Senior Capstone Showcase: Tuesday, December 3rd @ 3:00 in HM 114

ECU Department of English and Languages

2019 Senior Capstone Showcase

East Central University

December 3, 2019

Horace Mann 114

3:00-5:30

Schedule of Presentations

3:00-3:10            Hannah Howard, “Feeling Testy: Standardized Testing in K-12                             Education”

3:10-3:20            Carly Heitland, "Bridging the Gap: Reimagining Urgency for              Pre-Service Teachers."

3:20-3:30            Miranda Mullins, “Boys Will Be Boys: Rape Culture and Sexual Assault”

3:30-3:40            Ashley Gregory, “My Eating Disorder: A Critical Memoir”

3:40-3:50            Casi Hembree Brintle “Existential Perspectives on Depression 
                          and Anxiety.”

3:50-4:20            Intermission with Light Refreshments

4:20-4:30            Rachel Galvan, “Selfless Heart” (creative)

4:30-4:40            Abby Nance, “Dunnottar Castle” (creative)

4:40-4:50            Ginger Johnson, “Falling Short” (creative)

4:50-5:00            Destiny Pasley, “Real and Novel Atheists: The Relationship                Between Actual and Literary Atheists”

5:00-5:10            Avery Stevens, “On Growing Up, Gardening, and Going to               Hell: Self-Invention with Huck and Candide”

5:10-5:20            Lauren Jolly, “I’m Not Looking at You: An Examination of                 Sartre’s ‘The Look’ Within Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s           Tale, Kate Chopin’s ‘The Recovery’ and Neil Gaiman’s Coraline”

Thursday, Dec.5: Poetry/Prose Open Mic @ North Lounge sponsored by the Creative Writing Club

From Dr. Walling:
The Creative Writing group's final gathering this semester will occur on Thursday, Dec. 5, at 2:30 in the North Lounge (across from the bookstore). We are going to host a reading at the end of every semester. This event will be an Open Mic. Anyone who wishes to read their work may do so. I do not need to know in advance if you wish to read. I will compile a list of readers at the event. 

Any faculty member, staff member or student may read. We will alternate between shorter works and longer works. One of our members, Cody Baggerly, is off to a great start on a film script. His work will be dramatically interpreted by student readers. Please help us spread the word. Refreshments will be provided. EVERYONE IS WELCOME!

Also, if you can't be there at 2:30, don't worry about it. Come when you can. Leave when you must. 

ECU Faculty/Alumni Featured in Dragon Poet Review

Check out the Summer/Fall 2019 issue of The Dragon Poet Review: https://dragonpoetreview.files.wordpress.com/2019/11/dpr-fall2019.pdf

The DPR is a creative writing journal which publishes a variety of poetry, fiction, memoirs, creative non-fiction , reviews, artwork, and photograph. It's published twice annually, and the Summer/Fall 2019 issue has just been released. Why does this matter to us? Because the 'Third Floor' is all over it! 

First of all, the DPR is run by two English alums, Jessica B. Isaacs (currently a professor at Seminole State) and Rayshell E. Clapper (currently a professor at Diablo Valley College), along with Jayne Shimko. Additionally, two ECU professors have works in the issue, 

* Dr. Joshua Grasso's flash fiction fantasy story, "The Girl With a Charcoal Heart":

* Dr. Ken Hada's review of Larry Thomas' new book of poems, In a Field of Cotton. 

Other names will be familiar to attendees of the Scissortail Creative Writing Festival, such as,

* Paul Bowers (who also recently read at ECU's September Poetry series)

* Paul Juhaz

* Walter Bargen

* Richard Dixon 

* Cullen Whisenhunt 

And that's only the tip of the iceberg: there are so many great poems and stories in this volume, and since it's free, it doesn't hurt to leaf through on your computer or phone (just not during class!).

English Majors Emily Angell and Casi Brintle Represent at the 13th Native American Symposium

ECU English Students Present at Professional Conference. 

On November 1, 2019, Emily Angell and Casi (Hembree) Brintle presented papers at the Thirteenth Native American Symposium held in Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant, OK. Emily, a graduate student at ECU, and Casi, an undergraduate completing her degree in English Education, presented their work at this professional conference alongside academics and other specialists from across the country. Emily and Casi both drew theoretical support from the existential theory of Albert Camus in their works, particularly his theory of revolt as an ideal response to the absurd. Though focusing on different tribes, both Emily and Casi argued that mechanisms used by indigenous communities to resist assimilation and maintain the integrity of their culture could be understood as meeting Camus’ definition of revolt. 

Emily’s paper was titled, “Storytelling as Revolt.” Casi’s paper was titled, “Tewa Culture through an Existential Lens.” Both students will have the opportunity to have their papers considered for publication in the conference proceedings volume that will be published in 2020. 

Dr. Jennifer McMahon also presented at the conference. Her essay considered the manner in which Native Americans are typically represented in film using reductive stereotypes, stereotypes challenged by the recent film, The Rider (2017). Her presentation was titled, “Cowboy, ‘Indian’, Rider: Deconstructing Dichotomous Stereotypes in The Rider.” This coming weekend, six more students from the English and Languages department will be presenting their work at a language and literature conference at the University of Central Oklahoma.

"The School System is Failing Black Students" by English Teacher-Cert Major, Sharayah Alkire

The English Department's own Sharayah Alkire has published an important, timely article on the website, Black Feminist Collective, entitled "The School System is Failing Black Students." This is a must-read for anyone interested in how 'social justice pedagogy' can transform classrooms--and the lives of their students. A brief excerpt from the article to whet your appetite:

"The only way to combat racist regimes is by inciting knowledge and passion into our students and future teachers by showing the honesty of these racist practices. By bringing more multicultural literature into the English Language Arts classroom, specifically Black American Literature, we can attempt to confront these issues with our students. Based on the books “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas and “brown girl dreaming” by Jaqueline Woodson I will attempt to explain how Civil Rights issues can help inspire empathy and revolution in our students from the Language Arts classroom. Using Paulo Freier’s book “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” and his idea of praxis to bring students to act I will show how bringing students experiences to the table along with new material they are given can help our future adults realize how they can be the change they wish to see in the world. With these techniques and classroom texts that demonstrate similar ideals students can be taught to challenge these racist systems they are growing up in and can teach them to open to ideas they may have never previously thought of."

Read the entire article here: https://blackfeministcollective.com/2019/11/09/the-school-system-is-failing-black-students/

The Annotated Spring 2020 Schedule!

Curious about the Spring 2020 course offerings? Then look no further: below you'll find a complete list of courses in Literature, Language, Writing, and Humanities, with several of them annotated (descriptions, books, etc.). If you have questions about any of the classes below, please e-mail the professor and they would be more than happy to discuss them with you. 

LITERATURE COURSES

ENG 2243: Introduction to Creative Writing (Dr. Walling) MW 1:00
This is a blended course that meets MW at 1:00. The course is for anyone interested in writing fiction, poetry, scripts, plays, graphic novels, or creative nonfiction. No experience is required. Students complete small writing assignments that help them build skills and then develop a project: collection of poems, short story, novel except, graphic novel excerpt, one-act play, play excerpt, or a creative nonfiction essay. Students determine the subject matter and genre for their major project. Experienced writers can substitute sections of a project they are already working on in place of the skill-building assignments. If students cannot take the class because of a scheduling conflict, they can contact me to discuss an online option. 

ENG 2653: British Literature from 1800, "Gothic Women" (Dr. Grasso) MWF 10:00

Though the second part of the British Literature survey course, the class will focus solely on the 'family tree' of women writers throughout the 19th and middle part of the 20th century, all of whom are writing loosely in the 'gothic' tradition. From pioneering feminist writer Mary Wollstonecraft to the postcolonial writings of Jean Rhys, we'll explore the various ways that women have made English fiction their own, adapting, transforming, and subverting genre expectations to speak in their own voice. Works include Wollstonecraft's Mary and Maria: The Wrongs of Woman, Austen's Northanger Abbey, Shelley's Frankenstein, Bronte's Wuthering Heights, Mansfield's The Garden Party and Other Stories, and Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea. 

ENG 3363: Critical Approaches (Dr. Hada) MWF 11:00

We’ll read Popular Music from Vittula (Mikael Niemi), Nobel Prize Laureate William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, and The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd), along with selected short fiction and poems while learning about various theoretical approaches that may define, enrich (or even  limit) interpretation.

ENG 3143: Introduction to Film (Dr. Walling) WEB

This is an online course that explores film from aesthetic and cultural perspectives. Students explore films as works of art, as well as examine the ongoing interrelationship between American culture and American film. We have a lot of fun examining cultural and film tropes that persist throughout each decade but change to fit the views of the times in which they films are made. A few films are required, but in most cases, students select the films they wish to view from a large pool of possibilities. Students complete small writing assignments, participate in discussions, and complete one longer paper that explores an aspect of film and culture that interests them.

ENG 3213: Shakespeare, "Shakespeare's Game of Thrones" (Dr. Grasso) TR 12:30
This Shakespeare seminar will focus on Shakespeare's tragedies, and specifically, on tragedies about the balance of power in real (but fictionalized) settings. From Ancient Rome to Prehistoric Britain, Shakespeare examines the temptations of power and the seductive lure of the crown--and whether blood, once spilled, can ever be completely washed off. Besides reading four plays, we'll also watch one (complete) in class, as well as have the opportunity to view the NYT Live Production of Richard II in January. We'll also discuss the historical roots of tragedy as well as some of its modern applications in literature and film. Books include Titus Andronicus, King Lear, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, Tragedy: A Very Short Introduction, and Shakespeare's Tragedies: A Very Short Introduction. 

ENG 3733: Teaching Literature in Secondary Schools (Dr. Dorsey) TR 11:00

ENG 4543: Am Lit PMT: The Harlem Renaissance (Dr. Nicholson-Weir) TR 9:30 

Join us Spring 2020 to explore African American Modernism and the Harlem Renaissance (as this flowering of music, art, culture, and literature from the 1920s-1940s is known today). Closely associated with the famous neighborhood in upper Manhattan, in actuality African American Modernist art occurred across the United States and continues to have a profound impact on global culture. This course is organized as a seminar, which means students can expect to contribute each class meeting in a roundtable discussion-based format. The class will draw on digital humanities and archival sources to help students develop original research projects. Contact  Dr. Nicholson-Weir at rnichlsn@ecok.edu with any questions.

WRITING COURSES

English 3183: Technical and Professional Writing (Dr. Murphy) WEB

HUMANITIES COURSES

HUM 2123: General Humanities II (Dr. Dorsey) TR 2:00

HUM 2313: Multicultural American Lit (Dr. Hughes) TR 9:30

HUM 2323: Global Literatures (Dr. Hada) 

We’ll read Things Fall Apart (Chinua Achebe) along with a variety of contemporary short fiction and poetry. Post Colonial, New Historicism and Cultural Poetics will inform the interpretation.

HUM 2633: World Religion and Thought (Dr. Donelson) MW 2:00 

In this class, we will focus on five of the most common and influential religions in the world today: Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  We’ll use the book The World’s Religions by Huston Smith, and will focus on understanding what is meaningful in each religion and how the religions influence the worldviews of their respective followers.  We’ll also ask larger questions about what religion is, what influence it has in the world, and how we can best understand other people’s perspectives. I tend to focus on what students want to know, so after covering some basic content, student questions and interests will guide what we do with class time.

 
HUM 2813: Interpreting Film (Dr. Nicholson-Weir) TR 12:30

LANGUAGE COURSES 

RUSS 1223: Elementary Russian II (Dr. Sukholutskaya)
Discover Russian culture, literature, music, cuisine, and art while continuing your studies of the Russian language! Take Elementary Russian II in the Spring 2020 semester!

FREN 1223: Elementary French II (Dr. Sukholutskaya)
Had French at high school? Completed Elementary French I at the University last semester or several semesters ago? Don’t stop now!
Take Elementary French II in Spring 2020 and continue your studies of the language and culture!

SPAN 1113: Elementary Spanish I (Dr. King) MWF 9:00

SPAN 1223: Elementary Spanish II (Dr. King) MWF 12:00

SPAN 2223: Intermediate Spanish II (Dr. King) MWF 11:00

SPAN 3243: Spanish American Culture and Civilization (Dr. King) MWF 1:00