The New Yorker
English 624: Fall 2005
Virginia Commonwealth University
Professor Bryant Mangum
 



 

Schedule of Assignments
 

 Weeks 1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9|10|11|12|13|14|15|16


Week One        (25 August)
Course Introdution:
1. Brief General History of New Yorker: contextualizing it in 1920s; other "slicks"
2. Course Format and Dividing Up Topics for Seminar Reports


Week Two        (30 August, 1 September) The New Yorker Issue/August 29, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
1. New Yorker Story in context of American short story
2. Current New Yorker and old New Yorker: Browse through old and new issues
3. Discussion of "decade" stories: 20's, 30's, etc.
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Fiction: "The View from Castle Rock" by Alice Munro
THE CRITICS
"The Girls in Their Summer Dresses" by Irwin Shaw  http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/dresses.html
POEMS


Week Three        (6, 8 September)  The New Yorker Issue/September 5, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
Discussion of Beginning of Profiles and Talk Presentations to begin Week Four
(dates uploaded before Labor Day)
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Complete discussion of "The View from Castle Rock" by Alice Munro (Tuesday)
New Fiction: "Club des Amis" by Tony D'Souza (Thursday)
THE CRITICS
"Over the River and Through the Wood" by John O'Hara (on Blackboard: Course Documents) (Tuesday)
"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" by James Thurber (on Blackboard: Course Documents) (Thursday)
"The Caterpillar" a poem by Lucretia Cole (from 1936 issue--to be handed out in class) (Tuesday)
POEMS
"Turkish Pears" by Robert Bly (Thursday)
"Ransom" by Stanley Moss (Thursday)



Week Four            (13, 15 September)  The New Yorker Issue/September 12, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Kim Wood: Harold Ross (Tuesday)
Andrew Blossom:  The Role of the E.B. and Catherine White (Tuesday)
Lindsay Chudzik:  Dorothy Parker and the Round Table (Thursday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
"Coping Stones" by Ann Beattie (Thursday)
THE CRITICS
"The Door" by E.B. White  http://www.classicshorts.com/stories/door.html (Tuesday)
"Homecoming" by William Maxwell (on Blackboard: Course Documents) (Thursday)
POEMS
Carried over from last week:  "Turkish Pears" by Robert Bly (Thursday)
"Ransom" by Stanley Moss (Thursday)



Week Five    (20, 22 September)   The New Yorker Issue/September 19, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Kim Wood:  James Thurber: Biography, Personality (Tuesday)
Mary Levi:  Thurber's New Yorker Drawings (Tuesday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Channing Billups:  William Maxwell,  "The Patterns of Love" (Thursday)
"Cowboy" by Thomas McGuane
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Six    (27, 29 September)   The New Yorker Issue/September 26, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Laura Harrison:  "Famous" Contributors During the Ross Years (Tuesday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Kim Wood:  Dorothy Parker, "Arrangement in Black and White" (Tuesday)
Audio Recording: http://www.salon.com/audio/2000/10/05/parker/
Samuel Chafin:  John Cheever, "The Enormous Radio" (Thursday)
"The Kidney-Shaped Stone that Moves Every Day" by Haruki Murakami. We will pland to discuss this story after Sam has made his presentation on Cheever and we have discussed "The Enormous Radio." Jesse will give his profile presentation on Tuesday the 4th.
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Seven  (4, 6 October)   The New Yorker Issue/October 3, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Jesse Ulmer:  The "Profile" Section (Tuesday)
Anna Journey:  Evolution of New Yorker Poetry (Tueday)
Lauren Maas: The "Fiction" Issue (Thursday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Michelle Stillwell: Shirley Jackson, "The Lottery" (Thursday)
"Companion" by Sana Krasikov (We will plan to discuss this next week if time permits.)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Eight  (11, 13 October)  The New Yorker Issue/October 10,  2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Channing Billups:  A Perspective on New Yorker Humor (Tuesday)
Anne Sisk:  The William Shawn Era (Thursday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Mary Levi: Alice Adams, "To See You Again" (Tuesday)
"Early Music" by Jeffrey Eugenides (Thursday; also "Companion" if time allows.)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Nine    (18 October; No Class 20 October: Reading Day) The New Yorker Issue/October 17, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Courtney Fenner:  Social/Political Outlook of The New Yorker (Tuesday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Laura Harrison: Susan Minot, "Thorofare" (Tuesday)
THE CRITICS
POEM


Week Ten  (25, 27 October)   The New Yorker Issue/October 24, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Sam Chapin: The New Yorker's Handling of Manuscripts (Tuesday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Courtney Fenner:  Woody Allen, "The Kugelmaas Episode" (Tuesday)
Anna Journey:  Sylvia Plath, Poems tba (Thursday)
Anne Sisk:  Ann Beattie, "The Burning House" (Thursday)

THE CRITICS
POEMS



Week Eleven   (1, 3 November)   The New Yorker Issue/October 31, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Tutorial on The Complete New Yorker (Tuesday)
Discussion ofl long, end-of-term projects (Tuesday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
"Summer Crossing" by Truman Capote (Tuesday)
"The Children" by William Trevor (Thursday)
Lauren Maas:Alice Munro, "Nettles" (Thursday)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Twelve   (8, 10 November)   The New Yorker Issue/November 7, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Cynthia Lotze:  The Tina Brown Era (Tuesday)
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
"The Children" by William Trevor (Tuesday--carried over)
"The God of War" by Marisa Silver (Thursday--moved back a day)
Cynthia Lotze:  Garrison Keillor, "We Are Still Married" (Thursday)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Thirteen   (15, 17 November)   The New Yorker Issue/November 14, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
"A Perfect Day for Bananafish" by J.D. Salinger
Andrew Blossom:  George Saunders, "Sea Oak" (Tuesday)
Jesse Ulmer:  Gabriel-Garcia Marquez, "Maria dos Prazeres" (Thursday)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Fourteen   (22 November; No class 24 November: Thanksgiving)
                                                                                            The New Yorker Issue/November 21, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
Short Film Clip on The New Yorker (if time)
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
Yazmina Beverly:  The David Remnick Era (Tuesday)
"For Esme--With Love and Squalor" by J. D. Salinger (to carry over until Tuesday after Thanksgiving)
Begin Synthesis
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
["The Year of Spaghetti" by Haruki Murakami (for discussion during last week of class, if time permits)]

THE CRITICS
POEMS



Week Fifteen   (29 November, 1 December)   The New Yorker Issue/November 28, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
Yazmina Beverly: Andrea Lee, "Brothers and Sisters Around the World"  (Tuesday)
"For Esme--With Love and Squalor" by J. D. Salinger (Tuesday)
Jamaica Kincaid, "A Walk to the Jetty" from Annie John (Thursday)
"So Much Water So Close to Home" from What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver (to carry over)
Lindsay Chudzik:  Jhumpa Lahiri, "The Third and Final Continent" (Thursday)
"Love and Obstacles" by Aleksandar Hemon (for discussion next week, if time permits)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


Week Sixteen (6, 8 December)   The New Yorker Issue/ December 5, 2005
GOINGS ON ABOUT TOWN
Final Papers due 8 December, last day of class
THE TALK OF THE TOWN
[FEATURES: FACT /FICTION]
"So Much Water So Close to Home" from What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver (Tuesday)
"Errand" by Raymond Carver from The New Yorker, 1 June 1987 (for Tuesday--to be uploaded)
"The Year of Spaghetti" by Haruki Murakami (if time permits)
"Love and Obstacles" by Aleksandar Hemon (if time permits)
THE CRITICS
POEMS


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