ENGL 340: American Literary (GE)
Credit Hours: (3)
Instructional Method: Three hours lecture.
Prerequisites: ENGL 111
Note(s): General Education and Cultural and Behavioral Analysis designated course.
The course traces American literary history from the colonial period to the present. Focusing on significant literary works and authors, it examines the literary genres, periods, and traditions that shaped a national literature in America since its beginnings as European colonies.
Detailed Description of Content of Course
This course provides English majors with a solid foundation in the development of American literature. To this end, students will read a wide range of representative primary literary texts. They may also read historical, biographical, and cultural sources to clarify the forces that helped shape individual texts, writers, genres, and literary periods. Hence, students will examine a range of authors, genres, and traditions that emerged and developed in America since the colonial period.
Detailed Description of Conduct of Course
ENGL 240 uses a wide variety of instructional strategies which may include any number of the following: lecture; discussion; Powerpoint or web-enhanced instruction; collaborative group work; individual or group student reports to elucidate primary texts or pertinent historical, biographical and cultural contexts; individual or group student creative presentations on course material; informal writing activities such as in-class focused writing exercises, readers' logs, journals or discussion questions; audio-visual resources on literary works, authors, and pertinent contexts; library instructional workshops to reinforce students' information literacy and knowledge of resources available; peer writing groups on drafts of essays; individual or group conferences with the instructor on drafts of essays.
Student Learning Outcomes
The fundamental goal of this course is to provide students with an overview of the origin and development of the American literary, thereby building a solid foundation for more advanced, more intensive, more in-depth study of specific literary periods, particular individual authors, and significant literary. To that end, students who have successfully completed this course will be able to:
Assessment Measures
ENGL 240 uses a variety of assessment measures, which may include a number of the following:
Review and Approval
October, 2009
Revised March 01, 2021
Revised June, 2023