Modern American Literature

Teacher: James Jennings, Community High School
Year Course 10 units of English credit
Advanced Literature Course for Juniors and Seniors
Prerequisite: Enrollment in D. Hutchinson’s Modern American History class.
Homework: Approximately five hours per week.

Description: This course will survey American authors from colonization through contemporary times; the Post-reconstruction period will be emphasized. There will be six to eight two page essays per semester to hone analytic writing skills as well as grammar and syntax. We will review documentation procedures, citation rules, and proper bibliography procedures needed for research papers. Daily discussions will compare and contrast styles, use of literary devices, points of view, as well as develop critical thinking with respect to political, social and philosophical issues.

Reading List: “The Tempest,” Beloved, Scarlet Letter, Benito Cereno, Beloved, Grapes of Wrath, Puddin’head Wilson, Great Gatsby, Ceremony, Snow Falling on Cedars, The Invisible Man, Slaughter-House Five, Hiroshima, The Crucible.

Assignments: There will be reading assignments of about 80 pages per week. There will be a comprehension quiz covering reading assignments on a weekly basis (usually Thursday). Creative writing assignments embedding vocabulary words may be done in class if students are efficient with time management, otherwise they will become homework due on Thursday before quiz.