Literature Courses

ENGLISH 112: ESSENTIALS OF LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: based upon the backgrounds of students who have successfully completed this course, the English Department strongly recommends the completion of ENGL 103 or an assessment recommendation for ENGL 110 or 120.Reading and discussion of selected prose, poetry, and plays. Writing of short, critical, and personal responses.

ENGLISH 122: INTRODUCTION TO LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 120 or equivalent. 

Introduces literature through the reading, analysis, and discussion of various genres such as short stories, poetry, drama, novels, myths, essays and folktales. Literature encompasses different time periods and a variety of male and female authors from around the world. Students will use the literature to write critical and appreciative essays. Recommended for English Majors. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 199: SPECIAL STUDIES OR PROJECTS IN ENGLISH
1-3 units, 3-9 hours.
Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. 

Individual study, research or projects in the field of English under instructor guidance. Written reports and periodic conferences required. Content and unit credit to be determined by student/instructor conferences and/or division. May be repeated for a maximum of nine units.

ENGLISH 201: IMAGES OF WOMEN IN LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.

Designed to examine the portrait which literature, past and present, gives of women and to examine such literature from the historical, literary and woman’s point of view. English 201 is a course in literature, focusing on fictions about women--fictions which sometimes project myths both men and women, themselves, perpetuate (often as a result of socialization and lack of knowledge of woman’s historical roles). English 201 is not a feminist course. Any and all viewpoints will be acceptable; proof, however, will be drawn from the texts themselves. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 203: CHILDREN’S LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.

A survey of children’s literature, from folktales to current realism, including historical and cultural diversity. Emphasis upon definition and application of literary elements and differentiating qualities between “good” and “poor” children’s books. The course will prepare students to hook children on books, cultural literacy and great ideas. Satisfies General Education for Grossmont College C2. Transfers to CSU.

ENGLISH 215: MYTHOLOGY
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 098 or an assessment recommendation for English 110 or 120.

Designed to explore the similarities among the myths of widely separated peoples as a means not only of interpreting their literature and art, but of understanding the basic inter- relationships among all people of the great civilizations of the world. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 217: FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION

3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 098 or an assessment recommendation for English 110 or 120.

An introduction to genre literature, ranging from gothic romance to heroic and other fantasies and from space-adventure to socially-critical contemporary science fiction. The course will examine the traditional, canonical, and historical backgrounds from which popular literature derives and explore the place of science fiction and fantasy in popular culture, past and present. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 218: SHAKESPEARE AND THE THEATRE OF HIS TIME
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 098 or an assessment recommendation for English 110 or 120.

Reading and discussion of six to seven selected Shakespeare plays—including the play(s) being produced or viewed locally, that represent the full range of his works. The point of the course is to prepare students to understand and appreciate more fully the experience of seeing, reading, and discussing Shakespeare. The course will make apt use of actors in the classroom, good films, videotapes, recordings of the plays and theatre tours. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College, C2, CSU C2. Transfers to CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 219: VIEWS OF DEATH AND DYING IN LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 098 or an assessment recommendation for English 110 or 120. 

This course is designed to examine a diverse selection of literary texts representing a range of practical and philosophical concerns about death and dying, including topics such as apocalypse and extinction, the Gothic temperament, illness as metaphor, loss and companion animals, war and casualty, and end-of-life care.  In its consideration of literature’s views of death and dying, the course provides opportunities for students to explore their humanity and their own mortality. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2, CSU C2 or E; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 221: BRITISH LITERATURE I
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 120 or equivalent. Recommended preparation: English 122.

Surveys British literature from the Old English Period to the Romantic Period. Students will read and interpret literature against a background of the historical, social, and philosophical developments of the time. Reading selections may consist of poetry, plays, novels, satires, and nonfiction prose, including letters and essays. Authors sampled may include Geoffrey Chaucer, William Langland, Edmund Spencer, William Shakespeare, Ben Johnson, John Milton, Lady Mary Wroth, Aphra Behn, and Jonathon Swift. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 222: BRITISH LITERATURE II
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 120 or equivalent. Recommended preparation: English 122. Surveys British literature from the Romantic Period to the present. Students will read and interpret literature against a background of the historical, social, and philosophical developments of the time. Reading selections may consist of poetry, short stories, plays, novels, and nonfiction prose, including letters and essays. Authors sampled may include William Blake, Mary Wollstonecraft, William Wordsworth, Samuel Coleridge, Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, John Keats, Robert Browning, Emily Bronte, Oscar Wilde, Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy, William Yeats, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, Doris Lessing, and Derek Walcott. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 225-226-227-228: THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.

An introduction to the books of the Old and New Testament. English 225– Narratives of the Hebrew People; English 226–Old Testament History and Writings of the Prophets; English 227–Literary Forms of the Old Testament; English 228–New Testament. The text will be examined for theme, form, and technique. Recommended for English majors. Satisfies General Education for: CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 225: THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE: Narratives of the Hebrew People
3 units, 3 hours lecture
This course covers the Old Testament narratives of the Hebrew people as well as foundations for creation stories, folk tales, and epics. The complete series of English 225-226-227-228 presents an introduction to the books of the Old and New Testaments from a non-sectarian literary, historical, and cultural perspective. Satisfies General Education for: CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 226: THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE: Old Testament History and Writings of the Prophets
3 units, 3 hours lecture
This course covers Old Testament history and writings of the major and minor prophets. The complete series of English 225-226-227-228 presents an introduction to the books of the Old and New Testaments from a Non-sectarian literary, historical, and cultural perspective. Satisfies General Education for: CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC (credit limited).

ENGLISH 227: THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE: The Literary Forms of the Old Testament
3 units, 3 hours lecture
This course covers the varied literary forms of the Old Testament, including visionary and apocalyptic stories as well as lyrical and wisdom poetry. The complete series of English 225-226-227-228 presents an introduction to the books of the Old and New Testaments from a Non-sectarian literary, historical, and cultural perspective. Satisfies General Education for: CSU C2; IGETC 3B Transfers to: CSU, UC (credit limited).

ENGLISH 228: THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE: The Literary Forms of the New Testament
3 units, 3 hours lecture
This course covers the literary of the New Testament, including the synoptic gospels, the parables, the epistles, and visionary literature. The complete series of English 225-226-227-228 presents an introduction to the books of the Old and New Testaments from a Non-sectarian literary, historical, and cultural perspective. Satisfies General Education for: CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC (credit limited).

ENGLISH 231: AMERICAN LITERATURE I
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 120 or equivalent. Recommended preparation: English 122.

First course in the study of American literature which explores literary works and their political, religious, economic, and aesthetic context from pre-Colonial American to the Civil War. Reading selections may consist of poetry, short stories, novels, and nonfiction prose, including essays, letters, political tracts, and autobiographies. Authors such as the following will be read, analyzed, discussed, and written about in essays and exams: pre-Colonial Native American authors, Anne Bradstreet, Benjamin Franklin, Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, James Fenimore Cooper, Sojourner Truth, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Edgar Allan Poe, Walt Whitman, Frederick Douglass, Emily Dickinson, and Herman Melville. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 232: AMERICAN LITERATURE II
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 120 or equivalent. Recommended preparation: English 122.

Second course in the study of American literature which explores literary works and their political, religious, economic, and aesthetic context from the Civil War to the present. Reading selections may consist of poetry, short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction prose, including letters and essays. Authors such as the following will be read, analyzed, discussed, and written about in essays and exams: Mark Twain, Henry James, Walt Whitman, Kate Chopin, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, Langston Hughes, Tennessee Williams, Allen Ginsberg's, Alice Walker, and Leslie Marmon Silko. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2, IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 236: CHICANO LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 110 or equivalent.

A survey and literary analysis of folk, traditional, and contemporary Chicano literature. Literary works originally written in English and the Chicano bilingual idiom as well as English translations of works written in Spanish will be taught. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2;CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 237: AMERICAN INDIAN LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 110 or equivalent.

A survey and literary analysis of American Indian literature; folk, creation and origin stories, legends, and poetry from the oral tradition to contemporary American Indian authors. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 238: BLACK LITERATURE
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 110 or equivalent.

A survey and literary analysis of folk, traditional and contemporary Black literature. The literature as a reflection of Black experience in the world, and the effects of the literature on American culture and politics. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 241: LITERATURE OF THE WESTERN WORLD I
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or “Pass” in English 110 or equivalent or assessment recommendation for English 120. Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 122 or equivalent.

First course in the study of Literature of the Western World which explores literary works and their political, religious, economic, and aesthetic context from the Ancient World to the Renaissance. Reading selections may consist of epic poetry, plays, lyrics, stories, and nonfiction prose, including philosophy, political tracts, and essays. Authors from The Ancient World, The Middle Ages and The Renaissance will be read, analyzed, discussed, and written about in essays and exams. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 242: LITERATURE OF THE WESTERN WORLD II
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Prerequisite: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 110 or equivalent or assessment recommendation of English 120. Recommended preparation: A “C” grade or higher or “Pass” in English 122 or equivalent. Second course in the study of Literature of the Western World which explores literary works and their political, religious, economic, and aesthetic context from The Enlightenment to the present. Reading selections may consist of poetry, plays, philosophical tales, short stories, novels, and nonfiction prose, including essays and auto- biographies. Authors from the Enlightenment: 19th Century Romanticism, Realism, Naturalism, and Symbolism; and 20th Century Modernism and Contemporary Explorations will be read, analyzed, discussed, and written about in essays and exams. Satisfies General Education for: Grossmont College C2; CSU C2; IGETC 3B. Transfers to: CSU, UC.

ENGLISH 275: LITERARY PERIOD
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: English 120.

Course provides in-depth study of a literary period. Readings selected will cover a body of literature drawn from one literary period (e.g., The Beat Generation, Contemporary World Poetry, Naturalism, or Postmodern Fiction) in addition to at least one secondary work focusing on the literature. Oral and written discussion of such readings and their relevance to the period will be emphasized. Satisfies General Education for Grossmont College C2. Transfers to CSU.

ENGLISH 276: MAJOR AUTHOR
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: English 120.

Course provides in-depth study of a major author. Readings selected will cover a breadth of literature drawn from one major author (e.g., Sylvia Plath, James Joyce, Tennessee Williams or Fyodor Dostoyevsky) in addition to at least one secondary work focusing on the literature. Oral and written discussion of such readings and their relevance to the period will be emphasized. Satisfies General Education for Grossmont College C2. Transfers to CSU.

ENGLISH 277: LITERARY THEME
3 units, 3 hours lecture.
Recommended preparation: English 120.

Course provides in-depth study of a theme in literature. Readings selected will cover a breadth of literature representative of a major theme (e.g., Images of War, Isolation/Exile, Coming of Age, or Diversity) in addition to at least one secondary work focusing on the literature. Oral and written discussion of such readings and their relevance to the period will be emphasized. Satisfies General Education for Grossmont College C2. Transfers to CSU.

1-3 units, 3-9 hours.
Prerequisite: Varies with topic.

Selected topics in English not covered by regular catalog offerings. Course content and unit credit to be determined by the Division of Communication and Fine Arts in relation to community/student need(s) and/or available staff. May be offered as a seminar or lecture class.