W: THE VAMPIRE IN LITERATURE AND FILM Fall 2014

1     FINAL SYLLABUS FOR ENGLISH E-212/W: THE VAMPIRE IN LITERATURE AND FILM Fall 2014 Klaus Kinski & Isabelle Adjani, Nosferatu (1979) Kirsten Dun...
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FINAL SYLLABUS FOR ENGLISH E-212/W: THE VAMPIRE IN LITERATURE AND FILM Fall 2014

Klaus Kinski & Isabelle Adjani, Nosferatu (1979)

Kirsten Dunst, Interview with the Vampire (1994)

Robert Pattinson, Twilight (2008)

Dr. Sue Weaver Schopf Office: 51 Brattle Street, #E-705 Phone: (617) 495-9942 Conference Hours: Thursdays 11:00-4:00 (by appointment only) Email: [email protected] (the preferred medium for brief questions and comments) Course Website: http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k106199 **PLEASE NOTE: THIS COURSE IS ONLINE-ONLY, BUT REQUIRED WEEKLY, ONLINE DISCUSSION SECTIONS WILL BE ARRANGED ONCE THE COURSE BEGINS—AND A SPECIAL ON-CAMPUS “VAMPIRE WEEKEND” (not the band!) WILL TAKE PLACE ON OCTOBER 11-12 FOR MEMBERS OF THE CLASS! So get ready to make your travel arrangements if you live outside the area! See below for more information.**  

Teaching Assistants’ Contact Information: Lisa Fountain (webmistress and undergrad TA): [email protected] Vicky Gilpin (TA for grad students): [email protected] Marjorie Kukstis (TA for UNs): [email protected] Joyce Van Alstyne (TA for UNs): [email protected] Cyrus Dahmubed (TA for UNs): [email protected]

FOCUS OF THE COURSE: The vampire is everywhere in popular culture today--in novels such as the Anita Blake and Sookie Stackhouse series; young adult literature like The Twilight Saga; television series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries, and The Strain; as well as short fiction, comic books, graphic novels, and film. What do we make of this global phenomenon? What does it mean when distinguished universities (Harvard) and

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serious scholars (me) consider such materials appropriate for an academic course? Have we lost our bearings, or is there more to these stories than meets the eye? Although this mythic creature has occurred in diverse mythologies for thousands of years, and occupied the literary imagination of authors and audiences for two hundred, at no other time has it been represented in such an intriguing variety of ways. How can we account for the popularity, adaptability, and unique appeal of the vampire figure? With what fears and fantasies in the human psyche does it connect? And in terms of literary genre, how do we classify these increasingly diverse works? These are just some of the questions that we will explore. In addition to their expected place in the horror genre, vampire stories have been used as "code" to address a host of provocative topics, including sexuality, death, gender, disease, addiction, adolescence, immigration, colonialism, and religious doubt. Most surprising, the vampire has morphed from a terrifying figure of pure evil to a handsome, self-hating outsider who only seeks community with humans. But despite this creature’s numerous guises, the same seductive union of eros and thanatos is always present.  The course will explore vampire literature’s evolution, from its origins in the gothic tradition to

its recent incarnation as hip "urban fantasy" and “paranormal romance.” We will also consider the implications of the vampire myth from anthropological, psychoanalytical, and socio-political perspectives.  My intention is to navigate between the sheer fun of these works and the public and private anxieties that they embody. Readings will include the 19th-century vampire stories of John Polidori, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Sheridan LeFanu, and Bram Stoker; and the 20th-and 21st-century fiction of authors such as Anne Rice, Charlaine Harris, Laurell K. Hamilton, John Ajvide Lindqvist, Elizabeth Kostova, Stephenie Meyer, and Seth Grahame-Smith. A list of recommended films will be posted on the syllabus and course website, featuring the work of directors such as F. W. Murnau, Werner Herzog, Tony Scott, Kathryn Bigelow, Francis Ford Coppola, Neil Jordan, Abel Ferrara, David Slade, and Catherine Hardwicke—as well as some films by folks with less stellar reputations! Who are the appropriate audiences for this course? Those interested in literature, film, popular culture, folklore and myth, genre studies (mystery/horror/fantasy/romance/crime fiction), the gothic novel, and general vampire aficionados—especially those prepared to read one novel per week! My hope is that everyone will experience this oft-ridiculed, frequently misunderstood genre in the fullest possible way and emerge from the course with a deeper understanding of why the vampire has played, and continues to play, an abiding role in literary and popular culture. It is truly our modern myth. Required Texts (available at the Harvard Coop later in the summer; please print out the free etexts for your notebook): Free e-text of CARMILLA: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/10007/10007-h/10007-h.htm

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Free e-text of THE VAMPYRE: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/6087/6087-h/6087-h.htm Free e-text of “Christabel”: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/173227 Free e-text of Lord Byron’s “Fragment of a Novel”:   http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/lbyron/bl-lbyron-frag.htm Bram Stoker, DRACULA, A Norton Critical Edition, ed. Auerbach and Skal (W. W. Norton, 1996):  ISBN 978-0-393-97012-8   Seth Grahame-Smith, ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER (Grand Central Publ./Hachette): ISBN 978-0-446-56308-6 Laurell K. Hamilton, GUILTY PLEASURES (Jove/Penguin): ISBN 978-0-515-13449-0 Charlaine Harris, DEAD UNTIL DARK (Ace/Penguin): ISBN 978-0-441-01699-0 Elizabeth Kostova, THE HISTORIAN. Reprint 2009 (Hachette Books): ISBN 978-0-316-070638 John Ajvide Lindqvist, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (Thomas Dunne Books, St. Martin's Griffin): ISBN-13: 978-0-312-35529-6 Stephanie Meyer, TWILIGHT (Little Brown): ISBN-13: 978-0316038379 Anne Rice, INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (Ballantine Books): ISBN 0-345-40964-7 Stephen King, ‘SALEM’S LOT (Anchor Books, reprint, 2011):  ISBN-13: 978-0307743671 Selected vampire short stories (to be posted on course website) Ancillary Readings: A number of supplemental critical readings will be posted on the course website, as well, to introduce you to some of the scholarly approaches that academics and others have taken in their analyses of vampire literature. You are encouraged to dip into these. Written Work: (1) To help you stay on track with the assigned readings, a brief quiz will be given approximately every other week (exceptions typically being when a major paper is due) on the reading for that week, in a multiple-choice online format. These will be “open book” quizzes that test your careful reading. It is strictly forbidden to use any other materials, whether electronic or print, or to seek help from or give help to others when taking these online quizzes. Students will be required to sign an honor pledge that they have abided by these rules on each quiz. These will be available for a 24-hour period, from 4:00 pm on Wednesday to 4:00 pm on Thursday to accommodate students in all time zones. The quiz must be taken within a single, uninterrupted 30-minute time frame. Once you log off, you cannot login again. Make-up quizzes cannot be given.

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THE QUIZZES BEGIN ON SEPTEMBER 18, starting with CARMILLA. (A mock-quiz is now available. You must login and take the mock quiz so that you will understand how the quiz tool works. Go to: https://harvard.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_bOsf9ba1C53x86F.) (2) Since this is also a writing-intensive course, students will write 3 papers, one of which must be revised: Paper #1: 3 pp. for UNs, 4 pp. for GRs Paper #2: 4 pp. for UNs, 6 pp. for GRs Paper #3: 5 pp. for UNs, 8 pp. for GRs (3)

A 1-page, ungraded but required response paper on September 18, on CARMILLA, which will give us a chance to see how you write about literature and give you a chance to get your engines running. Please note: there will be no final exam in the course. SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS AND ASSIGNMENTS

PRIOR TO THE START OF CLASS: (1) Please complete an Information Sheet (available on the course website) by August 31 and append to it a brief statement (no more than 1 page) responding to the following question: Describe your experience thus far with reading vampire fiction or watching vampire films. As a result of these experiences, what have you come to expect from characterizations of the vampire? If you haven’t read any vampire fiction or seen any vampire films, explain what has drawn you to this course and whether you have any theories concerning the popularity of the vampire figure in our culture today? Send these to me at the email address on page 1. These will help me to get to know my audience! (2) Watch for a “preview message” on the course website and via email, which will acquaint you with some of the changes in the course since the 2010 lectures were given. (3) If you want to get a head start on the readings, DRACULA, ‘SALEM’S LOT, and THE HISTORIAN are among the longer, denser works.

Sept. 4:

Introduction to the vampire in literature and film. (N. B. On the course website you will find a chapter by Ernest Jones, from his book On the Nightmare, entitled “The Vampire.” You may find it helpful to read this essay before the first class. You will need to login with your ID number and to access the “Supplementary Readings” menu.)

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Sept. 11:

Read Polidori’s THE VAMPYRE (1819), Coleridge’s poem “Christabel,” (wr. 1797-1800; publ. 1816), and Lord Byron’s “Fragment of a Novel” (wr. 1816, publ. 1819) Recommended films: F. W. Murnau’s NOSFERATU, 1922, with Max Schreck (84 minutes); Werner Herzog’s 1979 remake of NOSFERATU with Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani (96 minutes)

Sept. 18:

Read Le Fanu’s CARMILLA (1872) Quiz Brief ungraded-but-required 1-page response paper on the following topic: What did you find interesting or surprising about the early representations of the female vampire in Coleridge’s “Christabel” and LeFanu’s CARMILLA? (N. B. Don’t tell me how “feel” about the works—as in whether you “liked” or “disliked” them. Discuss specific features that you observed in them.) Recommended films: Hammer Films’ (highly embarrassing) THE VAMPIRE LOVERS, 1970, dir. by Roy Ward Baker, starring no one you’ve ever heard of except perhaps Peter Cushing (based on LeFanu’s CARMILLA, 91 minutes)

Sept. 25:

Read Stoker’s DRACULA (1897), Chapters I-XIV **Be sure to read the critical essays in the back of the Norton DRACULA as well. They will give you some additional ways of thinking about the novel for your paper assignment next week! They will also provide interesting points for discussion in the next section meeting.** Quiz

. Recommended films: DRACULA, 1931, dir. by Tod Browning, with Bela Lugosi (75 minutes); HORROR OF DRACULA, 1958, dir. by Terence Fisher, with Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing (82 minutes) Oct. 2:

Read Stoker’s DRACULA, Chapters XV to the end. PAPER #1 DUE: (3 pp. UNs, 4 pp. GRs): Choose one of the following topics on which to write your paper.  If you make use of the secondary sources in the Norton DRACULA, remember to put quotation marks around any verbatim quotes and to acknowledge any ideas taken from the essays and paraphrased. Cite the source of the information fully and correctly, in MLA style. Otherwise, this constitutes plagiarism. (a) Vampirism is closely associated with sexuality in this novel—but it is especially preoccupied with female sexuality, which is treated as something terrifying and dangerous that must be contained. Why must it be contained? How do the men in the story respond in the presence of unrestrained female

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sexuality? How do they go about containing or subduing it? (The essays by Phyllis Roth and Christopher Craft may be useful springboards for this topic.) (b) Franco Moretti’s essay also suggests that vampirism is a metaphor for capital—i.e., money, wealth—and how it can prey on and achieve domination over others. Consider the references in DRACULA to money and how it is used, whether for good or evil ends. In your view, is the novel a critique of money or a defender of it? (c) The essays by Carol Senf, Bram Dijkstra, and Stephen Arata point to another interesting theme in DRACULA: the antagonism between the Old World (embodied by Dracula) and the New (embodied by Mina, Dr. Seward, and Quincey Morris). What does this Old World represent? And how do Mina, Dr. Seward, and Quincey Morris represent the New? Recommended films: DRACULA, 1979, dir. John Badham, with Frank Langella, Laurence Olivier, Kate Nelligan (109 minutes); BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA, 1992, dir. by Francis Ford Coppola, with Gary Oldman, Wynona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins, Keanu Reeves (128 minutes) Oct. 9:

Read Rice’s INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (1976) Quiz Recommended films: INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, 1994, directed by Neil Jordan, with Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt (123 minutes); & QUEEN OF THE DAMNED, 2002, dir. by Michael Rymer, with Aaliyah, Stuart Townsend (101 minutes) VAMPIRE WEEKEND in CAMBRIDGE: Oct. 11-12 (Saturday & Sunday): For those in attendance, the weekend will consist of a Sat. and Sun. morning lecture and discussion, followed by lunch, followed by multiple vampire film screenings, followed by dinner on your own. For those unable to attend, the lectures will be live-streamed so you can email your questions and responses directly to the TAs while you watch, and we will answer your questions during the class. The films viewed will be posted on the course website. We hope that as many of you as possible can attend, for this will give you an opportunity to get to know your classmates and for the TAs and me to get to know you! You are responsible for making your own travel and hotel arrangements. Homework: Read King’s ‘SALEM’S LOT (1976) Oct. 11: Lecture & discussion: 10:00-12:00: ‘SALEM’S LOT (1ST half) Lunch on-site 12:00-2:00 Vampire filmfest: movies shown 2:00-8:00 Oct. 12: Lecture & discussion: 10:00-12:00: ‘SALEM’S LOT (2nd half) Lunch on-site 12:00-2:00 Vampire filmfest: movies shown 2:00-6:00

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Recommended films: NEAR DARK, 1987, dir. Kathryn Bigelow, with Adrian Pasdar, Jenny Wright, Bill Paxton (94 minutes) THE LOST BOYS, 1987, dir. Joel Schumacher, with Kiefer Sutherland, Jason Patric (97 minutes) ‘SALEM’S LOT, 1979, made for TV, dir. Tobe Hooper, with David Soul & James Mason (3 hrs.) COUNT DRACULA, 1977, BBC Production, dir. Philip Saville, with Louis Jourdan (2.5 hours), absolutely the best, most faithful dramatization of Stoker’s novel yet made. ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE, 2013, dir. Jim Jarmusch, with Tilda Swinton & Tom Hiddleston (2 hrs.) Oct. 16:

Read Hamilton’s GUILTY PLEASURES (1993) Paper revision due Recommended films: TRUE BLOOD, 2008, season 1, episode 1-2, HBO presentation, Stephen Moyer, Anna Paquin (120 minutes); BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, the “Dracula” episode, 2000, with Sarah Michelle Gellar, Season 5, episode 1 (42 minutes)

Oct. 23:

Read Harris’s DEAD UNTIL DARK (2001) Quiz Recommended films: THE ADDICTION, 1995, dir. by Abel Ferrara, with Lili Taylor and Christopher Walken (82 minutes); THE HUNGER, 1983, dir. by Tony Scott, with David Bowie, Catherine Deneuve, Susan Sarandon (97 minutes)

Oct. 30:

Read Lindqvist’s LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2004) (1st half) PAPER #2 DUE (4 pp. UNs, 6 pp. GRs): Choose 1 of the following topics on which to write your paper. (1) Rice’s Interview with the Vampire and Harris’s Dead Until Dark introduce us to “the sensitive vampire,” which goes very much against the grain of the traditional representation of this creature. How are sensitivity and monstrosity reconciled, or balanced, in these novels? Think carefully about this, since these 2 traits are ostensibly irreconcilable. What evidence of both traits do we see? Does one outweigh the other in the 2 vampire main characters? Does the author prompt your sympathy for them or even a feeling of connection with them in some way? (2) Both Guilty Pleasures and Dead Until Dark present us with recognizable worlds in which vampires are a given in daily life. The usual “shock of discovery”—i.e., suddenly learning that vampires exist or that someone is a vampire—is missing. How does this “fact” of vampires as part of our reality alter the nature of the plot in a vampire novel? Are there different sources of tension or interest? If so, what are they?

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Recommended film: LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, 2008, dir. by Tomas Alfredson,with Kare Hedebrant, Lena Leandersson (115 minutes); Nov. 6:

LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2nd half) Quiz Recommended film: LET ME IN, 2010, dir. Matt Reeves, with Kodi SmitMcPhee, Chloe Moretz, Richard Jenkins (116 minutes)

Nov. 13:

Read Meyer’s TWILIGHT (2005) Recommended films: TWILIGHT, 2008, dir. by Catherine Hardwicke, with Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner (122 minutes); BLADE TRINITY, 2004, dir. by David Goyer, with Wesley Snipes, Jessica Biel, Dominic Purcell, Ryan Reynolds, and Parker Posey (122 minutes)

Nov. 20:

Selected vampire short stories (to be posted on course website) (***N. B. Since we have no class next week, I strongly recommend that you spend these next 2 weeks reading Kostova’s THE HISTORIAN, which is a bit longer than usual, and giving some thought to your final paper, due on December 11. Please note its longer length as well.***) SURPRISE EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY: If you’re feeling creative, try writing your own vampire short story. The story can be no less than 7 pages and no more than 10 pages in length. A brief guide to constructing short stories will be placed on the course website, and you are encouraged to read this if you’re not already familiar with the craft of story-writing. A good short story follows certain structural principles. Think about the many ways in which the authors in this course have set about constructing a vampire story but “refreshing” it by creating novel plot twists and character elements, which take the reader to some place new. If your story rises to the level of a grade of A or B, this can boost your final grade in the course by as much as half a letter grade. Your story is due this evening, November 20.

Nov. 27:

Thanksgiving break

Dec. 4:

Read Kostova’s THE HISTORIAN (2005) Quiz

Dec. 11:

Read Grahame-Smith’s ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER (2010). Quiz Summary and Conclusions Recommended film: DAYBREAKERS, released 2010, dir. by Michael and Peter Spierig, with Ethan Hawke, Willem Dafoe, Sam Neill (98 minutes)

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Dec. 18:

PAPER #3 DUE: 5 pp. UNs, 8 pp. GRs.

 

Instructions: Choose one of the following topics for your final paper. Develop an overarching hypothesis about the works you elect to analyze so that your discussion is unified. Do not simply inchworm your way through the plot of each novel. Address the topic directly, giving specific examples from the novels that illustrate your main points. Be attentive to spelling, punctuation, grammar, and diction appropriate to a formal essay. Your papers will be graded on the basis of content and style. Undergraduate papers should be exactly 5 pages in length; graduate papers should be exactly 8 pages in length. No secondary sources are really necessary to write these papers—only the novels themselves. However, if you do use any secondary sources, remember to put quotation marks around any verbatim quotes and to cite the source of the information fully and correctly, in MLA style. Otherwise, this constitutes plagiarism. Use reputable scholarly resources—journal articles (like those placed on the course website), books, etc. Kindly stay away from cheesy online resources such as Wikipedia and Sparks Notes. This is Harvard—not high school. What we most want to see, though, is YOUR thinking and writing—not that of others. The paper is due, without exception, via email to your TA, on Thursday, December 18, by 5:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time. No late submissions will be accepted. The paper must be submitted as a Word document. I strongly urge you to begin working on the paper immediately and not to wait until the last minute. Thinking through your choices and organizing well-written, coherent essays on multiple novels will take longer than you may think. Good luck as you make your way to the finish line! And feel free to consult with your TA as you develop your ideas.

1. Central to our study this semester is the question of how the vampire figure has evolved in literature from the 19th century to the present. Choose 4 of the most striking examples (from 4 different novels) that illustrate this changing representation. In each instance, how has the novelist altered the character or conduct of the vampire and to what effect? (If you wrote on the “sensitive vampire” in your last paper, you may not write on this topic in your final paper. Choose #2 or #3.) 2. The vampire novel originated from the 18th-century Gothic tradition. But like subsequent representations of the vampire, vampire fiction has continually evolved by incorporating and combining the conventions of other literary

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genres. Choose 4 novels that best exemplify this mingling of genres; describe the genres represented and state what you think they add to the classic vampire story. 3. We have frequently spoken this semester of the ways in which vampire fiction is often used to explore some of the anxieties of the era in which the novel was written. Choose 4 novels that, in your estimation, incorporate some social, political, or economic concerns. Describe what they are and explain how each novel makes these part of the vampire story.

GENERAL ADVICE and REQUIREMENTS IS THIS YOUR FIRST HARVARD EXTENSION COURSE or DISTANCE COURSE? If so, you will find the following advice helpful. If not, it will be useful to you anyway! Please read on. Although this course is offered through the Extension School, it is the Harvard Extension School; thus the standard to which students are held is high. I will assume that you are here to be challenged, to gain new knowledge, and to ratchet up your close reading, writing, and analytical skills, and that you are prepared to put in the time and effort that will accomplish those goals. Distance students should approach the course in the same organized fashion that they would if they were coming to class each week, at a designated time, with homework prepared and written work ready to submit. In other words, they should set themselves a schedule and stick to it as closely as possible. Lectures should be watched without interruption by other duties or activities, in a quiet setting. A haphazard approach will lead to a poor performance. Do not let yourself fall behind in viewing the lectures or doing the readings and other assignments. “Catching up” will be a frustrating and largely fruitless exercise. Important Advice from Experienced Distance Students: Again and again, experienced distance students have stated that a disciplined approach is the key to success—and to achieving the maximum amount of learning in the course. Their second best piece of advice is, “Start talking with your TA right away; introduce yourself via email or telephone, so that you feel comfortable emailing with questions or comments throughout the semester.” Remember that each of you will have a teaching assistant assigned to you; this person will be available to talk with you, answer your questions via email and discuss any other concerns you may have. I will also be available to answer your questions. SETTING YOURSELF UP FOR THE DISTANCE COURSE: Be sure to consult the Extension School’s distance education website, well before the course begins, to make sure that you have the technical requirements in place for successfully viewing the videos. Out-of-date computers and unreliable dial-up connections will usually not work. It’s also a good idea, if this is your first distance course, to view one of the sample videos so that you’ll know what to expect. See: http://www.extension.harvard.edu/courses/course-formats/video-course-guidelines.

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Check out the FAQs on the distance website and the “Need Help?” link, should you experience any technical difficulties during the semester. Please note that if you have technical difficulties, you should contact the distance help line, not me or the TAs. We can only contact the help line, too, so it is best if you register your problem immediately with the distance staff. The weekly quizzes will be completed online. A required “mock quiz” will be available on the course website so you can make sure that your computer has the technology necessary to access the weekly online quizzes and submit your responses. (N.B. The practice test above is not a “content” test, only a technical test.) WEEKLY PREPARATIONS: As stated above, students are expected to carefully prepare the weekly readings on the syllabus, prior to listening to each lecture. You will be reading a novel per week, so you should carefully plan how you will devote time each day (or all weekend!) to completing each novel in order to be successful on the quizzes and papers. The weekly lectures will be posted on Thursday by 5:30 pm. You will need your Harvard ID and PIN in order to login to each lecture after the second week of classes. TIMELY SUBMISSION OF WORK: All written work must be submitted on time. The weekly online book quizzes cannot be made up, because I will be discussing the novels in lecture immediately after the quiz is due, and we cannot design alternate versions of each quiz. Papers and revisions will be submitted directly to your teaching assistant as a “Word” document and are due by the Thursday class at 5:30 p.m. EST, via the Assignment Dropbox on the course website. If you send it in an alternate form that we cannot open, the paper will be considered missing. Since this is a writing-intensive course, students must complete ALL the paper assignments, as assigned, in order to earn writing-intensive credit. Technical failures will not suffice as an explanation for work not submitted. Back up your work so that if your computer crashes, you can go to an internet café or some other such place and email your paper to the TA. REQUIRED WEEKLY ONLINE DISCUSSION SECTIONS: In order that all students can fully engage with the literature, the TAs, and me, we will run individual discussion sections each week, lasting 1 hour. Once we know the geographical locations of our students, we will attempt to arrange the sections at times that can work for everyone—probably on the weekend. The sections will be run via Google Hangouts. You will need a “gmail” account to use Google Hangouts. Sections will include approximately 15 students. We will begin each session by posing some possible questions for discussion, but the chief purpose of the sessions will be to give you the opportunity to discuss the readings for the week and to ask whatever questions you wish. The vampire films are also open to discussion. Since you will have already heard what students in the 2010 class had to say (via the course lectures), we want to know what you’re thinking! Your participation in the sections will count 20% of your course grade. You may skip no more than 2 section meetings.

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COURSE WEBSITE: You should consult the course website each week. Announcements, handouts, and interesting ancillary materials will be added frequently. **Since I will communicate with you from time to time via email as well, please be sure that your spam-catcher will allow you to receive emails from me and the TAs without blocking them. Also, kindly double-check your email address on file with the Harvard Extension School to ensure its correctness. When I send out group emails to the class, I must use the list that is in our computer system. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADUATE STUDENTS: The papers for graduate students will be longer than those for undergraduates. Graduate students' work will be expected to demonstrate a higher level of mastery of the subject matter, evidence of independent thinking, and superior writing skills. HOW YOUR COURSE GRADE WILL BE DETERMINED: Participation in the weekly section meetings: 20% Quizzes: 30% Papers: 50% NON-CREDIT STUDENTS: We welcome non-credit students to the class, invite them to participate in the discussion sections, take the online quizzes, and even submit papers, if they wish. However, non-credit students cannot receive grades or course credit for their work. If you wish to receive a grade and course credit, please change your registration status during the registration period to either UN or GR. ACADEMIC HONESTY: Students are expected to submit only their own work in the course— and work produced solely for this course and not another. Please read the Extension School’s stated policy on student responsibilities and academic honesty at: http://www.extension.harvard.edu/exams-grades-policies/student-responsibilities. N. B. The instructor reserves the right to make changes in the syllabus as necessity dictates. © Dr. Sue Weaver Schopf Harvard Extension School, 2014