Syllabus/Summary of Course

This Web page is a traditional syllabus. It summarizes the course. For more details about each of the topics discussed here and much more, return to the home page and click on the links of your choice. To see more information about the author, including contact information, go to http://Richard.Jewell.net.

Welcome to "Eng 2235 Mythic Stories: Cultural and Personal" as taught by me--Richard Jewell, your instructor. This three-credit course has an assumed workload of about nine hours per week: approximately six hours for homework and three hours for class-time activities. The Inver Hills Community College Catalog describes this course as follows:

The fully-online ("FOL") section currently is the only version of this course offered at Inver Hills. It is a Web and Internet class that can be taken by anybody in the world with regular access to email and the Web. Both sections also involve some individual travel to several arts events and activities such as local plays and/or museums, with other alternatives allowed for those who cannot make the in-person events..

I'd like to make this course not only interesting and helpful to you, but also enjoyable. You must participate as actively in the class as possible, as there, even in this online class, a weekly form of attendance. This attendance must be done weekly, and it is accomplished on a class bulletin board (sometimes called a "discussion board"). In fact, the more you put into this class, the more you'll enjoy it and the more rewarding you'll find it.

I also would like to make sure that all the materials, discussions and activities that are part of this course are accessible to you. If you would like to request accommodations or other services, please contact me as soon as possible. It is also possible to contact the Disability Services Office, L-224; phone, 651/450-8628; TTY, 651/450-8369.

Mythology is a wonderful and exciting field of study. It asks--and sometimes answers--questions about what the meaning is of culture, society, the arts, and life itself. In many ways, it is like a Humanities class. However, because it is specifically set up in the Inver Hills catalog as an English literature class, we will approach it primarily as a literature class For this reason, we will study mythic literature, and you will learn how to use literary tools to examine and write about literature. I have a strong background in mythology, having studied Western versions of it in particular for many years. We will work primarily with Western mythology and some Near Eastern mythology; however, there also will be plenty of chance for individual independent study of mythic lit from any culture. The particular focuses of the course will be ancient Greek myth, fairy tales from several countries and times, King Arthur, biblical stories, and modern British myth lit (i.e., C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien). There are two central textbooks: one is on the Web, CollegeWriting.info, and gives instructions for reading, analyzing, interpreting, and reviewing literature. The other is a classic, popular text on how to understand mythology: Joseph Campbell's The Hero [and Heroine] with a Thousand Faces."

I will keep you busy with plenty of reading and writing this term. However, most of the reading should be interesting, and most of the writing will just be rough-draft, quickly-written writing for which you simply receive a checkmark of credit if you do it. I ask for a lot of writing because an increasing number of research studies show that students remember more and learn better when they write a lot. In addition, the frequent writing means there are no objective tests and only one graded term paper.

Another aspect of this course is that it is an official "WI" or "Writing Intensive" course. This means that it should be transferable to the University of Minnesota and to Minnesota State University-Mankato in satisfaction of their Writing Intensive requirement for their first two years of college. If you ever decide to attend either of these schools, just get in touch with me, and I will arrange for the transfer of this course to your WI requirements at either of these schools.

Will the grading be tough? If you're willing to put in the time and do all the assignments, the grading won't be particularly difficult. My assumption is that most of you will work hard and earn an average or above-average grade. In the FOL (fully-online) section, most class activities will take place online in asynchronous (not-at-the-same-time) bulletin-board postings. This will be true of one third of the F2F (face-to-face) section's class time, too. In the F2F classroom, in addition, there will be a lot of group work. Why use it? It's a highly efficient method for many people in exploring more deeply and meaningfully their connections to the subject matter. (It also is good training for your future professional jobs, where group work has become a predominant way of working.)

Here are the kinds of class activities you can expect to be doing from week to week for your attendance grade:

FOL (Fully Online) Section

one evening of 1st class meeting in person (required of everyone within two hours' drive of IHCC)
3-4 evenings to visit theatres and/or museums. These generally will take place on Thursday evenings in or around the Twin Cities as a group, but individuals may opt to choose their own places and/or times that fit with the course content. Students at a distance may visit such places in their own cities.
one individual consultation in person with me to discuss your final paper (optional--may be replaced by extra online or other work). (You also may visit me in my office as often as you like.)
ONLINE: roughly, about two online class hours per week on a class bulletin/discussion board (required)

F2F (Face-to-Face) Section (none this year)

regular day or evening attendance (required of everyone)
2-4 evenings to visit theatres and/or museums. These generally will take place on Thursday evenings in or around the Twin Cities as a group, but individuals may opt to choose their own places and/or times that fit with the course content. Students may also choose to visit alternatives that fit with course content.
one individual consultation in person with me to discuss your final paper (optional--may be replaced by extra online or other work). (You also may visit me in my office as often as you like.)
ONLINE: roughly, about one online class hour per week on a class bulletin/discussion board (required)
small-group work--generally this will be done in class, though some independent group work may be requested as part of class or homework time.

FOL (Fully Online) Section

online bulletin board: two different types of classes: (1) "Questions"--your reflections upon questions I ask about the Humanities, the class, and/or museum/play visits; and (2) "Readings"--your thoughtful ideas and feelings about your weekly textbook readings. Some of your online work will consist of making initial statements, and some of it in responding to each other's statements.
Web reading: The syllabus, schedule, and assignment materials all are on this Web site, as is some of your textbook material.
Email: I'll sometimes send out messages to all of you as a group.
Web links: There are two sets of links that you may find helpful. One is "Links to Literature." The other is This is optional, but some of you may find it helpful: a set of links called "Links to the Humanities/Mythology" that lists a variety of mythology sites on the Web.

F2F (Face-to-Face) Section (none this year)

online bulletin board: one type of class: "Readings"--your thoughtful ideas and feelings about your weekly textbook readings. Some of your online work will consist of making initial statements, and some of it in responding to each other's statements.
Web reading: The syllabus, schedule, and assignment materials all are on this Web site, as is some of your textbook material.
Email: I'll sometimes send out messages to all of you as a group.
Web links: There are two sets of links that you may find helpful. One is "Links to Literature." The other is This is optional, but some of you may find it helpful: a set of links called "Links to the Humanities/Mythology" that lists a variety of mythology sites on the Web.

What am I like? For starters, please feel free to call me "Richard" or "Mr. Jewell"--or anything else that's nice. :-) I'm looking forward to working with you. If you'd like to find out more about me, check out "About Richard." There's a description of me, a picture, my resume, and a sample short story of mine. I am somewhat new at IHCC. I taught undergraduate writing and literature at the University of Minnesota for five years, but in mid-2001, IHCC offered me a lifetime (tenured) position. Because of this and because I believe that two years at IHCC is as good an education as the same two years at the average private four-year college--and better than the first two years at the University of Minnesota or a state university-- I decided to come here. I'm very glad you've chosen Inver Hills as your school. It is an excellent school.

How much work is a typical college class? 3 cr. = 9 hrs./wk.; 4 cr. = 12 hrs./wk. That includes both class and homework. I'd like to ask you for your commitment this semester to the expected amount of time for work. The Inver Hills (and national) standard is three hours of work (two of homework and one of class time) per week for every college credit, to receive an average grade. This class is a three-credit class, so please plan on spending at least nine hours per week on class and homework: three on class and six on homework. This represents an average--some weeks may be less, some more. It also represents the work needed by the average college student to receive an average grade (which, nationally, is probably a "B" or "B-" in the first two years of college). If you want an "A" or you tend to be a below-average student, you may need to work more than the amount of time described here.

How many assignments are there? A lot. However, most of them are short and relatively easy. I'm asking for just one graded paper--at the end of the semester. Almost all the other assignments are weekly, and they include a number of short, rough-draft, quickly and even sloppily written papers done either by pen or by computer printout: just neat enough for me to read them, not revised, and written as quickly as you can. You'll get a check mark for doing them and receive a grade at the end of the term for how many check marks you've received. These papers are lab practice in a biology course: they will show me you've done the readings and help you practice the humanities and think about them more. I am doing these kinds of assignments instead of having several objective tests or several graded papers because I believe that in the long run, you'll learn more from writing on a weekly basis about what you've read.

All papers must be on time. Late papers are not accepted because most of them help you prepare for class discussions and activities. Most assigned papers for any given week always will be due on Wednesday of that week, online or on campus (for night classes, papers will be due at the time you show up for class). However, there are some exceptions: see ""Homework" for more.

Please remember that you may write these as "lab" papers--in very rough-draft form--without worrying about grammatical usage, spelling, or punctuation:

How many assignments are there? There are many. Most, however, are short and relatively easy. Be sure to check the "Schedule" regularly to see what is due. If you run into a true emergency, do call me or come see me before homework is late.

(NOTE: For instructions on how to write these papers, see "Homework.")

We will start working on the term paper about half way through the course. You will write an interpretive thesis of a literary reading that is mythological. Your paper may be a continuation or revision of one or more of your weekly papers, or it may be on something entirely new. New subjects, for example, could be Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, an African folktale, a literate and well written story from the Bible, a recounting of an Asian myth, something from the Egyptian Book of the Dead, etc. The term paper will consist of several drafts. The first two will be developed in consultation with me. You will turn in the third one for grading. Then you will have several weeks, after I've graded it, to revise it (required of everyone). For specific instructions, see "Final Project."

The grading for the semester is based on 100 X's (100 points or 100%) being equal to an A+. The X's you can earn are divided as follows:

You earn X's by completing the work. In attendance, an "X" (or a "V") is about 50 min. of work. The same is true for extra credit - about 50 min. of work per X. In weekly homework, most assignments are worth 1 X each, with a few being equal to 2 X's. By the end of the term, your total X's will determine your grade as follows:

Basically, you can determine your grade by how many X's you earn. The method of doing well in this class is to earn as many X's as you can, depending on what grade you want. 2009 is the first year in which I have started using this system in online classes. However, I have used this X's system of grading for three years in writing classes on campus, and about 90-95% of students - once they get used to it - report by the end of the term that they think it is a great system, one of the clearest and most fair they have ever used, and they recommend I use it with future classes.

This portion of your grade will be determined by how many of your weekly, rough-draft, non-graded assignments you turn in. Each assignment will be worth one or more check marks or "X's" of credit with 45 X's possible. The total X's you earn for this will be added to your grand total for the semester, with the grand total being given a letter grade as described above.

Online attendance - primarily through the online discussion boards - is very important. Why? An important part of what you learn will be developed through your online interactions with others. n addition, several weeks (or the equivalent) of our classes will be spent in hands-on, practical application of learning mythology: actually going to museums and/or theaters (real or virtual) to see, hear, and feel mythology. You will need to attend online classes regularly and attend the cultural events in person or virtually to do well. You also may improve your grade by adding extra credit: every 50 min. of approved extra credit = one X.

This portion of your grade will be determined by how many X's you earn through your attendance. About 35 X's are possible in normal attendance. And you may add additional X's by completing extra credit, which is added to attendance. The total X's you earn for any of these activities will then be added to your grand total for the semester, with the grand total being given a letter grade as described above.

This portion of your grade will be determined by a letter grade that will be converted to X's. You may earn up to 20 X's for the term paper, so it is, in effect, worth 20% of your grade for the term. However, this class is a writing-intensive class transferable to the University of Minnesota's Writing Intensive program. This means that you may not pass the course unless your "substantially revise" formal writing that is 10+ double-spaced pages in length. For this class, everyone must "revise substantially." In addition, no one can final credit for a paper unless it has been revised at least as high as a "C." Your final letter grade will be converted to X's as follows:

Then the total X's you earn for this letter grade will then be added to your grand total for the semester, with the grand total being given a letter grade as described above.

I hope you enjoy the class! It is a lot of work, but those who finish the course almost always consider the work well worth it, interesting, fun. If there's anything I can do to help you enjoy it more--alternatives, help with understanding something, etc.--come see me, email me anytime, or call me from 9 am-9 pm. My phone number, email address, and other info are at the beginning of this syllabus.

Images courtesy of Barry's Clip Art, Clip Art Warehouse, The Clip Art Universe, Clipart Collection, Microsoft Clip Art Gallery and Design Gallery Live, School Discovery, and/or Web Clip Art

First date of publication: May 1, 2004
Home page: http://umn.edu/home/jewel001/literature/2235/home.htm
Questions, suggestions, comments, or other contact: Go to http://Richard.Jewell.net/contactRichard.htm.

The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the page author.The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by the University of Minnesota.

The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the page author.
The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by the University of Minnesota.