Course Description
ENGL 565-001: Forms of Nonfiction
Spring 2009 George Mason University
Scott W. Berg, Instructor
Tuesdays 7:20-10:00
Krug Hall, Room 3
Office: Performing Arts Building A407G (in the Theater department)
Office Hours: Mondays, 1:30-2:30. Better yet, make an appointment.
E-mail: sberg1@gmu.edu
Office phone: 703/993-1635
Required Materials/Expenditures:
Three books are required for this course, listed here in the order we’ll read them.
*Lillian Ross (editor), The Fun of It: Stories from the The Talk of the Town: The New Yorker
David Sedaris, Holidays on Ice OR David Sedaris, Barrel Fever
*Pen/Faulkner Foundation (editor), 3 Minutes or Less: Life Lessons from America’s Greatest Writers
* available at GMU bookstore
You’ll also be expected to spend some significant time online, discovering and sometimes printing various examples of nonfiction writing, and you’ll sometimes be responsible for distributing copies of your own work to the class. I’ll use e-reserve or other methods to make many course materials available to you electronically as the semester goes along.
RESTRICTIONS and PREREQUISITES FOR ENGLISH 565
This section is closed to students enrolled in Mason’s MFA nonfiction program. All of the other usual limitations on enrolling for graduate courses apply. I am not the person who dispenses information and advice about course eligibility. If you have questions, please contact Bill Miller, director of graduate creative writing, at 703/993-2763 or wmiller@gmu.edu (or, if you are an undergraduate, contact Laura Scott, English department advisor, at 703/993-1179 or lscott@gmu.edu).
ENROLLMENT VERIFICATION
Students are responsible for verifying their enrollment in this class. Any schedule adjustments must be made by the deadlines published in the Schedule of Classes. The last day to add classes this semester is Tuesday, February 3; the last day to drop classes is Friday, February 20. After the last day to drop a class, withdrawing from a class requires the approval of the dean and is only allowed for nonacademic reasons. (Undergraduate students may choose to exercise a selective withdrawal; see the Schedule of Classes for selective withdrawal procedures.)
COURSE and REQUIREMENTS
ENGL565 in designed as an introduction to the world of creative nonfiction writing. The course is built around intensive study of and practice in various forms of nonfiction writing, covering the continuum between the essayistic and the reportorial. We’re going to think and read in terms of form and genre, with sustained attention to the kinds of forms and genres most accessible to writers early on in their careers, including blogging, observational pieces, personal essays, profiles, participatory journalism, cultural commentary, and feature stories.
You’ll complete four major writing assignments: a series of twelve weekly blog entries totaling at least 400 words each week; a talk piece of around 1,000 words; a topic essay of around 1,000 words; and a longer reported piece of between 3,000-5,000 words.
Because this class is discussion-based I expect students to keep up with the reading and to contribute to our weekly conversations in a meaningful way. Aim to be in class every week with the reading and writing assignments completed.
Each of you will meet with me for at least two 30-minute conferences. These are required assignments. (Additional conferences are welcome but not required.) We’ll also have two class periods devoted to writing workshops–these are required assignments as well.
GRADING
Your grade will be determined according the following mix:
Weekly blog entries (total): 15%
Talk piece (including draft): 20%
Topic essay (including draft): 20%
Longer reported piece (including draft): 30%
Class participation: 15%
Your grade is not based solely on an assessment of your writing, nor is based solely on whether you accomplished every item on my checklist. Doing good writing and being a good student are equally important.
A NOTE ABOUT SAVING YOUR WRITING
There can be no excuse in the year 2009 for losing one’s only copy of a piece of writing. Never carry around a piece of writing without making sure that you’ve also saved that piece of writing to 1) a hard drive somewhere 2) a server somewhere (by e-mailing it to yourself) 3) a second storage medium such as a USB drive, or 4) a paper copy. Preferably, you’ll use several of these methods at once. Please don’t come to me and say and say “I only had one copy.”
PLAGIARISM AND LATE ASSIGNMENTS
Here is the definition of plagiarism, according to the English Department:
Plagiarism means using the exact words, opinions, or factual information from another person without giving that person credit. Writers give credit through accepted documentation styles, such as parenthetical citation, footnotes, or end notes; a simple listing of books and articles is not sufficient. Plagiarism is the equivalent of intellectual robbery and cannot be tolerated in the academic setting.
Egregious plagiarism will result in an F for the assignment and a report of an Honor Code violation.
Late papers and assignments will be penalized. This penalty will depend on the nature of the offense; for example, an assignment one day late will suffer less than an assignment five days late. (The minimum penalty, though, is a half-grade reduction.) No assignment a week late or more will receive a passing grade. I will consider, though not automatically grant, extension requests made at least one class period in advance–but only if such requests are infrequent.
OFFICE OF DISABILITY RESOURCES
If you are a student with a disability and you need academic accommodations, please see me and contact the Office of Disability Resources at 703/993-2474. All academic accommodations must be arranged through that office.
