Fr. Wulfstan Clough, O.S.B.
Office: 408 Placid Hall
Hours: 9:30-10:20, 12:15-1:30 Mondays & Wednesdays
3:45-5:00 Tuesdays
Phone: x2150
email: wclough@email.stvincent.edu
How many times have you seen a movie and said (or heard someone else say), "I’m disappointed; I liked the book better," or, "That was even better than the book"? In this course we will explore the question of why this is so. What makes a novel succeed as a novel, and a movie as a movie? And what does that tell us about the differences between a novel and a movie: differences in intention, audience, etc.?
During the semester we will be reading four novels and watching the film versions of those novels. In our discussions we will focus on novel and film in relation to each other. How are they similar? How are they different? Why were certain changes made? Has the focus and theme of the story changed, and how? Was the cast well-chosen? Why or why not? What was the novel able to do that the film could not, and vice versa? There will be no shortage of questions to ask or areas to expore.
One purpose of this inquiry is to examine the novel and the film as genres. How does a novel work? How does a film work? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each genre? I hope to aid you in developing a greater appreciation for each genre, and to help you understand what problems a filmmaker faces in bringing to the screen a popular or classic novel.
We will also discuss cultural, political, and social contexts of these works. In some cases the films addressed themselves to very different audiences and social concerns than did the novels (this is especially true of Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now), and these differences affected the ways they were made. In preparing for our class discussions, you should familiarize yourselves, therefore, with the historical and cultural contexts of the films as opposed to those of the novels. How might these differences (or similarities) provide a reason for certain decisions made by the novelist or the director?
There will be no in-class tests in this class. Rather, your progress will be measured largely by means of four reaction papers of varying length. In these papers you will focus on certain similarities and differences between the novels and the films made from those novels. Your general thesis should be whether the film was a successful adaption, and why or why not? More specific directions for each reaction paper will be given at the appropriate times. Each pair of novels and films is different, and so the specific focus will be different for each paper; I will therefore distribute questions and guidelines to help you as you write.
Please turn in your reaction papers on the dates specified on the syllabus. If you have a problem getting a particular paper done by the deadline, please see me, ahead of time if at all possible; I may be open to granting you an extension if you have a legitimate excuse. Papers turned in late without explanation or without a legitimate excuse will be penalized one full letter grade. Papers turned in more than one class (one week) late without sufficient excuse will not be accepted and will receive a zero.
In a class of this length, few things are more deadly than listening to an instructor drone on non-stop the whole time. For this reason, class participation is vitally important. I am anxious to get your reactions and your insights, and I will be relying on you to carry much of the class. The quantity and quality of your paricipation will count heavily toward your final grade in the course.
The class participation grade will be determined according to the following criteria:
A: Attends all classes and is always well prepared. Regularly volunteers information. Contributions are original and thought-provoking. Goes beyond classroom material to include information from other reading and study, or from personal experience.
B: Attends all classes or may have missed one; is often well-prepared. Regularly volunteers information, or responds readily when called upon with appropriate answers. Contributions show some ability to analyze and synthesize, and often include information from outside sources. May be more a synthesizer of given information than an original thinker.
C: May have missed one class. Usually prepares for class adequately. Does not usually volunteer information. Knows the answers when called on, although contributions to class discussion are often routine; can restate material covered in class well, but does not often go beyond it.
D: Has missed more than one class. Usually seems unprepared, and does not usually volunteer information. If called upon, may or may not know the answer. Few contributions to class discussion, and these are mainly reiterations of what has already been said.
F: Has missed more than two classes. Generally unprepared. Never volunteers information, rarely or never responds appropriately when called on.
Attendance: Since this class meets only once a week, attendance is vitally important. I can allow only one missed class before your absence affects your grade; every unexcused absense beyond that will lower your final mark by a full letter grade, in addition to hurting your class participation grade. Remember that missing a single class means missing a full week's worth of work.
If you must miss a class for some reason, please let me know ahead of time if possible. If you are ill, please inform me upon your return. But please let me know; if you don’t, your absence is unexcused.
Late arrivals/early dismissals: Please be on time for each class and stay until dismissed. If you are having trouble arriving on time or must leave early, please let me know. Any combination of three unexcused late arrivals or early departures equals one unexcused absence.
Final mark: Your final grade for this course will be determined according to the following scale:
Final note: If you are having problems of any kind, please let me know. Don’t stay away out of shyness or fear.
Aug. 26: Introduction to course. Basic elements of film and novel.
Sept. 2: NOVEL: Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird.
9: FILM: To Kill a Mockingbird.
16: Discussion of novel and film: To Kill a Mockingbird.
23: NOVEL: Grooms, Forrest Gump. Response paper I due.
30: FILM: Forrest Gump.
Oct. 7: Discussion of novel and film: Forrest Gump.
14: Extended weekend. No class meeting.
21: NOVEL: Shelley, Frankenstein. Response paper II due.
28: FILM: Frankenstein, Karloff version (1931).
Nov. 4: FILM: Frankenstein, Brannagh version (1995).
11: Discussion of novel and films: Frankenstein.
18: NOVEL: Conrad, Heart of Darkness. Reaction paper III due.
25: FILM: Apocalypse Now!
Dec. 2: Discussion of Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now!
Review of course. Evaluations.
9: Final exam week. Response paper IV due.