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Biology/English 223 |
Anne Dalke (English House, ext. 5308, adalke@brynmawr.edu)
Paul Grobstein (Park Science Building, ext. 5098, pgrobste@brynmawr.edu)
http://serendipstudio.org/sci_cult/evolit/s05/
"And so a strange new possibility is arising.
Compromised, indefinite, sketchy, but not entirely
obliterated: free will is making a comeback.
Biology gives you a brain. Life turns it into a mind."
Middlesex (p. 479)
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We will experiment, in this course, with two interrelated and reciprocal inquiries: whether the biological concept of evolution is a useful one in understanding the phenomena of literature (in particular: the generation of new stories), and whether literature contributes to a deeper understanding of evolution. We will begin with an exploration of the basis for the "story" of evolution as developed by biologists, move on to a consideration of the relevance of the concept of evolution for making sense of other bodies of information and observations, and then turn to a consideration of one literary story growing out of another. We will ask repeatedly: Where do stories (scientific and literary) come from? Why do new ones emerge? What causes them to change? Why do (must?) some of them disappear? We will consider the parallels between diversity of stories and diversity of living organisms, and think about what new insights into evolution and literature emerge from such considerations.
Required Texts: Ernst Mayr. What Evolution Is. New York: Basic, 2001.
Daniel Dennett. Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Herculine Barbin: Being the Recently Discovered Memoirs of a Nineteenth-Century French Hermaphrodite. Intro. Michel Foucault. Trans. Richard McDougall. New York: Pantheon, 1980. Jeffrey Eugenides. Middlesex. New York: St. Martin's, 2002. Virginia Woolf. Orlando: A Biography. 1928; rpt. New York: Harvest.
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Week One: Playing/Setting Things Up
Mon, Jan. 17 Welcome!...to Continuity and Catastrophe
By 5 p.m. on Tues, 1/18, post in the course forum your response to the conversation above and the readings below....
Wed, Jan. 19
Genesis 6-10, King James Bible
William J. Broad. "Deadly and Yet Necessary, Quakes Renew the Planet." The New York Times. January 11, 2005.
John Burdett. "Meeting Death With a Cool Heart."The New York Times. January 13, 2005. A35.
Weeks Two-Four: Where Does the Story of Biological Evolution Come From? Mon, Jan. 24 Mayr. Chapters 1-4 (pp. 3-82) Wed, Jan. 26 Mayr, Chapters 1-4, continued Mon, Jan. 31 Mayr, Chapters 5-8 (pp. 83-173) Wed, Feb. 2 Mayr, Chapters 5-8, continued Mon, Feb. 7 Mayr, Chapters 9-12 (pp. 174-268) Wed, Feb. 9 Mayr, Chapters 9-12, continued |
Fri, Feb.11 Paper #1 due
Write 3-4 pp. in which you think through some problem that has been raised in your mind by our discussion of biological evolution. This is not a "reaction paper" (like your forum postings), but should rather make a claim, develop a thesis, and support it with evidence which you have drawn from several new resources you have located (either in the form of written texts or on the web).
Some sample topics:
Weeks Five-Seven: Is Evolution a Useful Story Beyond Biology? Mon, Feb. 14 Dennett, Part I: Starting in the Middle (pp. 17-145) Wed, Feb. 16 Dennett, Part I, continued Mon, Feb. 21 Dennett, Chapters 12-14 (pp. 335-427) Wed, Feb. 23 Dennett, Chapters 12-14, continued Mon, Feb. 28 Dennett, Chapters 15-18 (pp. 428-521) Wed, Mar. 2 Dennett, Chapters 15-18, continued Fri, Mar. 4 Paper #2 due 3-4 pp. on some aspect of the story of evolution beyond the context of biology which is of particular interest or use to you. Submit a hard copy and post a copy of the paper in a course web forum (see Paper Preparation and Submission). SPRING BREAK |
Weeks Eight-Thirteen: How and why do Literary Stories Evolve? Mon, Mar. 14 Middlesex Wed, Mar. 16 " Mon, Mar. 21 " Wed, Mar. 23 " Mon, Mar. 28 Herculine Barbin Wed, Mar. 30 " Mon, Apr. 4 " Wed, Apr. 6 " Mon, Apr. 11 Orlando Wed, Apr. 13 "
Fri, Apr. 15 Paper #3 due:
Mon, Apr. 18 Orlando
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Week Fourteen (Mon, Apr. 25 and Wed, Apr. 27) Bringing it all together--telling each other new stories
Paper #4 and Portfolio Due. Paper #4: 10-12 pp. in which you make use of the biological, philosophical and literary stories of the course to create a new, interesting, useful story of your own--one that might well (in consultation with your instructor) have a creative dimension. Instructions for Preparing Your Portfolio |
Course Requirements:
Grading:
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