Description and Objectives

The course will expose the student to some of the great short-fiction of war–short stories, poetry, and plays– that capture the moral complexity of war. By the end of the course, it is hoped that the student will approach the question of armed conflict and its impact on those who fight in it with a renewed sense of moral sobriety.

Textbooks

Billy Budd, Sailor      Herman Melville

The Red Badge of Courage    Stephen Crane

The Pacific and Other Stories      Mark Helprin

Redeployment        Phil Klay

Journey’s End         R.C. Sherriff

The Things They Carried         Tim O’Brien

Various poems from the Civil War and WW I gathered from various sources.

 

Course Requirements

Read all of the assigned material.

Participate in classroom discussion.

Pass weekly reading quizzes.

Pass occasional tests on the material read.

Write in-class essays that indicate a firm grasp on the material.

 

Successful Students

Keep up with the reading.

Contribute thoughtfully to classroom discussion.

Know the reading well enough to successfully negotiate quizzes and tests.

Think carefully before you write. Once writing, pay attention to the rules of grammar, spelling, punctuation and composition.