Syllabus for

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Fall 2003 / Sec 1

Please Note: What you hold is a hard copy of a web document accessible by any computer with internet access. The index units below, showing this document's parts, are not only a sort of organizing table of contents but are on the web  links to the indicated parts of this syllabus.  While the basic plan of this class is established, fine tuning as well as added resources may not be included in this printed version. I will announce alterations to the syllabus in class.   Still, student are encouraged to check the actual web site regularly.

Course Index:

 

Course Description:  This one hour class is a part of the larger Honors program, HON0321 Honors Special Topics [1]. A small group discussion of readings with experimental formats to engage students in a variety of teaching and learning modes. The course may be repeated for a total of two credits. (MVNU Online Catalogue 2002-2003)

 

Class Objectives:

  1. To develop in students the ability to listen receptively, think critically, reason clearly, evaluate objectively, and communicate clearly while examining the world and works of JRR Tolkien.

  2. To encourage students toward acquiring attitudes within the study of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings which stimulate awareness of self and environment, enabling them to respond creatively and positively

  3. To encourage students through their readings and discussion toward the maximum development of communication skills and abilities.

  4. To promote within students the vision and ability to apply communication skills and knowledge to enhance personal relationships, human society and God's kingdom.

  5. To enable students to improve written communications through directed experience in their journals, their papers and exams.

  6. To tackle the question of what makes a work "Christian" or not.

  7. To acquire a knowledge of The Return of the King

 

 

Procedure: This class will meet every other Monday at 6:30 in to discuss Professor Tolkien and the nature masterwork, The Lord of the Rings.  However, due to time constraints we will emphasize the third novel: The Return of the King.

Power-Point Presentations:

Archetypal Criticism is central to many critical approaches to Tolkien's work. This PowerPoint gives a quick explanation of the theory and some of its central claims.

The Nature of Fantastic Literature:  An consistent understanding of the mythic world view in which we as 20th century Christians function is vital if the reader is going  reach closure about how appropriate is Fantasy for the Christian reader.

Required Texts:

Cliffsnotes: 

The Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit

by Gene B. Hardy

 

  The Return of the King, Part 3)  

 

 

Primary Text is also Available Online!

Suggested Texts:

Finding God in The Lord of the Rings

by Kurt D. Bruner, Jim Ware

Hardcover, November 2001

Available in Heritage Bookstore

 

 

Evaluation

Students will be evaluated in the class in the following areas:

There will be no formal tests or exams in this class.

My Grading Scale:

Since this is a one hour class the grading will be kept fairly straightforward:

Attendance: Since this class meets one every other week, class attendance it vital.  Classes should be missed only in the most extreme of situations.  Missing more than two classes will severely jeopardize a grade standing.

Class Participation:  Tying strongly in with attendence is the requirement of class participation.  This honors class was developed to allow the gifted student to experience the rich nature of learning through academic discussion.  Being passionate and involved with the subject matter is directly connected with success in any endeavor, especially academics.

Online Participation:  Because this class is also a blackboard class the students will have the opportunity to become engaged on two levels.  There will be online discussion in which the student may respond to questions put out by the professor or (generate questions her or his self).  Also there are a vast number of Tolkien resources on the net.  Recommending a web site which could be added to our list of links again would demonstrate the student's engagement with the subject material.

Journals:  Your journal is IMPORTANT!  It accounts for the mammoth portion [60%] of your final grade.  You should write in it once a week (including the weeks we do not meet).  It is your personal repository for what you think about the work you are reading and about the material being covered in class.  

I will be looking for the following in your journal and what I describe is my minimum expectation--it means you do all that I ask and get a "B+"  For an "A" the student must go beyond the instructor's expectations. (i.e.. more journal entries)

 

1.  One entry per week of the semester (totaling 14 by the end of the semester). Going beyond that 14 in the journal could indicate to the instructor the kind of student who will achieve a high grade.  Please note that writing in your journal is  not connected with days in class.  Remember it is also allowable to write two entries on a day as long as both are adequately developed. Please note. . .

 

 A. Periodic class checks may occur to determine the currency of your journal entries.   So, always bring your journal with you to class.

 B. Oct.. 6 (6 entries), Nov. 3 (10 entries), and Dec. 2 (14 entries)

2. A table of contents made from the thesis sentence found in each entry.

 

3.  Journal entries must be at least 2/3 of a page long.

 

A.  Furthermore, if you are one of those individuals like St. Paul with BIG handwriting-- "Ye see how large a letter I have written unto you with mine own hand" (Gal. 6:11)--then you should plan to write more than what I have suggested. I've seen some fill up 2/3 of a page with "I've been thinking about our reading."

 

B.  If you are handing in a typed entry take note of the number of words (there is a "word count" function under the tools task bar of Microsoft Word.  I will be expecting no less than 330 words.

 

C.  Finally please begin each entry on a new page.  The squeezing together of more than one entry on a page or the running from one page to another makes the evaluation described above difficult.

 

4. All entries should be numbered and dated

 (For Example: Entry # 10; Sept. 21).


5. Although I will not be grading the journal harshly concerning mechanics and restarts of thought (which require a single line to cross out some    material), I do expect the final product to be neat and legible.  Also you  should write full sentences within paragraphs--no fragmented stream of  consciousness experiments.  "Split from society--bad."  To be specific, I will be especially looking in your journal for. . .

A. Development of ideas.  Remember that it is not necessary to finish a work to have a good idea.  In fact waiting till you have finished can be   overwhelming. Keep your journal handy while reading.

 

B. Interconnectedness of journal entries.  This means that an idea you examine at one point in your journal might have relevance to another work discussed later. Readings should not be thought of in a vacuum.

 

A Journal is NOT. . .
 
 

1. A diary. Your entries should be a mixture of commentary concerning what  you read and what you discuss in and out of class about literature.  I do  not want to read (as I have in the past) what you had for lunch or who is  presently percolating your hormones.

 

2. A place for notes.  Class notes belong in the section provided for them in your loose leaf.  I should not see your actually writing in your journal  during class.  This also means that a journal is not a re-hashing of what is  covered in class ("today in class we talked about. . .etc etc.").

 

To see an example of a possible journal entry see text included at syllabus' conclusion.


REMEMBER:  Your journal indicates to me part of your class participation.  Without exams it and your in class and online discussions are vital: DO NOT PUT OFF TO THE LAST MINUTE: DO NOT "BLOW IT OFF!"

 

Class Schedule

The Break Down of the Readings of The Return of The King for this class.

 

Although most of you have read ALL of Tolkien’s material (and some of you have even read the commentaries too) here is the schedule of where you officially should be in the reading of The Two Towers this autumn.

 

Session One: Sept. 8

Book V

Ø      Chapter 1: Minas Tirith

Ø      Chapter 2: The Passing of the Grey Company

Ø      Chapter 3: The Muster of Rohan 

 

 

Session Two: Sept. 22 Journal Check #1  (4 entries)

Ø      Chapter 4: The Siege of Gondor

Ø      Chapter 5: The Riders of Rohirrim

Ø      Chapter 6: The Battle of the Pelennor Fields

 

Session Three: Oct. 6.  

Ø      Chapter 7: The Pyre of Denethor

Ø      Chapter 8: The Houses of Healing

Ø      Chapter 9: The Last Debate

 

Session Four Oct. 19

Ø      Chapter 10: The Black Gate Opens

Book VI

Ø      Chapter 1: The Tower of Cirith Ungol

Ø      Chapter 2: The Land of Shadow

 

Session Five: Nov. 3 Journal Check #2  (10 entries)

Ø      Chapter 3: Mount Doom

Ø      Chapter 4:  The Field of Cormallen

 

Session Six: Nov. 17

Ø      Chapter 5: The Steward and The King

Ø      Chapter 6: Many Partings

Ø      Chapter 7: Homeward Bound

 

Session Seven: Dec. 1 Journal Check #3  (14 entries)

Ø      Chapter 8: The Scouring of the Shire

Ø      Chapter 9: The Grey Havens

 

Movie Trailers: (QuickTime)

 

 Links:

.
Link The JRR Tolkien Information Page (http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca/u/relipper/tolkien/rootpage.html)
In his own words, Eric Lippert's intent for this page was to " to provide one-stop-shopping for all of the Tolkien information available on the Internet, (rather than present a personal reaction to Tolkien's work). Any information you have would be helpful." His page is the first to come up when one does a Google search.
 
Link The Tolkien Society (http://www.tolkiensociety.org/)
This is the web page for "The Tolkien Society" Their site's statement of purpose describe them as "an international organisation registered in the U.K. as an educational charity, number 273809. Our aim is to encourage and further interest in the life and works of the late Professor J.R.R. Tolkien." They are number two in a Google Search.
Link Returning the Ring: The Inner Dimension of Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings (http://www.dreamanalysis.info/)
This is basically an extended advertisement for an academic work which ties Tolkien's text with the ideas of Karl Jung. The site says: "Returning the Ring follows on from issues raised by Jung's seminal work, Answer to Job. As Jung indicated, we are now living in the Kairos - the right moment for a metamorphosis of the gods." The site gives an over-all summary of the work as well as one chapter of the text. (You may purchase it in either standard or most cheap e-text formats)  One especially interesting quote goes this way:  "The Lord of the Rings is a modern day myth. Its theme of the renunciation of power is particularly relevant for our present day, addressing such issues as the world crisis and the transition of the ages. Like a guiding dream The Lord of the Rings describes how we may flow with the required transformation of our current era."

An interesting window of how academics look at Tolkien
Link Book Rags: Tolkien's The Two Towers (http://www.bookrags.com/notes/two/PART1.htm)
From their homepage: BookRags Book Notes are comprised of chapter summaries, character and object descriptions, topic tracking, author biographies, plot summaries, and important quotes. Over 150 are available now.
Link Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings, Part One: A Critique (http://flyingmoose.org/tolksarc/bakshi/bakshi.htm)
WARNING: This review makes absolutely no attempt to be objective. Quoted from the web page. This will make you feel guilty for ever having liked the animated film version!
Link MVNU's Science Fiction and Fantasy Club (http://nzr.mvnu.edu/faculty/trearick/english/rearick/sf&f/scifi&fanclub/wonder.htm)

Although not to be assumed, considering your involvement in this class, you may wish to visit the website of MVNU's own Science Fiction and Fantasy Club.  Our theme: Come Celebrate the Wonder!