Tuesday & Thursday 8:00-9:30 am

215 Dwinelle Hall (see campus map.)

Instructors:

Kris Paulsen | kpaulsen@berkeley.edu | Office Hours:  Tues. 9:45 – 10:45, or by appointment. Rhetoric Library, 7337 Dwinelle Hall.

James Harker | jharker1@berkeley.edu | Office Hours: Thurs. 9:45-10:45, or by appointment. Rhetoric Library, 7337 Dwinelle Hall.

Our mailboxes are in the 7408 Dwinelle Hall, the Rhetoric Department Main Office.

Please include “Rhetoric 1B” or “Technological Man” in the subject of every email you send to the instructors.

Course Description:

The goal of this course is to develop the reading, writing, and research skills necessary for college-level papers. Building on the argumentative skills acquired in Rhetoric 1A, students will produce three papers of increasing length and complexity. Research, critical analysis and close reading will be the formal foci of this course. Students will learn how to analyze multiple texts in a single paper while exploring the topic of “Man and Technology.” This course will address visual, literary, and theoretical texts that deal with technological developments, and how we have changed our conceptions of the world, others and ourselves through various technologies such as writing, photography, weapons, and robotics.

Required Texts:

Plato, The Phaedrus; Mary Shelly, Frankenstein; Marshal McLuhan, Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man; a course reader available at University Copy (2425 Channing Way, just west of Telegraph. See map).

Course website:

Find handouts, assignments, peer edit worksheets, and other helpful items on the course web page. You can also find the page through the on-line schedule of classes. Find our class click on course website follow the link to the external website.

Check the website for copies of handouts, peer edit worksheets, paper assignments, etc. On occasion you will be expected to post to the course blog. If you miss a class, please check the blog for any assignments.

Coursework:

Reading: You are responsible for all assigned reading and will be expected to have completed the reading for the day before coming to class. Readings may be added or removed from the syllabus. Changes will be announced in class and on the course blog.

Response Essays: Students will have to post response essays to the course Blog several times throughout the semester. Each student will belong to a response group – A, B, C, or D. Each group will be responsible for four (4) posts during the semester. Please see the syllabus for each group.  Responses must be posted by noon the day before the reading is discussed in class. Refer to the “Guidelines for Response Essays” on the course website before posting.

Writing: For this course, you will submit a minimum of 32 pages of writing, which is the university requirement to satisfy the second part of the Reading and Composition sequence. You will submit three papers, each of which will be revised and resubmitted. You must submit every paper in order to pass the course.

You must hand in your paper in a standard folder. This folder should contain all previous papers you have submitted so that the instructors can evaluate and help with the improvement of your writing from one paper to the next.

For each first draft of a paper, you need to bring two copies on the due date.

Papers are due at the beginning of class on their due date. Late papers will not be accepted.

Plagiarism is grounds for expulsion and/or failure in the class.

Homework assignments: You will complete writing exercises from your course reader and from hand-outs. These exercises will be assigned in class and are due at the beginning of class on the specified date.

Quizes: You will be given short quizzes over the reading.  The quizzes might or might not be announced in advance.

Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. More than one absence will seriously affect your grade. Lateness is rude, disruptive, and will not be tolerated. Three late days will be counted as one absence.

Disabilities: Disabilities will be accommodated. If you need disability-related accommodations in this class, if you have emergency medical information you wish to share with us, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please inform us immediately. Please see us privately after class or in office hours.

Grading Breakdown:

Essays: 60 points

Homework and Quizzes: 20 points

Participation: 20 points

In assigning your participation grade, we will take into consideration your participation in discussion and group work, attendance at office hours, and your effort and improvement throughout the semester.