Introduction to Literature
Our Introduction to Literature course is designed to teach students 1) what literature is, 2) how to think about and discuss literature, and 3) how to write about literature. The course is taught by Dr. Melissa Siik. You can read more about Dr. Siik on our About Us page. Enrollments for the Introduction to Literature course can be placed at http://www.mywriteguide.com/newenrollmentliterature.cfm.
The course is three months long, and is comprised of 12 separate lessons. The cost is $210.00. Each of the 12 lessons is delivered through your own private web portal, where students will communicate with Dr. Siik. Please note that you must be able to send, receive, and work in MS Word in order to participate in the course. Each lesson is sent to the student on a Monday, at which point the student is given four days (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday) to review the lesson, and to complete the assignments contained therein. The assignment for each week is always due on Friday. During the week, students are free to correspond with the instructor each day to ask questions, and to receive any necessary guidance. The instructor will always reply within 24 hours. Graded assignments will be returned to students on Monday of the following week. A final grade will be given at the end of the course. Most of the course material will be comprised of short stories. Other materials will include poetry and excerpts from larger works (to which the instructor will provide links).
Below is a list of the lessons in the order in which they'll be taught:
Week 1: What is Literature and How do We Read It?
Read: Rudyard Kipling’s “The King’s Ankus”
Write: Short response (400-600 words) to Kipling’s story, discussing what literature is.
Week 2: Why do We Read Literature?
Read: Excerpts from Ovid’s Metamorphosis, Book I, Excerpts from The Old Testament, Genesis
Write: Short response (400-600 words) to the excerpts, answering the question of why we read literature.
Week 3: Characters
Read: Excerpts from Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of one character from Dickens.
Week 4: Setting
Read: Jim Heynen’s “What Happened During the Ice Storm”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of the setting in Heynen’s story.
Week 5: Point of View
Read: Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of the point of view in Poe’s story.
Week 6: Plot
Read: Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Minister’s Black Veil”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of the plot in Hawthorne’s story.
Week 7: Theme
Read: Gabriel García Márquez’s “One of These Days”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of the theme in Márquez’s story.
Week 8: Tone
Read: Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of the tone in Swift’s letter.
Week 9: Introducing Poetry: Sounds and Sights
Read: Bill Collins’ “Introduction to Poetry”, William Butler Yeats’ “The Lake Isle of Innisfree”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of Yeats’ poem.
Week 10: Introducing Poetry: Figurative Language
Read: John Donne’s Holy Sonnet 14: “Batter My Heart”
Write: Short analysis (400-600 words) of Donne’s sonnet.
Week 11: Bringing Everything Together: Poetry
Read: Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess”
Write: Long assignment on Browning’s poem.
Week 12: Bringing Everything Together: Prose
Read: Kate Chopin’s “Story of an Hour”
Write: Long assignment on Chopin’s story.
Enrollments for the Introduction to Literature course can be placed at http://www.mywriteguide.com/newenrollmentliterature.cfm.