ENG 6313.50
Studies in Rhetorical Criticism and Discourse Analysis: The Bakhtin Circle
Summer III 2006
Mikhail Bakhtin
Course Name, Number, and Description: Description: The 2005-2007 Texas Woman's University General Catalog describes the course in this way: "ENG 6313. Studies in Rhetorical Criticism and Discourse Analysis. Directed investigation of topics in semiotics, narratology, discourse analysis, and stylistics as approaches to written texts and other forms of symbolic communication. May be repeated for credit when the specific topic of investigation varies. Three lecture hours a week. Credit: Three hours."
In this course, I hope to introduce you to the works of the Bakhtin Circle, a group of thinkers and writers in the early part of the twentieth century who have had a powerful influence on contemporary thought, including rhetoric. We will look extensively (but not exhaustively) at Mikhail Bakhtin's own work as well as some of the writings of such writers as V.N. Volosinov and P.N. Medvedev. I also plan to introduce you briefly to other figures within the group and suggest their importance for contemporary scholarship. This is not a Russian studies course, however; our purpose is to consider how these thoughts about the nature of language can affect our understanding of rhetoric.
Please note that this course is taught almost entirely online. After the optional orientation the course will be conducted online asynchronously on Blackboard at twu6.blackboard.com with only one required meeting all semester--for the final exam. The time and place of that examination during final exams week is as follows: Friday, August 11, 2006.
Faculty Contact
Information: Office Location, Phone, Hours:
Russell Greer, Ph.D. Associate Professor. Office: CFO 803. E-mail:
rgreer@twu.edu or
russellgreer@verizon.net.
Fax: (940) 898-2297 (English Department). Office telephone: (940) 898-2346. Website:
www.russellgreer.com
Most students find they can communicate with me quickly through the course itself online or by e-mail (rgreer@twu.edu). In addition, I will host office hours by appointment in CFO 803 from 1-3 p.m. on Wednesdays during Summer III unless otherwise indicated. If I cannot hold regular office hours, I will make an announcement on Blackboard, my website, and on the door of my office. I am usually not available in my office at other times, but I am available by phone and online. You may also leave me a voice mail at (940) 898-2346. I check for messages daily and try to return calls promptly.
Course Goals/Student Learning Outcomes:
Since most of their texts are out of print, few people have an even basic understanding of the work associated with the Bakhtin Circle, so our primary course goal will be to understand that work on its own terms. I will measure student learning outcomes in discussion questions, essays, and a final examination. Ultimately, however, the usefulness of this information will measured by the ability of these authors to inspire your own work in rhetoric.
List of textbooks and supplies:
Required: The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence. Edited by Craig Brandist, David Shepherd & Galin Tihanov. 2004. Manchester University Press. ISBN: 0-7190-6409-0.
Required: The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics. By Craig Brandist. Pluto Press, 2002. ISBN: 0-7453-1810-X.
Required: The Formal Method of Literary Scholarship by P.M. Medvedev. (various editions available)
Suggested: Marxism and the Philosophy of Language by V.N. Volosinov. (various editions available)
Suggested: Freudianism: A Critical Sketch by V.N. Volosinov. (various editions available)
Suggested: Toward a Philosophy of the Act by Mikhail Bakhtin. (1993, University of Texas Press)
Suggested: Art and Answerability by Mikhail Bakhin. (1990, University of Texas Press)
Suggested: Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics by Mikhail Bakhin. (1984, University of Minnosota Press)
Suggested: The Dialogic Imagination by Mikhail Bakhtin. (1981, University of Texas Press)
Suggested: The First Hundred Years of Mikhail Bakhtin by Caryl Emerson (1997, Princeton University Press)
Disability
Statement:
”Texas Woman's University seeks to provide appropriate academic adjustments for
all individuals with disabilities. The University will comply with all
applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and guidelines,
specifically Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA), with respect to providing appropriate academic
adjustments to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the responsibility
of the student to register with and provide medical verification and academic
schedules to Disability Support Services (DSS) at the beginning of each semester
and no later than the second week of school in a timely manner to arrange for
appropriate academic adjustment. For further information regarding Disability
Support Services or to register for assistance, please contact the office at
898-3835 (voice, 898-3830 (TDD), or visit CFO 105” (Texas Woman’s University
Office of Academic Affairs).
Grading Policy, Major Course Assignments and Examinations and Attendance:
Final Exam: 30%
Individual Essay: 30% (Week TEN)
Group Essay: 5% (Week FOUR)
PowerPoint: 5% (Week SIX)
Participation: 30% (Online Attendance: credit is given for postings to the assigned discussion questions, the reading quiz, anything posted in your group’s forum for a particular week, special assignments, and the weekly summary)
Receiving Feedback and Grades: You will receive feedback reports with grades from me four times: (1) once in Week TWO to cover your participation in Week ONE; (2) once in Week FIVE to cover through Week FOUR and the group essay; (3) once in Week NINE to cover through Week EIGHT, the PowerPoint presentation and the individual essay; and (4) once after the final examination with your final grade. If you would like additional feedback, you may make an appointment with me in my office during office hours, and I will provide it while you wait and also give you verbal feedback.
Midterm Conference: Please note that if you have a failing grade after Week FOUR, I will need to meet with you in person in my office to discuss ways to improve your grade.
Online Attendance (Participation): Thirty percent of your final grade will depend on your participation online. You must post a minimum of TEN times a week on the discussion question forums (including the weekly summary) and in your groups. Some of these postings will be responses to the study questions; others will be preparation of group responses; others will be responses to your classmates. If you do not post at least ten times in the assigned week, do not expect a good participation grade for that week. I will give you a participation grade for every week and announce them periodically, usually when I return a major assignment such as an essay. Your grade will be determined by (1) the amount of postings and (2) the quality of the postings (equally weighted). I calculate participation for a week that begins on Monday and ends at midnight on the following Sunday. Your postings do not need to be long (100-240 words for a primary answer to a discussion question is adequate, and responses can be shorter), but they DO need to advance the discussion helpfully. Postings only count in the week they are due; in other words you cannot “make up” late postings after the week is over. Postings only count in the following places: (1) the discussion question forums; (2) the weekly summary forum; and (3) your group forum for the week in question. Note: Each week you will be asked to answer three discussion questions, one of which will usually be a group question (after the first week). These discussion questions will allow you to earn participation credit and share ideas with your classmates.
Student Participation Summary Form
You will post a summary to a forum provided after you have completed all your week's postings and attach a "student participation summary" form. You can find this form under COURSE INFORMATION. In this form, you will cut and paste your "top ten" postings from the week. You may edit your postings for grammar and spelling (in fact you SHOULD edit them for grammar and spelling) but not for content (I will check occasionally to make sure that the they represent your actual work from the week). I will use this summary form to assign your participation grade.
Academic Dishonesty:
“Honesty in completing assignments is essential to the mission of the university and to the development of the personal integrity of the student. Cheating, plagiarism, or other kinds of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated and will result in appropriate sanctions that may include failing an assignment, failing the class, or being suspended or expelled. Suspected cases in this course may be reported to Student Life. The specific disciplinary process for academic dishonesty is found in the TWU Student Handbook. Tools to help you avoid plagiarism are available through the TWU Libraries’ “Quick Links” under “Research Help” (http://www.twu.edu/library/literacy/index.htm)” (This statement was authorized and mandated by the TWU Provost. November 10, 2005).
Plagiarism:
The following definition of plagiarism appears in Joseph F. Trimmer’s A Guide
to MLA Documentation (Sixth Edition), published by Houghton Mifflin Company
(2004): “Plagiarism is theft. It is using someone else’s words or ideas without
giving proper credit—or without giving any credit at all—to the writer of the
original. Whether plagiarism is intentional or unintentional, it is a serious
offense…You can avoid plagiarism by taking notes carefully, by formulating and
developing your own ideas and by using quotes responsibly to support, rather
than replace, your own work” (25). Note that I have used this quotation from a
source and have given it full attribution. You should do the same with your
sources. I strongly urge you to read the discussion of academic dishonesty that
appears in Section Four of The Student Handbook and Planner 2005-2006
(pages 133-135). I intend to follow TWU policy as outlined in this handbook
exactly. It defines plagiarism in this way: “Plagiarism occurs when a student
obtains portions or elements of someone else's work, including materials
prepared by another person or agency, and presents those ideas or words as her
or his own academic work. The intentional or unintentional use by
paraphrase or direct quotation of the published work of another person without
full and clear acknowledgement shall constitute plagiarism. Students are
responsible for following guidelines of the appropriate course or discipline (ie;
MLA, APA)" (133). In this course, we will use the Modern Language
Association (MLA) format. Penalties for first-time offenses include, at the
instructor’s discretion, any of the following: (1) “Written reprimand”; (2)
“Assignment of a lower grade on the test/paper/project in question, with an
explanation from the instructor”; (3) “Assignment of a 0 on an assignment"; (4)
“Assignment of a grade of F in the course" (134). A discussion of the more
severe penalties for second offenses appears on pages 134-135. If you have
any questions about whether or not a practice constitutes plagiarism, please
contact me before you turn in the assignment. All student papers and
discussion forum postings may be checked for plagiarism with a plagiarism
website by the instructor. You will need to submit all essays to both
digital dropbox and the anti-plagiarism website
www.turnitin.com.
Tentative
calendar of classes, assignments.
Check
here for the academic calendar for Summer 2006. Please note that this daily syllabus is for planning purposes only and is
subject to change. The page number next to the reading assignment indicates
where in your text the story or essay begins.
Final Examination: This examination will have two parts. The first part will be objective. In it, you will be required to define terms, identify passages, and answer short questions about the narratives in the form of matching, multiple choice, and short answer questions. In the second part you will be required to write two short essays in class about the narratives we have read during the semester. I will give you several topics from which to choose, and you must choose two. Note: you MAY NOT use your books and notes for the first, objective portion of the exam, but YOU MAY use your books and notes for the second, open book, essay portion of the exam.
Week ONE (5-11 June 2006)
Reading:
1. "The Bakhtin Circle." by Craig Brandst.
http://www.iep.utm.edu/b/bakhtin.htm
2. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "Re-introducing the Bakhtin Circle" by David Shepherd (1-21) and [On Maxism] by L.V. Pumpianskii [212-221]
3. Selections from "Art and Answerability" and Toward a Philosophy of the Act by Mikhail Bakhtin. Provided on website at www.russellgreer.com.
4.
The Tower (http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Prologue;
Chapter 1: Teptyolkin;
Interlude I;
Chapter II: Childhood and
Youth of the Unknown Poet;
Chapter III: Interverbum I;
Chapter IV: Teptyolkin and
the Unknown Poet
Assignments:
1. Post your autobiography.
2. Form learning teams by the end of Week ONE (if you have no preference, I will assign you to a group at the beginning of Week TWO).
3. Answer all discussion questions, post weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
Week TWO
(12-18 June 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "The scholarly legacy of Pavel Medvedev in the light of his dialogue with Bakhtin" by Iurii Medvedev & Dar'ia Medvedeva (24-43).
2. Selections from Toward a Philosophy of the Act by Mikhail Bakhtin.
3.
The Tower (http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Chapter V: The Philosophy of
Asphodeliev; Chapter VI:
General Golubetz and Cornet Kovalyov;
Chapter VII: Teptyolkin's
Book;
Interlude II;
Chapter VIII: Under a Window
at Night
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, including your first group question, post a weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
Week THREE
(19-25 June 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "Seeking a 'third way' for Soviet aesthetics: Eurasianism, Marxism, Formalism" by Galin Tihanov (44-69).
2. Selections from "The problem of content, material and form in verbal artistic creation" by Mikhail Bakhtin.
3. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "Introduction" (1-26).
4.
The Tower (http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P);
Chapter IX: Poet and
Poetaster; Chapter X: A
Few of My Heroes 1921-22;
Chapter XI: The Island;
Chapter XII: The World In
Bloom
Chapter XIII: Autumn
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, post a weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
Week FOUR
(26 June to 2 July 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "The Bakhtin Circle and problems in linguistics" by Vladimir Alpatove (70-96).
2. Selections from "Author and Hero in Aesthetic Activity" by Mikhail Bakhtin.
3. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "The Early Ethical and Aesthetic Philosophy of the Circle (1919-1926)" (27-52).
4. The Tower
(http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Chapter XIV: The Tower
Abandoned
Chapter XV: Among Friends
Chapter XVI: An Evening of
Ancient Music
Chapter XVII: A Carriage
Ride with Asphodeliev
Chapter XVIII: Teptyolkin
and His Pursuers
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, post a weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
2. Group Essay Due (5%). By the end of Week FOUR, please submit a three- to-five page essay written and approved by your group that does one of the following: (1) chooses a term associated with the Bakhtin Circle, defines it, and discusses its application for any aspect of rhetoric; or (2) identifies a dialogue that existed in the Bakhtin Circle, such as its dialogue with Marxism, summarizes it, and suggests any insights from this dialogue that might advance or affect our understanding of rhetoric. Please post this group essay to me by the end of Week FOUR on digital dropbox and on turnitin.com. I will post more specific information about how to post to turnitin.com this week. On your submission, please list the members of your group who participated in writing the essay and who agree to its content. If you do not agree, then you may post your own, individual essay, by the end of Week FOUR, clearly noting that your essay represents a dissenting voice. RG
Week FIVE (3-9 July 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "Voloshinov's dilemma: on the philosophical roots of the dialogic theory of the utterance" by Craig Brandist (97-124).
2. Selections from The Formal Method in Literary Scholarship by P.M. Medvedev.
3. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "Marxism, Semiotics and Sociology (1926-29)" (53-87).
4. The Tower
(http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Chapter XIX: Interverbum II
Chapter XX: The Figure
Chapter XXI: Teptyolkin in
Torment
Chapter XXII: The Wedding
Chapter XXIII: Kovalyov's
Nocturnal Wanderings
Assignments:
1. Answer discussion questions, and complete all participation requirements.
Week SIX (10-16 July 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "Lev Pumianskii and the Nevel School of philosophy" by Nikolai Nikolaev (125-149).
2. Selections from The Formal Method in Literary Scholarship by P.M. Medvedev.
3. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "From Verbal Interaction to Dialogue: Dostoevsky and the Novel" (88-104).
4. The Tower
(http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Chapter XXIV: Under the
Poplar Trees
Chapter XXV: Interverbum III
Chapter XXVI: Teptyolkin's
Revolt
Chapter XXVII: Kostya
Rotikov, Master of Junk Art
Chapter XXVIII: Black Spring
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, and complete all participation requirements.
3. PowerPoint presentation due (5%). As you can see, this presentation does count for a significant portion of you grade. It is an individual assignment, and I hope you treat it as a pre-writing exercise. You should plan on at least ten slides (more if you need them--some presentations have done to 20 slides) to highlight some aspect of the course or reading and go into greater depth with it. I do not require that you have an argument associated with this presentation; it can be merely informational. But if you have an argument, go ahead and make it here and see how your classmates react as a test for further expansion in your final paper. For example, you could suggest the usefulness of Bakhtinian thought in a particular field, like education, and survey the literature on it. Or you could compare and contrast some aspect of this thought with a contrary position. Or you could review a particularly useful secondary article about the Bakhtin Circle that we have not seen, drawing our attention to its importance. The members of your class are your audience. Again, consider this a pre-writing exercise. You will post it to a forum that I will create.
Week SEVEN (17-23 July 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "Kanaev, vitalism and the Bakhtin Circle" by Ben Taylor (150-166).
2. Selections from Freudianism: A Critical Sketch by V.N. Volosinov.
3. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "The Novel and Literary History" (1934-41)" (105-132).
4. The Tower (http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Chapter XXIX: Agafonov
Chapter XXX: Misha Kotikov
Chapter XXXI: Materials
Chapter XXXII: Troytsyn
Chapter XXXIII: Interverbum
of an Established Author
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, and complete all participation requirements.
Week EIGHT (24-30 July 2006)
Reading:
1. The Bakhtin Circle: In the Master's Absence: "Sollertinskii and dialogical symphonism" by Pauline Fairclough (167-185).
2. Selections from Marxism and the Philosophy of Language by V.N. Volosinov.
3. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "The Novelist as Philosopher (1940-63)" (133-155).
4.
The Tower (http://www.websher.net/spub/twr.html#P):
Chapter XXXIV: Portfolio
Chapter XXXV: The Death of
Marya Dalmatova
Epilogue
Translator's Afterword
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, post the weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
Week NINE (31 July to 6 August 2006)
Reading:
1. Selections from Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics by Mikhail Bakhtin.
2. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "Final Methodological Works" (156-172)
Assignments:
1. Answer three discussion questions, post a weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
Week TEN (7-10 August 2006: Note--this is a short week.)
Reading:
1. Selections from "Discourse in the Novel" from The Dialogic Imagination by Mikhail Bakhtin.
2. The Bakhtin Circle: Philosophy, Culture and Politics by Craig Brandist: "The Bakhtinian Research Programme Yesterday and Today" (173-191).
Assignments:
1. Answer all discussion questions, post a weekly summary, and complete all participation requirements.
2. Individual Essay Due (30%). I will provide more information by Week FIVE.
Final Examination (30%). You must take the final examination during the final examination period to receive full credit for the course. I cannot schedule the examination BEFORE the final examination period. If you cannot attend, then you must apply for an incomplete before the time of the final examination. When it is approved, you can schedule a make-up with me in my office in fall 2006. If you do not apply for an incomplete and do not attend the final examination in person, you will receive a zero for forty percent of the course. The final examination will be held on Friday, August 11, 2006. It will consist of two parts. Part I is objective, and you may not use your books or notes for it. You will define terms and answer short answer questions. For Part II you will write two in-class essays, and you MAY use your books and notes for this portion of the exam.
Last updated: 18
July 2006