Garry Gillard > writing > lectures > 229 > Study Guide
H229 Narrative Fiction 1
First semester 1995
Course coordinator: Dr Garry Gillard
EH 2.6
360 2389
office hours
Tuesdays 1400-1600
Lecture
Tuesday 10.30-11.20 EH 1.5
Tutorials
Tuesdays 1130-1300 SS 2.55
Fridays 1330-1500 EH 3.51
Handbook description
This course unit is a study of the form and development of the classical/European novel, with particular reference ot the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and of the major theories of the genre. Areas of concentration will be narrative structure, the relation between the novel and history, and theories of realism.
Course Materials
Narrative Fiction 1 is made up of the following elements.
1. Internal Study Guide. You're holding it.
2. Study Guide and Reader. Purchase this from the Bookshop ASAP. For only $7.15 you get some 'lectures'—some notes written by previous CC(s), and a bunch of useful chapters and papers, at least some of which you have to read.
3. Set texts. Listed below as 'primary texts.' Almost all are available in Penguin editions, and are relatively cheap.
4. Secondary texts. The most important for this course unit is Vijay Mishra's book The Gothic Sublime. The Bookshop has sixteen copies, priced at $32.60 (each). Other books you will use at your discretion. There are some notes for your guidance, and a (long) list below.
5. Tutorials—as above. The administration has done a remarkable job of putting them at an inconvenient time or place—sorry: it's not under my control. Tutes are set down for an hour and a half, and each one of you will be expected to contribute to each tutorial discussion, to the best of your ability and knowledge.
6. Tutorial paper. Everyone must give one paper. Worth 10% of total. Your choice of primary (and secondary) text—although papers should be spread as evenly as possible, on a first-come-first-served basis.
7. Murdoch University Library. Holdings in narrative theory and fiction areas, particularly 800-809.
8. Assignments. Two of these (20% each, due 21 April and 2 June).
9. Examination. Sorry about this, if you don't like exams. Academic Council now requires supervised assessment.
Primary texts
(Penguin editions have in each case been ordered for the Bookshop, except where noted below. Penguin edition would be OK for Middlemarch.)
Week 2. Lazarillo de Tormes, in Two Spanish Picaresque Novels $11.05
Week 3. Henry Fielding, Tom Jones $8.30
Week 4. Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, Dangerous Liaisons $11.05
Week 5. Horace Walpole, The Castle of Otranto, in Three Gothic Novels $9.20
Week 6. Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, in Three Gothic Novels
Week 7. William Godwin, Caleb Williams $13.85
Week 8. Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist $7.35
Week 9. Hermann Melville, Pierre (Northwestern edition) $29.60
Week 10. George Eliot, Middlemarch (Norton edition) $21.80
Week 11. Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov $13.85
Week 12. Henry James, The Turn of the Screw $8.30
Total cost $134.35
Secondary texts
If you have heaps of money and actually want to buy one or two theory books, you might consider those mentioned on page 2 of the Study Guide and Reader: Shlomith Rimmon-Keenan's Narrative Fiction—which used to be a set text for Narrative Fiction 2—and may be again; and Ian Watt's The Rise of the Novel. (You have part of Bakhtin's book in the Reader, as I mention below.) You should try to read a few of the texts listed in the 'secondary bibliography': you are required to refer to theoretical texts for the second essay, and better students will refer to more than those reprinted in the reader section of the course book.
Bakhtin. One of the two excerpts from Bakhtin included in the Reader is actually from the book called The Dialogic Imagination, which is referred to more than once in the study guide section of the course materials. There are only four essays in the book, so this essay ('Epic and novel') in a sense is one quarter of it (although it's only in pages 3-40). The other excerpt is taken from a different volume for the present collection of readings (see page 7 for the source)—the law of copyright won't allow us to use two. It's from Bakhtin's book on Dostoevsky which has been retranslated and republished since that excerpt was done. I think the later translation is better. A new selection from Bakhtin has recently been published. It's The Bakhtin Reader: Selected Writings of Bakhtin, Medvedev and Voloshinov, edited by Pam Morris, Edward Arnold, London, 1994. Much of that excerpt is in it—although differently selected. It's in the MU Library, at 801.953 BAK. The translation of Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics listed at 871.39 D7249B/2 (as mentioned on page 6 of the Study Guide and Reader) is actually the older one. The newer one is at 871.39 D7249B/4 (just the last number is different): it's edited and translated by Caryl Emerson, with an introduction by Wayne C. Booth. (The older one was translated by R. W. Rotsel, and published by Ardis, Ann Arbor, Mich., 1973.) I'm saying all this because I think you'll find the excerpt in the Study Guides and Reader difficult to read (in both senses) and I don't want you to be too frustrated. As I recall, the excerpt called 'Discourse typology in prose' was meant to replace the essay called 'Discourse in the novel'—the last (long: pages 259-422) essay in The Dialogic Imagination. You might do better to have a look at that, if you can borrow the book—there are three copies in MULib. (There's just the one copy of each of The Bakhtin Reader and Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics (in the Emerson translation).
For the Walpole, Mary Shelley and Godwin sections of this course you should consult Vijay Mishra's The Gothic Sublime. This book is available from the University Bookshop. The Library holds a number of copies of the book as well.
Secondary Bibliography (*more highly recommended) with MU Library call and control numbers.
Auerbach, E., Mimesis X 809.A917/1 (16681) (20165)
*Bakhtin, M., Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics X 871.39 D7249B/4
Bakhtin, M., Rabelais and his World X 841.39 R1149B/1 (097078)
*Bakhtin, M., The Dialogic Imagination X 801.953 B168/1 (115422)
*Barthes, R., S/Z X 841.79 B1989B/1 (39027) (72318)
Benjamin, 'The Storyteller', Polletta, Issues in Contemp Lit Crit X 801.95 P773/1 (17813)
*Booth, Wayne C., The Rhetoric of Fiction X 808.3 B7251
Bersani, L., A Future for Astyanax X 809.93353 B535/1 (107100)
Butor, M., Inventory X 841.949 B9874H/1 (28954)
*Calderwood, J. and Toliver, E. (ed) Perspectives on Fiction X 809.3 P467/1 (39644)
*Chambers, R., Story and Situation X808.3 C445 (146104J)
*Cohn, D., Transparent Minds X 809.383 C678/1 (097214)
Deleuze, G., Proust and Signs X 841.929 P9689D/1 (15862)
Forster, E.M., Aspects of the Novel X 809.33 F733/1 (006778) (033799)
Genette, G., Narrative Discourse X 801.953 G328/1 (114438)
*Girard, R., Deceit, Desire and the Novel X 809.33 G518/1 (63492)
Goldmann, L., Towards a Sociology of the Novel X 809.304 G6191/1 (22017)
*Halperin, J. (ed) The Theory of the Novel: New Essays X 809.33 T396/1 (48615)
Harvey, W., Character and the Novel X 809.33 H342/1 (27728)
Iser, W., The Implied Reader X 824.0301 I78/1 (52647)
Josipovici, G., The World and the Book X 809.3 J83/1 (34248)
Kermode, F., The Sense of an Ending X 801 K391
Knight, E., A Theory of the Classical Novel X 809.3 K69/1 (29539)
Lämmert, E., Bauformen des Erzählens X 809.3 L232/1 (34907)
Leavis, F.R., The Great Tradition X 824.82301 L439/1 (4762) (27985)
Levin, H., The Gates of Horn X 841.8301 L665/1 (4698)
Lodge, D., The Language of Fiction X 824.0301 L822/1 (27544)
Lubbock, P., The Craft of Fiction X 801.953 L927/1 (27602)
*Lukacs, G., The Theory of the Novel X 809.33 L954/1 (34695) (73589)
Lukacs, G., Studies in European Realism X 809.912 L954/21 (29300)
Lukacs, G., The Historical Novel X 809.381 L954/1 (46215) (103297)
*McKeon, M., Origins of the English Novel X 824.5301 M157 1 (162991E)
*Miller, D.A., Narrative and its Discontents X809.3923 M647 (133706F)
*Mishra, Vijay, The Gothic Sublime X824.0321 M678.01
Miller, J.H., Fiction and Repetition X824. 0301 M648/1 (129043B)
Pascal, R., The Dual Voice X 809.3034 P278/1 (121594)
*Rimmon-Kenan, S., Narrative Fiction X 808.3 R577/1 (140049C)
*Robbe-Grillet, A., Towards a New Novel X 841.949 R6318I/2 (58036)
Robert, M., The Old and the New X 809.33 R642/1 (091311)
Rockwell, J., Fact in Fiction X 809.383 R684/1 (46221)
Said, E., Beginnings X 809.3132/1 (90634)
*Scholes, R. (ed) Approaches to the Novel X 808.3 /1 (27589)
*Scholes, R. and Kellogg, R., The Nature of Narrative X 809.3923 S368/1 (21169) 31401)
Shklovksy on Tristram Shandy, in Lemon & Reis X 809.8947 R969/1 (21785)
*Stevick, P. (ed) The Theory of the Novel X 808.33 S848/1 (4459)
Stanzel, F., Narrative Situations in the Novel X 809.33 S792/1 (27128)
Steinberg, M., Expositional Modes … in Fiction X 801.953 S839/1 (098969)
Swingewood, A., The Novel and Revolution X 809.33 S978/1 (87696)
Todorov, T., Poetics of Prose X 809.3 T639/2 (72767)
Watt, I., The Rise of the Novel X 824.6301 W344 1,2,3
Williams, R., (ed) The English Novel X 824.82301 W726/1 (093100)
Zeraffa, M., Fictions X 809.33 Z58/1 (71298)
Assessment
Course assessment will be based on two assignments, each of approximately 1800 words, a three-hour examination, a tutorial paper, and tutorial participation. All five components of the course—including the tutorial paper—must be completed in order to pass.
Assignment One
What do you understand by the term 'the realist novel'? Discuss how 'realism' gets established as a particular mode of literary representation (a mediatized view of the world), and how this form has been constantly reinvigorated and challenged by a number of novelists. (20%, 21 April, 1800 words)
Assignment Two
Drawing upon your reading of the primary and theoretical texts set for this course, write an essay around the following paragraph from Bakhtin's The Dialogic Imagination. (20%, 2 June, 1800 words)
The study of the novel as a genre is distinguished by peculiar difficulties. This is due to the unique nature of the object itself: the novel is the sole genre that continues to develop, that is as yet uncompleted. The forces that define it as a genre are at work before our very eyes: the birth and development of the novel as a genre takes place in the full light of the historical day. The generic skeleton of the novel is still far from having hardened, and we cannot foresee all its plastic possibilities.
Examination
This is a compulsory part of the assessment for both external and internal students. You'll be given formal notification of the date and venue of the examination—which will be during the formal assessment period—by the University administration.
Tutorial paper
Half of the tutorial component will be for a tutorial paper (the other half is for participation generally), and everyone is required to give one short paper, which should take ten or fifteen minutes to read. Choose a novel as soon as possible and read it together with one (or more) of the secondary texts, whether in the Reader (section) or in one of the secondary texts listed in the Study Guide (section). It's theoretically possible to combine any two, so don't worry too much about which to choose. Let me know which paper you have chosen to give as soon as possible. I'll write your name in my list for your chosen week and novel, beginning with Week 2.
After you've presented the paper in the tutorial please hand it in for comments and a more considered grade—though I want to take into consideration its usefulness in the sense of leading to a learning on the part of everyone present (including me).
If for some reason your seminar paper cannot be fitted into the weekly schedule, you will have to submit a written assignment instead, no later than Tuesday 7 June—and preferably before. A higher standard of presentation will be required for the written paper, the same as for the other written assignments, so you are strongly advised to present the paper orally. In either case you must present the paper to pass the course.
Assessment percentages
Assignment 1 20%
Assignment 2 20%
Tutorial participation 10%
Tutorial paper 10%
Examination 40% (during Assessment Period)
Due dates for essays
Assignment 1 21 April (Friday of Week 8)
Assignment 2 2 June (Friday of Week 13)
Grading scale
HD High Distinction 80-100
D Distinction 70-79
C Credit 60-69
P Pass 50-59
CP Conceded Pass 45-49
S Supplementary Assessment 45-49
N Fail below 45
Z Ungraded Pass above 50
Assessment for all courses is in accordance with the provisions of Degree Regulations 40-48. Check these in the current Murdoch University Handbook. Note that you may opt for official reporting on a pass/fail basis instead of a grade. See the Handbook for the procedures required to elect pass/fail if you have not already indicated this on your form. It is also important for you to realise that final grades are awarded by the University upon the recommendation of the School Board and not by individual tutors and coordinators.
Warnings
Deadlines are strict. Late submission without good cause (normally medically certificated) will attract the following penalties:
submission later than the deadline = grading without feedback or comment;
submission later than one week after the deadline = downgrading by one grade;
submission after the due date for the next assignment = failure (the work will not be marked);
submission of final assignment more than one week late = failure (the work will not be marked).
Please note that late submission with good cause is not affected by these penalties, and that you may apply to the University for deferred assessment if you are unable to complete your assignments by the end of semester; you'll need to support your application with good, documented cause. If you find you are facing difficulties, consult your tutor before the deadline.
Length of work submitted should, within reason, be in line with specified word counts.
Work that is substantially over-length will be marked up to the word limit.
Plagiarism
Students are reminded that plagiarism is a serious offence, and will automatically result in reporting to the Dean, who may impose penalties including a Fail in that subject and/or even exclusion from the University. (See The Humanities Manual, or consult your course coordinator for further information.)
Further on this point, Academic Council has approved the following Policy on Dishonesty in Assessment, which you should read carefully if you are in any doubt at all. What is written in this course outline is only informal: in the case of any differences, the official Policy will of course be followed.
The University regards most seriously any acts of dishonesty relating to assessment. Cheating includes plagiarism, unauthorised collaboration, examination misconduct and theft of other students' work. Acting unfairly or dishonestly in assessment is defined as misconduct under the Discipline Statute, and, depending on the seriousness of the case, can lead to a requirement to undertake additional work, failure in a course or in part of it, suspension from the university or even permanent expulsion from the university. The university regards any form of cheating as a serious matter of academic dishonesty which threatens the integrity of the assessment processes and awards of the university, to the detriment of all other students and graduates of the university.
Plagiarism constitutes using the work of another without indicating by referencing (and by quotation marks when exact phrases or passages are borrowed) that the ideas expressed are not one's own. Students can use the ideas and information from other authors, but this use must be acknowledged. It is not acceptable to submit an assignment which is simply a paraphrasing of extracts from other authors; the work submitted must include some intellectual contribution of the student's own.
Resubmission of previously marked work—the submission of the same piece of work for assessment in two different courses by the student author—is not acceptable practice if it is not acknowledged.
Unauthorised collaboration ('collusion') constitutes joint effort between students, or students and others, in preparing material submitted for assessment, except where this has been approved by the course coordinator. Students are encouraged to discuss matters covered in courses, but when writing an assignment, computer program, laboratory report or other piece of assessed work, the recording and treatment of data and the expression of ideas and argument must be the student's own.
Non-discriminatory language
Murdoch University is committed to the use of non-discriminatory language in all forms of communication. Students and staff should avoid the use of discriminatory language in teaching and learning and in all other activities within the University. This applies to both oral and written communication.
Discriminatory language is that which refers in abusive terms to gender, race, age, sexual orientation, citizenship or nationality, ethnic or language background, physical or mental ability, or political or religious views, or which stereotypes groups in an adverse manner that is not supported by evidence. This is not meant to preclude or inhibit legitimate academic debate on any issue; however the language used in such debate should be non-discriminatory and sensitive to these matters.
Referencing style
You may use any style of referencing, so long as you use it consistently. You may use a footnote or MLA style with a number in the text and the reference at the foot, or the 'Harvard' or 'author-date' style with the author's name and the date of publication in the text. The MLA (Modern Language Association of America) style is preferred by many people in Humanities. Others include APA (American Psychological Association), Chicago, and so on.
If you have no idea what to do, consult The Humanities Manual, or follow these examples of the Harvard style (based on the guidelines in the Australian Government Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers, fourth edition, Canberra, 1988).
If you want to refer in your text to an idea from the book Travels in Hyperreality by Umberto Eco, cite it like this.
'Today a country belongs to the person who controls communications' (Eco 1987: 135).
If you have mentioned the author's name you don't put it in the parentheses.
'Today,' as Umberto Eco points out, 'a country belongs to the person who controls communications' (1987: 135).
If you are referring to a chapter in a book, or a journal article, you cite them in the same way, like this.
'Theory,' as Stuart Hall reminds us, is 'a set of contested, localized, conjunctural knowledges, which have to be debated in a dialogical way' (Hall 1992: 286).
Masculinity has been seen as evolving in a relationship with gender politics on the pastoral frontier (Hawke 1990).
Then, in your list of references at the end of the assignment, you give the full references like this. The examples given refer to: a book, a chapter in a book, and an article in a journal.
References
Eco, Umberto 1987, Travels in Hyperreality: Essays, trans. William Weaver, Picador, London.
Hall, Stuart 1992, 'Cultural studies and its theoretical legacies,' in Lawrence Grossberg, Cary Nelson & Paula Treichler (eds), Cultural Studies, Routledge, London: 277-86.
Hawke, Steve 1992, 'The painted desert,' The Independent Monthly, September: 22-26.
[Underlining in typed MSS used to indicate that the printer would set the material in italic type. (I've gone back to using underlining in preference to italics—as in most of this document—simply because it's easier to see on a computer screen.) These days, many of us can do our own 'type-setting,' so you could represent the underlined titles above in italics, like this.
Eco, Umberto 1987, Travels in Hyperreality: Essays, trans. William Weaver, Picador, London.
Hall, Stuart 1992, 'Cultural studies and its theoretical legacies,' in Lawrence Grossberg, Cary Nelson & Paula Treichler (eds), Cultural Studies, Routledge, London: 277-86.
Hawke, Steve 1992, 'The painted desert,' The Independent Monthly, September: 22-26.]
I hope you enjoy the course.
Garry Gillard
2 February 1995
Garry Gillard | New: 16 January, 2018 | Now: 20 December, 2018