social Stratification and Class Consciousness in 19th Century England

Further Online Materials

• A short list of books by and on Richard Feynman
  
• Four Feynman Books by Michael Swaine, "Programmer's Bookshelf", Electronic Review of Books
  
• Reviews of Dava Sobel's book, Longitude upon which the film, Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude is based.
• Two NOVA Transcripts: In Search of the First Language as aired by PBS; and Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude as aired by PBS.
• Michael Ondaatje: An Overview, consisting of essays and much information on the man and his books.
• Text and Community Website 2004 for The English Patient
• Postcolonial materials connected to Ondaatje's novel and Steve Olson's Mapping Human History.
• Short Outline/Parallels and Contrasts: Ondaatje's English Patient and Minghella's English Patient.
  
• A short list of books and essays on topics, texts and films: Ondaatje and Minghella's The English Patient and Mapping Human History.
• A short list of books and essays on the science of medicine.
  
• Internet Movie Database information for The English Patient and Wit.

Fall 2003

Syllabuses

Advanced Composition on the Natural Sciences and Applied Technology: English 302N15: Thursday, 4:30 - 7:10 pm, Enterprise Hall 275

Advanced Composition on the Humanities: English 302H20 and 302H21: Friday, 10:30 am - 1:15 pm, Robinson B102; Saturday, 9:00 am - 1:45 pm, Robinson A246

Short Talk Schedules:

Summer 2003: Advanced Writing on the Natural Sciences and Technology

• English 302BN1: Tues/Thurs, 4:30 - 7:10 pm, Robinson B222
  
• English 302BN2: Tues/Thurs, 7:20 - 10:00 pm, Enterprise 279
  

The Syllabus

Essential Materials

• A Schedule of Short Talks
  
• Student Models:

  Essay #1

  • The Great American Scream Machine and The Golden Gate Bridge
    
  • From Dictaphone to Disc: The Beginnings of the In-Home Concert
    

  Book Reviews:

  • The Scientific Method: A Review of Darwin's The Voyage of the Beagle and Mark Ridley's Darwin Reader
    
  • Adventures of a Curious Character

  Essay #2:

  • Improving Life with Arthritis
    
  • Ritalin and ADHD
    
  • Unravelling the Mystery
    
  • Caesaran Childbirth: A Modern Convenience?
    

  Learning to Write an Abstract

  • Instructions
    
  • Practice I
    
  • Practice II

Further Online Materials

• A short list of books by and on Richard Feynman
  
• Four Feynman Books by Michael Swaine, "Programmer's Bookshelf", Electronic Review of Books
  
• Reviews of Dava Sobel's book, Longitude upon which the film, Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude (see below) is based.
• A short list of books on the science of medicine
  
• Melvin Konner's Website
• Perri Klass's Reach Out and Read: Literary Promotion in Pediatrics: A Talk , accompanied by a short biography and bibliography.
• Internet Movie Database information on the film adaptation of Margaret Edson's Wit by Mike Nichols and Emma Thompson.

Films:

• Ralph Leighton's The Last Journey of a Genius. A BBC/NOVA film, 54 minutes, January 1989. This is a film portrait biography of Richard Feynman.
• Christopher Sykes's The Pleasure of Finding Things Out. A BBC/WGBH MCPS 1999 film, 45 minutes. This is a film of a long interview with Feynman on science.
• Peter Jones and David R. Axelrod's Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude. A 1998 NOVA film, 60 minutes. Narrated by Richard Dreyfuss, with Patrick Malahide as John Harrison.
• Wit, HBO film, made for TV, from a screenplay by Emma Thompson and Mike Nichols, adapted from the Pulitzer Prize winning play by Margaret Edson. Directed by Mike Nichols, starring Emma Thompson as Vivan Bearing, Christopher Lloyd as Dr. Kelekian, Eileen Atkins as E.M. Ashford, Audra McDonald as Susie Monahan, Jonathan M. Woodward as Jason Posner, Harold Pinter as Vivian's Father, and Rebecca Laurie as Vivian aged 5. A professor is diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer. 98 minutes.

Spring 2003: Advanced Writing on the Natural Sciences and Technology

• English 302N13: Wednesday, 7:20-10:00 pm, Krug Hall 253
  
• English 302N14: Thursday, 4:30-7:10 pm, Robinson Hall A247
  

The Syllabus

Essential Materials

• A Schedule of Short Talks
  
• Student Models:

  Student Models for Essay #1
  Student Models for Essay #2
  Student Model for Book Review
  Student Model 1 for Abstract, Annotated Bibliography & Research Essay for #3
  Student Model 2 for Abstract, Annotated Bibliography, & Research Essay for #3
  Older Student Model Reseach Essay for #3
  Student Model for Short Talk from Literature Course

• Learning to Write an Abstract

  Instructions
  Practice I
  Practice II

Two Short Bibliographies and Further Online Materials

• For a short list of books by and on Richard Feynman, click here
  
• A Professional On-Line "Popular" Review of Some Biographies of Feynman: Dr Dobbs, Michael Swaine's "Four Feynman Books," "Programmer's Bookshelf", from Electronic Review of Books
  
• For a short list of books on the science of medicine, click here
  
• For Melvin Konner's Website click here

Films:

• Ralph Leighton's The Last Journey of a Genius. A BBC/NOVA film, 54 minutes, January 1989. This is a film portrait biography of Richard Feynman.
• Christopher Sykes's The Pleasure of Finding Things Out. A BBC/WGBH MCPS 1999 film, 45 minutes. This is a film of a long interview with Feynman on science. This is available at The Tuva Trader Page.
• Peter Jones and David R. Axelrod's Lost at Sea: The Search for Longitude. A 1998 NOVA film, 60 minutes. Narrated by Richard Dreyfuss, with Patrick Malahide as John Harrison.
• David Attenborough's Life on Earth: A Natural History. The 13 separate episodes and an abridgement of these into two tapes running 3 hours and 45 minutes. A 1987 Warner Home Video.
• Frederick Wiseman's Near Death, written, directed, produced by Frederick Wiseman. Boston, 1989. This is a six-hour film which tells a group of interweaved stories about patients who come into intensive care in modern American hospitals. We will see Parts One and Two. The film provides further context for our investigation of the science and technologies of medicine.

Fall 2002

Syllabuses for

Western Literary Masterworks: English 203.002, The Matters of Troy and Arthur and the Renaissance as it affected Women: Monday, 7:20 - 10:00 pm, East Hall 121

Reading and Writing About Texts: English 201.016 and 019, A Primary Course on How to Read and to Write About Literature 016: Mon/Wed, 10:30 - 11:45 am, Robinson Hall B202; 019: Mon/Wed, 12:00 - 1:15 pm, Robinson Hall B124

Essential Materials

The Essay with Guidelines

Student Models of Essays with Guidelines

Of particular interest to 203.002, Western Literary Masterworks:

• An Essay Following Guidelines on Three Anonymous Anglo-Saxon Poems
• An Essay Following Guidelines on Thomas Middleton's Jacobean play, Women Beware Women
  
• An Essay Following Guidelines on 'Chrétien de Troyes's Erec and Enide, The Knight of the Cart (Lancelot) and Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon
  

Of particular Interest to 201.016 and 019, Reading and Writing About Texts:

• An Essay Following Guidelines comparing the treatment of passion in Ann Radcliffe's Romance of the Forest with Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility
  
• An Essay Following Guidelines comparing Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to Valerie Martin's Mary Reilly
• An Essay Following Guidelines on the use of gothic landscape and romance in Anthony Trollope's Anglo-Irish novel, An Eye for an Eye
• An Essay Following Guidelines on illusions and ghosts in Three Ghost Stories
  

Available Online Texts for English 203.002, Western Literary Masterworks

• Sophocles Antigone in a translation by Sir Richard Jebb
• Pallenberg, Rospo and John Boorman, Three variants on the Screenplay for their 1981 film, Excalibur: 1) An Early Draft, not the Shooting Script; 2) A Screenplay by Rospo Pallenberg, adapted from Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur; and 3) A very long version which is the closest text on the Net to actual final Shooting Script
  
• Thomas Middleton and William Rowley's The Changeling
• Marie-Madeleine de Lafayette's The Princess de Clèves
• John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi