Spring 2012

Dr. G. Brightwell

ENGL 200x; 3 credits; CRN 39077

Office hours: T 3.30-4, W 5.30-6, R 10-11

Pre-reqs: ENGL 111 or placement ENGL

Office: Gruening 822

211/213 and sophomore standing

TR 11.30-1.00 REIC 202

Office tel. 474-5209

Email: gabrightwell@alaska.edu

Detective Literature: East Meets West (World Literature)

Important dates

6th March: mid-term examination (during class time)

12th-16th March Spring breakno class

Wednesday 9th May 5.45-7.45 P.M. final examination.

So youve just sat down in your World Literature course and been given the syllabus . . . and now
you might be thinking, detective texts? Arent they, well, trashy? Andjust look at the reading
listwhat is Sherlock Holmes doing on here? After all, wasnt his creator, Arthur Conan Doyle,
British?
Yes, youre right. Detective texts arent usually regarded as high art, and Doyle is one of
those Dead White Males that were supposed to be looking beyond in a course like this. But
Doyle, and Poe (yes, well be reading him too), got this whole detective thing going, and now
millions of people across the world read detective stories, and watch detective films, and write
mysteries. So the genre must be important, right? Well, yesdetective texts offer us interesting
ways to look how literature works, and how it plays a role in making culture, and reflecting that
culture back at its readers. Besides, there are writers who take the detective genre and do
something so extraordinary with it that what they produce is regarded as Literature.
Our aim this semester is going to be to examine how all of this works: What can detective
texts tell us about literature? How has a genre that started back in the nineteenth century, and
was popularized mainly by white male writers, evolved in the hands of other, very different
writers? Were not going to try to cover the worldfor one thing, wed be overwhelmed; for
another, detective stories are few and far between in some cultures. So, were going to limit
ourselves mainly to the start of the detective genre in the West (Europe and North America), and

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how it has been reshaped by the East (particularly in India, Japan and China). Sometimes well
even get to see how the West views the East and vice versa.
This is a reading-intensive (rather than a writing-intensive) course. Youll need to keep
up, and youll need to come to class prepared to talk about what youve read. And just to keep
you on your toes, there will be quizzes. A couple of other points to bear in mind: first, there is a
strict attendance policy for this course (see course policies); second, we will be watching three
films, one of which is Scotts Blade Runner (rated R).
Here is a summary of what you will be graded on:
In-class mid-term examination

30%

Late semester take-home examination

30%

Quizzes

30%

Participation

10%

Quizzes:
You will be given quizzes during class. They will generally ask for very short answers and be
intended to make sure you read the assigned texts for that day. Quizzes cannot be made up if you
are absent and are usually given at the start of class. Your lowest two quiz scores (or missed
quizzes) will be disregarded in calculating your grade.
Mid-term and final examinations:
Your mid-term and final examination may be on any of the texts that we will have read up to that
point, and will require essay-type answers. You will be allowed to bring a dictionary, assigned
texts and your notes with you. The mid-term will be given during class time, and the final
examination during our official examination time.
A note about attendance and participation:
Although (we all hope) this will be a fun course, it is also a serious course. I expect that you will
take it seriously by attending every class, except when it is impossible for you to do so (e.g. you
are in the hospital, you are terribly sick with the fluin that case, please DO stay home). I also
expect you to come to class having read and thought about the assigned texts, and to be prepared
Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details

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to talk about them with the rest of us. Ten per cent of your final grade will count towards your
participation (in other words, taking part in in-class activities such as discussions and
presentations). For information about the consequences of not attending or participating, please
see course policies.
Assigned texts:

How to Read Literature Like a ProfessorFoster, Thomas C. HarperCollins, ISBN-10:

006000942X

The Sign of FourDoyle, Arthur Conan: Penguin Classics, ISBN: 9780140439076

A Wild Sheep ChaseMurakami, Haruki: Vintage, ISBN-10: 037571894X

All She Was Worth Miyabe, Miyuki: Mariner, ISBN-10: 0395966582

When Red is BlackXialong, Qui: St Martins Minotaur: ISBN-10: 156947396X

Note: all texts should be available through the university bookstore. Whichever way you use to
obtain the books, make sure you buy them in time to read them before our class discussions, and
that have them available for the mid-term and final examinations.

Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details

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Course policies
(1) email: check your university email account regularly as I may contact you through your
university account with any course changes and extra information.
(2) academic honesty and student conduct: you are expected to abide by the universitys Student
Code of Conduct (see class schedule), behaving in a manner that maintains the learning and
working environment of our classroom. All work must be your own. Any unacknowledged
inclusion of other writers words, ideas or information in your work, or fabrication of
materials, could result in failure of the course, or in more serious consequences. Incidents of
plagiarism or fabrication that seem more than mere oversight will be reported to the
appropriate university committees.
(3) document formatting: please ensure that your written work (except for the mid-term and
quizzes) is word-processed (not hand-written), double-spaced and uses Times/Times New
Roman 12 point. Page counts are always for full pages of writing. You must use MLA
documentation for all citations, and must cite the edition of an assigned text that we used in
class. Work that does not meet these requirements will not be accepted for grading.
(4) grading: I assume that students work will meet basic course requirements (grade of C).
Students whose work exceeds the basic requirements will receive a higher grade. I use the
whole range of grades (A to F), but do not grade on a curve. I also use plus and minus
grades.
(5) turning in work: work must be turned in to me when I request it or I reserve the right not to
grade it. I do not accept work that is not printed out (no diskettes, no emailed work, etc.),
and will only accept work put into my mailbox by prior arrangement.
(6) attendance and participation: since this is not a lecture course, attendance and active
participation are vital. Not participating or missing class may affect your grade. Missing the
equivalent of 20% (i.e. six classes) of the course for ANY reason will mean being failed,
whether or not you have made up the absences. Missed classes include classes missed
due to late registration. You should limit absences to occasions when you cannot come to
class. You may miss two classes without your grade being affected, but after that I will
Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details

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impose penalties (a drop of a third of a letter grade for the course grade for each absence).
You may make up a maximum of three further absences by writing a 1-2 page analytical
essay on the required reading/viewing for each missed class and therefore avoid the penalty
(note: make-up work does not erase absences, and all of your absences will count towards
the 20% limit). Make-up work must be handed in within two weeks of an absence (I may
make exceptions in cases of extended illness and other emergencies). I reserve the right to
ask for documentation for the reason behind an absence before accepting make-up work, and
to refuse to accept make-up work for avoidable or frivolous absences, or make-up work that
is of poor quality or not handed in promptly. No rewrites will be allowed. Please note: makeup work is not intended as a substitute for attendance, and must not be treated as suchit is
designed only to limit the effect of absences. You must notify me of any absences for
university-related or military activities as soon as you are aware of them. Pursuing non-class
activities during class, and arriving late or leaving early, could also result in you being
marked absent or partially absent, and may lead to a reduced final grade or failure of the
course. I do not issue individual warnings about attendance. It is your responsibility to
monitor your absences and their effect on your grade.
(7) dropping the course: if you decide not to complete the course you should drop by the last
date for withdrawal to avoid an academic penalty. If you simply stop attending you might
remain on my course list and receive an F. If you have serious problems that mean you miss
a substantial portion of the course, you should consult with your advisor about withdrawing.
(8) student support: if you have special needs, please contact either the Office of Student
Support Services for information about their programs, or the Office of Disability Services
(474-7043). Andof courseplease do come and see me!

Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details

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Course schedule
This schedule is subject to change (announcements will be made in class and/or by email).
Books are available through the campus bookstores on-line service, or other bookstore of your
choice (you must ensure you buy the correct edition). Please ensure that you have texts in
sufficient time to read them for our class discussion. Where possible, Ive indicated which texts
to read for which dayif the schedule doesnt specify, readings must be read by the first class of
the week. Unless otherwise indicated, short stories and excerpts are available at the university
librarys E-Res: (http://eres.uaf.edu/courseindex.asp). Password = sherlock
Week 1: 19 Jan
Introduction to the course
Week 2: 24 & 26 Jan
E-Res: For Tuesday Poe The Murders in the Rue Morgue,; for Thursday Pirkis
Drawn Daggers, Orczy The Bag of Sand
How to Read Literature: for Tuesday xi: Introduction; 13: Its All Political
Week 3: 31 Jan & 2 Feb
Doyle The Sign of Four
How to Read Literature: for Tuesday 1: Every Trip is a Quest; for Thursday 19:
Geography Matters; 21: Marked for Greatness
Week 4: 7 & 9 Feb
E-Res: Ray, excerpts from The House of Death and Other Feluda Stories: Napoleons
Letter, The Disappearance of Ambar Sen.
How to Read Literature: for Tuesday 11: . . . More Than Its Gonna Hurt You; for
Thursday 12: Is That a Symbol?
Week 5: 14 & 16 Feb
E-Res: for Tuesday, Christie The Case of the Perfect Maid, Christie Problem at
Sea,; for Thursday Sayers The Man Who Knew.
How to Read Literature: for Tuesday 23: Its Never Just Heart Disease; for
Thursday 25: Dont Read with Your Eyes

Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details

Week 6: 21 & 23 Feb

Miyabe All She Was Worth
How to Read Literature: Interlude: One Story
Week 7: 28 Feb & 1 March
E-Res: For Tuesday: van de Wetering Messing About in Boats; for Thursday:
Melville Forward Murder in Japan, Rampo The Psychological Test,
Akutagawa In a Grove,
How to Read Literature: for Tuesday 3: Nice to Eat You
Week 8: 6 & 8 March
6 March: Mid-term examination (approximately one hour)
8 March: Intro to hard-boiled/film noir
12-16th March SPRING BREAK
Week 9: 20 & 22 March
Film: The Maltese Falcon; E-Res: for Tuesday, novel excerpts Hammetts The
Maltese Falcon and Chandlers The Big Sleep
How to Read Literature: for Thurs 16: Its All About Sex; 17: . . .
Except Sex
Week 10: 27 & 29 March
Continued discussion of The Maltese Falcon; excerpts from Kevin
Youngs Black Maria (provided as handouts)
Week 11: 3 & 5 April
Murakami, A Wild Sheep Chase
How to Read Literature: for Tuesday 26: Is He Serious?; for Thursday 10: Its
More Than Just Rain or Snow; and 20: . . . So Does Season
Week 12: 10 & 12 April
Xialong, When Red is Black

Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details

Week 13: 17 & 19 April

Blade Runner (film: Final Cut version from 2007)
Week 14: 24 & 26 April
Discussion of Blade Runner
Week 15: 1 & 3 May
Sherlock: The Blind Banker (shown in class)
Official exam period: 5:45 - 7:45 p.m., Wednesday, 9 May
In-class examination

Missing class can lower your grade or mean an F. See attendance policy for make-up work and other details