Purpose:
Throughout this year in sophomore English, you will further develop reading, writing, and analytical skills through close study and discussion of works across the genres of literature. To inform your reading and writing, you will study vocabulary and the elements of good prose and poetic style. All of these elements will help you broaden your literary talents, forming a foundation for future English courses and a lifelong love of reading.

We will also explore the relationship between the self and society, focusing especially on the moral choices we make, the context in which we make them, and the outcome of those choices. Questions we will consider include: are people either all good or all bad? What determines our behavior? How much of someone’s actions can be blamed on background, parenting, society, and other outside factors? Does it matter what we do, or are our lives determined by God or fate? Is there a clear line between good and evil? Can you like someone and not condone what they do? How do books and poems help us explore these questions? How can literature, in general, help us make sense of our lives and other people?

List of Texts:
Semester One
1) The Best American Short Stories of the Century, ed. John Updike
2) The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald
3) Native Son, Richard Wright
4) The Joy Luck Club, Amy Tan
5) The Princeton Review: SAT Verbal Workout, Geoff Martz

Semester Two
1) "The Miller’s Tale," Geoffrey Chaucer
2) Persuasion, Jane Austen
3) Selected Poetry from Reading Poetry: An Anthology of Poems, Robert DiYanni
4) Antigone, Sophocles
5) Othello, William Shakespeare
6) Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller
7) A Doll’s House, Henrik Ibsen
8) "The Bald Soprano," Eugene Ionesco

PSAT:
• Special concentration on skills and helpful approaches to taking the PSAT.
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Quizzes (Reading, Grammar, Vocabulary) 20% Reading quizzes may be unannounced and will be worth 5 to 10 points, checking on your understanding of the reading. Grammar and vocabulary are always scheduled in advance (see the syllabus) and are worth 10 to 20 points.

Journal Responses 20% On a regular basis, you will respond to your reading through journal and discussion questions. About twice a quarter (see the syllabus) you will develop a one-page journal response essay pertaining to a question of your choice.

Class Participation 10% As a class, we will compile the criteria for this category. Each of you will then be responsible for holding yourself to our class standards and periodically evaluating your own performance. We will discuss this more in class.

Exam (20% of semester grade) Both the Mid-year and Final are cumulative exams.

Absences are your responsibility, not mine. Please see me to make up work or find out what you’ve missed; I will not hunt you down. Please also tell me when you know you will be absent. Absence is not an excuse for turning in major assignments late. Please turn in all work on or before the due date, whether you are here or not, via friend, parent, email, or carrier pigeon. If you are absent on a major due date and want me to accept your work late, you must have a note from a parent.

Late work will lose one full grade (10 points) per day of lateness, up to 30 points. Please see me in advance for extensions if needed or if you have several assignments due on the same day. I am far more lenient when you talk with me in advance. Late essays may not be revised for a higher grade (see above). You are entitled to one (1) free computer/technical emergency that will buy you an extra day, free of penalty, on one assignment.

Email/voicemail is to be used judiciously. If you can’t make it to school on a due date, you can email your assignment as an attachment (Microsoft Word is best, otherwise Clarisworks). Please do not cut and paste! It messes with the spacing and margins and makes your work look sloppy! If you will be absent, email or leave a message in my voicemail (call the school and ask to be connected to it, or press 315 when you get the school’s message).

Meetings. Occasionally I will ask you to come see me, or you may need to do so on your own initiative. I’ll be most available periods 5 and 7, though others are possible. If you want to be sure I’ll be in my office, make an appointment.

My pet peeves: lateness to class, late assignments, rudeness, bigotry, random inappropriate comments in discussion, not telling me something I need to know.

I appreciate people who say thank you, open-mindedness, positive attitudes, balanced time management, well-rested students, a sense of perspective.

In general, if you earn an A from me, it will be because you have done truly exceptional work that brings in fresh ideas or perspectives. B’s signify that you are completing assignments adequately but are lacking an element of control, depth, risk, or clarity that would give your work a needed edge. C’s mean that you have completed the work, but it is seriously lacking key concepts, thought, or effort. D’s are reserved for work that is done with little effort on your part, usually at the last minute. F’s are usually earned on poor quizzes or late papers. It’s rare that an essay would earn an F, as I believe you really have to try to get an F. If you’ve actually written an essay, you’re not trying hard enough to fail.

If you have questions or concerns, please ask me now or at any time in the future. Please ask if you don’t know why we’re doing something or if you have a better idea.

I expect each of you to make a solid, good faith effort to do your best in this class (as I expect the same from myself). I know, however, that this class is just one of many aspects in your life so please come talk to me if something is preventing you from doing your best work.