Syllabus

ENGW 104 Writing, Literacy & DiscourseDr. SandosharajSpring 2015Office: LK 234 1010-1050am in LK 118Office Hours: MWF 7:30-830am 110-150pm in LK 244Email: sandosharaj@gmail.com |

STANDARD DEPARTMENTAL 104 SYLLABUS

“People evolve a language in order to describe and thus control their circumstances, or in order not to be submerged by a reality that they cannot articulate.” –James Baldwin

Course description: The eloquence of the spoken word and the devotion to writing—the art of language by line—have long been and continue to be highly valued in African American culture. James Baldwin succinctly expresses the importance of this valuation in the epigraph above, which affirms the goal of the First-Year Writing sequence (and all English courses, in fact) at Howard to carry forward and transmit to you a liberating tradition in reading and writing skills, with the full expectation that you will use these skills in your and the world’s best interest. Indeed, you are heirs of a literate tradition that has employed inscription systems and languages alike in the articulation of the self and the articulation of the other to encourage human rights and freedom of and for all peoples to live productively and compassionately.

To be submerged in an ineffable reality all too often leads to war on varying fronts. Perhaps this is why Wayne Booth declared, “The only real alternative to war is rhetoric.” Professor Booth made this statement in response to the media spin cycle and political punditry that led to the invasion of Iraq following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The usefulness of Booth’s insight in our case is that it frames the value of rhetoric and writing for students such as you. Rhetoric and writing provide an increased awareness of the various forms of communication that shape our ability to hear, understand, and engage others and, as a result, to find solutions that do not rely on violence as deterrents. To develop careful and ethical approaches to...