21W731
Section 5: Approaches to Memory (CI-HW)
Dr.
Ann Snodgrass
14N-239
(annarlen@mit.edu)
TR
2-3 & by appointment
TEXTS
Required:
Michael
Ondaatje, Running in the Family
Daniel
Schacter, Seraching
for Memory
W.
G. Sebald,
William
Zinsser, ed., Inventing the Truth
Reserve:
Charles
Baxter, ed., The
Business of Memory
Cynthia
Ozick, Metaphor and Memory
Oliver
Sacks, Uncle Tungsten
Description
Great
is the power of memory, an awe-inspiring
mystery...a
power of profound and infinite multi-
plicity. And
this is mind, this is I myself. --
From
the time of the above quote and
the boundaries between the self and memory, memory has
remained an
important area of study in several disciplines. Its enduring
quality may
be located in the troubling questions it raises about the
probability of
any single objective reality and our capacity to fully
comprehend any
single past event that we were not part of. By showing how
past forces and
events continue to shape the presenst,
it also tends to blur comfortable
distinctions made between past, present, and future. In this class, we will
examine the more contemporary questions of how memory shapes
narratives
we use to define ourselves and how it shapes national
identity. Daniel
Schacter’s more scientific approach to memory constructs
will be used as
a base for discussions of
texts and paper assignments. Schacter’s categories
will be the lens, for example, through which we approach the
myth of self
constructed by Ondaatje as contrasted to the myth of nation
constructed by
Sebald. Through class assignments, papers, and
presentations, we will
then examine as a class the myths of self and nation that we
live with.
Assignments
The
core component of the final grade will be five major papers: a descriptive
paper on childhood due Feb. 26; a definition paper due on
March 19; a
persuasive paper on ethical issues raised by memory constructs
due April 9;
a major revision paper due on April 25; and a final “
the last day of class.
Two class presentations will also be required as well as
a debate. The class depends on you as a member; only three
absences are allowed.
As a CI course member, you should produce a minumum
of 20 pages
this term beyond revisions.
Oral expression is also strssed.
Writing is weighted more heavily during the second half of the semester
in
order to be
sure that improvement is reflected in the final grade. Please keep
a copy of all writing you turn in on a diskette or in hard
copy and remember
to use reasonable font and margins (to be defined in
class). “A” work is
original in its vision, so please take the time to make
personal connections
to class texts. Any
student with a B or higher passes Phase I.
In the case of
a C, the decision will be made on a case-by-case basis. “D”s and “F”s do not pass.
Plagiarism: Please avoid this at all costs and see http://web.mit.edu/writing
if you have any questions about what constitutes a case of
plagiarism.
Additional
Comments
Two
personal conferences are also required during the term to focus on
personal writing tendencies:
the first as a way of agreeing on a personal
agenda or set of goals for the term and the second as a type
of self-evaluation.
Remember
you’ll need to bring copies of your work to class on workshop
days for peer critique.
Finally, to be fair to others who do meet deadlines,
half a grade will be deleted for each class period that a
paper is not turned in
after the due date.
Extensions are invited when necessary, but need approval.
* * *
T
2/ 5: Intro., origins/earliest memory ex., and “Memory Quote” hand-out
R
2/ 7: Alfred Kazin’s
“The Kitchen” hand-out
T
2/12: CHILDHOOD: Alfred Kazin’s “The
Past” in Z. p. 119
R
2/14: CHILDHOOD: Annie Dillard’s “To Fashion a Text” in Z.
p.14
T
2/19: Monday Schedule
R
2/21: Descriptive childhood essay
workshop
T
2/26: Paper I Due. First set of Schacter
presentations: “Remembering”;
“Encoding
& Retrieving”; and “Autobiography”
R
2/28: Second set of Schacter
presentations: “Distortion”; “Implicit Memory”;
“Emotional
Memory” (and presentation evaluations)
T
3/ 5: Borges “Funes,
the Memorious” hand-out
R
3/ 7: FAMILY: Henry Louis Gates’s
“Lifting the Veil” in Z. p. 101
T
3/12: FAMILY: Ian Frazier’s “Looking” in
Z. p.163
R
3/14: Definition essay workshop
T 3/19: Paper II Due. Ondaatje poems hand-out
R 3/21: Begin Running in the
Family
T 3/26: Spring Break
R
3/28: Spring Break
T
4/ 2: continue Running in the Family (with
please come into class with one page written on “difference”
with text)
R
4/ 4: finish Running in the Family
T
4/ 9: Mid-term Paper III Due. Debate discussion & preperation
R
4/11: Research assignment, out-of-class
T
4/16: Patriot’s Day
R
4/18: Ondaatje Debate. Revision hand-out
T
4/23: FAMILY(LESSNESS):
Toni Morrison’s “Memory” in Z. p. 183
R
4/25: Paper IV Due. Grammar discussion/examples
T
4/30: Begin
R
5/ 2: Continue
T
5/ 7: Finish
R
5/ 9: ETHICS: Patricia Hample’s
“Other People’s Secrets” and
Salinger
hand-outs
T
5/14: Final Paper workshop
R5/16: Final Paper/Projects Due
Have a great summer!