Spring 2005

CAS AM 502 A1 Special Topic in American Studies

Four Twentieth-Century Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

TR 12:30מ:00

Room:  American Studies Building HIS 110

Mr. Carney’s office hours (College of Communication Room 223C):

Tues. and Thurs. 12:00-12:30 P.M.

Tues. and Thurs. 5-5:45 P.M.

and by arrangement

Tel: 353�

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An in-depth analysis of four twentieth-century American masters of the short story form: Eudora Welty, John Cheever, Stanley Elkin, and Joyce Carol Oates. Each author offers a distinctively different vision of the expressive possibilities of short fiction. We will explore what each can tell us about our culture and ourselves.

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READING LIST

(Required to be purchased. Available at the bookstore.)

Eudora Welty, The Collected Stories of Eudora Welty, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich

John Cheever, The Stories of John Cheever, Knopf

Stanley Elkin, Stanley Elkin’s Greatest Hits, Xanedu Corp. Reprint

Joyce Carol Oates, Will You Always Love Me?, Penguin Putnam

Joyce Carol Oates, Faithless, Harper-Collins

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CLASS SCHEDULE

Tues.	Jan. 18	Introduction. The auditory imagination: Eudora Welty, Stanley Elkin, Joyce Carol Oates
Thurs.	Jan. 20	Welty, “Petrified Man,” “Why I Live at the P.O.,” “Lily Daw and the Three Ladies”
Tues.	Jan. 25	Welty, “Lily Daw and the Three Ladies,” “Death of a Traveling Salesman,” “The Key,” “A Worn Path”
Thurs.	Jan. 27	Welty, “The Whistle,” “The Hitch-Hikers,” “A Memory,” “Clytie”
Tues.	Feb. 1	Welty, “The Wide Net,” “The Winds,” “June Recital,” “Moon Lake”
Thurs.	Feb. 3	Welty, “June Recital,” “Livvie,” “First Love”
Tues.	Feb. 8	Welty, “Moon Lake,” “The Wanderers,” “The Bride of the Innisfallen” First paper due.
Thurs.	Feb. 10	Welty, “No Place for You, My Love,” “Ladies in Spring,” “Going to Naples”
Tues.	Feb. 15	John Cheever, “Goodbye, My Brother,” “The Enormous Radio,” “O City of Broken Dreams,” “The Summer Farmer”
Thurs.	Feb. 17	Cheever, “Torch Song,” “The Pot of Gold,” “Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor,” “The Season of Divorce”
Tues.	Feb. 22	*** No class—substitute Monday schedule ***
Thurs.	Feb. 24	Cheever, “The Sorrows of Gin,” “The Cure,” “The Chaste Clarissa,” “The Superintendent,” “O Youth and Beauty”
Tues.	Mar. 1	Cheever, “The Day the Pig Fell into the Well,” “The Housebreaker of Shady Hill,” “The Bus to Saint James,” “Just One More Time,” “The Worm in the Apple”
Thurs.	Mar. 3	“The Swimmer,” “The Country Husband,” “Brimmer,” “The Golden Age,” “The Lowboy” Second paper due.
Mar. 5	–  13	*** Spring Break ***
Tues.	Mar. 15	Stanley Elkin, “The Making of Ashenden”
Thurs.	Mar. 17	Elkin, “Bernie Perk”
Tues.	Mar. 22	Elkin, “The Conventional Wisdom”
Thurs.	Mar. 24	Elkin, “The Transient” and “Mr. Softee”
Tues.	Mar. 29	Elkin, “Feldman and Son” and “The Guest” Third paper due.
Thurs.	Mar. 31	Joyce Carol Oates, Will You Always Love Me? “June Birthing,” “The Handclasp,” “Will You Always Love Me?”
Tues.	Apr. 3	Oates, Will You Always Love Me? ”The Track,” “The Undesirable Table,” “Is Laughter Contagious?”
Thurs.	Apr. 7	Oates, Will You Always Love Me? “American, Abroad,” “Life after High School”
Tues.	Apr. 12	Oates, Will You Always Love Me? “The Goose–Girl,” “The Vision,” “The Missing Person” “Good to Know You” Fourth paper due.
Thurs.	Apr. 14	Joyce Carol Oates, Will You Always Love Me? “The Revenge of the Foot,” “You Petted Me, and I Followed You Home” Oates, Faithless: “We Were Worried About You,” “The High School Sweetheart”
Tues.	Apr. 19	Oates, Faithless: “Ugly,” “Summer Sweat,” “Au Sable”
Thurs.	Apr. 21	Oates, “Lover,” “Faithless,” “Gunlove”
Tues.	Apr. 26	Oates, “The Scarf,” “Secret, Silent,” “A Manhattan Romance,” “Murder–Two”
Thurs.	Apr. 28	Oates, “Physical,” “The Stalker,” “The Vampire,” “In Cop Land” Fifth paper due.
Tues.	May 3	Comparisons and conclusions.

Requirements:

1. Attendance is required and will be taken. Promptness is required.

2. Additional reading or writing assignments may be issued in a particular class. If you miss a class, you are responsible for obtaining information about assignments and completing them. No excuses will be allowed.

3. There will be no mid-term or final exam. Two different kinds of writing assignments are required and will be collected during the course of the semester:

A) A continuing, ongoing reading journal: The journal should chronicle your reactions to every story you read this semester. The journal should be kept entirely separate from your class notes, but may reflect them and include and develop points brought out in class discussions. The goal is to keep a diary of your developing reactions to the work of these four writers, one that will help you remember the stories and your reactions to them.

Bring this journal with you to every class since class activities will be based on it (including asking you to share your entries with other members of the class). Another reason to bring it to every class is that it may be collected at several points in the semester. If and when it is collected it in class, no extensions to get it or add additional entries to it can be granted. The journal will be collected at the end of the semester.

Please employ the following format for each journal entry:

·        The title of each story at the top of a new page on which its journal entry begins

·        Your notes as you read the story or think about it after you have read it. Document your honest, evolving responses. And be sure to compare and contrast the story with others you are reading.

·        A repeat of the title of the story at the end of your reading notes, followed by:

·        A brief plot summary and list of the names of the major characters and one or two sentence description of who they are or what they do

B) Five papers. Paper topics will be announced approximately one week in advance of the due date, and will be based on previous points made during class discussion. No extensions will be granted. Please arrive at class promptly when papers are due. The papers will form the basis for the discussion in the class in which they are due.

4. The final evaluation will be based on your journal and papers, your comprehension of and engagement with the weekly reading (as evaluated through class discussion and quizzes), and your attendance, promptness, and quality of class participation. Any additional wit, wisdom, and passion you bring to the course will be rewarded (and appreciated).

CAS AM 502 A1 Special Topic

Four American Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

Paper Topic #1 (Eudora Welty): Write a carefully considered and well-organized one page (typed, double-spaced) paper on the following topic:

Comment on the passage that appears on page 188: “It was just as if he had chased her …. the same as any other chase in the end.” Be sure to explain how it relates to the preceding events of the story.

Due at the beginning of class, Tuesday February 1.

A reminder: Please do not be late to class because of the assignment. We will use it as the basis for discussion.

CAS AM 502 A1 Special Topic

Four American Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

Paper Topic #2 (Eudora Welty): Write a carefully considered and well-organized 3-5 page paper on the following topic:

Discuss how the paragraph on page 361 beginning “The orphan!…” offers a way of understanding “Moon Lake.” In the course of your answer be sure to discuss your interpretation of the significance of the three characters: Jinny, Easter, and Nina. Why did Welty create these particular figures?

Due at the beginning of class, Tuesday February 8.

A reminder: Please do not be late to class because of the assignment. We will use it as the basis for discussion.

CAS AM 502 A1 Special Topic

Four American Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

Paper Topic #3 (Cheever). People in pieces/cubistic narratives

Select a story from the syllabus that has not been discussed in class. Write a carefully considered and well-organized three-page (typed, double-spaced) paper that brings out the different feelings, moods, or attitudes the characters circulate through in the course of the story.

Due at the beginning of class, Thursday March 3.

A reminder: Please do not be late to class because of the assignment. We will use it as a basis for class discussion.

CAS AM 502 A1 Special Topic

Four American Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

Paper Topic (Stanley Elkin)

Write a carefully considered and well-organized three page (typed, double-spaced) paper on the meaning of Elkin’s work, as it is embodied in “Feldman and Son” and/or “The Guest.” As much as possible, use details of language (rather than plot and psychology) to illustrate your points.

Due at the beginning of class, Thursday March 29.

A reminder: Please do not be late to class because of the assignment. We will use it as the basis for discussion.

Spring 2005

CAS AM 501 A1 Special Topic

Four Twentieth-Century Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

Write a three page (double-spaced, typed) paper on the meaning of Joyce Carol Oates’s “Goose Girl.” Describe the fundamental drama of the story and how it is created.

As a way of focusing your understanding of the story, as you think and write about it, decide how Oates wants us to feel morally about the three main characters. Which of the following statements best describes them?

1. The boy and his mother are wrong: A boy and his mother humiliate a married woman.

2. The other woman is wrong: A sexually forward married woman embarrasses a boy and his mother.

3. The boy is good: A boy tactfully attempts to spare the feelings of a woman he has met, letting her down gently.

4. The boy is wrong; the mother is good: Although the boy behaves cruelly or irresponsibly, his mother behaves kindly and considerately toward a woman he has met, letting her down as gently as possible.

5. The boy and the mother are both good: Both the boy and the mother do their best to tactfully spare the feelings of a woman he has met, letting her down as gently as possible.

Note that these five alternatives are merely listed to help you to focus your attention on the moral issues in the story. Do not limit yourself to this issue or to these questions.

Due Tuesday, April 12, at the start of class.

***

Due Thursday, April 7, write a paragraph or two about the meaning of the ending of “American, Abroad.”

CAS AM 502 A1 Special Topic

Four American Masters of the Short Story

Mr. Carney

Write a carefully considered and well–organized three page (typed, double-spaced) paper on “The Missing Person.” Trace and describe the “pulse-beats” of the story that relate to the title. (Think of our class discussions of “American, Abroad,” “Goose Girl,” and “You Petted Me…,” if that helps.)

As much as possible, use details of language (rather than plot and psychology) to illustrate your points.

Due at the beginning of class, Thursday April 28.

A reminder: Please do not be late to class because of the assignment. We will use it as the basis for discussion. Bring that book to that class.

A head’s up: remember to have your folders ready to be submitted in the final class.

FT 554 G1: Film Studies Special Topic

Three Ways of Knowing: Bresson, Ozu, and Leigh

Tu. 2-4  Thurs. 2-5

Room 5 College of Communication

Prof. Carney

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Prof. Carney’s office hours:

Tues. and Thurs. 12:00-12:30 P.M.

Tues. and Thurs. 5-5:45 P.M.

and by arrangement

College of Communication Room 223C

Tel: 353-5976

Teaching Assistant: Nina Tobio

Office hours in College of Communication Room 223C (Mr. Carney’s office):

TBA

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Required reading:

Ray Carney, The Films of Mike Leigh (Cambridge University Press)

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While Hollywood is devoted to a story-telling model of film where the grammar is familiar and the style invisible, art is about the discovery and creation of new ways of thinking, feeling, and seeing, often though various forms of stylistic dislocation and defamiliarization. Through an in-depth examination of the work of Robert Bresson (Lancelot du Lac, L'Argent, Femme Douce, Four Nights of a Dreamer, The Devil Probably), Yasujiro Ozu (Early Summer, Tokyo Story, Autumn Afternoon, Good Morning, Equinox Flower) and Mike Leigh (High Hopes, Bleak Moments, Abigail's Party, Life is Sweet, Home Sweet Home, Hard Labor), we will explore three radically different visions of how film can give us new eyes, ears, insights, and emotions.

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CLASS SCHEDULE:

Tues.	Jan. 18	An introduction to the idea of an art cinema: Robert Bresson, Une Femme Douce and L’Argent
Thurs.	Jan. 20	L’Argent
Tues.	Jan. 25	Bresson, Une Femme Douce
Thurs.	Jan. 27	Une Femme Douce
Tues.	Feb. 1	Bresson, Lancelot du Lac
Thurs.	Feb. 3	Lancelot du Lac First paper due
Tues.	Feb. 8	Bresson, The Devil Probably
Thurs.	Feb. 10	The Devil Probably
Tues.	Feb. 15	Bresson, A Man Escapes
Thurs.	Feb. 17	A Man Escapes Second paper due
Tues.	Feb. 22	*** No class—substitute Monday schedule ***
Thurs.	Feb. 24	Yasujiro Ozu, Tokyo Story
Tues.	Mar. 1	Tokyo Story
Thurs.	Mar. 3	Ozu, Equinox Flower Third paper due
Mar. 5	–  13	*** Spring Break ***
Tues.	Mar. 15	Ozu, Early Summer
Thurs.	Mar. 17	Early Summer
Tues.	Mar. 22	Ozu, Late Spring
Thurs.	Mar. 24	Late Spring
Tues.	Mar. 29	Ozu, Autumn Afternoon
Thurs.	Mar. 31	Ozu, Autumn Afternoon Fourth paper due
Tues.	Apr. 3	Mike Leigh, Bleak Moments
Thurs.	Apr. 7	Bleak Moments
Tues.	Apr. 12	Leigh, Abigail’s Party
Thurs.	Apr. 14	Abigail’s Party
Tues.	Apr. 19	Leigh, Meantime
Thurs.	Apr. 21	Meantime Fifth paper due
Tues.	Apr. 26	Leigh, High Hopes
Thurs.	Apr. 28	High Hopes
Tues.	May 3	Leigh, Life is Sweet
		Thoughts about an art cinema

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1. Attendance is required. (If you are unable to make a class for an exceptional reason, you must speak to the T.A. at least one class prior to the absence and receive permission.) Please do not leave messages on my office machine or email me about absences. Be there or be cubical.

2. Promptness is mandatory. Late arrival is rude and disruptive. Leaving early is prohibited.

3. There will be no mid-term or final exam.

4. You will be responsible for completing a number of exercises assigned in one class and brought to the following class. Some will be turned in at that point; all should be retained until the end of the semester and submitted as a requirement for completing the course. If you miss a class, be certain you have contacted the teaching assistant or another student to familiarize yourself with what has been handed out or assigned for the following class so that you don’t fall further behind. Conscientiousness counts.

5. Five papers will be assigned. No extensions may be granted.

The final evaluation will be based on your paper grades, the quality of your out-of-class exercises, all of which are to be retained in a folder and turned in at the end of the semester whether they have been submitted previously or not, and your classroom attendance, promptness, and, above all, the quality of your participation in class discussion.

FT 554 G1

Three Ways of Knowing:Bresson, Ozu, and Leigh

Spring 2005

Mr. Carney

Supplementary Viewing Assignments/Ozu

Tues. March 1 - Tokyo Story

Thurs. March 3 - Good Morning (Ohayo)

Tues. March 15 (Tuesday after spring break) - Floating Weeds

Three Ways of Knowing: Bresson, Ozu, Leigh

COM FT 554 G1

Mr. Carney

“Every work of art embodies a vision of the world”

Paper #1:

Discuss the expressive effect of the following scenes and aspects of Bresson’s Lancelot:

1. The use of armor and its sounds
2. The use of headgear and helmet decorations
3. The shots showing pennants and flags
4. The way the tournament is photographed, particularly during Lancelot’s jousts
5. The scenes where men look at Guinevere’s window or the moon
6. The scene of Guinevere being bathed
7. The shots of horses’ eyes and the neighing sounds on the soundtrack
8. Any other important organizing device or stylistic quality

Write a well-organized essay on the meaning or effect of the film, based on these aspects.

Answer the question: What is the vision of the world that Bresson offers in this film?

The film is available from the Reserve Desk in Mugar Library. Remotes and headphones are available down in the viewing area.

Length: 3 double-spaced, typed pages

Due at the beginning of class, Tuesday, February 8. No extensions may be granted.

FT 554 G1: Three Ways of Knowing: Bresson, Ozu, and Leigh

Prof. Carney

Final Paper Topic:

Choose A or B:

A. Write a carefully considered and well-organized 3 page paper on the relation of the two groups of characters in Mike Leigh’s Life is Sweet: the children and the adults.

B. Write about the ending of Mike Leigh’s All or Nothing. What choices on Leigh’s part are encoded in it? Does it leave any issues or concerns unresolved? Does it deal satisfactorily with the issues it includes?

Due at the beginning of class, Thursday, April 28.

A reminder: Please do not be late to class because of the assignment. We will use it as the basis for discussion.