COURSE UNIT TITLE

Offered By

American Culture and Literature

Level of Course Unit

First Cycle Programmes (Bachelor's Degree)

Course Coordinator

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR NILSEN GÖKÇEN ULUK

Offered to

American Culture and Literature

Course Objective

Although every culture has its own share of dichotomies and incongruities, American culture is said particularly to be marked by contradictions and dilemmas. This course is designed to study some of these dichotomies as they unfold in American history and are revealed in literature. The aim of this course is to be able to discern and discuss the historical, cultural and economic backgrounds that lie behind these dilemmas.
The particular dilemma chosen for the semester is related to race and racism in America, one of the most controversial issues that have marked the American history, and its most intriguing revelation called passing. We will study the historical background of race relations and their inevitable connection to slavery and focus on passing as one of these relations most fascinating results in US.

Learning Outcomes of the Course Unit

Mode of Delivery

Face -to- Face

Prerequisites and Co-requisites

None

Recomended Optional Programme Components

None

Course Contents

Recomended or Required Reading

History and Theory
Ronald Takaki, A Different Mirror: A Study of Multicultural America
Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks.
Stephan Talty, Mulatto America.
Werner Sollors, Neither Black Nor White Yet Both.
Jacquelin Y. McLendon, The Politics of Color in the Fiction of Jessie Fauset and Nella Larsen.
Juda Bennett, The Passing Figure: Racial Confusion in Modern American Literature.
Gayle Wald, Crossing the Line.
Elaine K. Ginsberg, Ed., Passing and the Fictions of Identity.

Fiction and Biography (for Presentations)
Kate Chopin, "Desiree's Baby."
Charles W. Chessnutt, The House Behind the Cedars.
Nella Larsen, Passing.
James M. O Toole, Passing For White: Race, Religion and the Healy Family.
James Weldon Johnson, The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man.

Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods

Lecture
Discussion
Text Analysis
Student Presentations

Assessment Methods

Further Notes About Assessment Methods

Since the assessment methods below have not been entered to the system yet, a closest method from among the existing ones have been selected.
Midterm: 30 %
Quizzes: 10 %
Presentations: 30 %
Final Exam: 30 %

Assessment Criteria

If one of the exams in this course will involves writing a research paper, the minimum criteria in the evaluation of this assignment will be the sensibleness and coherence of the argument, fluency of the development of ideas and thoughts, the quality and range of research, the intellectual level of the analyses and syntheses of the sources, their integration to the main idea, and the success in the accuracy, fluency in the idiomatic usage of language.
The minimum criteria for the in-class exam with essay type questions include the logical associations with the question, coherence and consistency in the unfolding and development of the idea(s), and the accurate and fluent usage of language.
In the quizzes, the questions are tailored to evaluate the student s class preparation for the day; therefore, they will be based on facts, rather than interpretations of the assigned materials.
In all sorts of exams, personal interpretations must be supported by facts and fact-based knowledge on the part of the student.
The grade from class participation will be earned based on the intellectual level of the student s class participation in discussions.
In the presentations the minimum criteria for evaluation include an overall command of material, clarity and succinctness of verbal expression, organization of thoughts and ideas, timing, and the knowledgeableness of the presenting student in answering questions in the ensuing discussion.

Language of Instruction

English

Course Policies and Rules

This course involves both lectures and class discussions. While the instructor will provide most of the historical and theoretical background in lectures, the students are required to read and analyze the assigned texts for the week, which will be elucidated further in class discussions. In order to be able to follow class discussions and lectures, each student is thus expected to be ready to participate in an intellectually stimulating discussion of the texts. In addition, s/he is expected to establish ties between the present and previously introduced material in order to be able to develop

Contact Details for the Lecturer(s)

Office phone: 232 301 8678
E-mail: gokcenils@yahoo.com

Office Hours

By appointment

Work Placement(s)

None

Workload Calculation

Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes