ENGL 111 L: Composition: Literature

Autumn 2025
View in MyPlan View in Time Schedule
Meeting:
TTh 2:30pm - 4:20pm / SMI 313
SLN:
14690
Section Type:
Lecture
Instructor:
NO OVERLOADS, NO AUDITORS ENTERING FRESHMAN ONLY CANNOT BE TAKEN IF STUDENT HAS ALREADY RECEIVED A GRADE OF 2.0 OR HIGHER IN ENGL 109/110, 111, 121, 1 31 OR 182
Syllabus Description (from Canvas):

Picture of an open book showing signs of aging. On the left of the open book is a wave in the ocean with dolphins jumping. To the right on the open page is a young child stretching their arms to the sun, a unicorn or horse and a tree. The image holds colors of blue, green, gold, and brown. In the sky beyond the book are birds seemingly flying from the open book into the work. There are hot air balloons in the distance.

ENGL 111-L is a composition course with a focus on literature (Fantasy & Speculation as Rhetoric). This course invites you to explore how language, storytelling, and genre shape the ways we understand identity, culture, and power. Using fantasy fiction as our central lens, we will study writing as a form of social action—how authors build worlds not only to entertain, but also to critique, resist, and imagine alternatives to the real world. Together, we will practice reading closely, analyzing rhetorical strategies, and synthesizing multiple sources in order to build complex, persuasive arguments that matter both inside and outside the university. Over the quarter, you will complete a series of short assignments designed to strengthen your ability to analyze texts, engage in research, and reflect on your writing process, all of which will prepare you for a major research essay and final presentation. Your responsibilities in this class include active participation in discussions and collaborative activities, thoughtful engagement with assigned readings, consistent effort in drafting and revising your writing, and respect for the diverse voices and language resources each of us brings to the classroom. By the end of this course, you will not only have sharpened your academic writing and research skills, but also developed a deeper awareness of how your own voice as a writer can shape conversations across genres, audiences, and communities.

With this in mind, I hope this section of ENGL 111 will equip you with the skills needed to access and understand your writing abilities and the ways you can adapt your writing in different rhetorical situations, while helping you recognize the stories you are telling. These skills (which will henceforth be referred to as outcomes, broadly, can be understood as:

1. Rhetorical context: To demonstrate an awareness of the strategies that writers use in different situations.

2. Research and Inquiry: To read, analyze, and synthesize complex texts and incorporate multiple kinds of evidence purposefully in order to generate and support writing.

3. Reasoning and Argumentation: To produce complex, analytic, persuasive arguments that matter in academic contexts.

4. Revision and Collaboration: To develop flexible metacognitive strategies for revising, editing, and proofreading writing.

Catalog Description:
Uses narratives to study writing as social action and language as tied to identity, culture, and power. Centers students' language resources and goals in developing rhetorical and research skills for composing ethically and critically across different contexts and genres. Prepares students for writing to audiences both within and beyond the university. Prerequisite: may not be taken if minimum grade of 2.0 received in either ENGL 111, ENGL 121, or ENGL 131. Offered: AWSpS.
GE Requirements Met:
English Composition (C)
Credits:
5.0
Status:
Active
Last updated:
October 3, 2025 - 10:17 am