English 4w Guidelines

English 4W: Critical Reading & Writing

REQUIREMENTS

The catalog defines English 4W as an “Introduction to literary analysis, with close reading and carefully written exposition of selections from the principal modes of literature: poetry, prose fiction, and drama." We recommend 15 to 20 pages of revised writing. "Satisfies Writing II requirement."

As preparation for the English major, English 4W introduces students to the kinds of reading practices they will use in the 10 series (and beyond) and to the protocols of analytical writing and thinking they will use for the rest of their lives. As a general literature and Writing II requirement for other majors and programs (e.g., Economics, Theatre, all the STEM majors), English 4W introduces students to the historical and generic variety of literature (to increase their understanding of the critical relationship between cultural traditions, social issues, and literary works) and to strategies for writing essays about literature (to increase their capacity to produce incisive, compelling analyses).

Before each quarter begins, all teachers of English 4W must submit their syllabi to the department database for the record (see Riza Freeman, rfreeman@english.ucla.edu), and to the TA Coordinator (Chris Mott) for review.

GENERAL GOALS

Close Reading & Literary Analysis

In English 4W, we want our students to learn to read through and beyond the factual details of the text; we want our students to read and write about literature as art that negotiates cultural and aesthetic ambiguities and controversies. Our classes should focus on the formal mechanics, techniques, and ramifications of literary representation: e.g., the use of foils to define character, the use of parallel situations to create a meaningful sequence of events, the use of free indirect discourse to complicate perspective. We want students to become fluent in the language of literary criticism, to comprehend, employ, and interrogate the methods of our discipline. We want them to learn how to refine their grasp of what a piece means, so that they can explain how the piece creates meaning and why it means what it means. Such an approach emphasizes the exploration of aesthetic and cultural questions, and promotes sustained analysis and argumentation beyond the mere identification of literary features.

Written Explication & Revision

Discussion and lecture provide students with an opportunity to understand the conventions of literary criticism and to practice producing interpretations at increasing levels of complexity. Ultimately, the practice of literary analysis in discussions aims to produce independent thinkers who will be able to interrogate literature using their own questions derived from disciplinary practices. In addition, students will be able to write about their literary insights using acceptable conventions of academic discourse, such as the debatable thesis statement, topic sentences that identify and extend the stakes of the argument, evidence-based analysis, and a coherently organized and carefully developed essay.

Many students may be accustomed to paraphrasing difficult literary language and identifying formal and/or thematic features of a work. However, they will often feel uncomfortable or unable to translate identification into interpretation, into debatable claims about the piece’s social or artistic comment in terms that will support a paper-length argument. English 4w aims to enable students to build from local insights through understanding of literary and social conventions that shape a piece’s significance, to a coherent claim about the piece’s meaning, to a sustained analysis based on that claim. English 4w students learn about this building process through learning activities inside and outside the classroom, activities that include a reflective assessment component.

Thus, it may be helpful to think of discussions and office hours (indeed, all interaction) as part of the composition process wherein a critical dialogue of feedback can be established to enable students to develop written and oral expression. Often simply representing discussions as pre-writing can help students engage in the kind of sustained analysis and argumentation that they will use to write their papers.

In English 4W, our reading assignments, in-class exercises, journal entries, class discussions, and writing assignments (including--especially--revision exercises) should all aim at improving students’ critical reading and writing skills. Teacher feedback is crucial to student improvement. In English 4w, students receive constructive comments from the instructor on all of their work. Indeed, feedback is part of a process of formative assessment that works as a developmental dialogue between student and teacher. Because this dialogue is so important to student improvement, English 4w instructors encourage their students to express not only their understanding of the material, but of the teacher’s feedback as well. This might include having the student paraphrase the feedback or asking the student to compose goals for the next assignment based on feedback for previous work.

Please use this link to find the university’s definition of Writing II.

Research Component

English 4w provides students with a general introduction to the resources available to them to construct a deeper understanding of literature by way of awareness of the critical conversation around texts and issues. Usually, this entails some orientation to the university library and its research tools, including, or perhaps especially, online tools. Previous 4w instructors have asked students to excavate the material culture of the course’s primary texts, dig into one of the many archives of cultural materials (databases) to establish the cultural and aesthetic context of the primary material, or refine specific interpretations by way of professional commentaries found in disciplinary publications.

Whatever the specific exercises, students learn how to enrich their interpretation of the literature by deftly incorporating their findings into their written work.

WI+RE Links to an external site.: This is a major highlight of the university's online research education suite of tools. Please do familiarize yourself with this growing resource as it contains many student-produced videos addressing a wide-variety of research strategies, as well as the basic process of building a research project.

Historical Coverage & Diversity

English 4W should introduce our students to ways of approaching literature written in different literary periods and cultural traditions. Ideally, a 4w syllabus would contain ancient and modern, British, American and Anglophone, canonical and non-canonical literature. Equally important, the course should represent a variety of class, race, & gender authors, characters, environments, and issues. To do so without producing a smorgasbord effect, instructors often choose a guiding thematic or formal question that speaks to the readings. Another approach would be to pair your readings. A few examples:

            --Shakespeare’s Hamlet with Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead

            --Cather’s “Paul’s Case” with Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blue’s”

            --Whitman’s “Song of Myself” with Rankine’s Citizen

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Ordering Texts

ASUCLA book orders are due extremely early; your course assignment (4w) notification letter contains ordering and contact information through ASUCLA. Remember, too, that many instructors are using the Bruin Learn site as a repository of course materials, including textbooks. Please ask around, including, of course the TA Coordinator and Consultant, and the Bruin Learn Resource Page about how to use your course website to provide course materials to students. You can use the department copy/scan machines to scan the material. With this option, be careful about violating copyright laws. You might find answers to copyright questions through our library about university policies and their page of general resources regarding copyright.

Classrooms

The UCLA Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) offers a website with pertinent information about almost every classroom at UCLA. Once room assignments are posted, look up your classroom to make sure the room’s features are conducive to the kinds of activities and learning you’re planning for the quarter. If you’re not happy with the assignment, email Steph Bundy (stephanie@humnet.ucla.edu) as soon as possible to see if she can switch rooms.

TA Mini-Grants

Check out TLC’s Mini-Grant program to help fund field trips, honoraria for guest speakers, media, and course materials.

Reserve Books & Films

The College Library (Powell) can place books on reserve for you, but this should be done at least a month in advance. The English Reading Room offers limited reserve capacity. Lynda Tolly can help with that venue. The Instructional Media Collections & Services in Powell 46 has a pretty large media library, and they can connect digitized versions of films to your course website.

Syllabus & Course Help

The Hyperteach website archives 4w syllabi (around 40 syllabi). It also contains a syllabus checklist and many other resources for 4w. Don’t forget to the human resources in Kaplan Hall-- Chris Mott and Rachel Birke are always willing to consult with you on your syllabus, and your colleagues and professors are wonderful assets for course planning.

Departmental Contacts

Chris Mott (TA Coordinator)                                                            mott@humnet.ucla.edu

Rachel Birke (TA Consultant)                                                              rbirk001@g.ucla.edu