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Fall 2000 | |
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English 282 |
Rice 9; (440) 775-8579 |
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MWF, 10:00-10:50 |
Office hours: MWF 12:20-1:20 |
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Envir. St. 201 |
E-mail: deborah.geis@oberlin.edu |
The purpose of this course is to acquaint students with a range of dramatic works from the ancient Greeks to the present, and to introduce them to the critical vocabulary used in discussing theater. Our goals will be to expand our understanding of theatrical history and discourse and to express this understanding through written work and course participation.
TEXTS: Please note that the following list is subject to changes and will be supplemented by some handouts. If at all possible, please try to buy all of the books at the beginning of the term, as some may be difficult to obtain later.
ATTENDANCE: Because our time together is extremely limited and because each class session will cover a great deal of material, it is absolutely essential that you attend class regularly, arrive on time with the required material for each session, and participate in class discussions and activities. A significant percentage of your final grade (see GRADES) will be based on your attendance and participation. If you miss more than three class meetings (not including any class for which you have a documented medical excuse), it will lower your grade. If you know that you have conflicts that will prevent you from attending class regularly and arriving promptly, please do not enroll for this course.
LATE PAPER POLICY: I expect you to hand in all work, prepared according to the format specified for each assignment, on the required due dates. If you have a good reason for submitting an assignment later than the deadline, please notify me in advance so that we can negotiate a new deadline. Any late work will be penalized by one letter grade for each weekday past the due date (e.g., a "B-" paper submitted two weekdays late becomes a "C" and so forth).
CONFERENCES: For help with your work, or if you have questions about anything else, please feel free to meet with me during my office hours. If my office hours don't fit your schedule, you may also make an appointment with me at a different time. You are also welcome to contact me by email at any time. When you make an appointment and are unable to keep it, please notify me in advance.
PLAGIARISM: Students in this course are expected to abide by Oberlin's honor code. Plagiarism occurs when you use someone else's words or ideas without acknowledging the person and/or source appropriately. This includes the work of another student as well as any other type of source. For more information on proper acknowledgment of sources and on the definitions of plagiarism, you can consult a recent edition of any college writing handbook. If you have any questions about whether your use of material constitutes plagiarism, please don't hesitate to ask me. If you submit work that appears to be in violation of Oberlin's honor code, it will be submitted to the student honor code committee. Believe me, plagiarism is simply not worth the risk!
GRADES: Note that you must complete all work to pass the course.
Frankly, I would prefer not to assign you letter grades at all, but I don't have that option. Please keep in mind that a grade is my evaluation of a specific piece of work, not of "you" or of your background. Try not to become so anxious about your grade that you lose track of the more important educational aims of the course. Here's to an exciting and productive semester!
Tentative Syllabus for the Course
Always read ahead on the syllabus and make sure that you have the reading and assignments prepared for the correct dates, and that you always bring the relevant text(s) to class. Works listed below are in W.B. Worthen, ed., The Harcourt Brace Anthology of Drama, 3rd ed., except for Brecht, Beckett, and Brown. Critical readings in the textbook are indicated by "Worthen."
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Wed. 9/6 Fri. 9/8 |
Introduction to the course Introduction to the course, continued; background on Greek theater (read Worthen pp. 13-24) |
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Mon. 9/11 Wed. 9/13 Fri. 9/15 |
Aristophanes, Lysistrata Lysistrata classical Japanese theater: read Worthen pp. 155-171; Kan'ami Kiyotsugu, Matsukaze |
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Mon. 9/18
Fri. 9/22 |
Shakespearean theater: read Worthen, pp. 227-239; William Shakespeare, The Tempest The Tempest The Tempest |
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Mon. 9/25 Wed. 9/27
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Aime Cesaire, A Tempest A Tempest; Carlyle Brown, The African Company Presents Richard III (Dramatists Play Service text) The African Company Presents Richard III |
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Mon. 10/2 Wed. 10/4 Fri. 10/6 |
Anton Chekhov, The Cherry Orchard The Cherry Orchard Sam Shepard, True West |
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Mon. 10/9 Wed. 10/11 Fri. 10/13 |
no class: Yom Kippur True West; discuss production of The African Company Presents Richard III Luigi Pirandello, Six Characters in Search of an Author |
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Mon. 10/16-Fri. 10/20 |
no class: fall break |
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Mon. 10/23 Wed. 10/25
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Six Characters in Search of an Author; discuss production of True West Brechtian theater: read Brecht, "Theatre for Pleasure or Theatre for Instruction," in Worthen, pp. 889-893; Bertolt Brecht, Threepenny Opera (Grove text) Threepenny Opera |
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Mon. 10/30 Wed. 11/1 Fri. 11/3 |
Threepenny Opera; review for midterm exam Midterm exam Tennessee Williams, The Glass Menagerie |
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Mon. 11/6 Wed. 11/8
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The Glass Menagerie Black revolutionary theater: read Baraka, "The Revolutionary Theater," in Worthen, pp. 1164-1166; Amiri Baraka, Dutchman Dutchman; Luis Valdez, Los Vendidos |
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Mon. 11/13
Fri. 11/17 |
Samuel Beckett, Krapp's Last Tape and Not I (in Beckett, Collected Shorter Plays [Grove]) Beckett, Catastrophe (in Collected Shorter Plays) Maishe Maponya, Gangsters |
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Mon. 11/20 Wed. 11/22 Fri. 11/24: |
Caryl Churchill, Cloud Nine Cloud Nine no class Thanksgiving break |
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Mon. 11/27 Wed. 11/29 Fri. 12/1 David |
Brian Friel, Translations Translations Henry Hwang, M Butterfly |
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Mon. 12/4 Wed. 12/6 Fri. 12/8 |
M Butterfly Anna Deavere Smith, Fires in the Mirror Fires in the Mirror |
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Mon. 12/11 Wed. 12/13 |
Tony Kushner, Angels in America Pt. I: Millennium Approaches Angels in America; ; read Aronson, "Design for Angels in America: Envisioning the Millennium," in Worthen, pp. 1175-1182 |
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Mon. Dec. 18, 7pm |
Final exam |
Relevant production dates:
Wendy MacLeod, The House of Yes, 9/28-10/1
**Carlyle Brown, The African Company Presents Richard III, 10/6-10/8
**Sam Shepard, True West, 10/12-10/13
Shakespeare, Macbeth, first week of November (Cleveland)
Don Nigro, Lucia Mad, 11/30 12/3