Department of English

This is a course in writing the personal essay, a creative form of non-fiction. The readings are meant primarily as inspiration for your own writing, and we will analyze the essays as literary forms. You will be asked to write 5 short and 1 long essay. You will draw on your own memory and experience and write in your own voice--or discover and develop that voice. Through the reading and analysis of the writings of Esmeralda Santiago, Sandra Cisneros, Gloria Anzaldua, Julia Alvarez, Richard Rodriguez, Piri Thomas, Lucha Corpi, Cherr=EDe Moraga, Cecile Pineda, Judith Ortiz Cofer, and others, we will explore the issues Latinos must face in the construction of their identity: immigration, race, language, culture, acculturation. Each class period will be divided between discussing the readings and discussing each other's drafts in a workshop setting. You will be asked to xerox your own work for class critique and to give thoughtful, constructive feedback on the work of your fellow student writers. You will also keep a writer's journal, from which you will be asked to share= excerpts.=20

Attendance and meeting deadlines is essential in this course, in submitting your own drafts, giving critiques of others' drafts, and doing the reading. Keep a portfolio of all the work you do: drafts, revisions, critiques of other students' work and submit it at the end of the semester. I won't grade your work during the semester. At the end of the course, you will submit the portfolio, which will constitute 75% of your grade. The other 25% will be classwork: attendance, preparation, participation, etc. = =20