Course Description

Using popular memoirs by women in entertainment as a starting point, this course aims to articulate the genre of memoir, particularly as it applies to contemporary women across racial, social, and cultural lines. Through this course, students will have the opportunity to read seven memoirs by contemporary women, including published authors, well-known actresses, and academic scholars. While each woman’s experience is unique solely to her, we seek to find common themes along the lines of work, family, sexuality, and social and cultural expectations.

Drawing on these themes, students will discover connections within and across texts as well as to their own lived experiences. To elucidate and understand these connections, we will participate in reading groups, class discussions, and research that will also contribute to major course projects. Students will write their own memoirs, explore the impact of social media on identity, investigate how critical and cultural audiences have responded to the memoirs, and analyze the course themes all while collaborating with classmates, building their reading and writing toolboxes, and growing as thinkers and learners.

 

Course Objectives

Upon completion of this course, students will:

1. Recognize literary terms, concepts, critical strategies, and other genre conventions of memoir.
2. Demonstrate critical and independent thinking in interpreting and analyzing texts.
3. Write analytically about texts, using appropriate research and accurate documentation.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of how the memoirs studied reflect themes of work, family, social, and cultural contexts.
5. Make connections to the memoirs that encompass personal and human values.
6. Use writing as a process to further understand and engage with texts and their own ideas.

 

Course Texts

*Some of these texts are available as audiobooks read by the author or another reader. We will discuss and decide as a class what formats we wish to utilize.

1. *Danticat, Edwidge. Brother, I’m Dying. Knopf, 2007. Print.
2. *Fey, Tina. Little, Brown, and Co., 2011. Print.
3. hooks, bell. Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood. Henry Holt and Co., 1996. Print.
4. *Kaling, Mindy. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns). Ebury Press, 2013. Print.
5. Lindbergh, Anne Morrow. Gift from the Sea. Pantheon, 1991. Print.
6. Oates, Joyce Carol. A Widow’s Story: A Memoir. Ecco, 2011. Print.
7. *Poehler, Amy. Yes Please. Dey Street Books, 2014. Print.
8. PDFs and other readings as assigned

 

Evaluation

Grading Scale

Plus or minus grades will be determined based on the college’s grading policy.

Points Earned	Grade
900-1000	A
800-899	B
700-799	C
600-699	D
Below 600	F

Assignment Point Values

Assignment	Points	Total Points
Participation	Distributed throughout	100 points
Biweekly Podcasts	15 points (7 per semester)	105 points
Reading Group Work	10 points (7 per semester)	70 points
Peer Reviews	20 points (5 per semester)	100 points
*Personal Narrative/Memoir	100 points	100 points
*Social Media Analysis	100 points	100 points
Cultural Event Analysis	25 points	25 points
*Critical & Cultural Reception Analysis	100 points	100 points
Research Proposal	50 points	50 points
*Theme Inquiry Research Project	150 points	150 points
*Final Course Reflection	100 points	100 points
Total Points for the Course		1000 points

 

Course Projects/Assignments

Early in the semester, students will be provided with a Major Assignment Guidelines packet that explains each assignment in depth, including length, content, and evaluation expectations.

Biweekly Podcasts: Every other week, students (with their small groups) will submit a 10-15 minute podcast. During students’ podcast shows, students will engage in critical reflection and conversation about the readings and activities of the class. These podcasts will occasionally be shared in class, so students will have a “live” audience.

Reading Group Work: At the beginning of the semester, students will select 2-3 group members to collaborate with throughout the course. For each text we read, the groups will participate in text-related assignments, including article summaries of critical and popular media responses to the memoirs, in-class discussions, and in-class activities. The group article summaries will be due every other week as we wrap up a given text.

*Peer Reviews: For each of the five major assignments (worth 100 points or more) this semester, students will participate in peer review. Based on input from the class, each peer review session may be structured differently so we can determine what approach(es) works best for our class. Students earn points for peer review based on being prepared with their drafts as well as on their level of participation as a reviewer.

Personal Narrative/Memoir: Students will have an opportunity to compose a memoir essay of their own that engages one or more of the course themes. This 3-5 page essay should focus on a specific experience or event and should incorporate conventions of memoir writing as learned in class.

Social Media Analysis: Since many of our authors in this course are contemporary personalities with a social media presence (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, etc.), their online identities may connect to and/or reveal something about their identities as constructed in their memoirs. For authors who do not have a social media presence, students may create one for them that would fit with the author based on her memoir. Through examining and/or creating a writer’s social media presence, students will compose a 3-5 page essay or blog that analyzes the content, style, and themes of the author’s online persona. Students should consider how this persona relates to/differs from the author’s memoir as well as analyze the writer’s use of audience, purpose, and rhetorical appeals through social media.

Cultural Event Analysis: Following our course themes of women’s careers, families, cultures, and writing, students will find and attend a cultural event on a similar theme. Students should get their event approved ahead of time and should take ample notes at the event about the event’s purpose, audience, and the audience’s reception/engagement with the event. After the event, students will write a 2-3 page analysis of the event that not only explains/describes the event but also critiques the event and its rhetorical purpose.

Analysis of Critical & Cultural Reception: The texts we are reading this semester are contemporary publications by women, and are thus produced within and impacted by the cultural and critical frameworks surrounding these authors. In this project, students will select one work/author we have/will read and will gather and analyze articles about how the work was received by the public, book reviewers, critics, academics, and the like. Students should seek scholarly articles as well as popular media to develop an understanding of the text’s critical, scholarly, cultural, and social reception. Based on this research, students will present their findings in a 4-6 page paper and contextualize how the selected author/memoir fits within these findings. Students will discuss at least two themes within the work’s reception and connect those themes to specific examples within the text while drawing on and citing outside sources appropriately.

Research Proposal: About a month before the inquiry project will be due, students will write a proposal for their project that establishes their topic as well as indicates potential ideas, sources, directions, and research questions. The proposal is intended to help students clarify a focus well in advance and establish a timeline for the project as well as for me to offer feedback, questions, and suggestions about the topic and possible areas of research to support students as they begin their projects. 

Theme Inquiry Research Project: Drawing on the themes of the course, students will select a particular theme/collection of themes/sub-theme that interests them and that they find within and across readings this semester. Students will research their theme and will compose a 6-8 page paper that analyzes, discusses, and explains how the theme functions within and across our course texts. Students should draw on textual evidence to demonstrate the theme and incorporate source material to support their argument. The inquiry should not only explore the specific theme but should also articulate why that theme is important and what value it offers culturally, politically, socially, etc., particularly as it relates to the lives of women.

Final Course Reflection: This project may take on various mediums depending on how students decide to present and reflect on their learning and growth through the course. Students may choose to compose an essay or present a digital representation of their project. The reflection project should demonstrate what students have learned this semester about women writers, memoir, and course themes as well as about their own reading and writing processes and development. The reflection should draw on evidence, including textual examples, outside research if needed, and samples of students’ own writing and work this semester.

 

Course Policies

Participation: Learning does not thrive in a lecture environment. Rather, the course is designed to encourage student engagement and participation, small group work, and dialogue. Much like students receive credit for attending class, they also earn a grade for participating once they get here. This means students should speak often during every class in order to earn all of their points. Participation points are earned based upon active engagement in class discussions and during group work and upon demonstrating a positive attitude toward what we do in class.

Attendance: Attendance in this class is vital to your final course outcome. Following a professional model, no distinction is made between excused and unexcused absences—if you are absent, I assume it is for a good reason, but you are nevertheless responsible for turning in work due that day on time and coming prepared for the following class.

• One, two, or three total absences = no penalty
• Four total absences = final grade is lowered by 10%
• Five (or more) total absences = F
• Arriving late OR leaving early (more than 15 minutes either way) = ½ absence
• Missing over 30 minutes of class will result in a full absence.
• Coming to class unprepared may result in being counted absent for the day.

Late Work:

• Major Assignments: These assignments MUST be turned in on time. Any assignment turned in late will lose 10% of the grade per calendar day including the due date if not turned in on time. In the event of an emergency, a student may e-mail a major assignment to the instructor .The assignment will be considered turned in on time if the e-mail’s time stamp is before the start of class on the due date. Final projects/in-class work/presentations WILL NOT be accepted late—no exceptions!
• Homework/In-class Work: Homework assignments will be collected during class, often at the beginning. Daily assignments are not accepted late—no exceptions. If you are not in class or are late to class, I will not accept your work late. With good reason, assignments may be e-mailed to me before the start of class on the due date and still receive credit.

Academic Honesty Statement: Students are reminded that materials they use for class work may be subject to copyright protection. No previously submitted papers, drafts, or pieces of writing written by the student or by another person are acceptable in this course. Incidents of student dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, etc.) may result in failure of the assignment and may also result in failure of the course, suspension from the college, or dismissal from the college.

Behavior and Communication Expectations: When students communicate with others in this course, they should demonstrate responsible and cooperative behavior. Please think critically, ask questions, and challenge ideas, but also show respect for the opinions of others, respond to them politely, and maintain the confidentiality of thoughts expressed in the class. Yelling, swearing, threatening (in words or in gestures), texting, sleeping, doing homework for another class, speaking out of turn, and any other inappropriate behavior will result in the student being counted absent for the day and the student may be asked to leave. In some instances, depending on the level of severity/number of infractions, inappropriate behavior may result in expulsion from the class and/or a failing grade for the course.

Note on Feedback: Students can expect the instructor to return assignments with written feedback in a timely manner, typically within one week after the assignment was turned in. If at any point during the course you would like to discuss your performance or to receive additional feedback, please contact the instructor privately.

 

Course Schedule

The schedule below is tentative and subject to change. The syllabus sets forth a proposed schedule of class topics and assignments, learning activities, and expected learning outcomes. However, the instructor reserves the right to modify this schedule to enhance learning for students. Students are expected to be in class and be responsible for noting any changes we make to due dates, assignment guidelines, and assignments.

Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 1	Introductions: Class, Course, Reading Groups Class Discussion/Decision: Audiobooks Discuss Cultural Event Analysis Activity: Course Themes Digital Collage Reading Groups	Bossypants (first half) Summary article	Reading Group Summary
Week 2	Reading Groups Discuss Personal Narrative Activity: Personal Narrative Comic Book Class Discussion/Decision: Peer Review Structure	Bossypants (second half) PDFs on memoir writing	Podcast #1
Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 3	Peer Review: Personal Narrative Activity: Speed Dialoguing Reading Groups	Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) (first half) PDFs on memoir writing Summary Article	Reading Group Summary
Week 4	Reading Groups Activity: Kaling’s Social Media Presence	Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) (second half) PDFs on social media & celebrity	Personal Narrative Podcast #2
Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 5	Reading Groups Discuss Social Media Analysis Activity: Privilege Clips	Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood (first half) Summary Article	Reading Group Summary
Week 6	Peer Review: Social Media Analysis Activity: Moving through a Draft Reading Groups	Bone Black: Memories of Girlhood (second half) PDFs on race and education	Podcast #3
Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 7	Discuss Critical & Cultural Reception Analysis Activity: Metaphor Drawing Reading Groups	Brother, I’m Dying (first half) Summary Article	Social Media Analysis Reading Group Summary
Week 8	Peer Review: Critical & Cultural Reception Analysis Activity: Paper Organizational Sketch Reading Groups Class Town Hall/Community Check-in	Brother, I’m Dying (second half) PDFs on immigration	Cultural Event Analysis Podcast #4
SPRING BREAK
Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 9	Reading Groups Discuss Theme Inquiry Research Proposal & Project Activity: Dove Chocolate Quotation & Paraphrase	Yes Please (first half) Summary Article	Critical & Cultural Reception Analysis Reading Group Summary
Week 10	Reading Groups Activity: Parks and Recreation clips	Yes Please (second half)	Research Proposal Podcast #5
Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 11	Reading Groups Activity: Letter to Loved One Discuss Final Course Reflection	A Widow’s Story: A Memoir (selections) Summary Article	Reading Group Summary
Week 12	Peer Review: Theme Inquiry Research Project Activity: Speed Dialoguing Reading Groups	A Widow’s Story: A Memoir (selections) PDFs on grief/loss	Podcast #6
Week	In-Class Focus	Reading Due	Assignments Due
Week 13	Reading Groups Activity: Ramble walk & reflection	Gift from the Sea (first half) Shells: A Cameo of Anne Morrow Lindbergh (one-woman play) Summary Article	Reading Group Summary
Week 14	Peer Review: Final Course Reflection Reading Groups Activity: Course Evaluations	Gift from the Sea (second half)	Theme Inquiry Research Project Podcast #7
Week 15 (Finals Week)	Final Project Sharing		Final Course Reflection