"Criticism is as inevitable as breathing"  --T. S. Eliot

Class Requirements:
Attendance, Discussion Participation, and Daily Preparation are expected from each student as a commitment to learning.  Each are prerequisites to learning and success in this course. Absences will affect your quiz score (since they cannot be made up) and each absence beyond the first four will result in a 10 point reduction in your grade.

Frequent Unannounced Quizzes will test your reading comprehension. 50 points possible.

Examinations (2 @ 50 Points). The first examination will focus on the unit on Classic Texts and Issues in the History of Criticism. The final examination will focus on contemporary theoretical approaches and issues.

Contemporary Trends in Responding to Othello Portfolio Project (250 points total).  We will spend much of the course engaged in this project which will incorporate your responses and analyses of Shakespeare's Othello in light of contemporary criticism and a few of the creative responses it has inspired:

Part I will be (A) your own critical analysis based on a first reading focused with a thesis statement and developed with textual support (20 points) as well as (B) responses to the readings of two of your classmates (10 points each). What did you find most compelling about your classmate's inquiry? What questions does her or his interpretation compel you to ask? Where do you agree and where do you disagree with the critic? IC is where you include classmates responses to your essay in your portfolio.

Part II (A&B) will include two analyses of Othello criticism following the "Critical Point" format (20 points each).:

Works Cited Entry: Provide an MLA entry for the article at the top of the page.

Central Point: What is the critic’s thesis (main idea)? The thesis may not be directly stated but implied. It may take you two or three sentences to clearly capture the author’s central point.

Summary of the Argument: How does the critic develop the case for her or his central point? List the main points of the article that validate or support the central point. Quote pertinent passages.

Values and Assumptions: In the article, the author will imply, or perhaps even directly state, what he or she values in regards to the issues being raised. Identify what those values and assumptions are. You may have to read between the lines to uncover what the author considers important.

Evaluation: In this section you evaluate the argument by responding to the author’s message and methods. Where do you agree and/or disagree with the author’s premises and/or conclusions?

Applications/Questions: Discuss what implications and applications the issues of the article have for our study of the primary text. What questions does the article raise that are worth considering? How can we apply the information in this article to our study in this class? Provide a list of discussion questions for the class based on the ideas in the article. Be sure to pose your questions so that they can be addressed by an audience who may not have read the critical article.

Part III will be a consideration of the question whether Shakespeare's play is racist or anti-racist (A) before and (B) after readings into the various sides of the debate. Develop your response for Part IIIA with evidence and developed engagement of the issues (10 points possible). Part IIIB is a reconsideration of these questions in light of your readings of critics' contributions on the subject (20 points possible).

Part IV will be a consideration of the question whether Shakespeare's play is feminist or anti-feminist (A) before and (B) after readings into the various sides of the debate. Develop your response for Part IVA with evidence and developed engagement of the issues (10 points possible). Part IVB is a reconsideration of these questions in light of your readings of critics' contributions on the subject (20 points possible).

Part V will engage your creative imagination in (A) sketching whether, why, and how the play should be staged and/or adapted to film (20 points) and (B) comparing your ideas with how it has been adapted by at least three professional productions and/or films (20 points).  

Part VI will consider African and feminist creative responses to the play. Part VIA will address the question of the extent to which Salih’s novel is a post-colonial reworking and/or sequel and/or inversion of Othello  (20 points). Part VIB will address the question of the extent to which Vogel's and MacDonald's plays are feminist reworkings and/or sequels and/or inversions of Othello (20 points).

Part VII is your retrospective conclusion in which you should reconsider the work in your portfolio.  What have you learned about Othello through the compilation of your portfolio? What have you learned about literary criticism? What have you learned about yourself? (30 points possible).
 
Summary of Portfolio Points:
IA.    20
IB.     2 @ 10 = 20
IC.     0
IIA.   20
IIB.    20
IIIA.  10
IIIB.   20
IVA.  10
IVB.   20
VA.    20

VB.     20

VIA.   20

VIB.    20

VII.     30
total: 250

Paper Policies:  All papers should be in MLA style.  Please consult a research handbook such as The Easy Access Handbook or James D. Lester's Writing Research Papers:  A Complete Guide.  Please retain a copy of the papers you submit.  In the event a paper is missing, you will be asked to provide a copy.  Late papers (late = anytime after the beginning of class or the alternative time indicated in the syllabus) will receive a 10% reduction for each class day that they are late.  Of course, you may turn in your paper(s) early.

Grading Scale:
372-400  A
360-371  A-
348-359  B+
332-347  B
320-331  B-
308-319 C+
292-307  C
280-291  C-
268-279  D+
252-267  D
240-251  D-
    0-239  F