NCHU Course Outline
Course Name (中) 美國文學:二十世紀迄今(3027)
(Eng.) American Literatrue since the 20th Century
Offering Dept Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures
Course Type Required Credits 3 Teacher LIN, JIAN-GUANG
Department Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures/Undergraduate Language 中/英文 Semester 2025-SPRING
Course Description This course is a survey of American literature, beginning with
Walt Whitman to modernism. Students will read a diverse of literary works renowned
in the history of American literature. Through reading these works, students are
expected to have a mastery of a significant portion of American literary heritage,
improve their skills in reading and analyzing literary works, and cultivate their critical
thinking ability. Besides the instructor’s lecture, this course also requires discussion
and active class participation, so it is very important that students taking this course
prepare lessons before the class.
Prerequisites
self-directed learning in the course Y
Relevance of Course Objectives and Core Learning Outcomes(%) Teaching and Assessment Methods for Course Objectives
Course Objectives Competency Indicators Ratio(%) Teaching Methods Assessment Methods
By the end of the course, the students are expected to (1) identify
key ideas, authors, and works in the history of American literature before 1865, (2)
better understand the themes, metaphors, symbols, and other literary devices of a
certain literary work, (3) analyze literary works from historical, cultural, or
ideological perspectives.
1.Foreign language skills
2.Professional expertise
50
50
Discussion
Lecturing
Attendance
Oral Presentation
Quiz
Course Content and Homework/Schedule/Tests Schedule
Week Course Content
Week 1 Course introduction; Whitman: Song of Myself
Week 2 Quiz 1; Dickens: poems; Mark Twain’s “The Notorious Jumping Frog”; Huckleberry Finn
Week 3 Quiz 2; Huckleberry Finn; Henry James
Week 4 Quiz 3; Henry James
Week 5 Quiz 4; Booker T. Washington
Week 6 Quiz 5; W. E. B. Du Bois
Week 7 運動會補假
Week 8 Quiz 6; Stephen Crane, “The Open Boat”
Week 9 Midterm exam
Week 10 Quiz 7; E. A. Robinson/Amy Lowell / Robert Frost
Week 11 Quiz 8; Carl Sandburg/ Wallace Stevens
Week 12 Quiz 9; William Carlos Williams / Pound / H. D.
Week 13 Quiz 10; O’Nell’s Long Day’s Journey into Night
Week 14 Quiz 11; O’Nell’s Long Day’s Journey into Night
T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Pruffrock”
Week 15 Quiz 12; T. S. Eliot’s The Waste Land
Week 16 Final exam
Week 17 Self-directed learning (read Tennessee William’s A Streetcar Named Desire or watch its film adaptation)
Week 18 Self-directed learning; report on Tennessee William’s A Streetcar Named Desire or its film adaptation (optional; additional points for the term grade)
Evaluation
1. Midterm exam: 30%
2. Final exam: 30%
3. Class discussion and participation (including activities in Zuvio): 20%
4. Quiz：10% (The quiz will cover the reading materials of the week. The quiz coverage will also be announced at “I-Learning.”)
5. Attendance: 10% (Students who are absent for more than five times will fail in the course)
Textbook & other References
Norton Anthology of American Literature.
Teaching Aids & Teacher's Website
Norton Anthology of American Literature.
Office Hours
Tuesday 13:00-15:00, and/or by appointment.
Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs
04.Quality Educationinclude experience courses：N
Please respect the intellectual property rights and use the materials legally.Please repsect gender equality.
Update Date, year/month/day：None Printed Date, year/month/day：2025 / 1 / 22
The second-hand book website：http://www.myub.com.tw/