Art/Work: Labor and Literature in the US, 1900-present

ENGL 398.47-01

Instructor: Jeff Allred
Class Meetings: TF 11:10-12:25, HW 509
Office Hours: T 1-3pm and by appointment in HW 1237
Contact me: 212.772.5170 or jeff.allred@hunter.cuny.edu
Class Blog Site: http://laborlit.wordpress.com

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the semester, students will:
Have a broad knowledge of literary representations of work in the 20thC US across
several genres
Be able to relate the aesthetics of these texts to their social and cultural contexts,
especially through critical readings
Have developed their writing skills and especially close reading/analytic skills in
careful engagement with literary prose.
Have learned to engage an audience of peers as well as a broader public orally and
in writing, using WordPress blogs and traditional writing assignments.


Course Schedule (**besides the books listed at the end, all readings are available via
the web in .pdf)

date readings writing
Week 1 Introduction
1/28 Introduction, requirements, assignments
Optional reading: intro to Best of Times, Worst of Times (link via blog)

Week 2-3
Jack London and the labor of words
1/31 Jack London, Martin Eden (1909) (chs 1-8)
** meet in Lab B (1001B Hunter North) for primer on WordPress etc.

2/4 London, Martin Eden (chs 9-18)
Wilson, Jack London: The Brain Worker from The Labor of Words
Blog post #1
2/7 London, Martin Eden (chs 19-28)
2/11 London, Martin Eden (finish)
Week 3-8
The art of work: representing labor
2/14 Pietro Di Donato, Christ in Concrete (1939) (parts 1-2) Blog post #2
2/18 Di Donato, Christ in Concrete (part 3)
Entin, from Sensational Modernism

2/21 Di Donato, Christ in Concrete (parts 4-5)
2/25 Harvey Swados, On the Line (1957) (chs 1-3) Blog post #3
2/28 Swados, On the Line (chs 4-6)
Swados, A Note on the Workers Cultural Degradation

3/4 Swados, On the Line (finish)
Aronowitz, from False Promises
Topics: short essay
3/7 Studs Terkel/Harvey Pekar, Working (1974; 2009) intros + 1-58 Blog post #4
3/11 Studs Terkel/Harvey Pekar, Working, 59-126
3/14 Studs Terkel/Harvey Pekar, Working, finish
3/18 Catchup/review Short essay due
Week 9-14
The work of art: labor and leisure in late capitalism
3/21 Kenneth Fearing, The Big Clock (1946) (1-99)
3/25 Kenneth Fearing, The Big Clock (finish)
3/28 Kenneth Fearing, The Big Clock (review)
Primary documents from Time Inc. employees (.pdf)

4/1 Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed (2001)(Intro + ch 1) Blog post #5
4/4 Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed (ch 2)
Readers reactions from Harpers
Topics: final essay
4/8 Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed (ch 3 )
Subsidized Living: Reflections on Bringing Nickel and Dimed to the
Stage

4/11 Hari Kunzru, Transmission (2004) (pp. 1-87)
4/25 Kunzru, Transmission (pp. 88-185)
Andrew Ross, from No Collar
elevator pitch for
final essay in class
(post on blog and
deliver orally)
4/29 Kunzru, Transmission (finish)
5/2 George Packer, from The Unwinding (2012), pp. 1-119
Optional: deadline to
submit intro/draft
5/6 Packer, from The Unwinding, p. 120-189
5/9 Packer, from The Unwinding, p. 189-276
5/13 TBA Final essay due

Responsibilities:
Six blog posts of 400-800 words + informal commenting on others posts
Short essay (1500-2500 wds), based on topics I will distribute
Final essay: research paper based on original research (3-4,000 words).
regular attendance and participation in all discussions

Grading:
I will give detailed guidelines for the blog posts, exam, and encyclopedia entries
separately. Your grade will be calculated as follows: blogging (35%); short essay (20%);
final essay (30%); participation (15%).

A FEW GENERAL POLICIES:

a) regarding plagiarism
Hunter College regards acts of academic dishonesty (e.g. plagiarism, cheating on examinations,
obtaining unfair advantage, and falsification of records and official documents) as serious offenses
against the values of intellectual honesty. The college is committed to enforcing the CUNY Policy on
Academic Integrity and will pursue cases of academic dishonesty according to the Hunter College
Integrity Procedures.

b) regarding students with disabilities
In compliance with the American Disability Act of 1990 (ADA) and with Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Hunter College is committed to ensuring educational parity and
accommodations for all students with documented disabilities and/or medical conditions. It is
recommended that all students with documented disabilities (Emotional, Medical, Physical and/or
Learning) consult the Office of Accessibility located in Room 1124 East to secure necessary
academic accommodations. For further information and assistance please call (212-772-4857)
/TTY (212-650-3230).

c) regarding attendance and participation
I do take attendance and expect you in class each day. Failure to attend will significantly impact
your grade; more than four unexcused absences will result in a failing grade. Im a reasonable
person, so always get in touch via email in advance if you need to miss class. I become less
reasonable with excuses that come after the fact. Nor is being there enough: you have to come
prepared to put away the phones and distractions and engage the texts rigorously. I will embarrass
you if you are texting or otherwise engaging in distracted/distracting behavior.

d) regarding technology
We will use web resources in this course: a course blog and perhaps the course Blackboard site. I
plan to use Bb only for its gradebook function, if that; we will use the blog to share informal
responses to texts and for any announcements from me about the course. We will also use email for
communication. It is therefore a basic requirement for you to have a functioning email account and
to check it frequently. I prefer that you use your Hunter email address for all course-related
correspondence: getting email from your personal accounts, with handles like numbnutz34 or
darealcontenda (both real examples), creates spam filter problems and is just plain embarrassing.
But if you trust a personal address more than your Hunter account, I can arrange to use that
instead.

Books:[available at Shakes and Co. (939 Lexington Avenue); all other texts are available via blog
site]

Jack London, Martin Eden (ISBN-10: 0140187723)
Pietro Di Donato, Christ in Concrete (ISBN-10: 0451214218)
Harvey Pekar/StudsTerkel, Working (ISBN-10: 1595583211)
Kenneth Fearing, The Big Clock (NYRB P, ISBN-10: 1590171810)
Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed (Picador, ISBN-10: 0312626681)
Hari Kunzru, Transmission (ISBN: 0452286514)
George Packer, The Unwinding (FSG, ISBN-10: 0374534608)

** you are welcome to shop around, but make sure to get the edition with the corresponding ISBN.