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| introduction to academic writing: |
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fictions of Borges |
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Harvey Mudd College, fall 2024 |
| WRIT 001 section 8 |
| MW 9:35-10:50 A.M. Shan B445 |
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| Prof. Bill Alves alves @ hmc.edu Parsons 1273 |
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| Canvas Site |
KEY INFORMATION ABOUT THE COURSE
Purpose and Objectives:
This course is an intensive reading, thinking, and writing seminar designed to help you develop effective writing strategies that will serve you throughout your HMC career and beyond. These three things — reading, thinking and writing — are inextricably connected. During the course you will read, discuss, consider, and write about several provided readings. These materials, though not long, are rich and subject to interpretation, and each text will require close, careful and repeated readings for you to begin to see what the author has provided and what you might do with that work. The course will offer a collaborative environment, including peer and full-class review of your writing. Rich instructor feedback is intended to help you think of writing as an ongoing, creative process, rather than a task that results in a final product beyond revision. You will develop, and substantially and repeatedly revise, one analytical essay and one reflective essay during the course of this half-semester. The culmination of your written work will be collected in a portfolio at the end of the half-semester, and will be evaluated by your instructors and at least one outside reader. The class will also work through a series of style exercises aimed at improving the ways you use words and phrases to communicate ideas.All disciplines and STEM careers require, in some form, the ability to compose clearly articulated and properly qualified claims that can be supported with evidence. This course is the first component of a broader effort across departments to develop these abilities. It will prepare you to move into subsequent course work, but cannot realistically address all possible writing needs. What it can do, we believe, is provide a solid grounding in the most broadly applicable writing skills and practices.
Texts:
The act of writing demands something to write about, which, in this course, will be short fiction of the Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986). Borges's stories often lie on the frontiers between fables, fantasies, essays, and mysteries, as they self-reflexively ponder the nature of knowledge, creativity, and existence. However, this is not a literature course, and little class time will be available for discussions or lectures about the stories. These required sources will be provided online.In addition to these thematic sources, we will be using Williams and Bizup’s Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace. It's important that you get the twelfth edition. Please purchase the book, as it will be required in future courses as well as this one.
Learning Objectives:
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:- Compose clearly articulated, properly qualified, and well-motivated claims that can be supported with evidence.
- Develop those claims into carefully reasoned, evidence-based arguments that cohere within and between paragraphs.
- Write clear and concise sentences and cohesive paragraphs in the service of a compelling and engaging style.
- Properly document sources and acknowledge outside influences.
- Recognize differences in conventions of expression across disciplines.
The following methods will be employed in service of these objectives:
- Class discussion
- Exercises in reading, critical thinking, and writing, including exercises related to Williams and Bizup’s Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace, 12th ed.
- Informal writing to develop thinking at different stages of inquiry
- Staged writing assignments, including topic and thesis formulation, outlining, exploratory drafting, and repeated revisions leading up to a final project
- Instruction on attention to audience needs, rhetorical purpose, genre, authority/voice, and disciplinary conventions
- Peer review
- Extensive and timely instructor feedback
Student Responsibilities:
You will receive the greatest benefits from this course if you commit to the following:- Be attentive. Cell phones should be silenced and laptops closed unless being used for a class activity. In order to support our class community, we ask that you use class time to fully engage with the class and your peers.
- Attend class sessions. This is a seminar course, and attendance is mandatory because participation benefits not only you but others in the class. We will devote class time to discussion, writing, exercises, peer reviewing, and other activities that depend on everyone's active and thoughtful participation. You will benefit from others' participation, and you have an obligation to participate in return. Active participation takes many forms and can include asking questions, listening and taking notes, writing down questions to ask during office hours, and talking with your classmates during small group activities. The Associate Dean of Academic Affairs may excuse absences.
- Complete work on time. Because this is a short but intensive course, we expect that you will complete assignments on time and that you will come to class prepared. We reserve the right to refuse late work. If you realize that you will miss a deadline, contact us as soon as possible.
Instructor Responsibilities:
We will:- Be responsive. We will respond to emails within 48 hours at most; often the response time is quicker.
- Give clear feedback. All writers benefit from constructive feedback. We will work to provide clear and timely comments about your writing. Many students find that the feedback they receive in Writ 001 is very different from feedback they received in high school. When you have questions about the feedback you receive in this course (and we expect that all students will have these questions!), please talk with us in office hours, or by appointment.
Online tools:
We will use our Canvas site primarily as a repository for important documents and as a place for you to turn in your assignments. Once you log on to Canvas, click “Modules” to find all important documents and assignments. If you have any questions about how to use Canvas, please let us know. For other communication, we will be emailing students via their HMC emails. Please check your email regularly. Do not email us from a non-HMC account, as we may not respond to addresses we don't recognize.Course Philosophy:
There is no such thing as a person who is innately “good at writing.” We firmly believe that everyone in the class is fully capable of engaging and mastering the material through practice and productive struggle. We will try our best to make this class an inclusive space, where ideas, questions, and misconceptions can be discussed with respect. Our diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and viewpoints will enrich the classroom, and our mutual respect will grant us all the grace to make mistakes and learn from them.Course Grade:
You will receive a grade of high pass, pass, or no credit for the course. This grade will be determined by us after we take into account your performance on writing assignments, the external reader's evaluation of your portfolio, and your participation in class and on assigned work outside of class. You must complete all assignments to pass the course.Meetings:
We will set up weekly meeting one-on-one meeting times that will take place in your instructor's office. Attendance at these meetings are required just as with class meetings, and we expect you to notify us if you cannot attend. We are also happy to respond to emailed questions, generally within 24 hours during the week or a little longer over the weekend. Please send us emails only through your HMC email account (name@hmc.edu or name@g.hmc.edu).Assignments:
In addition to short in-class and homework writing assignments, you will complete one polished paper that will undergo multiple revisions with specific deadlines and one final essay that reflects on your writing process. The final portfolio will contain the polished paper and the reflective essay. Unless otherwise stated, all assignments should be in .docx format (not pdf, pages, odt or anything else) and uploaded to Canvas Assignments. You can use MS Word, Libre Office, or convert a Google doc to docx form. Much of our feedback will be in the form of comments in the document itself, so be sure that your software can display text comments.Advice from Past Students:
If you are struggling in Writ001, we want to help you succeed. Please contact us if you have questions or concerns about your progress in the course. Students who have taken this course regularly share the following advice for incoming students:- "Your instructors care for your success in the course. They are on your side!"
- "Proactive communication with your instructors is essential. If you are falling behind, please reach out for help."
- "Go to office hours and make appointments with your instructors early and often. Visit the writing center early and often."
- "Be honest. If you didn't finish an assignment, contact your instructors as soon as possible to figure out a solution."
- "Communication is key."
KEY INFORMATION ABOUT STUDENT RESOURCES AND SUCCESS
The Writing Center
The HMC Writing Center (SHAN 1470) provides a welcoming space for writers to get feedback on their composition projects, whether written, spoken, or visual pieces. Writing Center Consultants are prepared to assist students in any discipline with any stage of the writing process, from developing an idea to polishing a final draft. Even the most accomplished writers benefit from seeking feedback at the writing center.You may schedule an appointment through their website: https://www.hmc.edu/learning-programs/writing-center/. The Writing Center is an excellent resource (that you will be required to make use of as a part of this course). It's also fun and free!
YOU WILL LIKELY FIND YOUR WRITING CENTER VISIT MORE VALUABLE IF YOU GO EARLIER THAN THE NIGHT BEFORE YOUR FINAL DRAFT IS DUE.
You are required to work with the Writing Center for feedback on your writing at least one time by the fourth week of class. We hope you visit many additional times, too.
Accessible Education and Accommodations:
HMC is committed to providing an inclusive learning environment and support for all students. Students with a disability (including mental health, chronic or temporary medical conditions) who may need accommodations in order to fully participate in this class are encouraged to contact the HMC Office of Accessible Eduction. You may also talk to us or contact the Student Disability Resource Center.Mental Health Resources:
College students often experience issues that may interfere with academic success such as academic stress, sleep problems, juggling responsibilities, life events, relationship concerns, or feelings of anxiety, hopelessness, or depression. If you or a friend is struggling, we strongly encourage you to seek support. Helpful, effective resources are available at the 5Cs at no charge.- If you are struggling with this class, please visit during office hours or contact us by email.
- Check-in with the Office of Academic Deans if you are struggling in courses or unsure what academic resources are available.
- Reach out to The Office of Wellbeing to discuss options available to you by emailing wellness@hmc.edu
- MCAPS provides crisis support services 24/7/365. Students can call at 909-621-8202 and press "1" at the prompt to speak with a crisis counselor. Other prompt options are available for those not in crisis.
Honor Code:
The HMC Honor Code applies to all of your work for this class, both during class time and after hours. Writing is a social act, and human collaboration on writing projects is fine, even expected, but your work must ultimately be your own. If you received help from your classmates, from the Writing Center, or even from your mother, it is customary to acknowledge that help in writing (you should add an Acknowledgments section at the end of your essay). All references to other texts or others' ideas must be properly cited, and you are expected to call on those sources only in service of creating your own work. In other words, your own intellectual work must be readily apparent as the driving force of your writing. The Honor Code works at HMC because we trust each other to make it work.AI Tools:
Writing is a difficult process that involves reading, annotating, brainstorming, outlining, peer review, revision, and much more. By navigating this difficult process in collaboration with their human peers and instructors, students develop writing and communication skills essential to all academic disciplines. Students are therefore prohibited from using any kind of AI tool, assistant, or add-on — e.g., GPT, Gemini, Grammarly, etc. — or translation software during any part of this class, including for reading, annotating, summarizing, brainstorming, composing, translating, revising sentences, editing, drafting, etc. Students who use AI or translation software in this class are in violation of Mudd’s Honor Code. We fully expect your first draft to be messy and for your fourth thesis statement to need revision. We also expect that by engaging fully in the writing process, rather than outsourcing tasks to an AI, you will grow as a writer and thinker among a community of learners.Course Schedule
(Topics may vary according to class progress, though assignment due dates will not):| Week | Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
| 1 | 10/13 | 10/14 Fall break |
10/15 Fall break |
10/16 Class meeting: Preliminaries; overview of the course. Jorge Luis Borges. Instructor meeting times. |
10/17 | 10/18 |
| 2 | 10/20 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 1 Read “The Library of Babel” and "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius." and post responses on Canvas discussion forums. |
10/21 Class meeting: Discussion of readings; writing clarity and points to be made. |
10/22 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 2 Read the Thesis Statement handout, “The Garden of Forking Paths”, and "Blue Tigers. Respond on the Canvas discussion forum. |
10/23 Class meeting: Discussion of readings; introduction to theses, introductory paragraphs |
10/24 | 10/25 Due by 9:00 A.M.: Assignment 3 Williams Lesson 7, write two possible thesis statements. |
| 3 | 10/27 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 4 Read the handout on introductions and draft an introduction for your paper. |
10/28 Class meeting: Discussion of theses, evidentiary outlines, Bad Sentences! |
10/29 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 5 Read the Outline handout and draft a proposed evidentiary outline for your paper. |
10/30 Class meeting: Actors and actions, workshopping outlines. |
10/31 | 11/1 |
| 4 | 11/3 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 6 Outline and paragraph revision. |
11/4 Class meeting: Paragraph structure, citations, in-class outline editing. |
11/5 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 7 Williams Lessons 3 and 4; draft body paragraph. |
11/6 Class meeting: Editing drafted body paragraph. |
11/7 | 11/8 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Main essay version 1 |
| 5 | 11/10 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 8 Williams Lesson 5. |
11/11 Class meeting: Evidence and analysis, revision. |
11/12 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 9 |
11/13 Class meeting: Reverse outlining, revision strategies. |
11/14 |
11/15 |
| 6 | 11/17 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Main essay version 2 |
11/18 Class meeting: Across sections peer review. (Remember to bring your charged laptop!) |
11/19 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Main essay version 3 |
11/20 Class meeting: Peer review debrief, citations and acknowledgements. |
11/21 | 11/22 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Reflective Essay version 1 |
| 7 | 11/24 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 10 Peer review of Reflective Essay (return to peer and upload to Canvas |
11/25 Class meeting: Review portfolio instructions, reflective essay |
11/26 Due by 11:59 P.M.: Assignment 11 Writing Across the Disciplines reading |
11/27 Thanksgiving break |
11/28 Thanksgiving break |
11/29 Thanksgiving break |
| 8 | 12/1 | 12/2 Class meeting: Writing Across the Disciplines |
12/3 | 12/4 Class meeting: Course evaluations. |
12/5 | 12/6 Due by 9:00 A.M.: Final Portfolio |