Course Overview

CMPL 120 is designed to familiarize students with the great works of literature written during the earlier part of the Western tradition. Our primary task will be to learn to understand and appreciate these texts, which are in many ways quite different from those of the modern world. We will also try to gain some general knowledge of Western literary traditions from classical antiquity to neoclassicism, much of which will be relevant to the reading of later, more modern works of fiction.

While we will concentrate on analyzing and enjoying each text on its own terms, we will also be making comparisons and following some common themes throughout the course. Among these themes will be the various possibilities and problems of male heroism, the journey or the quest, the representation of women, and the relationship of erotic desire to the ideological values of a particular work and time. We will also explore the different narrative strategies deployed by these authors to represent their fictional worlds.

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Textbooks

Course materials can be obtained from the Higher Grounds bookstore at the Friday Center either by ordering online or by printing and mailing the book order form. Most of these works are also available through other online sources, but be careful to obtain the same editions.

There are six required texts for this class:

• Virgil, The Aeneid, trans. Fitzgerald, Vintage Classics (ISBN 0679729526)
• Chrétien de Troyes, Arthurian Romances, trans. Kibler, Penguin Classics (ISBN 0140445218)
• Dante, The Portable Dante, trans. Musa, Penguin (ISBN 0142437549)
• Boccaccio, The Decameton, trans. G.H. McWilliam, Penguin Classics (ISBN 0140449302)
• Cervantes, The Adventures of Don Quixote, trans. Cohen, Penguin Classics (ISBN 0142437239)
• Milton, Paradise Lost, Penguin Classics (ISBN 0140424393)
• Voltaire, Candide,  trans. Butt, Penguin Classics (ISBN 0140440046)

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Requirements and Expectations

You are required to read two texts in their entirety (The Aeneid and Candide), two long stories (“The Knight with the Lion” and "The Knight of the Cart" from The Arthurian Romances), and selections from the remaining texts (The Inferno, The Decameron, Don Quixote, and Paradise Lost). You must also read all of the online lessons, participate in discussion forums, complete all of the written assignments, and take a final exam.

In the Lesson Schedule you will find links to the fifteen lessons that comprise the course. Each lesson includes introductory material and questions for the discussion forum. You will need to finish the assigned readings in time to participate in the discussion forum. You must read every lesson, explore every link, post to the discussion forum every week, and submit assignments on schedule. For each week of the course, you should expect to log on at least three times and spend about nine hours of study time in addition to your reading time. This timetable is not a rule, but a guideline to help you judge your involvement in class.

Some of the lessons include writing assignments that will be submitted via e-mail. The writing assignments vary in lengthand they are explained in detail in each lesson. Please e-mail your assignments as attachments either saved as Microsoft Word documents (.doc), or in rich text format (.rtf). Do not paste the text into the body of an e-mail message. To save a document in rich text format, choose the "rich text format" or ".rtf" option under "Save As..." on most word processors. Papers must be in my e-mail inbox by 11:30 pm Eastern Time on the day they are due.

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About the Discussion Forum

We will use an electronic discussion forum to discuss the works we'll study. In addition to answering the questions posed in each week’s lesson, you can use the forum to post comments and questions, read the comments of other students, post responses, and read comments from me.

I will expect you to respond to each of the posted questions by the final day of the lesson (usually a Friday). In addition to posting your own responses, you will also be required to make at least one additional post for each lesson.You may respond to someone else's posts or you may post in the optional "Questions/Comments" section. If everyone contributes regularly to the discussion forum, we will have a great class!

I expect a wide variety of responses in the discussion forum. The pleasure of reading and interpreting comes from interesting debates, not an adherence to the standard reading. Don't be afraid to put forward a bold or unusual idea—those are often the most worthwhile!

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Grading and Final Exam

Your grade for the course will be determined as follows:

• Writing assignments: 50 percent
• Class participation (via discussion forums): 30 percent
• Final exam: 20 percent

Your final examination will be scheduled during one of several three-hour periods between 9 am and 5 pm Eastern Time. As the time for the final exam draws closer, I will send out a list of available time slots and you may choose one that best fits your schedule. I will then send the exam questions to you via e-mail at the beginning of the time period you have selected, and you will have three hours in which to send me your answers in response. More information on this process will be provided later.

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Honor Code

Remember that as a student of UNC-Chapel Hill, you are bound by the University's Honor Code:

"It shall be the responsibility of every student at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to obey and support the enforcement of the Honor Code, which prohibits lying, cheating, or stealing when these actions involve academic processes or University students or academic personnel acting in an official capacity."

This code applies to all writing assignments, discussion forum postings, and to the final exam.

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Course Mechanics

Blackboard

The discussion forums are accessed through a software package called Blackboard, and you will need to log in to Blackboard using a unique identifier known as your UNC Onyen (Only Name You'll Ever Need) and Onyen password.

There is a link to the Blackboard site in the gray navigation bar at the top of every page in this course. Click on that link, and then use your Onyen to log in to Blackboard. Click on the "CMPL 120" link, and you will see navigation buttons on the left side of the screen labeled Announcements, Discussion Forum, and so on.

If you experience problems accessing Blackboard, this is what you should do:  

• If you do not already have a UNC Onyen, go to the Onyen Web site and follow the instructions for creating an Onyen.
• If you have an Onyen but have forgotten it (or the password), go to the Onyen Web site.
• If you have your Onyen but can't log in to Blackboard, contact Janice Durham at the Friday Center.
• If you can log in to Blackboard but can't find this course listed, contact Janice Durham at the Friday Center.
• If you can't locate a discussion forum in Blackboard, contact the Instructional Designer.
• If you have other technical problems while using Blackboard, contact Blackboard Help (use the Help button in Blackboard, or call 919-962-HELP).

Library Services and E-reserves

Students enrolled in Carolina Courses Online can access online library resources from the UNC Library System by linking to Library Services for Distance Education Students. This site includes information on using general online reference works as well as accessing e-reserves.

If you are using an off-campus computer, you will need to enter your ONYEN and password to access the e-reserve system. The UNC library staff is available to assist any students who have difficulties accessing online library resources. If you encounter difficulties, please report your problem by visiting this Web page for reporting a problem.

Using E-mail

All communication from me will go to your UNC Onyen e-mail address (the one that appears when you post to the discussion forum). Off-campus users can access their UNC e-mail account using Webmail. You can have your Onyen e-mail forwarded to a different e-mail address by clicking “Forward email” on the Onyen Web site.

If you use a filter on your e-mail account, you are responsible for ensuring that it does not prevent you from receiving messages from me, the course listserv, or Friday Center staff. Hotmail users should be aware that Hotmail will block messages sent from within Blackboard because Blackboard uses "blind carbon copy" to protect privacy. We recommend that you use your UNC Onyen e-mail account rather than Hotmail for this course.

Submitting Assignments

It is extremely important for you to save copies of any work you send to me via e-mail. If I don't receive your work, you must have a duplicate copy, indicating the date sent, to prove that you submitted the assignment on time. It is your responsibility to maintain copies of your sent e-mails, as there is no way to guarantee that any e-mail message will be delivered.

Please check your e-mail software to see how it manages sent and saved messages. Some software automatically deletes messages one month after they have been sent; others only save messages if they are filed in folders; others save messages received but not those sent. You may need to send yourself a copy of your e-mailed assignment at the same time you send it to me, or you may need to print a copy of the e-mail message and any attachments to keep in your paper files. No matter how your system works, make sure you know how to save a copy of all work that you submit to me and that you save the copy for several months beyond the end of the course.

Other Questions

If you have questions regarding

• the content of the course and your progress, contact me. There is a link to my e-mail address at the top of every lesson page. Please include "CMPL 120 CCO" and your name in the subject line of your e-mail.
• problems with this Web site, including bad links, contact the Instructional Designer at the Friday Center
• enrollment, Onyen, credits, withdrawal, and so on, contact the Student Services staff at the Friday Center for Continuing Education (phone 919-962-1134 or 800-862-5669).

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Course Schedule

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Lesson 1