Study and practice of good writing; topics derived from reading and discussing stories, poems, essays, and plays. Cannot be taken if student has already received a grade of 2.0 or higher in either ENGL 111, ENGL 121, or ENGL 131.
Sometimes called comics, sometimes called graphic novels, the primary texts for this course will be narratives that combine images and words to narrate historical events. Beginning from first hand witnessing and ending with a government authorized report, we will ask how the graphic medium responds to the task of reporting history. In the process we will consider whose idea of history is delivered and what makes that perspective valid (or not). At the center of our project in investigating this relatively unfamiliar form of communication lies our primary inquiry as writers in this course: what can writing do and how?
As you can see, I have many questions about the literature we'll read together. I intend these as a starting point for class discussion, and I encourage you to bring your own questions to class and to your writing, because English 111 is a writing course. We will use the literature we read not only to pursue the above questions, but also to practice and adopt flexible writing strategies for the university, careers and life in general. Some of the writing we do will be academic, some will be literary and with any luck, all of it will be interesting.
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