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Bard College Catalogue 2009-2010
2009-2010
Written Arts
http://writtenarts.bard.edu FacultyMary Caponegro and Robert Kelly (directors), Emily Barton, Celia Bland, Lianne Habinek, Michael Ives, Verlyn Klinkenborg*, Ann Lauterbach, Edie Meidav, Chiori Miyagawa, Bradford Morrow, Francine Prose, Joan Retallack, Susan Fox Rogers, Luc Sante, Mona Simpson, Peter Sourian, Binyavanga Wainaina
* leave of absence, 2009–10 OverviewAt Bard, writing is seen as a process that engages the student in an ardent investigation of the nature and varieties of art, so that the student’s work is understood in the context of the arts of the present and past. The careful study of literature and critical theory are essential components of the curriculum. The Written Arts Program offers a supportive environment in which the works produced meet with response in workshops and tutorials led by professional writers who are also teachers. Respecting individual uniqueness, the program proposes to liberate students even as it insists on the importance of a growing awareness of intellectual and social concerns. Every writing student is expected to investigate poetics and literary theory, and to invest substantially in courses in history, philosophy, and the arts. Writing workshops are offered every semester at several levels. Nonmajors and majors are encouraged to apply. Entry to fiction, nonfiction, and poetry workshops is by submission of writing samples to the teacher. Other workshops explore specialized varieties of writing, including translation and cultural reportage; entry to these workshops is by consultation with the instructor. Application deadlines are announced each semester. RequirementsAt least one writing workshop; at least two courses in British, U.S., or comparative literature; a reading knowledge of a foreign language; and an analytical paper. A portfolio of original writing in one or more genres may also be submitted. Students who propose to do a Senior Project in writing are required to have demonstrated strong academic performance. They must submit a substantial portfolio of recent creative work to a board made up of two members of the writing faculty, who determine whether the project seems appropriate and help the student find the appropriate adviser. CoursesIn addition to the courses listed below, other programs may offer writing courses and workshops specific to their subjects. Examples include Film 211-212, Screenwriting I; and Theater 207-208, Playwriting I and II. Written Arts
Literature 100
In this writing-intensive course, open only to first-year students, the class explores noteworthy examples of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction in order to understand important elements of craft. First Fiction Workshop
Literature 121
Students read selected writers and discuss general writing principles. Student work is examined through group response, analysis, and evaluation. The course is open by permission of the instructor; a writing sample is required. First Poetry Workshop
Literature 123
This workshop focuses on the student’s own writing, along with the articulation of responses to the writing of others. Readings develop familiarity with poetic form, movement, and energy. Attendance at poetry readings and lectures is required. Open by permission of the instructor; writing sample required. Writing the World: Nonfiction Prose
Literature 124
A course in two skills: learning to make excellent nonfiction prose and learning to see the world around you. The emphasis in nonfiction prose nearly always falls on the personal; this course turns the writer’s gaze outward and the writing to the direct experience of events. Models are drawn from history and the broad category of nonfiction writing often called “current events.” The goal is to become a compelling witness and maker of acute prose—as art, not journalism. Reading and Writing the Personal Essay
Literature 2181
This course involves equal parts reading and writing and is for students who want to develop their creative writing and analytic thinking. Readings are taken from Phillip Lopate’s The Art of the Personal Essay, which traces the long tradition of the personal essay, from Seneca to Montaigne to contemporary stylists such as Richard Rodriguez and Joan Didion. Emphasis is placed on craft; student work is critiqued in a workshop format. Candidates must submit samples of their work. Nonfiction Workshop: Writing Science
Literature 2182
Students write about science in a number of formats: essays, editorials, feature articles, and book reviews. They address the problems that inevitably arise when the search for voice confronts subject matter that is hard to simplify or explain. The course is limited to 15 students, who have passed a laboratory and/or quantitative science course at Bard. Writers Workshop: Prose Fiction
Literature 221
This course consists of practice in imaginative writing, along with readings of selected authors. Students present their work for group response, analysis, and evaluation. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Writers Workshop: Poetry
Literature 222
Students present their work to the group for analysis and response. Readings include contemporary poets and studies of the problematics of poetics. Prerequisites: at least one college-level writing workshop and a writing sample. Cultural Reportage
Literature 223
This course is for the self-motivated student interested in actively developing journalistic skills relating to cultural reportage, particularly criticism. Stress is placed on regular practice in writing reviews of plays, concerts, films, and television. Work is submitted for group response and evaluation. Readings draw from Agee, Connolly, Orwell, Shaw, Sontag, Wilson, and contemporary working critics. Poetry Workshop
Literature 322
Students present their own work to the group for analysis and response and read works by contemporary poets. Open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors by permission of the instructor. Advanced Fiction Workshop
Literature 324
Students read short fiction by established writers, and devote significant time to composing and revising their own stories. Prerequisites: a writing sample and permission of the instructor. Reading and Writing the Hudson: Writing the Essay of Place
Literature 3308
cross-listed: eus
Students get to know the Hudson River in all of its complexity through reading a range of works and writing personal essays of place. Each student undertakes independent research into some aspect of the river; this research, combined with personal experience of the valley, is used to develop extended creative nonfiction essays, which are critiqued in a workshop format. Translation Workshop
Literature 331
This workshop explores the art of literary translation by focusing on style, craft, tone, and the array of options available to the literary translator in using translation as a tool for interpreting textual origins and the performative shape of the translation itself. Prerequisite: one year of language study or permission of the instructor. Advanced Fiction: The Novella
Literature 3500
Students read novellas by Henry James, Gustave Flaubert, Anton Chekhov, Flannery O’Connor, Allan Gurganus, Amy Hempel, and Philip Roth. Using these primary texts for reference, the class discusses technical aspects of fiction writing, such as the use of time, narrative voice, openings, endings, dialogue, circularity, and editing, from the point of view of writers, focusing closely on the student’s own work. In addition to writing weekly responses to assigned reading, students write and revise a novella. Writing Workshop for Nonmajors
Literature 422
Every craft, science, skill, and discipline can be articulated, and anyone who can do real work in science or scholarship or art can learn to write “creatively”—to make personal concerns interesting to other people by means of language. This workshop, for juniors and seniors who are not writing majors but wish to learn about the world through the act of writing, provides the chance to experiment with all kinds of writing.
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