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This se­mes­ter, we will ex­plore the el­e­ments of fic­tion by read­ing (mostly) twen­ti­eth and twenty-first cen­tury Amer­i­can lit­er­a­ture. Through an in­ten­sive study of se­lected short sto­ries and a novel, using crit­i­cal read­ing, dis­cus­sion, and writ­ing, stu­dents will be­come fa­mil­iar with im­por­tant themes and method­olo­gies of fic­tion. Through­out the course, we will an­a­lyze and dis­cuss how au­thors use tra­di­tional el­e­ments of fic­tion (set­ting, point of view, etc.) to ex­press their ideas and to de­velop their plots and char­ac­ters.

This semester, we will explore the elements of fiction by reading (mostly) twentieth and twenty-first century American literature. Through an intensive study of selected short stories and a novel, using critical reading, discussion, and writing, students will become familiar with important themes and methodologies of fiction. Throughout the course, we will analyze and discuss how authors use traditional elements of fiction (setting, point of view, etc.) to express their ideas and to develop their plots and characters.

All writ­ing is cre­ative, in­clud­ing the writ­ing you do for school, in­ter­net posts to so­cial media, and text/email mes­sages. Where there was a blank page–vir­tual or oth­er­wise–and you fill it with your words, you have, in fact, drawn on your in­tel­lec­tual re­sources to cre­ate pat­terns of mean­ing with those words. “Cre­ative writ­ing,” how­ever, gen­er­ally refers to po­etry, fic­tion, drama, and some forms of non-fic­tion–mem­oirs and nar­ra­tives that use the tech­niques of story-telling. We will focus on un­der­stand­ing how form and mean­ing work to­gether and on un­der­stand­ing the types and com­plex­i­ties of each genre–no­tably, fic­tion, non-fic­tion, po­etry, drama, and cross-gen­res–so each stu­dent can begin to de­velop their unique, in­di­vid­ual voice.

All writing is creative, including the writing you do for school, internet posts to social media, and text/email messages. Where there was a blank page–virtual or otherwise–and you fill it with your words, you have, in fact, drawn on your intellectual resources to create patterns of meaning with those words. “Creative writing,” however, generally refers to poetry, fiction, drama, and some forms of non-fiction–memoirs and narratives that use the techniques of story-telling. We will focus on understanding how form and meaning work together and on understanding the types and complexities of each genre–notably, fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama, and cross-genres–so each student can begin to develop their unique, individual voice.